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Hilary Wolfley Dance 396, Sandra Allen Alternative Methods Research 10 November 2011 Instructional Imagery Every dancer remembers a time when a teacher used an image-based analogy to help increase understanding of a step. Utilizing their students imaginations is a well-known tool teachers use in order to facilitate the proper execution or feeling of a particular movement. Although the use of images themselves are not new to the art form, the idea of imagery as a teaching method is a fairly new concept and continues to be explored by teachers across the dance world. Many ballet teachers encourage their students to mimic. While this is appropriate for younger children, as the dancers grow older, they stay in that mimicking mindset, striving only to produce a certain shape or fit themselves into a mold. This mindset is dangerous to the dancers growth as technicians and artists because it stifles the innovative beauty that ballet can foster. Eric Franklin, a former professional dancer and choreographer, is an expert in the field of imagery in dance. He says the difference between imaging and mimicking rests on identification. In dance we mostly use imagery for identification rather than outward imitation (Franklin 72). Images, therefore, help students identify with a certain idea or feeling and incorporate it into their movement, making it genuinely a part of them. The use of imagery, either anatomical or abstract, is an effective method of teaching ballet because it enables students to make new insights and discoveries in regards to technique and artistry.

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The term imagery can be a broad word, but can be described more specifically if divided into two categories: anatomical and abstract (or metaphysical). Both are effective for different reasons. Julie Janus Walters, a ballet teacher of many years, claims anatomy-based imagery is the most effective. Instead of explaining turnout by telling the students to pretend to balance a teacup on their heel, she uses the anatomically accurate image of the rotating femur in the hip socket. *The+ direct approach gives advanced ballet students a more realistic idea of where, specifically, in the body a movement originates (Cohen 73). However, anatomical images are only effective if students have a sufficient knowledge of anatomy. The more familiar they are with this knowledge, the more in depth the teacher can explain. It is important to remember to use language that students can understand. Using your hands in a tactile way to show anatomical movement helps students with concepts they cannot fully grasp right away (Franklin 71). A dancer who has a new-found appreciation for anatomical imagery enthusiastically explains her discovery: I am just learning about how the pelvis moves as a system. The pelvic halves spiral three-dimensionally while the sacrum moves like a swing. Our pelvis is the perfect force-absorbing, motion-enabling thing we have in our body at this point that I know about. I am just watching my pli get deeper, my muscles relaxing, and my jumps getting higher It is life changing! (Lydia, 2010). An understanding of how and why bodies can move the way they do gives students a new appreciation for technique and opens avenues of exploration within that technique. Another way to facilitate the dancers personal exploration is through abstract imagery. This theoretical type of imagery requires more imagination from both the teacher and dancer, but can be an extremely effective tool in teaching ballet. Former professional-dancer-turned-

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teacher Tai Jimenez believes heavily in the idea of abstract imagery in dance. Her Zen-focused classes help students comprehend their movement better. "Dance is about moving energy. It's metaphysical and magical," Jimenez says. "It's not just about our bodies. It's about how we develop 'dance thinking' and how we use it in our lives (Sims 25). Dance thinking means the dancer is learning how to understand movement in ways that are perhaps new and empowering, thus feeding the students passion for dance and keeping them coming back for more. Franklin describes his first ah-ha! moment when he started to really comprehend the power of using imagery in his dancing: Through apparently metaphysical exercises I grew to be more conscious of my body surface, of the effect of directing attention, and of the moment-tomoment change in the whole inner volume of my body (Franklin xi). He goes on to explain that his new special awareness improved technique and movement quality as well as initiating a fuller body presence, heightening his expressive repertoire (Franklin xi). Teachers can promote this dance thinking by exploring possibilities themselves. Summer Lee Rhatigan, artistic director of the San Francisco Conservatory of Dance and master teacher, shares insights that she has made in the past and continues to discover daily. She is described as a poetic intellectual and elevates the students work through her inventive imagery (Sims 24). Rhatigans main teaching tool is imageryand it works. Students flock to take a class from her, just to get a taste of the possibilities within themselves. After a poorly performed combination from her class, she comments, All it means is that you dont use your imagination enough. It can be part of your team (Sims 24). Sometimes all it takes for a concept to click in a students mind is for the teacher to explain it in a different way. Interestingly enough, one imaginative metaphor can replace extensive explanations. Many dancers and teachers agree

