The lusty month of may - a ribbon series

Grab an imaginary ribbon, tie it on, and allow your imaginary perfect practice partner pull oh-so-gently. These selected, classic Awareness Through Movement® lessons are playful, simple, and familiar. Dance the with season.


The Merry Month of May

Ribbons 1 - Dance the Maypole

Variations on the “Minimal Lifting” as taught by Arlyn Zones, GCFT®, “Flexible Chest Series”

Grab a ribbon in your imagination, and circle the maypole, leaning into the ribbon to feel yourself in movement. Circle forward, shifting weight side-to-side and turning the head and torso to look towards the maypole and away. Dance clockwise and counterclockwise to work the left and right sides of the body.

This festive session takes off from a familiar, supine lesson where we kinesthetically connect the shoulders and hips: same side connections, diagonals, and all corners at once.

Set Up for supine:

  • Lying on a mat with support as needed for head and knees for supine

  • Alternatively - Seated on a flat-bottom, armless chair with knees and hips level

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The Merry Month of May

Ribbons 2 - The Ribbons Pull You
Variations on the “Ribbons and Gentle Fingers” as taught by Alan Questel, GCFT®

This time the ribbons of the maypole pull you. Pin on a rainbow of ribbons - on your heart, your upper back, your belly button and tailbone - and let the maypole guide you. The turning pole opens your chest and belly. And in your imagination, you tie some of the ribbons together to find connections from front and back, up and down.

Set Up for supine and side-lying :

  • Lying on mat supine with support for head and knees as needed. For side-lying - support for the head to keep nose in line with sternum, padding between knees if desired

  • OR side sitting at the edge of a flat-bottomed and armless chair, knees and hips level

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Set Up:

  • Lying on a mat

  • OR side sitting at the edge of a flat-bottomed and armless chair, knees and hips level

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Tine has it all connected. Photo by Helge Øverås - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0

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A Glimpse of Leg - 4 - Spiral to Sit

The graceful, elegant way to get up off the floor

A Variation of “Spiral to Sit” as taught Larry Goldfarb, GCFT®

The trick to this elegant way to spiral up from the floor is to create the momentum to spin around one hip.

Break Dancer in red

Our inspiration - a Break Dancer spirals from a back spin to standing

 

Set Up:

  • Lying on back and side on map

  • Have enough room to reach arms overhead and to kick legs back

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