I'm not a professional dancer. I am a healer who has experienced the power of dance to heal, shift and release the less-than-complete parts of my human self so many times over that I became a huge admirer of dance as a means to transmute unwanted energy, to shake out non-useful thought forms and as a portal to invite and activate numinous qualities and information into lived experience.
Laughter Dance, the journey, is my story of faith and trust. Having faith and trusting that my prayers are indeed manifesting according to my hearts whispers. There have been many times along my journey when I've been stuck and scared and unable to see how I would make it through as I felt myself to be living on the very edge of my life experience. Each time I found myself in this place I took a renewed decision to trust that life was taking care of me and is guiding me to exactly the place I needed to get to. I considered myself to be my own living experiment; what would happen if I let go completely and trusted entirely in the unfolding of my universe.
Dancing shaped me
In my early childhood years and throughout my life I can remember moments of longing to surrender my entire life to dance. On many occasions I longed and wondered if it was possible or if it was it to be the unobtainable dream.
Since I was very young, dancing formed a part of my life. When I was a child, it was the formal steps of ballet and modern dance, in high school it was all about disco and rave dancing, and when I was in my 20's I was introduced to the magic of Salsa and Latin American dance. I loved them and I started training to become a teacher, however the demands of the corporate working world got the better of me, and I never finished the training. In my late twenties, all aspects of my life, along with my health, collapsed and drastic changes were required.
Dancing is therapy
Looking back over the years, I realised that the times, when there was an absence of dance in my world, those were the times when I was stuck, lost and confused in my space and unsure how to proceed. Dance was my therapy.
I moved to Thailand in 2009 and it was there that I discovered the various dance forms that have no formal steps. Instead, the inner dancer is evoked through suggestion, music and rhythm. In this way the body is set free to reveal its own dance.
Over the last several years in Thailand I have had the great privilege of experiencing and indulging in Five rhythms, Ecstatic dance, Dance meditation, Biodanza, Contact Improvisational dance, and other free form art dance forms. As well as, attending workshops in Zouk dance and Salsa, both of these, however, do have formalized steps and movements.
I am grateful for all the dance teachers who held space for me so beautifully so that my soul could extend itself via the music and the alchemy that was created. With each swirl and step I was able to shed another layer and travel into my own soul, ushering me through bright shining gateways, and directing my path. Whenever I have been unable to see or know what to do next - dance would open up new fresh informative ways to provide assured direction. It has formed a critical part of my sanctity and salvation, and continues to do so.
During this time I remained watchful to see which dance form was truly mine, which one I could sink my soul into deeply and make my own and then teach? Years rolled by but ‘my dance’ never showed up. Instead my path was directed to study other creative expression forms such as Improvisational theatre, Ashtanga and Hatha yoga and Laughter Yoga and many types of mind, body, spirit healing modalities. I studied and loved them all and I continued to wait and wonder if 'my dance' would show up.
The creation of laughter dance
In April 2015, in an epiphanous moment in response to adding tribal music to laughter yoga exercises, ‘Laughter Dance’ was born. On the day of its creation I was somewhat amazed and upon investigation, I noticed this dance form contained elements of Biodanza, African dance, Contact Improvisation and Ecstatic dance to a backdrop of tribal music. Perhaps this was 'my dance'?
I began to discover that Laughter Dance was a refreshing way to harness and integrate the multiplicity of visceral qualities that make up the human tapestry forming us into strong, resourceful, vibrant souls, being an open ended fusion of dance inspired by laughter yoga, formal dance steps and free form dance expressions, guided by a facilitator, to a backdrop of musical rhythms.
I have since shared Laughter Dance in several cities in Thailand and China with a great amount of enjoyment.
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