Maggie Morris, Author at Safe in Dance International

Safe in Dance International at IADMS

October 28th - 31st 2022 Limerick Ireland We are looking forward to the IADMS annual conference in Limerick, Ireland at the end of October. The SiDI Team will be attending and would love to meet with you. Our stand will be manned throughout the conference. Sonia, Maggie, Tina and Beth will be in and out of the presentations and ready to chat to you SIDI is also thrilled to have been invited by IADMS to present our first pre-conference event. Dancing & Dance Science: The symbiotic relationship between dance research and practitioner wisdom Thursday October 27th 2022 In person at the Irish World Academy Music and Dance, Limerick & online 2.30 - 5.30pm GMT+1 BOOK NOW About the event:This afternoon [...]

Returning to the Studio – Useful Guidance from Around the World

The news changes from day to day within every country of the world and we all bounce between lock down and slowly moving back into the studio. We have colleagues who are back in the studio already as well as some who are planning to go back to teaching soon, or to a blended, on site & online delivery. Of course, the preparation you need to undertake and how you manage your students and teaching when you do return to the dance studio changes, or indeed if you can return at all depends where you are in the world. Please, always remember, that guidelines, rules and laws will vary depending on where you live in the world, so it is important [...]

#ASKSiDI

#ASKSiDI QUESTION: I’ve been applying my state’s guidelines for gatherings at gyms...which still allows only one-on-one training. I have a 400 sq ft studio and 8 students plus myself in there. Is it advisable to go back to the studio yet for classes? We do have the option of opening a window. #AskSiDI ANSWER: At the moment there is a wide range of different advice being collated around the world. Of course the first thing that anyone needs to do is to follow state or country specific guidance. We are currently collating information including links and resources that we hope will be helpful as many people are asking the same question as you. Of course advice could change rapidly as [...]

NEWSLETTER MARCH 2020

Dear friends and colleagues around the world At this time when so much in our lives is changing and we are all experiencing a new world existence, we at SiDI send you our love and thoughts. The threat of transmitting the Covid-19 virus is increasing daily worldwide. The governments of individual countries are providing direction on how to minimise the likelihood of infection and all independent dance schools, training institutions, teachers, choreographers, managers and dancers have been familiarising themselves with the general guidelines and trying to stay abreast of the public health announcements in their own locations. For most of us, live dance activities have already been reduced or stopped, with many consequences for training and employment. We have heard from some of [...]

#TopTipTuesday

Rest... Are you over pressured by exams, rehearsals and performances? trying to get the best out of yourself or your dancers? Remember it is important to rest as well as work hard – There is often pressure to do as much as we can to become more proficient dancers but more is not always better. Are you aware of the difference between overload and overtraining or overwork? Overload is a positive training principle, which means gradually challenging the dancer so that they can develop the physical capacities to dance efficiently and effectively. Overwork or overtraining is a negative consequence of training schedules that are too full and demanding, coupled with lack of rest and recovery. It will actually result in [...]

Two dancers, black male and white female, in extended back arch at Tring Park School for the Performing Arts. Photograph by Brian O'Carroll

Audition and Performance Anxiety

The first three months of the year can mean only one thing for dance students, auditions for summer intensives, for stage shows, dance projects and for small and large dance companies. Every weekend of last month and the coming two months are packed with auditions. I wonder how many dancers, including you have packed in as many auditions over the past weekends as is humanly, or even beyond humanly possible? Why do we do this? Fear of losing out? Fear of not getting to the Summer Intensive, company or show that’s favourite? Fear of not going where other dancing friends are going? Fear of failure? Fear of rejection? Fear, fear, fear. Fear is the operative word here and because many of [...]

SiDI Registered Provider Janine Bryant with the first group of ISTD dance teachers

First delivery of ISTD/SiDI collaborative Dance Science Unit

SiDI Registered Provider (RP) Janine Bryant stepped in to deliver the ISTD Unit on Dance Science in August. This unit has been written by Erin Sanchez (also a SiDI RP) on behalf of Safe in Dance International and the ISTD. The Unit, part of the ISTD level 6 teaching qualification, covers all of Safe in Dance International's 10 Core Principles. Janine travelled from her base in Pennsylvania to deliver the unit in London. Kath Bye from the ISTD's Education and Training Department said: "Janine's lectures were insightful, dynamic and clear for the learners to understand. Janine's approach looked at the important principles of Dance Science in particular looking at Safe Dance Practice core principles and ensuring that the learners were [...]

Mark Rasmussen of Harlequin Floors and the Scottish Ballet

Spreading the word: The contribution of the dance floor in creating a safe environment for performing arts. By Mark Rasmussen

Harlequin Floors’ Mark Rasmussen is a familiar and friendly face at global performing arts events where he regularly lectures and advises architects, school administrators, local government, unions and teachers about creating a safe environment for dance and performing arts. In his article below for SiDI, he answers some key questions and outlines the advice he gives to the dance world about the important role the floor has in contributing to safe practice. Is it difficult to lecture and advise when you’re also representing a commercial organisation? Not at all, Harlequin work closely with our friends such as you guys at Safe in Dance International, One Dance UK’s Healthier Dancer team and the wider international dancers’ health community to ensure that the [...]

Male and female white dancers in urban scene dancing

Building Healthy Boundaries in Creative Processes

This article by Stuart Waters, covers some important questions that are being posed about the safeguarding of the dance artist, most specifically within the pressures and demands of the creative process. The article was originally commissioned by Disability Arts Online, www.disabilityarts.online. Stuart Waters is a UK based performer, choreographer and teacher who recently presented at the Once Dance UK Healthier Dancer Conference held at TrinityLaban Conservatoire of Music and Dance (November 2017). His session “Mental Health and Issue-based Work” proposed the development of support mechanisms for dancers when using emotional triggers in the creative process. " Safeguarding the artist, the studio and the creative process" by Stuart Waters Photo: Joe Armitage My personal “rock bottom” was a near death experience, [...]

White female dancer nursing injured knee at Trinity Laban Conservatoire

Should I Ice an Injury? The Debate Continues…

By Sonia Rafferty, Co- founder Safe in Dance International The debate on whether icing an injury is help or hindrance to the healing process continues. At the International Association for Dance Medicine and Science (IADMS) Annual Meeting in Houston, Texas in October 2017, a “duel”, entitled “Cryotherapy: Help or harm” was organised to try to persuade or dissuade therapists and dancers regarding the use of icing as a technique to manage injury. Two physical therapists, Valerie Williams (PhD) and Rosie Canizares (DPT) were charged with putting forward evidence both for and against respectively. Arguments on both sides drew on research studies to support the different viewpoints. The case FOR icing from Valerie Williams: A decrease in pain, swelling and inflammation [...]

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