Join us to discover and practice Authentic Movement on April 7, 9 and 10 at GWDC. Isabelle Rousseau will be teaching 3 classes to introduce you to and or hone your practice.

We will move from our proprioception and tune into our sensory selves through this multidimensional discipline. Authentic Movement originates from Mary Starks Whitehouse when she started practicing what she called “movement-in-depth” as a dancer interested in Jungian analysis. The word authentic comes from the same root as “author” and “authority”. In this practice, we want to get closer to our senses and to unaltered kinaesthetic life in ourselves. I will teach classic forms in this series. It’s simple, profound and can complement and enhance all of your movement and artistic practices. We’ll learn about movers and witnesses, mirror neurones and forms for practice. I’ve been trained by Judith Koltai and Val Campbell. I’m part of the Guild of Embodied Practice. I’ve taught Authentic Movement through Mile Zero Dance, workshops and classes, I’ve led peer groups and I practice it regularly as part of my artistic training.

Isabelle Rousseau is a dance artist based in Amiskwaciwaskahigan (Edmonton), on Treaty 6 territory. She is a dancer, a choreographer and a teacher. She first trained as an actor at l’UQÀM in Montreal where she also started training in dance. There was a time when she was a professional radio announcer. She loves any form of communication, especially non verbal. She is devoted to dance as a catalyst for personal transformation and social innovation. Her dance roots include experiential anatomy, authentic movement, contemporary dance, ballet, hip hop, traditional dance and butoh. She loves creating engaging and welcoming spaces where all are welcomed to express themselves. Rave culture has been a long-lasting influence on her dance practice, as well as the decades she has spent alone in the studio exploring and creating. She’s grateful that nowadays many people join her in class or studios to dance and expand bodies and minds together. As a child, she would listen to music and dance in the living room. She remembers taking creative dance classes in the elementary school gym just around the corner and loving it so much, feeling so happy.