Teaching Observation Tip 1 – Take Time

Posted on May 7, 2015 by Carol-Lynne Moore

Learning to analyze movement takes time. Because at least 60% of human communication is estimated to be nonverbal and behavioral, everyone has developed his or her own way of seeing and coding movement. That is, everyone possesses body knowledge and body prejudices. Learning to observe movement objectively using Laban’s taxonomy of effort and space necessitates setting aside pre-existing approaches.

In my own development as a movement analyst, I found I “went blank” for a while when first attempting to observe a movement event.… Read More

Teaching Movement Observation

Posted on May 5, 2015 by Carol-Lynne Moore

Observation is the most demanding of all the skills involved in mastering Laban Movement Analysis (LMA). I must confess to being a slow learner. While I have been teaching observation for over 35 years, it has taken me a long time to grasp why so many students struggle and emerge, even after a year of Certificate Program training, still feeling very insecure about using LMA as an observer.

In the following blogs I share 5 tips for teaching movement observation and analysis.… Read More

New Laban Movement Analysis Book Published!

Posted on November 24, 2014 by Carol-Lynne Moore

Face-to-face communication is divided in two parts: words and the nonverbal actions that accompany those words. Experts agree that movement is the most influential part, and also the most elusive. Words are memorable. Movements disappear in the blink of an eye.

Laban Movement Analysis captures the fleeting dynamics of movement. Created by the eminent 20th century theorist Rudolf Laban, this analytic system is one of the most powerful tools for understanding the nonverbal dimensions of human action and interaction.

Meaning in Motion provides a comprehensive overview of Laban Movement Analysis.… Read More

Evolution of Meaning in Motion: Introducing Laban Movement Analysis

Posted on November 18, 2014 by Carol-Lynne Moore

During the past three decades, I have taught in something like 26 Laban Movement Analysis programs in the U.S. and Europe. Along the way, I’ve developed many handouts, devised assignments and creative exercises, and even produced small booklets on special topics like space harmony.

About five years ago, I started compiling these materials into one booklet. Whenever I worked with a new student group, I revised the booklet. Gradually, a few colleagues began to order this material for their college LMA courses, and the idea to produce a textbook was born.… Read More

Labanize: Rev Up Your Teaching

Posted on November 13, 2014 by Carol-Lynne Moore

I appreciate the elegance of Rudolf Laban’s ideas about space, time, energy, and movement. While his theories seem abstract, they always relate to concrete bodily actions. Sometimes it requires some imagination, however, to bring Laban’s ideas down to earth and make them both lively and relevant for students.

In our forthcoming Labanize lecture-demonstration in New York City (Sunday afternoon, December 7th), Cate Deicher and I share some of the ways we have found to engage students with Laban’s theories. Collectively, the two of us have taught in 35 different Certificate Programs and worked with dance, theatre, dance therapy, art, architecture, and nursing students.… Read More

Harmonize: Exploring Laban’s Advanced Theories

Posted on November 11, 2014 by Carol-Lynne Moore

During my doctoral and post-doctoral research at the University of Surrey in England, I spent countless hours in a windowless room trying to decipher Laban’s faded writings and even more enigmatic drawings. These writings and drawings were part of the Rudolf Laban Archive, a treasure trove of material from the final two decades of Laban’s life.

Studying this material was hard work, but I always found Laban to be good company. He seemed to work in obsessive bursts on particular themes, puzzling over a topic again and again until he came to some resolution.… Read More

Laban Movement Analysis for Nurses

Posted on November 6, 2014 by Carol-Lynne Moore

The role of arts in healthcare is gaining support. As public awareness increases, educational institutions are responding with programs to train artists for work in hospitals, nursing homes, and rehabilitation units.

The arts in healthcare focus primarily on the patient. However, I believe that healthcare workers themselves can benefit tremendously from parallel attention – particularly in terms of movement education.

I pursued this idea during a semester-long course for nursing students at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. My class consisted of Bachelor of Science/Nursing students.… Read More

Revitalize
with Body, Effort, Shape, Space, and FRED

Posted on November 4, 2014 by Carol-Lynne Moore

OK, I’m kidding.

Cate Deicher and I are not going to talk about FRED in the Revitalize workshops on Saturday, December 6th, in New York City. Instead, we will be sharing our novel views of BESS (Body, Effort, Shape, and Space) in these exciting refreshers for certificated Laban Movement Analysts.

Why are these refresher workshops unique? Because over the past decade, I’ve been integrating original material based on my research in the Rudolf Laban Archive into my LMA classes. Meanwhile, Cate has been pioneering new approaches in her work with unconventional students of LMA – artists, designers, architects, and nurses.… Read More

The Beauty of Movement Study

Posted on October 23, 2014 by Carol-Lynne Moore

Several years ago, while I was teaching Laban Movement Analysis at the University of Surrey, I encountered one of our Korean students outside the library. She approached me, cradling something in her hand. When she opened her hand, I saw it was a small leaf.

“Look,” she cried with delight. “Doesn’t this have a beautiful shape!”

We had, earlier in the day, been doing a class on shape. I had to agree, the leaf did have a lovely shape. But what was even more beautiful to me was the student’s delight.… Read More

Movement Study and the Goals of General Education

Posted on October 20, 2014 by Carol-Lynne Moore

Effective communication and critical thinking are often cited as goals of general education at the university level. Movement study can contribute to the development of both these skills.

It is widely acknowledged that communication has two parts: the verbal and the nonverbal. As the anthropologist Edward Hall explains, words make up only a fraction of any message. The movements accompanying speech convey more significant information. Nonverbal behavior “stresses feedback on how people are feeling, ways of avoiding confrontation, and the inherent logic that is the birthright of all people.”… Read More