Dance Curious Mambalsa Event

 

Still Dance Curious?

Mambalsa® Dance Curious Event.

The Next FREE full day Dance Curious Event is....

Saturday 23rd November 2024

If you would like to come you can book via: 

https://www.streetbeat.co.uk/Mambalsa/Info::-Mambalsa-Dance-Curious-Event

 

 

Mambalsa Daytime Dance Class with a difference

Mambalsa Daytime Dance Class with a difference!

Mambalsa Daytime Dance returns Sept '22 in a new format to support a wonderful charity, The Nightingale Cancer Support in Enfield.

I’ll be running a three week trial in-house at the Nightingale client’s who have been affected by cancer.

My aim is to use Mambalsa as a platform to collaborate with the group to hit the three Fs: Fun, Friendship and Feeling Fabulous! (isn't that four Fs?)

It’s not an aerobic class and certainly won’t be strictly anything. I’ve no idea whether we’ll end up with a Mambalsa dance demo team or having a jiggle-giggle around the handbags. Any outcome is Ok as Mambalsa is a direction of travel.

The impact of cancer restricts us mentally, affecting confidence and mood, as well as physically. I believe finding a playful space within our physical limitations, managing our expectations and loss, is the way to finding our future selves that don’t just survive but thrive.

This project fits in with Mambalsa's goal of taking dance out to people that wouldn't normally dance. That's 95% of the UK's population! It's not only good marketing, but with well-being at the heart of Mambalsa's ethos, everyone wins and the only losers are: Obesity, lonleyness, heart disease etc.

My starting point is disco and we’ll see where that takes us musically. I'm not sure how far it took us in the 1970s but there was some great tracks.

For me this project is directly related to my Daytime Dance project of 2019 where I wanted to reach out to people who wouldn’t normally access dance for well-being.

Unfortunately this class is not open to the public but if you have been affected by cancer and live in Enfield then the Nightingale offer a wide range of support services. link

F$%k Cancer Huka Mambalsa Style

I was killing time in between a blood test at UCLH and my Mambalsa workshop in Kings Cross when I saw Peter Lovatt AKA Dr Dance's F$%k Cancer Huka at the Also Festival.




www.linkedin.com/posts/peterlovatt_alsofestival-dance-cancer-ugcPost-6952008094923018240-VPKg?utm_source=linkedin_share&utm_medium=android_app


I totally get it! Not only as a dance teacher who encourages the expression of anger positively within dance, but also an integrative counsellor at The Nightingale Cancer Support charity in Enfield, and not forgetting my own recent diagnosis with lymphoma.

I believe that expressing the spectrum of anger, frustration etc. through the aroused emotion within dance is very healthy. So many partner dances involve expressive power that allows us to release our anger. Perhaps we should create a Mambalsa version of a L'Apache dance from France!









In between slurps of coffee, I studied Peter Lovatt's Huka then put it into the Mambalsa framework.

The footwork sequence of Mambalsa means we could have seamlessly segued from the fiery Huka into a fun partner dance whilst still enjoying the benefits of venting our personal frustrations.




youtube.com/shorts/rm6kMJQRIV0


As we danced the Huka in a group I noticed a serge of anger being expressed. When I slapped my arms I noticed the pain from the site of my earlier blood test and it didn't matter on bit.
I'm not sure we're ready to face down the All Blacks, but it was a wonderful opportunity to explore a small but significant part of New Zealand culture physically, from the inside out.
Afterwards I felt energised and happy. Perhaps we'd shifted aroused anger over to aroused joy, then slipped gently down to a state of satisfaction. Perhaps I should let the Rolling Stones know how it's done!


Here's the clip of the All Blacks's Huka, It's Awesome!!

If you're interested in dance psychology I totally recommend Peter Lovatts book 'Dance Psycology' amazon.co.uk/Dance-Psychology-Peter-Lovatt You can guess what it's about :)

The trip to Edingburgh

8.30am Kings Cross Station.  Arrive 7am having left the house at 6.15am.  Usually the tube takes 20mins into Kings Cross but the tubes are closed due to a strike. The choice came down to go overground at the peak of rush hour hoping i could get my cases into the train, or get up very early (for me) and wait around at Kings Cross until my train at 10am. I think I got it right. The man at the barrier said 30 mins later and it would be if horrible.