workshop Archives - Page 3 of 4

Save the date for our Annual Spring Celebration

Posted on March 14, 2023March 17, 2023 by Gillian Ebersole

We’re pleased to announce our annual Spring Celebration will take place on May 27 & 28 at the Daniel Arts Center at Simon’s Rock.

The Spring Celebration will showcase the work of our Youth Performing Arts Program students, as well as alumni, community members, and teachers. 100% of the proceeds from these performances will benefit our Tuition Assistance program.

More information on this performance, as well as sponsorship opportunities and ticket sales, coming soon!

Dunham Workshop

A group of dancers pose for a photo in a studio.

with Saroya Corbett

📅 Saturday, March 25
🕙 10am-12pm

Ages 12 to adult

Join Saroya Corbett, Bolin Fellow of Dance, for a second workshop in Dunham Technique, an Afro-Modern dance technique. As a certified instructor, Chair of History and Theory for the Institute for Dunham Technique Certification, and a life-long practitioner of Dunham Technique, Saroya will discuss the dance technique as a holistic practice and the work of Katherine Dunham, the technique’s creator. After the discussion, participants will experience a Dunham Technique movement class which will combine the theories and philosophies of the technique into physical practice.

Biodanza at Pulse

The Montreal School of Biodanza is returning to Pulse in March!

📅 Friday, March 31
🕖 7-10 pm

Biodanza is an invitation to cultivate the “Art of Vivencia” – the ability to be completely present to life in the moment. Biodanza encourages us to explore the gestures and embodied vocabulary of Vivencia, letting us rekindle our connection to self, others, and the world.

All are welcome; Biodanza is a dance practice for everyone.

LEARN MORE

Summer Intensive Highlight

Berkshire Pulse Intensive (Ages 11-18)

A dancer wearing a Berkshire Pulse tshirt in an advanced contemporary class.

📅 Monday to Friday, July 10 – 21
🕘 9am – 4pm

For students with at least two years of prior dance training. Two groups: beginner and int/adv

This two-week program allows dancers to develop excellence in technique, as well as versatility and collaboration in the creative process. Daily classes will include ballet, contemporary, jazz, hip hop, swing, salsa, and flamenco. Dancers will explore dance-making through partnering and improvisation. Plus, field trips to local partnering organizations!

TAKE YOUR TRAINING TO THE NEXT LEVEL

Try a new Community Class for here!

Posted on March 2, 2023March 2, 2023 by Gillian Ebersole

This March, we are doing a promotion for our community class pass holders! Class passes run 10 classes for $170 ($17/class) or 20 for $300 ($15/class). That’s a savings of up to $100 compared to our regular drop-in rate of $20!

If you buy a 10 or 20-class pass this month, you can try a new class for FREE!

Class passes can be purchased online or in-person. You can try any new class for free by letting the front desk know.

*This promotion applies to any students with an active class pass.

COMMUNITY CLASSES FOR YOU

Board of Directors Update

We are excited to announce Gail Belmuth as our new Board President, alongside new Board member Alex Bloomstein and returning Board member Dr. Jerome F. Errico.

Gail follows Board President of 12 years, Diane Pearlman, and Interim Board President, Jenny Daily. We are so grateful for their support and leadership!

Dunham Workshop

with Saroya Corbett

📅 Saturday, March 25
🕙 10am-12pm

Ages 12 to adult

Join Saroya Corbett, Bolin Fellow of Dance, for a second workshop in Dunham Technique, an Afro-Modern dance technique. As a certified instructor in and a life-long practitioner of Dunham Technique, Saroya will discuss the dance technique as a holistic practice and the work of Katherine Dunham, the technique’s creator. After the discussion, participants will experience a Dunham Technique movement class which will combine the theories and philosophies of the technique into physical practice.

Summer Intensive Highlight

🔎Dance Discovery (Ages 8-13)

Two students at a ballet barre with their right hand on their shoulder and the left on the bar. The teacher demonstrates in the background.

📅 Monday to Friday, June 26 – July 7 (no classes on July 4)
🕘 9am – 3pm

For beginners and advanced beginners, this program has a half-day option for dancers ages ages 8-9 (9am-12pm full two weeks only).

An exciting journey into the engaging and rewarding world of dance, this two-week program provides an introduction to dance forms including ballet, modern, African, Contradance, and more. Dancers will also have a chance to practice dance-making of their own!

DISCOVER YOUR LOVE OF DANCE

Spend your summer dancing!

