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.
It’s finally feeling like spring in most of the U.S., and there is no better way to celebrate in our dance classes than with some fun seasonal activities. Young dancers, especially pre-school and early elementary ages, tend respond well to games and activities that reflect the spring season. Here are a few of my favorite … More Simply Splendid Springtime Activities for Young Dancers
Creativity is a muscle, and just like any other muscle, it need to be exercised in order to get stronger – that is the theory behind the #ChoreographyAdventures. These short, simple movement prompts are designed to get you into the studio and make informal work – which I call “dancettes” – on a regular basis. … More 10 MORE Choreography Adventures to Hone Your Compositional Skills
“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 … More “Making Dance Now”: ASTC
Raise your hand if you’ve been bored in a dance class! I’ve got one hand raised as I type this, and I’m only thinking about the classes in which I’ve been the dance teacher. Dance is an art for that relies on routine and repetition to get results. While there is nothing wrong with consistency … More Simple Ways to “Shake-Up” Your Dance Class Routine
It’s almost Valentine’s Day, and if you are anything like me, you have no idea how, or even if, you will celebrate with your significant other, but you definitely know what your lesson plans for the week look like! Or, maybe you don’t … and if that’s the case, here are three activities that you … More Three Sweet Valentine’s Day Activities for Your Dance Class
As a dance educator and choreographer, I’m always thinking about transitions. Dance technique is full of transitional movements that make all the difference: that perfect preparation before the pirouette, that luxurious undercurve in the triplet, that sublime chasse into the leap. I know these transitions are crucial; proper execution of them distinguishes the novice dancer from … More The #MonthlyMessage: It’s All About the Transitions
As dancers, we know that what we’ve learned in the studio goes far beyond the steps and choreography. We know from our own experience that dance can be transformative; that it helps us grow not only as movers and artists, but as individuals and citizens. Dance training instills all kinds of life skills, but so … More 8 Life Skills Learned Through Dance
Week number of 2019 is almost in the books, and if you are like me you are still mulling over your resolutions for the year. One thing I know for sure is that I want to spend more time fostering my creative skills through choreography in 2019. Choreography, like all other forms of creative expression, … More Five Creative Practices Choreographers Should Adopt This Year
It’s resolution time, dance teachers! Whether you love the practice of making New Year’s resolutions or hate it, the changing of the calendar can be a great time for us to reflect on our teaching practices and set some goals for the next twelve months and beyond. Here are three practical New Year’s Resolutions every … More Three New Year’s Resolutions for Dance Teachers
Christmas is a time of anticipation: For the kiddos, it’s the excitement of Santa’s impending arrival; for us older folk, it’s looking forward to time with family and friends and a bit of respite from the day-to-day. For Christians, the four weeks leading up to Christmas are held by Advent, an entire season devoted to … More The #MonthlyMessage: The Purposeful Practice of Patience
