Summer Message
Shortly after Solstice, extreme temperatures exploded into the Pacific Coast and the rest of Western Canada. I watched while my garden’s lush fecundity wilted in desperation. I felt the shock affecting wildlife and humans as my cats and I wilted too. 2020 and 2021 continue to provide repeated stark teachings, even warnings, that all beings are profoundly and intimately connected.
- We are taught by the Pandemic.
- We are taught by the discovery of 215 children’s bodies in a mass grave, and the 751 more mostly children’s bodies in unmarked graves on residential school sites.
- Here in East Van, we are taught by the huge attendance at the Memorial for the Indigenous artists Frank and Danse Williams.
These crises and tragedies can unite us in love, care and mutual support. They can show us that we are not alone in our suffering. They can bring us into our bodies, our hearts, and connect us with the bodies and hearts of others, so we can celebrate life in all its’ miraculous manifestations, together.
This happened at the end of Frank and Danse’s Memorial. Under the late afternoon sun, we made an enormous circle that filled Grandview Park. Physically safely distanced, masked and unmasked, we danced a Circle Dance, stepping together to the rhythm of a huge drum.
Transformation of human consciousness is possible.
I will not be teaching again until fall. And I do not yet know if this teaching will be in person or on-line. Thank you for your patience and understanding.
With love and appreciation,
Tannis
These photos show my garden’s abundant life and the Memorial.
Ongoing Workshops
Contact Tannis for dates and locations.
Authentic Movement
In this introduction participants will learn the form of Authentic Movement. They will explore the roles of mover and witness to gain a deeper understanding and acceptance of their embodied experience in all areas of their lives.
Authentic Movement and Performance
Using Authentic Movement to access and manifest deeper levels of our selves, we may enrich our presence in performance, enhance creative exploration, and increase awareness and trust of the body. The form of Authentic Movement is especially useful for dancers and actors.
Moving Prayer
Our need to pray is as ancient and central to life as our breath. In this workshop, we listen to the prayers moving in and through our bodies using guided visualization and structured movement improvisation. By joining body, mind and spirit to dance our prayers, we celebrate ourselves and the earth as miracles of Creation.
Moving with Spirit: Ecstatic Body Postures and Authentic Movement
Learn to journey to the realms of Non-ordinary Reality using Ecstatic Body Postures and integrate the teachings of spirit into conscious awareness with Authentic Movement. Discovered by anthropologist Felicitas Goodman, Ecstatic Body Postures are a sacred technology used by our elders thousands of years ago to commune with the world of spirit for healing, divination, and ritual celebration. Now, to regain access to these realms, practitioners hold a posture from an early indigenous culture, accompanied by drum or rattle, and enter a visionary trance state. In this workshop, we will explore both practices to connect with our ancient roots and the guidance of spirit. Transformed by these gifts, we will feel our place in the web of life and a compassionate acceptance of all being.
Embodying the Roles We Play
This workshop begins by embodying our unconscious realms through Authentic Movement, inviting the emerging parts of ourselves to dance their roles. Then, using the playful tools of drama therapy, we will discover and enact the stories that wish to be revealed.
Hunger Spirit and the Body
A split between our bodies, minds, and spirits can leave us feeling profoundly starved. This workshop uses movement, art, and creative writing to investigate personal and cultural issues which prevent us from nourishing and loving ourselves. We will discover and enter the body’s wisdom, creating a path to heal.