Archive: Workshops, Intensives, Master Classes, and Open Houses

We’re thrilled to announce a unique opportunity coming to our studio, The Dancing House, on February 22! 

Paul Becker, a world-renowned choreographer/director who choreographed Disney’s Descendants, Deadpool, The Muppets, Riverdale, A Series of Unfortunate Events, Twilight, and over 400 other titles, is hosting an On-Camera Dance Intensive right here at our studio. Paul, who is also a producing partner with Kenny Ortega, will be teaching dancers of all ages and levels.

In addition, Paul will be holding an optional general audition for his future projects during the intensive. Don’t worry—this will be an extension of the class and a great learning experience. He’ll be educating while auditioning, and it’s a chance to be considered for future opportunities in his film and tv projects.

For any questions, email assistant@paulbecker.ai and they will be happy to help.

This 8-week class series introduces the foundational principles of modern dance in a welcoming, inclusive, and supportive environment. Students will explore fundamental techniques including floor work, center exercises, and basic movement phrases while developing strength, coordination, and creative expression. Perfect for beginners and those looking to build confidence in their movement journey!

Adult Beginning Modern Workshop:
March 3-April 21
Mondays, 5:30-7:00pm
Instructor: Lily Conforti
Cost: $175

GYROKINESIS® for Adults is a 6-week workshop that will start with breathing patterns and progress into motions that mobilize the spine through arching, curling, bending, spiraling, and waving. Connecting with the breath, the movement starts to feel like a dance: oxygenating the circulatory system, stimulating the nervous system, and opening the body. Exercises are done on chairs/stools and in standing and lying positions.

Wednesdays, 4:30-5:45pm
January 8-February 12
Cost: $90

Online registration is required. For more information about Wendy and to register, click here.

The Dancing Together Workshop is a child and parent/caregiver Creative Movement class.

This 6-week workshop is designed for children ages 2-4 and their parent/caregiver who are interested in a shared movement experience that engages the senses of curiosity and play. Both child and caregiver will participate in developmentally appropriate movement exercises incorporating elements such as effort, shape, and tempo. Music will play an essential role in the class, as students will be asked to respond to sounds and make sounds themselves. Participants will be encouraged to join at their own comfort level with the understanding that observation is often the best form of learning with younger children. This class will give children and caregivers the opportunity to learn more about themselves and one another through the art form of dance.

Saturdays, 9:00-9:45am
January 18-February 22 and/or March 15-May 3, with no classes on April 5 and 12.

Online registration is required.

Join Reed Tankersley of Twyla Tharp Dance for a technique class at Zenon Dance—made possible by a partnership between Northrop and Zenon Dance. This modern contemporary class for intermediate/advanced level dancers will begin with a brief warm-up focusing on mobility and strength, followed by across-the-floor phrase work, and conclude with excerpts and phrases from Tharp’s repertoire.

Thursday, January 23 from 5:30-7:00pm

This class has a capacity of 30 students, and registration is required. Free for all participants, including University of Minnesota students, faculty, and staff. Participants will receive a 50% off discount code to attend Twyla Tharp Dance Diamond Jubilee Featuring Third Coast Percussion at Northrop on Sunday, January 26.

Reed Tankersley, from Northern California, earned his BFA from The Juilliard School in 2014. Shortly after, Tankersley joined Twyla Tharp’s 50th Anniversary Tour and has continued to perform with the company in numerous Tharp works, including In the Upper Room, Nine Sinatra Songs, How Long Blues, The Fugue, Brahms Paganini, Ocean’s Motion, and Eight Jelly Rolls. He has also worked as a répétiteur for Tharp’s Baker’s Dozen. In 2019, Tankersley ran away to the circus and toured the United States as the lead performer in Cirque du Soleil’s Volta. Tankersley is a YoungArts Award winner and one of Dance Magazine’s “25 to Watch.”

Balanced Body® Movement Principles for Rehabilitation Professionals: This course, developed specifically for physical therapists and other rehabilitation professionals, teaches fundamental neuromotor training exercises and how to use them in the clinical setting. Using mat-based exercise, you will learn the “why” behind the “what,” and how to customize your therapeutic movement prescriptions for optimum effectiveness. Learn to observe, assess, and prescribe exercise in this practical course focused on movement quality.

Fridays, January 24 and 31, 12:00-4:00pm
Instructor: Ann-Marie Chesterfield, PT, DPT, OCS, CPT
Fee: $325 plus $60 materials

You are invited to a short series of practice sessions as part of a multifaceted, ongoing choreographic research project led by Emily Gastineau. 0, 1, group, ∞ is a collective research on collective research. Sessions are pay-as-you-wish, with $10-35 suggested.

Key areas of investigation include: epistemology and relationality, methods for collective study, the erotics of knowledge, boundaries and edges, dances as effects rather than objects, reading and misreading, and the unspoken and the unknown. 

These sessions are for: dance artists who like to analyze, writers who are into embodiment, improvisers of any form, theory nerds, group facilitators, students of collective organization, scholars who want to open up method, artists of any discipline who are into research, and the committed and the curious.

Practice Session: Focus on Scores
Saturday, February 1, 2:00-4:30pm

Practice Session: Focus on Writing
Saturday, February 22, 2:00-4:30pm

Practice Sharing with Discussion
Saturday, March 15, 2:00-4:30pm

Balanced Body® Pilates Mat 3, Enhanced Mat and Props: Enhanced Pilates Mat completes the mat training by adding rings, rollers, bands, and balls to the traditional mat exercises. In addition, Enhanced Mat includes functional exercises for the upper and lower body expanding the mat work beyond the core to develop whole-body strength and flexibility. The Balanced Body Programming System is introduced to make class design easy, effective, and fun. Adding props to a mat class makes them more dynamic, creative, and accessible—and clients love toys!

Friday, February 7, 4:00-8:00pm
Saturday, February 8, 11:30am-6:00pm
Sunday, February 9, 9:30am-4:30pm

Prerequisites: Movement Principles, Mat 1 and 2
Instructor: Matthew Hodge-Rice
Fee: $499 plus $60 materials, $549 after January 18

Explore new dance styles with your friends! Classes include Family Dance and Dance a Story for younger dancers. Dancers ages 7+ (second grade and older) can take Dance & Photography and Variety Dance Camp—bring a lunch and take both for a full day of dancing! In this year’s Variety Dance Camp, students will learn Modern and Improvisation with Blake Nellis, Hip Hop with Waswa Kalema, and Jazz with Kathleen Pender.

Monday, February 17
Family Dance: 9:15-10:00 am, Ages 1 to 6 with caregiver, $15
Dance a Story: 10:00am-12:00pm and 1:00-3:00pm, Ages 4 to 7, $30
Dance and Photography: 9:30am-12:00pm, Ages 7 to 18, $45
Variety Dance Camp: 12:30-4:30pm, Ages 7 to 18, $75