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that a quick, simple image with less explanation works best (White 104). Rosie Herrera is a professional dancer who is just discovering the power of synchronizing the verbal cues given with exactly what the body is doing. These powerful, simple words and phrases can affect neurologically what dancers do and how they process things physically (Rosie, 2010). Teachers can gain inspiration for imagery in dance from innumerable sources. Imagery in nature, movies, poetry, music, visual art, sculpture, architecture, and even critical dance reviews are all great sources to start the brainwaves flowing. The beauty of using imagery is there are endless ways to describe something; the more creative the teacher can be in explaining concepts, the greater the understanding of the students. Abstract imagery is not bound only to the metaphysical and cognitive ideas. Humorous images can be just as effective. According to studio owner Glenna Wilson, humorous images work particularly well because they stay with the studentsespecially the younger ones. It can be as silly or stupid as you like. . . .You have to be creative and constantly think of ways to entertain (White 106). However, silliness is not only effective for younger dancers. When Rhatigan teaches a class full of professional and pre-professional students, she sometimes gets downright nonsensical. Yet, somehow, it makes perfect sense. For example, midway through the barre exercises in an advanced class she asks, How creative can you be with vegetables? I could write 50 ways to use an onion. Do you have that many ways to use your stomach? If all you have in your pantry is a stomach, how could you use it? Is every strand educated or does it work en masse? (Sims 24). Although a somewhat preposterous thought initially, such an image certainly evokes a thoughtful response in the students. Surely they were able to discover

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new possibilities about how they could use their stomach and, in turn, how it would affect the rest of their movement. Even the whimsical images can be powerful. When using imagery, the teacher must be aware of the way they use certain words. Franklin offers a few words of caution: unclear words or phrases may create confusion and/or unnecessary tension. Use words like tighten, press, hold, squeeze, and grip with care, exploring the image further before leaving the students to merely tense up. Know the intention of the image before spouting off ambiguous phrases that could be interpreted various ways, such as get up on your legs. When the teacher knows what he or she is trying to accomplish with the image, the confusion is avoided considerably (Franklin 71). Use imagery to enhance rather than detract. There will, however, be students who have a hard time relating to imagery. Sometimes students cannot connect to certain metaphors. When this occursand surely it will, for we all think and process things a little differentlythe teacher must find another way to explain the idea. But there are dancers out there who have difficulty connecting to images in general. The vague ideas are not enough to help them understand concepts. Some people are born with natural tendencies toward using their imaginations, while others are not. Therefore, it is the teachers responsibility to know their students and assess the way they learn the best (Franklin 68). Another guideline for teachers who use imagery is to avoid negative imagery. Insulting images may only discourage a dancer. Instead of pointing out the swayed back of a dancer by calling it a banana back, find other imagery to correct it. See your central axis as perpendicular to the floor. Imagine your head to be floating up. Watch your tailbone lengthen

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to the floor (Franklin 72). Always find ways to inform through positive imagery instead of negative feedback. Although images have always been a part of teaching ballet in one way or another, imagery as a teaching tool is being explored more than ever because it initiates a desire within the students to explore the endless ways their bodies can move. Whether it is through anatomical or abstract imagery, thinking about concepts in different ways keeps students engaged and fascinated with the possibilities of what they can do. As long as teachers avoid using images negatively, the possibilities for imagery inspiration are endless. Imagery provides dancers with a way to understand how technique and artistry should feel, not just how it should appear. In this way, students are able to take what they learn and develop the ideas even further on their own. And what better goal is there than to be a teacher of life-long students?

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Works Cited Cohen, Danielle. Spotlight: Teacher: Picture Perfect. Dance Teacher 28. 1 (Jan 2006): 72-74. Web. 2 Nov. 2011. Franklin, Eric. Dance Imagery for Technique and Performance. Illinois: Human Kinetics, 1996. Print. Lydia shares her new insights with her pelvis. [Online Video Clip] Available http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0kWq2_o6fk, April 4, 2010. Rosie Herrera takes Franklin Method and loves it! [Online Video Clip] Available http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=71q3JdiXGTg&feature=related, May 19, 2010. Sims, Caitlin. A Different Breed of Ballet Teacher. Dance Teacher 32. 1 (Jan 2010): 24-26. Web. 2 Nov. 2011. White, Karen. Teaching: How-To: Mind over Matter. Dance Teacher 30. 8 (2008): 104, 106. Web. 2 Nov. 2011.