Advanced Contemporary with Dylan Crossman is a 50 minute online dance class. Dylan Crossman draws on his knowledge of Release Technique, learned at the Laban Center (London); his years working with the Merce Cunningham Dance Company and his own choreographic practice to devise this contemporary class, designed for an unconventional 8’x8’ space.
Beginning with a floor phrase to encourage groundedness, engage the core and find the physical connections within the body, the class continues with a simple exercise inspired by Rudolph Laban’s concept of Kinesphere - the space around us within reaching possibilities of the limbs without changing one's place - to help familiarize ourselves with the unconventional 8x8 foot space the class takes place in.

The phrase work, based on Crossman’s choreographic repertory, will use weight, dynamic and spatial shifts to emphasize or understate the virtuosity of the steps while looking at the relationships within the body and the body in space. We will play with phrasing and focus on the clarity of directions to understand the function of the pelvis - in relation to the rest of the body - and how it drives the body through space.

The physically rigorous exercises are inspired by Crossman’s time working with Merce Cunningham and the strong belief in rigor, repetition and daily practice. They bring attention to the body as whole while focusing on the dancer's technique and his/her understanding of lines, physical clarity and speed.

We will do pliés, tendus, ronds de jambes and leg circles to discipline the body and mind and acknowledge where the body is at, on any given day.

Finally, we will learn repertory from Crossman Dans(c)e and take that opportunity to play further with changes in dynamics, orientation and order of movement.

The class is just over 50 minutes and features the sonic landscapes of artists John Glover, Josh Kadish and Jesse Stiles.

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The 8x8 series came from our continuing desire to provide great classes that can be taken any time and any place. Reaching out to some of our favorite teachers, we commissioned them to create classes specifically for an eight-foot-by-eight-foot space. The response was wonderful as we received a collection of self-taped classes made with the assistance of family and friends, all with the intention of helping you stay connected to dance.