Posted on February 15, 2023February 14, 2023 by Gillian Ebersole

Berkshire Pulse is excited to have summer dance intensives for ages 4 to 18 running June through August, alongside community classes for dancers of all ages!

Our offerings range in style and genre, from contemporary and choreography, to musical theater, hip hop, and more. Scroll to see all our intensives or check out our website.

Registration is open! Start your dream summer today.

SUMMER 2023 AT PULSE

Summer Intensives

🔎DANCE DISCOVERY (Ages 8-13)

📅 Monday to Friday, June 26 – July 7 (no classes on July 4)
🕘 9am – 3pm

For beginners and advanced beginners, this camp has a half-day option for dancers ages ages 8-9 (9am-12pm full two weeks only).

🎶BERKSHIRE PULSE INTENSIVE (Ages 11+)

📅 Monday to Friday, July 10 – 21
🕘 9am – 4pm

For students with at least two years of prior dance training.

🚀DANCE ADVENTURE (Ages 4-7)

📅 Monday to Friday, July 24 – 28
🕘 9am – 12pm

This new program for our youngest dancers invites them on an expedition into the exciting, engaging, and rewarding world of dance. Classes will include creative dance, tumbling, drumming, and more!

👟HIP HOP AND STREET STYLE (Ages 12+)

📅 Monday to Friday, July 31 – August 4
🕘 9am – 3pm

All levels, two groups: ages 12-14 and 15+

Dancers will learn foundational movements and techniques of hip hop and street style dance, alongside discussions about the cultural meaning and significance of these dance forms. The program will create an encouraging space to try out what you learn and most importantly show off your unique style and personality while freestyling in daily cyphers.

🎭MUSICAL THEATER (Ages 10+)

📅 Monday to Saturday, August 7 – 12

All levels, full-day camp for ages 10-14, evening series for ages 14+

🕘 9am – 3pm (day camp)

This week-long camp gives students the opportunity to jump right into the world of musical theater with classes in tap, broadway jazz, voice, acting, and improvisation. Students will learn healthy warm-up practices for the voice and body, and work on character development, expression, ensemble, and more. The program directors will work with students to produce an informal performance for the program’s final day.

🕔 5pm – 7pm (evening series)

This-week long evening series for students ages 14+ will give the students an opportunity to take a daily musical theater workshop rotating between singing, acting, and improv and work on developing something for an informal performance at the end of the week.

Our Community Moves Together

Posted on February 1, 2023February 14, 2023 by Gillian Ebersole

Community Boxing is back! Beginning February 3rd, this program brings Genève Brossard of Berkshire Boxing to the Housie Dome on Fridays at 4:45pm. This fun class provides a welcoming and supportive class for all levels of experience and fitness.

FREE for Housatonic and Great Barrington Youth! For 8th graders to adults; pre-registration required.

JOIN BOXING

Save the dates! Our summer intensive schedule is live on our website. Registration will open in mid-February.

SUMMER 2023

Community Classes for You

Want to take multiple classes in one day? Here’s a schedule for you!

Tuesday Evening Classes

Choose between Community Beginners Ballet with Fiona Scruggs and Community Beginners Flamenco with Joanne B. Jackson. Then, put on your tap shoes for Community Beginners Tap with Molly Welch.

Wednesday Evening Classes

Start your Wednesday learning to sing and act in Musical Theater with Wendy Welch. Then, get your heart rate going in Holly Jones’ Community Jazz class. Finally, wrap your evening with Intermediate Swing with Brianne Szymanski.

Are you a morning person? Try Community Modern at 9am on Tuesdays and Shake Your Soul at 9am on Fridays.

Saturday Classes

Saturday classes begin bright and early with Shannon Nulf’s Community Ballet class – often packed, arrive early to snag your favorite spot at the barre. After, you can take Community Contemporary with Shannon Nulf and Gillian Ebersole. Finish your day of dance with Tsiftieli and Raqs Sharqi Dance with Myrto Daskaloudi.

Dances of Africa

with Nkoula Badila

📅 Beginning Tuesday, February 7
🕓 4-5pm

Ages 6-10

Accompanied by live drumming, this class introduces students to the study of African rhythms and dances. Dancers will work on unity, coming together to dance as a team, highlighting the grace in their arms and strength in their legs and feet, as well as building stamina and energy.

Moving Life Stories Begins

Moving Life Stories (MLS) is a creative movement class created for and geared toward the Berkshire immigrant population and their allies.

Our first of two series of Moving Life Stories Workshops begins February 3 at the South Berkshire Friends Meeting House in Great Barrington, with another following at the Pittsfield YMCA.

