I love being silly with my participants. Silly dance, silly moves, silly faces. Being silly gives them permission to be imperfect. Being silly tells them it’s ok even if you have two left feet. Being silly is liberating, because you can just have fun the way you are.
Sometimes, my participants are very aware of what they can’t do. They may have lived a large part of their lives depending on help, or have come to a stage of their lives when they aren’t as nimble as before. Many never had the opportunity to attend lessons outside of school or pursue interests beyond work. Sometimes, they are very focused on “getting things right”.
In our sessions, there are some segments where there is no one right way of doing things. Often, we work around a certain concept, such as “moving up and down vs. left and right”, or “move vs. freeze”. In these activities, there are no fixed dance steps, and there is space to be rigid, creative or silly. When we play drums, I often take their lead and see where the drumming leads us – sometimes to a structured exercise, sometimes to a co-created rhythm, and occasionally to a mess. Encouraging different ways of doing things teaches my participants flexibility and acceptance of diversity.
In each of these activities, there is an element of improvisation. This means we do not follow a set choreography or music score. There is space for individual expression. This also means we can be silly. And if we can be silly, it means we can be relaxed and comfortable with who we are.
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