Find your unique expression in movement and rest your mind
Mind is Resting
in the Body
Mind is resting in the body program
Explore martial arts and ancient Asian disciplines in dance through individual sessions tailored to your talents and needs.
You watch awe-inspiring videos of dancers on Instagram, and you too want that freedom to express yourself. Even if you didn’t take dance classes when you were younger, you know there must be a way.
You practice yoga and meditation to find balance in your life—a life that is exciting, full of opportunities, but sometimes moves too fast.
And as you explore, you’re looking for yourself in movement. To find balance in body and mind as life races on.
→ Find freedom and expression in movement
Without worrying about who will see or if you meet the bar.
Dancing is the most natural and freeing expression of our being. You don’t need to be a professional dancer to enjoy it to the fullest.
In the past twenty years, I’ve integrated my own dance education and experience into an innovative approach to coach others—be it people just starting out, or professional dancers. I offer individual sessions that allow me to tailor my unique program, integrating ancient Asian disciplines and dance, to your needs.
I found that movement in its most natural form is born from the way we breathe and from our ability to ground ourselves.
→ Find flow in the art of breathing
I’ve brought together my years of study and practice in four powerful breathing techniques: breathing of the wind, water, fire, and earth.
Your breath instills a rhythm in your body: slow and steady, or light, hurried. It brings flow to your body in the most literal way. Your breath nourishes every movement you make.
Working with the different breathing techniques and playing with the rhythm and flow helps explore more ways to move. More ways to access different states of energy in your life.
→ Find focus through grounding
I teach the principles of ancient Asian disciplines to help ground your being. When you are consciously present in the moment, you can focus and observe the world from a different perspective.
Some of the techniques we explore in our sessions include:
- Chinese martial arts
- Qi Gong
- Kathak, a traditional Indian dance
- African dance
- Body drumming
- Chant
- Yoga
- Voice and physical theater
- Butoh dance
- Manipulation with the sticks
- Free body expression
The calm of a quiet practice
Movement is an integral part of my program, but sometimes you need stillness. A moment where you allow both body and mind to find an absolute calm.
That’s when I offer holistic massage and reconnective healing. Through my meditation and your relaxed state, you find balance and peace.
The mind is resting in the body
Together, the principles and techniques I practice allow the body to move while the mind rests. Mastering the breath while you are fully present in the moment creates a calm mind and a natural flow in the body.
You move freely. You express yourself. There is no fear because you are right where you need to be, telling your story through the movements of your body and the rhythm of your breath.
It’s a way of moving that you too can achieve. I want to help you get there in our individual sessions.
move freely and find your unique expression
You are born to dance
“But I’m not a professional dancer,” is something I hear often. Some of the techniques can seem overwhelming. You may not feel ready or capable to move like that.
You are born to dance. To feel that harmony between breath, body, and mind.
The beauty of these individual sessions is that we can find out what your body is capable of and chart a path that you are able to take. No matter if you decide to try one session, or book more, every class will allow you to express yourself. To learn more about how your body can move while the mind is resting.
Together we can explore the different techniques to:
- Develop an understanding of the beliefs and movements in Chinese martial arts
- Allow your body to express itself while playing with the voice and authentic movement
- Move in flow through four powerful breathing techniques
- Balance the flow of energy in your body with Qi Gong
- Practice the power of now and develop a state of grounding
- Improvise and express yourself in dance with sticks or other objects
- Observe and learn from movements in nature and from animals
- Explore elements of Indian Kathak dance, Butoh dance, or African dance
Get in touch with me to find out what works for you. So you get to move freely and find your unique expression too.
“There is this notion when you work with Elena that the body can do almost anything. Of course, there is a path to take. But if you go along this path… you can get there. There are the different breathing techniques. The way to ‘see’ the movement. Where it’s not just dance on its own, or martial arts on its own, or theater on its own, but an ability to see a bit wider, to pick what I need from everything I’ve learned.”
“I don’t have to be a professional dancer or a dance major, or go to a performing arts space and rent out a dance studio to dance and express myself. Expression is not necessarily limited to a kind of setting, I can do it in my room and in the park outside, or just outside my house. The playfulness these sessions bring… it’s very accessible to me if I want it to be. So I think the impact on me is not just physical in terms of learning how to move my body in different ways, but also changing how I think.”
