I hope that my friends will share with us their experience with dancing classes and dancing in general; until then, here is a story about why you should dance as a couple.

Let me begin with what I already shared recently in this text on our blog. A client of mine who follows our Dance and The City blog wanted to take dance classes with his wife and he said to me: “I am trying to persuade my wife to go (to dancing classes). If nothing else, we will look into each other’s eyes for two hours”. He is right, dance is a great therapy for couples.

In Today magazine I found simple explanation why dance is good for couples. The article is written by Lois Elfman; she talked with professional ballroom dance champion Elena Grinenko: “As far as therapy for couples, it’s a great thing to do,” she says. “Dance teaches us a lot about the relationship between the male and the female.” Dancing requires good etiquette and communication, and the body language is unbeatable. (Source: Why dancing is like couples therapy (today.com))

Now in his seventh season on “Dancing With the Stars,” professional dancer Tony Dovolani says:

“It’s almost like you have a newfound love for each other,” Dovolani says. “Discovering new steps together teaches couples to interact with each other. They’re looking into each other’s eyes, anticipating the next move. It opens up energy channels of feeling and connection. It rejuvenates everything.” (Source: Why dancing is like couples therapy (today.com))

Dovolani says learning to dance teaches communication skills and fosters respect. The physical activity is a great stress reliever and the positive feelings about the shared experience make couples excited to carve out alone time. (Source: Why dancing is like couples therapy (today.com))

Of course, this all sounds very logical. But let’s see what research results show us about this topic and also what is the opinion of other therapists. This text is taken from: Why Marriage Counselors Recommend Dancing – Arthur Murray Studios

Dance: Refreshing marriage

Boredom is one of the top relationship killers according to the American Psychological Association (APA). The trouble is, it’s easy to let boredom seep into a long-term relationship. For healthy relationship it is necessary to talk openly and keep it interesting (source: Happy couples: How to keep your relationship healthy (apa.org))

The best thing you can do for your relationship is to start something new. Experts recommend breaking out of the routine and trying new things, states APA:

As it says in the article Why Marriage Counselors Recommend Dancing – Arthur Murray Studios: “Why is dance so good as something new? As we already have said, dance involves a physical connection. The contact causes the release of hormones (oxytocin) that help you feel love and connection with others. While dancing you have to coordinate with your partner. When you use your body language in this way, you’ll both feel much more emotionally attuned, studies show. Another study showed that: “couples report feeling more satisfied with their relationships and more in love with their partner.”

As the therapist, Dr. Hokule’a Borofsky in this text fully endorses dance as a form of therapy as affirmed through her own experience. Dance offers the perfect set of conditions to bring couples close together again. Dancing is, as she states, a flirtatious, sexy, fun, and exciting activity that can bring some of that honeymoon stage energy back to the relationship. Your heart beats faster, your palms might sweat, and the beat of the music lifts your spirit. Experiencing this with your partner offers you the chance to fall in love all over again, whether your relationship is on the rocks or not.

Dance eliminates dangerous boredom. With dancing, you never know what to expect. Your body must move, you have the chance to focus fully on your partner. With changing beats and moving feet, you’re constantly challenged to think of the next step and do it together. There’s no getting bored on the dance floor. Experiencing this newness with your partner opens up communication, joy, and fun”.

Facebook page Dancing in Delta summarise well benefits for dancing couples:

• Quality time
• Creates a strong bond
• Dancing is a teamwork
• Feelings are expressed

While we are waiting for our couple with three PhD titles to share their experience as dancing couple, we are sending you good vibrations and we do hope you dance most of the time!

SOURCES:

Why dancing is like couples therapy (today.com)

https://www.facebook.com/danceindelta/photos/pcb.4439353309435797/4439349749436153/

Happy couples: How to keep your relationship healthy (apa.org)

Why Marriage Counselors Recommend Dancing – Arthur Murray Studios

Photo: Pexels.com/Arina Krasnikova

Pexels.com/Polina Tankilevitch

Članak Dancing as Couples Therapy se pojavljuje prvo na Ples & Grad.

As a producer and choreographer of thematic, recent choreographies, Theme & Intention, he was inspired by Acceptance & Commitment Therapy, known as ACT (Acceptance & Commitment Therapy).

For Dance and the City, Falkner has prepared details of his choreography entitled:

Acceptance and commitment therapy

There are two motifs within ACT that I focused on:

• Personal awareness and mindfulness
• Being aware of thoughts and feelings without preconceived notions or bias

Personal awareness and mindfulness were particularly attractive motifs of ACT viewed through the lens of dance. For me, one cannot move intentionally in either a cognitive or kinesthetic way without awareness and mindfulness. To support this in the choreography, I worked to include the dancers in the choreographic process. For instance, I would ask them where they felt that a choreography phrase is taking them in the movement space. Additionally, I might ask if they felt a jump or turn would feel more natural within what had already been set. My goal was to emphasize the role mindfulness plays during the creative process to stay true to theme. This ultimately served to be an important part of the puzzle that allowed the dance to take on the artistic personality it did.

Being aware of thoughts and feelings without avoidance or bias is the second motif from ACT that I focused on. An analogy that my mother uses is that of a train platform. Trains come and go from the station just as thoughts come and go from the mind. We can observe the thoughts and feelings from our perspective on the train platform while also recognizing that they are transient. In this way, as the station allows the trains to come and go, we must also allow the thoughts to come and go. For awareness to actively shape the choreography, I challenged myself to be open to movement phrases as they came to me. Historically, I would outright think that a movement phrase wouldn’t work without properly evaluating it. This limits the creative possibilities of a choreographer since they haven’t explored the ways that a movement phrase may support their theme. In contradiction to this precedent, I worked to be open to movement phrases and styles that normally wouldn’t have been explored. My goal was to challenge my own bias and preconceived notions. While this proved difficult, it was a step that challenged me and continues to be a tool I rely on to recognize when I may be limiting myself.

ACT has served as a tool for many to explore feelings, emotions, life events, and much more. Further, it has served as a theme for me to choreograph a dance. I hope that in sharing ACT, many more may benefit from the model of thought it provides.

The choreography video can be seen here:

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CVScBoFldHh/?utm_medium=copy_link

More about Falkner and his work are available from:

https://falknerdischer.com/

https://www.instagram.com/p/B8G9wk8hcEO/

https://youtube.com/channel/UCO8hO9RqxP_9rYNMh2vHhrQ

More about ACT:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acceptance_and_commitment_therapy

Photo: instagram.com/Falkner Discher

Članak Falkner Discher choreographer – Inspiration in the therapeutic model se pojavljuje prvo na Ples & Grad.