It’s Official! I am a Certified Open Floor Teacher!
My conscious dance journey started at a Sedona Mago retreat in March 2017. A movement session during that retreat woke something up in me, a deep sense of freedom in moving my body where in the past there had been only awkwardness and self-consciousness.
I returned to the Twin Cities, started Googling, and found Teresa Reid, the steward of Rooted and Rising, an Open Floor and Dancing Freedom Teacher. It was in Teresa’s classes that I met Open Floor International.
Early on in the pandemic, I started attending one of the founders of Open Floor, Kathy Altman’s Thursday night, virtual movement classes. I fell in love with Kathy’s teachings and Open Floor.
When Open Floor International announced they were taking applications for their next Americas/Australasia Teacher Training Cohort, I applied. Before I was able to, I had to take a Ground Floor Lab. In November 2021, facilitated by Lucie Nerot from France and Sarah Davies from England, I participated in the virtual European Ground Floor Lab, waking up at 2am my time for almost a week!
In March 2022, from the comfort of my living room via Zoom, I joined with my Open Floor Americas/Australasia Teacher Trainer Cohort for the first time. For the next 2+ years, I spent countless in-person and virtual hours with Open Floor Faculty, Assistants, Mentors, Peers, and Friends dancing, making art, writing, and learning. I studied Open Floor Curriculum, mindfulness/meditation, anatomy/physiology, sexuality, CPR/first aid, and music skills/DJing. I read several books on spirituality, teaching, and emotions. I grew. I think I became a better person and a better psychotherapist.
“I am not here to teach you to dance, I am here to teach you to love.” Kathy Altman
I am finding limited words to express how deeply grateful and changed I am by Open Floor and those involved in the process of me becoming an Open Floor Teacher. Open Floor and this training held me through one of the darkest phases of my life. It has taught me how to soften, slow down, and go curiously and gently. How to stand for what’s true and just. How to engage with a full body and full heart. How to lay intentions and track sensations. It’s reflected to me the parts of myself that are vulnerable and encouraged me to love those parts. It’s helped me confront myself and begin to recognize all the ways I still have to evolve.
It’s been a collective and global effort to cross this threshold. I am honored to join the lineage of those who have come before. I am blessed and proud to be a part of Open Floor International. Thank you to the following humans for your presence and expertise:
Core Faculty: Jenny Macke (WA), Kathy Altman (CA), Andrea Juhan, PhD (CA)
Core Assistants: Kaia Hawkins (NZ), Majero Bouman (ON), Farshid Farrahi, MD (CA)
Trainers/Assistants: Jake Potter (AUS), Trudes Tango (WA), Geordie Jahner (NZ), Cynthia Kennedy (WA), Anneli Molin-Skelton (WA), Sarah Davies (England), Lori Saltzman (CA), Duncan Green, Deborah Lewin, Audrey Boss, Maryanne Comanoto, Nele Vandezande, Nick Walsh, Bodie Hunt, Catherine Gérèmie, Deborah Lewin, Caitriona Nic Ghiollaphadraig, Leah Brooks, Bonnie Primbsch
My Mentors: Jo Woods (AUS), Stacey Butcher (NC), Marisu Rimoldi (Argentina)
OF OG Peer Group: Karen Ritscher (NYC), Jade Ferriere (NZ), Megan Riley (AUS), Uschi Bay (AUS)
Americas/Australasia TiTs 2022-2024: Ami DiBenedetto, Aria Skydancer, Camila de Assis Brasil, Chakra Earthsong, Chantell Foss, Jade Ferriere, Joshua Cross, Karen Ritscher, Karol Yañez Soria, Kendra Barnett, Kimberly Arnold, Kristie Dunn, Layah Davis, Lisa Zahren, Lori Gallagher, Marissa Duarte, Megan Riley, Melissa Olvera, Merieke Verbaten, Michelle Backhouse, Monica Lily, Patricia Roux, Rosabel Harris, Sapana Doshi, Sarah Gregory, Shakaya McFarland, Simone Favelle, Terri Hogan, Uschi Bay, Virginia Chen
My Students, Family, and Friends: For showing up and moving! Special thanks to my mother, Elaine Baker for being “my best customer!”
Roomie: Lisa Zahren for providing somewhere soft and safe to land.
Teresa Reid: For welcoming me with open arms and an open heart.
Studio Owner: Tracey Mortensen, Inspiring Actions for welcoming me and Open Floor into your space.
And so, my dance continues with Open Floor. As I write this, I just accepted a spot in Andrea Juhan’s Shifting Focus: A Therapy-in-Motion Study Group for Movement Teachers, a 12-month program to start in April 2024. I will continue to offer Open Floor workshops. Find them here!