Moving Life Stories “is a safe space where immigrants can exchange and share their experiences, and create something together, using movement as their language” ~ Rural Intelligence

LEARN MORE

This program is made possible by the generosity of Mass Cultural Council, Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, Lee Bank, Greylock Federal Credit Union, and TD Bank Charitable Foundation, as well as Dalton Cultural Council, Mount Washington Cultural Council, New Marlborough Cultural Council, Otis Cultural Council, Pittsfield Cultural Council, Sheffield Cultural Council, and Washington Cultural Council, local agencies which are supported by the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency.

Moving Life Stories Returns

Posted on January 17, 2023January 13, 2023 by Gillian Ebersole

Para leer sobre este programa en español, haga clic aquí.

Moving Life Stories (MLS) is a creative movement class created for and geared toward the Berkshire immigrant population and their allies. MLS provides opportunities to share personal journeys, stories, and connections to places past and present through movement games, exercises, dancing, and community building.

We’re excited to announce two series of Moving Life Stories Workshops in 2023 – one at the South Berkshire Friends Meeting House in Great Barrington and another at the Pittsfield YMCA.

WATCH A SHORT FILM

In this series of workshops, we will learn various ways to tell and embody our stories through play, creative movement, and the creation of mini-dances. No prior movement experience is required, and the class is appropriate for all ages.

A Spanish-speaking interpreter will be present, childcare is provided, and transportation can be arranged.

SOUTH COUNTY SERIES:

📅 Fridays February 3 – March 24
🕕 6-8pm

South Berkshire Friends Meeting House
📍280 State Road
Great Barrington, MA 01230

PITTSFIELD SERIES:

📅 Tuesdays April 4 – May 23
🕕 6-8pm

Berkshire Family YMCA – Pittsfield Branch
📍292 North Street
Pittsfield, MA 01201

LEARN MORE

This program is made possible by the generosity of Mass Cultural Council, Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, Lee Bank, Greylock Federal Credit Union, and TD Bank Charitable Foundation, as well as Dalton Cultural Council, Mount Washington Cultural Council, New Marlborough Cultural Council, Otis Cultural Council, Sheffield Cultural Council, and Washington Cultural Council, local agencies which are supported by the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency.

Try a New Class This Year

Greek and Egyptian Belly Dance with Myrto Daskaloudi

📅 Beginning this Saturday, January 21
🕑 2-3:15pm

Open level; ages 12+

Rooted in community, celebration, expression, history, and culture, this class series will introduce students to regional dances of the Eastern Mediterranean Basin, as well as terminology of movements, identification of rhythms, and traditional instruments.

Community Jazz: Jazz’n with Jones with Holly Jones

📅 Wednesdays
🕢 5:45-7:15pm

Ages 13 to adult

Jazz’n with Jones’ is a high energy, feel good class that draws inspiration from many styles and techniques. The class includes elements of improvisation, contemporary, lyrical, musical theatre, and modern jazz dance. This class will investigate stylization and technique with a sense of humor and curiosity.

Intermediate Swing with Brianne Szymanski

📅 Wednesdays
🕢 7:30-8:30pm

Ages 16 to adult

Explore more complex movement patterns that establish the foundations of Lindy Hop as a social, vernacular jazz dance. Boost your confidence to hit the dance floor and have fun, while celebrating the music, movement, and spirit of Swing Dance!

Rewriting Relationships with our Female Body with Erica Rodas

📅 Every Second Monday of the Month
Jan 9, Feb 13, Mar 13, Apr 10, May 8, and June 12
🕖 7:15-8:15pm

Ages 18+

This class guides women to the truth and knowing within their own body, allowing participants to unhook from past patterns or the shame, pain, and disconnect collected from life experiences in order to know themselves in a radically new way.

Start the new year dancing!

Posted on January 4, 2023January 9, 2023 by Gillian Ebersole

It’s not too late to register for Spring session classes! We’re so excited about everything on the schedule – from ballet and boxing, to belly dance, breaking, and more!

In-person registration is open in the evenings this week, and web registration continues online anytime!

CHOOSE YOUR CLASSES

We Met the Match!

Together, we met our matching gift challenge! You helped us raise over $10,000 for the Tuition Assistance Program in less than 3 weeks!

Thank you to Alander Construction and everyone in our incredible community who donated to match their generous gift.

You can still give to our Tuition Assistance Program for 2023 – help us continue to make our programming accessible to all people!

DONATE TODAY

January Classes & Workshops

We have classes and workshops for adults and kids alike running the whole month of January. Scroll to learn more, or click the button to view and register!

