Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company Announces Final Month Of The Bridge Programming

Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company announces Final Month of Programming for The Bridge Virtual Dance Institute of boundary-breaking dance experiences Free One-Hour Company Classes on Zoom and In Person Open to All Dancers at an Intermediate to Advanced Level Every Monday & Wednesday in February 2023.

Dancers interested in attending the virtual session can join the class by registering at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfa6k8oMdzpbVufBQzqzILJh2iyoKIA88JJcg3j5xJQGB7Z2g/viewform.

For February's hybrid classes, aimed at professional dancers, interested participants can register at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSffEVPZ3MtHlbn2MvXMBQOCFYWqAVP8JBXQmdydwsTt5ZzJgw/viewform for the live, in-person experience.

The Bridge Class schedule:

Monday, February 13, 2023 | Tino Zoccoli-Mayers (Yoga) at 10am ET

Tino teaches Yoga class focusing on restorative practices to prevent and heal injuries in dancers and athletes. They pair Vinyasa and Yin yoga-"Vin and Yin"-to stretch, condition and heal the aerobic anatomical system. S/he will help students prepare, simply, wherever they practice, a psycho-somatic space and body consciousness for the gentle, extended cool-down with Yin yoga, invented by multi-cultural American yogis along the Pacific Ocean coast to incorporate Zen and Chinese Medicine. Please prepare when possible: a yoga mat; blankets/towels; 2 yoga blocks (or: books, soup cans); a yoga strap (or: fabric belt, towel) and any other soothing or healing object.

Wednesday, February 15, 2023 | Kerry Lee (Chinese Dance) at 10am ET

Kerry Lee will be teaching basic movements in Chinese Dance. She will draw ideas from the classical and ghe folk styles, as well as movement ideas from the time she spent with Nai-Ni Chen.

Monday, February 20, 2023 | Layla Ogasawara (Belly Dance) at 10am ET

This class will combine yoga and strengthening exercises, followed by isolation and belly dance combinations.

In this trying time of change and uncertainty, the arts are a source of healing and unity, we would like to encourage everyone to support dance as dance is an essential medicine for the society to recover from the pandemic that has caused injury to our bodies and our hearts. Support for The Bridge can be sent through nainichen.org/donate.

Monday, February 27, 2023 | Rio Kikuchi (Gyrokinesis) at 10am ET

Gyrokinesis is a slow, fluid, exercise practice based on the natural elements of spinal movement. By gently working the joints and muscles through rhythmic and undulating movements, coupled with calming breathing patterns, the exercises stimulate the body's internal organs while corresponding breathing patterns stimulate the nervous system, open up energy pathways, and oxygenate the blood.

In the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, the Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company established a new dance institute through Zoom, The Bridge. As the world has continued re-opening, The Bridge has evolved, with the introduction of hybrid classes. Now that dancers can once more safely practice in person, The Bridge will close at the end of February. Interested dancers can still participate in Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company's in-person community classes this summer and fall, which will continue to include hybrid options to allow dancers around the world to stay involved.

As a dance institute, The Bridge invites world renowned as well as up and coming dancers and choreographers to come to guest teach the class. Advanced/Intermediate level professional or pre-professional dancers who are looking to explore beyond their own boundaries and looking for new dance experiences are encouraged to participate. The core program is based on Nai-Ni Chen's Kinetic Spiral, which is a cross-cultural dance vocabulary that integrates the Chinese martial arts philosophy in TaiChi with contemporary dance practices she studied in America. Guest artists will cover a wide range of folk and classical dance styles.

The Institute's aim is to bring together dancers, choreographers and directors around the world to experience the master teachers of color whose practices are embedded in the community and are focused on advancing the art of dance that transforms the personal, environmental and metaphysical spaces.

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