Shannon Dooling-Cain is a dancer, choreographer, writer, and dance educator based in Arizona, with roots in the Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. metro areas. She specializes in ballet, modern dance, contemporary dance, jazz, dance history, improvisation, and creative movement for all ages and skill levels. Her choreography has been featured in venues throughout New York City, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., and Phoenix, AZ. On her blog, she provides resources for dance teachers including curriculum ideas, lesson plans, dance activities, choreography ideas, and reflections on the intersection of dance, art, society, feminism, and motherhood. She is available to teach dance workshops, create and set choreography for students and professionals, and provide consulting to dance studios, K-12 programs, individual artists, and small companies.
My fellow dance teachers, congratulations! For most of us, winter break is on the horizon, which means we’ve almost made it through another semester in the studio. Whether these last few months have been full of triumphs or challenges, you have earned a well-deserved respite and a bit of relaxation. To help you make the … More 5 Winter Break Self-Care Practices for Dance Teachers
It’s hard to believe that winter and the holidays are upon us again! While we might be feeling a little overwhelmed with shopping, cooking, decorating, and the other demands of the season, our students find this a most magical time. Holidays … school breaks … the first snowfall … it’s pretty much a kid’s dream! … More 3 Wonderfully Whimsical Winter Activities for Your Dance Class
Oh, man. It’s been a tough couple of weeks. The world just feels heavy with suffering, from Yemen to California to Syria to the Florida Panhandle. Almost daily, it seems I learn of another friend or acquaintance who is facing their own personal sufferings, small and large. It’s hard to sit and watch it all … More The #MonthlyMessage: Faith, Hope, Gratitude
“Making Dance Now” is an occasional blog series profiling choreographers and small dance companies to explore the challenges and rewards of creating, producing, and presenting choreography in today’s culture and economy. It’s my hope that this series will spark a dialogue about the importance of dance-making today, and how we can better support choreographers! The first installment of the … More CaZO Dance: Making Dance Now
As I write this, it is Wednesday, November 9, 2018. The United States wrapped up a contentious and at times even ugly mid-term election cycle yesterday. The impact that these elections will have is yet to be seen, but it is clear today that the nation remains deeply divided in many ways. In the lead … More Dance Can Be The Answer
October’s #MonthlyMessage dovetails off a recent post in one of my other blog series, ArtistMotherWife. Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about productivity. As I wrote in the other post, the dance world is fueled by over-productive people whose genuine passion for their work leads them to accomplish a Herculean list of feats on a … More #MontlyMessage: Your Self-Worth Is Not Determined by How Much Stuff You Do
Is anyone else feeling the mid-semester slump right now? Classes have been in session for a few weeks, or a few months, depending on what part of the country you’re in. The novelty is wearing off and the exhaustion is setting in. Winter break seems light years away and many of us are deep into … More 3 Frighteningly Fun Halloween Activities for Your Dance Class
At some point in their career, even the most accomplished of dance teachers is going to run into an unruly class. It can be incredibly frustrating as an educator when you feel like you are giving it your all, but your students are just not having any of it! Disruptive behaviors are not only irritating … More Why Your Dance Students Are Acting Out – And What You Can Do About It!
I was standing over the kitchen sink way too early on a Sunday morning, dressed in my church clothes and frantically scrubbing a skillet, when my life almost changed forever. My son, who was six or eight months old and turning into quite the explorer, was perched precariously on my calf, having crawled up my … More ArtistMotherWife: The Kitchen Episode
As dancers, we tend to love routines. Plie, tendu, degagge. Warm-up, progressions, combo. Pre-show rituals. Post-performance commemorations – mine was always a cheeseburger and Coke! Routines are necessary to our dance training and can make performances special. But in our daily lives, routines can easily become stifling. With my son rapidly approaching his first birthday, I … More The #Monthly Message: Find a Rhythm That Enhances Your Life, Not a Routine That Stifles It