PUSH THE BUTTON

Contemporary 4 with Joe Poulson

📅 Tuesdays, January 3 to 24
🕓 4-5:30pm

Open to intermediate/advanced adults; requires commitment to all four classes.

Hip Hop Series with Dashawn Davis

📅 Fridays, January 6 to 27
🕓 4-5pm: ages 10-15; requires commitment to all four classes.

🕠 5:30-6:45pm: ages 14+, drop-in

Dunham Workshop with Saroya Corbett

📅 Saturday, January 7
🕤 9:30 to 11:30am

Open to all levels; ages 12+

Learn about Katherine Dunham Technique, a modern dance style that combines Caribbean folk movement with ballet and experience a Dunham Technique movement class!

African Dance Series with Nkoula Badila

📅 Mondays, January 9 to 30
🕓 4-5:30pm

Open to teens and adults of all levels; requires commitment to all three classes.

Spring Registration is Open

Posted on December 15, 2022December 14, 2022 by Gillian Ebersole

Registration for our Spring session is underway! Be sure to check out our offerings and sign up.

In-person registration is open during select hours:

December 12-16: 11am-7pm
December 17: 9am-2pm
December 19-23, 27-30: 10am-3pm

Web registration continues online through the new year!

CHOOSE YOUR CLASSES

Two Weeks Left to Give

Thanks to generous community support, Pulse has never turned away a student for an inability to pay. In 2022, approximately one out of every five students was awarded between 30% to 100% of the cost of tuition.

We have until December 31 to meet our generous $5000 matching grant from Alander Construction. For the second year in a row, Alander will match all donations up to $5000, dollar for dollar.

This grant supports our Tuition Assistance Program. Learn more in our 2022 impact report and appeal.

SUPPORT PULSE

January Classes & Workshops

We have classes and workshops for adults and kids alike running the whole month of January. Scroll to learn more, or click the button to view and register!

VIEW CLASSES + REGISTER

Contemporary 4 with Joe Poulson

📅 Tuesdays, January 3 to 24
🕓 4-5:30pm

Open to intermediate/advanced adults; requires commitment to all four classes.

Hip Hop Series with Dashawn Davis

📅 Fridays, January 6 to 27
🕓 4-5pm: ages 10-15; requires commitment to all four classes. Register here.

🕠 5:30-6:45pm: ages 14+, drop-in. Register here.

Dunham Workshop with Saroya Corbett

📅 Saturday, January 7
🕤 9:30 to 11am

Open to all levels; ages 12+

Learn about Katherine Dunham Technique, a modern dance style that combines Caribbean folk movement with ballet and experience a Dunham Technique movement class!

African Dance Series with Nkoula Badila

📅 Mondays, January 9 to 30
🕓 4-5:30pm

Open to teens and adults of all levels; requires commitment to all three classes.

Support Pulse Teaching Artists

Pulse teaching artists and artists-in-residence Tom Truss and Moscelyne ParkeHarrison are hosting fundraisers to continue their respective creative work.

Tom Truss and collaborator Matthew Cumbie are raising money to finish the set and work with a composer for their work ReWritten, which reflects on the relationship between authors Herman Melville and Nathaniel Hawthorne.

SUPPORT “REWRITTEN”

Moscelyne ParkeHarrison’s Art Tonic 3.0 is the first live iteration of BODYSONNET’s yearly fundraiser. This year, they are zooming in on their multimedia collaborators, past and future, all in support of more projects for the 2023 season.

SUPPORT BODYSONNET

Looking to 2023…

Posted on December 1, 2022December 14, 2022 by Gillian Ebersole

We’re excited to announce we have received a matching grant from Alander Construction for the second year in a row, which means every dollar donated will be doubled – up to $5,000!

Your generosity is at the heart of our Pulse.

Click the button below to learn more about our work inside and out of the studio and how to support the future of Pulse.

GIVE THE GIFT OF DANCE

Take a Peek in the Studio

We’re so excited to be looking toward 2023! Mark your calendars – the class and workshop schedule for the next session will be live on December 8.

Select classes will be open for observation during the last week of the session, December 12 to 17. Keep an eye on your inbox to sign up to watch your dancers!

In-person registration for spring classes will also begin that week.

Two Workshops Next Week

OPEN LEVEL AFRICAN DANCE WORKSHOP

with Nkoula Badila

📅 Wednesday, December 7
🕓 5:45 to 6:45pm

Open to all levels; ages 12+

OPEN LEVEL HIP HOP WORKSHOP

with Dashawn Davis

📅 Friday, December 9
🕓 4 to 6pm

Open to all levels; ages 12+

See Pulse Teaching Artists Perform

A lighted sign reads "Broadway Cabaret" in front of a red theater curtain.

