Wow. a wonderful letter from a friend and student of mine. I am humbled. from Hannah Hoose Hi Westlake! SOT was amazing last night, and I hope that everyone is having a relaxing day. Most of my experience in our amazing dance center has been in Megan Adam’s jazz class, and I spent some time this morning thinking about why it’s so awesome and how it’s different from other dance classes that I’ve taken. Its a little long and rambling, but I wanted to take some time to thank Sherri for creating this space and Megan for being amazing. Here’s what makes Megan’s class so special: Literally anyone can walk in, and Megan will find a place for him or her. Don’t have childcare on the morning of class? No problem! Megan will invite your kid to participate with everyone else, let him or her watch, or let him or her play in the back. Do you have some sort of injury? Megan will encourage you to do your own thing in a way that makes your body feel good. You’ve never been to a dance class before in your life? Megan will find some way to compliment you on the way that you’re moving and give you something to work on. When I first walked in to Megan’s class, I was totally uncomfortable with my body (which has never looked like a “typical” dancers body), and terrified of doing something wrong. None of the moves felt good inside me. Megan told me to watch an older dancer who moved beautifully, but had an injury that kept her from doing many of the moves that we practiced in class. Following her example, I started to do my own thing. Instead of doing movements that felt bad, I gradually started to adjust them to make them feel right. After almost seven years in Megan’s class, I’ve now realized that most importantly, dance should be fun and feel good. I am a first grade teacher in the Seattle Public Schools, have a master’s degree in teaching, and know and have worked with many extraordinary teachers, but I haven’t met anyone who can differentiate better than Megan. In class, she gives lots of options on how to do each move across the floor. If none of those options works for you, you are encouraged to do your own thing. Megan is great at giving corrections- she always starts with a compliment and then tells you how to make your movements stronger or sharper. Her constant positivity and energy infuses the class, and encourages me to try the harder option, knowing that I won’t be laughed at if I fail. Megan’s class builds community and makes dance fun. She encourages everyone who wants to perform to be in her Sign of the Times piece. I started rehearsing for my first SOT in 2007, after I had been in Seattle and in Megan’s class for one month. My piece included about 20 people; some much older, younger, skinnier, heavier, experienced and inexperienced at dancing than me. Some were moms, some were cheerleaders, some were in high school, some were retired, some had already been in Megan’s class for almost ten years, and some had been here for one week. Each week for almost four months, Megan donates an hour and a half of her time and immense talent to build this community. She finds a place for everyone, never kicks anyone out unless he or she stops coming to rehearsals. In Megan’s piece, if you can’t do a move, Megan will change it or make sure that it works for your body before the show. Afterwards, she will come out drinking and dancing with us, celebrating our dance and community, and making Megan feel like more of a friend than a teacher. I am sharing this with all of WDC because I feel like my experience in Megan’s class is similar to my experience in SOT and at Westlake. Even though I don’t know many of the dancers in other pieces by name, I feel like all of you are cheering me on. It doesn’t matter that I’m only in one piece, or that I only go to one or two classes each week, or that I still can’t consistently land a double pirouette. This community is here to make each other better and stronger, to celebrate the dancers that we are now, to help build each other to be even better next year, and most importantly, to have fun and feel good. — with Megan Adams.
Posted on: Mon, 27 Jan 2014 05:50:44 +0000
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