Democracy in Motion
Why this program?
In a dance improvisation, we are all equal. Whether we choose to stand still or to leap, our decision will shape the form of the dance. Each moment requires us to sense the movement feeling, to perceive how it is developing and then to choose how to respond, in movement in that moment. When we join with others to make something new, we create a microcosm of human relationship. When should we lead? When should we follow? When is it time to join? When do we resist? How do we initiate change? How do we include everyone while respecting our differences? This microcredential course addresses the challenges of establishing a democratic community and uses creative dance improvisation as a metaphor for the process and principles required in that task.
What will this program look like?
Each studio session will introduce creative dance material. After day one, students will be invited to suggest various issues and challenges to democracy and then address those challenges through movement improvisations. The Course will culminate with a sharing of dance, readings, and other expressions by the students.
Participants will develop and refine their own creative movement resources. These resources include, but are not limited to:
- Refined ability to perceive nonverbal cues in others (kinesthetic empathy)
- Improved ability to modulate physical tension and relaxation.
- Individual nonverbal expression.
- Skilled group interactions, the ability to both lead and follow a group effort.
The dance material is presented as a series of creative problems that individuals and groups will solve with improvised movement drawn from the everyday language of movement expression. It is based on the ideas and principles developed by Barbara Mettler (1907-2002), an American dance pioneer, who believed that everyone could (and should) dance. She frequently said that freedom is the basis of her approach, but that our humanity requires relationships. She taught that the individual and group were dependent on each other in order to realize their full creative potential. Mettler became known for her work with large groups improvising together. Today her work is referred to as Mettler-based dance.
Key Program Information
Delivery Method
On campus
Fees
PC Students: $150
General Public Students: $325
Location
The Chapel (Manzanita)
Schedule
January 14-18, 2026
W/Th/F 5:30-8:30PM
Sa/Su 10AM-1PM
Admissions & Apply
Students will: have a basic understanding of the principles and methods of individual and group dance improvisation. experience the rhythmic nature of a successfully functioning group where give and take are in balance with leading and following and where the individual and the group are mutually supportive. have an introduction to the cultural context of the origins of Mettler’s free movement expression and Mettler’s place in the development of American modern dance. be able to identify one or more ways movement activities can be integrated with other areas of study.
- Learners will be able to apply critical thinking skills, including questioning, analysis, and interpretation, in environmental education contexts.
- Learners will be able to apply knowledge of environmental processes and systems in environmental education contexts.
- Learners will be able to address environmental issues in environmental education contexts.
- Mettler, Barbara; Dance as an Element of Life; 1983
- Perls, Jed; Authority and Freedom: A Defense of the Arts
FACULTY SPOTLIGHT
Griff Goehring
Griff Goehring has taught and performed creative dance and group dance improvisation for over 50 years. She began her creative dance journey at Prescott College (1974). Griff worked closely with Barbara Mettler, an American dance pioneer, at the Tucson Creative Dance Center in Tucson, Arizona as a member of Mettler’s professional groups from 1978-1986. She collaborated with the late Paul Fisher in the performance art group, GriffinFish during the 1980s. She received her master’s in dance/movement therapy from Antioch/New England Graduate School in 1993. She founded and directed Green Mountain Creative Dance Center in Vermont from 1996-2016. From 2006 to 2017 Griff taught group dance improvisation at Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts. She directed several performance groups during that time including the Bicycle Dance Troupe which offered workshops and performances as it pedaled through Massachusetts, Vermont, and New Hampshire. Griff kept her ties to Arizona during those years, returning to Tucson annually to co-facilitate Mettler Studios’ Teacher Training and its yearly Winter Creative Dance Retreat. She contributed to the formation of Mettler Studios’ Apprentice Program. Currently Griff lives in Tucson where she is busy offering classes and collaborating with others who share the belief that creative expression is a basic human need.
Are you interested in being part of our community?
One thing we all have in common is our passion – passion for helping others, passion for the environment, passion for social justice and a passion for a different kind of learning experience.