Wed 10:30-12:30 Sarah Johansson Locke - Embodied Dance: Anatomy for Dancers
- Exactly what I was looking for - a primer on anatomy for dance.  Since I've started teaching, I've been trying to read books on anatomy but the information wasn't taking hold in my brain.  Sarah gave a great overview and her handouts included a wide array of resources.  We also did some exercises that helped to reinforce the concepts she discussed.  I heard from people who had more advanced knowledge of anatomy that this was mostly review for them. 

Wed 12:45-2:45 Tenley Wallace - Fabulous Floor and Funk 
- Beautiful floorwork choreo and Tenley was absolutely lovely.  Her warmup was a bit more strenuous than I like (going immediately into deep stretches instead of doing larger movements to warm up the muscles first) but I'm sure she geared it for the rest of the class who were obviously more flexible dancers who had done a lot of floorwork before.  She included influences from many different world dances.  Also, it was really fun to have a lot of the Taiwanese dancers in the class.  They were all so sweet! 

Thur 12:45-2:45 John Compton of Hahbi 'Ru - Let Them See You, Let Them Hear You 
- Wow, there are not words to express the joy that I felt during this class. John is an amazing instructor and incredibly funny.  I loved his stories and the fact that he cited influences for his dance.  The zill patterns were complicated, especially when added to the foot and hip work, but I never felt frustrated.  It seemed like everyone in the class was just so happy to be there.     

Thur 3:00-5:00 Sabine of Tribalation! - Not Your Average Sword Routine 
- In contrast to John's class, Sabine's class seemed very serious.  Not sure that I would have noticed this change if mood hadn't been so buoyant during the previous two hours.  Of course, given the subject matter, the serious tone was warranted.  In addition to teaching many gorgeous combinations to be used in ATS improv, Sabine also gave great tips on how to add drama to your dance and how to position yourself so that your sword is displayed well.  The last concept was one I hadn't ever really considered.  I will be much more conscious of it now.  I am so looking forward to incorporating these new combos into our vocabulary. 

Fri 10:30-12:30 Carolena Nericcio - The Heart of Tribal 
- This workshop has made me even more eager to take the General Skills Intensive.  Essentially, we did a warmup, danced some, Carolena gave history on Fat Chance and her dance philosophy, and then we danced more.  I thought it was interesting that she wanted to see if our dance changed after we heard her history/philosophy.  She did break down two of the moves from the volume 7 DVD.  When discussing the Sahra turn, I loved her Audrey Hepburn/Jane Russell analogy.  From now on that visual will be in my head when I do the Sahra and Wrap Around turns.  :)

Fri 12:45-2:45 Shay Moore of inFusion - 'inFusing' Your Tribal Combos and Transitions 
- Shay started the workshop by having us all sit in a circle and tell her who we are and what we were hoping to learn in the class.  This impressed me immediately.  It told me that, depending on who was in the class, she could tailor it to the skill level and interest of the group.  She and Renee then proceeded to teach us several combinations with cues and used a lot of repetition so the moves "stuck."  We then worked in groups to learn a variety of lead transitions to be used during performance.  That is one area where I feel really weak and was excited to learn something new.  There was a whole lot of information in that two hours but somehow it didn't feel rushed.   

Sat 12:15-2:15 TribalTique - TribalTique Signature Style 
- As most of us already know, Molly and Julia give great workshop.  :)  Much like Shay, they managed to teach many new moves in a very short time period with a lot of repetition.  Normally my troupe works in trios or quartets so it was a lot of fun to be in duets for this class.  Again, I was very excited to have new lead switches/transitions to play with.  I think they will be very easily incorporated into our existing vocabulary.  And, of course, the extra sass factor is always a plus.  :-)

Sun 2:30 - 4:30 Samantha Riggs - Bollywood Form & Attitude: Mitwa 
- Sam rocked my world!  I'd always read so much good press about her and now I know why. Her workshop was so much fun!  We learned a bunch of different combinations with that fab Bollywood feel and then the choreo to match the chorus for "Mitwa."  At the end of the class, we danced the entire song using the improv combinations and the chorus choreo.  I talked to her after the class and she said anytime she looked back at me, I had a huge grin on my face.  Guess that tells the story right there, doesn't it?  :-)  Barb, Deb and I ended up dancing the Mitwa chorus in our hotel room that night and in the Oakland airport the next day. Couldn't help it!