Enjoy two performances of fabulous show tunes, featuring Tom Truss, Molly Welch, and Wendy Welch!

Performance Dates

December 3 at 7pm
December 4 at 2pm

Venue

Dewey Memorial Hall
91 Main Street,
Sheffield, MA 01257

BUY TICKETS

Dancing with Gratitude

Posted on November 17, 2022December 12, 2022 by Gillian Ebersole

Thank you for being a part of what makes Pulse so special – the people that bring our studios to life.

We are especially grateful for our team of Teaching Assistants. Each week, they share the love of dance with others. We are so grateful for their dedication and wanted to highlight a bit more about them!

Maya Bergman

I have been dancing at Berkshire Pulse for 4 years, but I’ve been dancing since I could walk. I love working with younger dancers to help them express themselves. I’m really looking forward to this year at Pulse!

A fun fact about myself- I love snuggling with my two dogs, Hazel and Maggie!

Megan Linick

At Pulse, I enjoy all of the wide variety of classes and abilities. I feel that it allows me to be exactly who I am as a dancer.

Fun Fact: I lived in Florida for 15 years and moved to the Berkshires about a year ago.

Rubielle Nejaime

Rubielle has been dancing at Pulse since she was 11 years old. She is now continuing her training at Berkshire Pulse to prepare to enter the dance field and audition for Dance BFA programs for this upcoming year. She is delighted to be assisting Susan Quinn in the Young Choreographers Workshop and Fiona Scruggs in Ballet 1.

A fun fact about Rubielle is that her favorite style of dance is contemporary.

Cora Pacheco

Cora assists Creative Dance!

Liam Reynolds

Liam assists Modern 3!

Lily Reynolds

Hi I’m Lily! I have been a dancer at Berkshire Pulse for 4 years now alongside my 3 other siblings. I have been an assistant for the fall and spring season this past year, and I also assisted for the summer intensives as well.

Molly Welch

Molly Welch (they/she) grew up in Dallas where they attended the Dallas Ballet Center for 15 years. They studied ballet, tap, jazz, modern, hip hop, and lyrical. They were a teaching assistant while there and went on to teach Musical Theater dance in their summer workshops for the next 4 years. They attended Booker T. Washington HS for the Performing and Visual Arts, where they split their studies between theater and dance.

Support our Teaching Assistants and Tuition Assistance programs today.

YOUR SUPPORT MATTERS

Dance with Us This Week

Posted on November 7, 2022December 12, 2022 by Gillian Ebersole

We’re excited to host another African Dance Workshop with Nkoula Badila this Wednesday, November 9th at 5:45pm!

Learn different Traditional Dances of Ancestral Africa, accompanied by live percussion. This class is open to all levels, ages 11+.

Learn more and register here.

Dance Foundations is Back

A group of young dancers in a studio carry colorful scarves. Two dancers are in motion running toward a wall with windows while the other dancers line up in the corner and watch.

This dynamic class is for dancers ages 8 to 10 to build a basic understanding of traditional modern and ballet dance technique.

With joy and exploration at the heart, dancers will learn improvisational techniques, basic principles of rhythm, movement quality, musicality, and alignment! Class runs on Mondays from 4 to 5pm, starting November 7.

JOIN THE CLASS

Learn Chicago Footwork

A dance shot of Kelli Forman in an alley. Her legs are crossed and she pulls her left elbow up while looking toward her right hand reaching to the ground.

OPEN LEVEL WORKSHOP

with Kelli Forman

📅 Friday, November 18
🕓 4 to 6pm

Curious about Chicago Footwork? Watch a video of Kelli here.

Open to all levels; ages 12+

Move, Write, and Draw

Elizabeth Heller sits in a bright room with colorful space decorations. A group of adults and kids sit around with craft supplies.

Created by Elizabeth Heller, ERYT-200, Super Journal is a FREE mindfulness, movement, and journaling class for teachers and parents to provide them with an opportunity to recover from stress and learn wellness tools.

Sessions are ongoing at libraries in Housatonic, Lee, and Sheffield!

JOURNAL WITH US

Share the Joy of Pulse

There are still two weeks left to vote for Berkshire Pulse in the Rural Intelligence Readers’ Choice Awards!

Vote by visiting RuralIntelligence.com/ReadersChoice. Voting runs until November 14, and you can cast your vote every day. For voting instructions, visit the homepage.

VOTE FOR PULSE