On Saturday, May 6, LightHouse is bringing you two exciting in-person community programs, facilitated by Adult Programs Coordinator extraordinaire, Maia Scott, right at our San Francisco headquarters.
Improvisational Dance Performance Workshop with Jess Curtis/Gravity
The partnership with Jess Curtis/Gravity continues with this double shot of improvisational dance classes held over two consecutive Saturdays.
Choreographer and director Jess Curtis, and blind and sighted members of his dance/performance company, Gravity, will offer two accessible classes in Improvisational Dance Performance. Using techniques developed in their own accessible performance work such as tactile wayfinding, goal-ball style tactile floor markings, touch-based partner and group dancing, verbal movement self-description and group audio location, they will introduce you to a world of possibilities for moving joyfully and freely in playful space with other bodies.
So, what is improvisational dance? As Maia explains, “If you’ve ever turned on your favorite song in your room by yourself and cut loose without planning any steps or actions, that is the very basic form of improvisational dance. As an art form, it can start with an intention, an idea, a prop, a basic set of gestures, or some other choreographed score. From there, dancers, and non-dancers alike, are invited to work from their heart, intuition, and physical sensibilities and abilities and then create either solo performance or a response to others sharing space with them.
“I am excited to host Jess Curtis, to see what improvisational techniques, exercises, prompts and constraints he offers to us, allowing each of us within our own body, sensibilities and comfort levels to create dances from the heart.”
No experience is necessary for this class!
What: Improvisational Dance Performance Workshop with Jess Curtis/Gravity
When: Saturdays, May 6 & 13, from 10:00 am to noon
Where: LightHouse San Francisco at 1155 Market
RSVP: Maia Scott at Mscott@lighthouse-sf.org or 415-694-7608
Note: This event and related materials are made possible in part by a grant from The Creative Work Fund, a program of the Walter and Elise Haas Fund that also is supported by The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.
World Labyrinth Day – Meditation Walk at One, as One (in-person)
Maia continues to bring new and innovative programming to LightHouse with a tactile labyrinth walk. What is a labyrinth? A labyrinth is a symbolic pattern with one path that winds its way to the center and back out again on the same path. In modern times, many walks utilize them as a walking meditation for peace of mind, community healing and solidarity.
Maia is a Veriditas certified Labyrinth Facilitator who will share her experience with the practice. She details how she got started with labyrinths.
“Quite a few years ago, I participated in a labyrinth walk at a facility where I worked. They say you can’t get lost in the labyrinth, but I did. I kept returning to the entrance until finally after trying four times, I made it to the center. To make a long story short, I realized that I was the lucky one, having the opportunity to walk around on this beautiful pattern longer than everyone. I realized that doing things a bit slower than everyone else isn’t always a bad thing. The journey is the reward. From there, I realized that there was more for me to learn from this walking in circles meditation thing. So, I started going to Grace Cathedral for a regular labyrinth walk, joined their guild as a volunteer, and, because of my work, and the parallels to things I love to do, decided to become certified as a facilitator.”
She then went on to describe why walking labyrinth is a good meditation:
“It is a good meditation tool because of the requirement for the walker to really focus on the path in front of them, taking one step at a time, and really being in the moment. Being in community with others is also a great perk.”
So, join Maia, who will explain the labyrinth process and offer a walk with chimes and other sound healing instruments
What: World Labyrinth Day – Meditation Walk at One, as One
When: Saturday, May 6, from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm
Where: LightHouse San Francisco at 1155 Market
RSVP: Maia Scott at Mscott@lighthouse-sf.org or 415-694-7608
