DIGITAL: Weekend Workshop: Finding Joy & New Perspectives with Being A Dancer

Saturday and Sunday, Nov 21-22

with Being A Dancer – Wendy Reinert, Macy Sullivan, & LaTasha Barnes (Guest)

About the Workshop

What if you could advance your career by gaining a different perspective?
What if trying something new didn’t feel so scary or foreign?
Why don’t we put ourselves out there like that more often?

Join us for a weekend filled with fresh takes on movement*, community-building activities, group discussions, reflection and growth, allowing you to navigate the uncertainty and newness we’re all facing…with courage and joy!! You’ll learn how to cultivate your innate curiosity to further fuel your spark as a dancer. “Being a beginner” again can deepen your artistic practice, with or without a pandemic.

*The Dancer’s 4 Agreements – Keys for authentic and emotive expression in the moment.
*IMPROVOGRAPHY – Historical Jazz dance sequences and personal creativity exploration.

About Being A Dancer

Both freelance dancers in NYC, Wendy and Macy bonded over shared (positive and negative!) professional experiences. With a foundation for honest conversations about their hopes for the future of dance, they joined forces and are now officially partners under Being A Dancer. Passionate about filling gaps in artists’ development, they have presented both in private and public settings and offer one-on-one sessions for individualized guidance. Being A Dancer strives to build a dance world where EVERY dancer feels fully supported and encouraged and is given the skills and tools they need – beyond technique – in order to THRIVE.

Macy and LaTasha met a few years ago when they were supporting friends at an outdoor, post-show reception. LaTasha’s infectiously joyful spirit and sense of duty as a teacher were immediately obvious. In 2019, Macy took LaTasha’s “Isolation and Flow” and “Jazz meets House” classes in Paris and wished they never ended. It’s not everyday that you find an artist, teacher and community leader like Latasha who has so much to offer and who does so so generously.

Wendy Reinert is a professional dancer, aerialist, life coach, personal trainer, and world traveler whose mission is to provide dancers much-needed emotional and professional support. She holds a BFA from NYU-Tisch and has danced for nearly 20 years with dozens of companies small (Peridance Ensemble, Kun-Yang Lin/Dancers), and large (Metropolitan Opera Ballet, Mark Morris Dance Group). Her freelance career and multiple devastating injuries led her to become a Certified Professional Coach in 2016. Wendy founded Being A Dancer in 2017 and has been hosted by NYU-Tisch, Idyllwild Arts Academy, Irvine Valley College, Marymount Manhattan College, and Steps NYC.

Macy Sullivan (Camas, WA) is a NYC-based artist on faculty with Together in Dance and Dance for Parkinson’s Disease and has helped to develop programs for The Juilliard-Nord Anglia Performing Arts Program, Lincoln Center Kids!, and NYC DOE’s Middle School Boot Camp. Sullivan currently works as a dancer, rehearsal director, and dance editor for Caleb Teicher & Company (percussive, jazz-based forms), prior performing extensively with Dance Heginbotham (modern dance). She has also assisted on creative and staging processes across dance and theater works, for artists including Michelle Dorrance, Caleb Teicher, John Heginbotham, Chase Brock, and Tyne Rafaeli.

LaTasha Barnes is an internationally awarded dancer, Tradition-bearer and Lecturer. Her artistic, competitive and performative skills have made her a frequent collaborator to Caleb Teicher & Co., Ephrat Asherie Dance as well as international organizations like the International Lindy Hop Championships (ILHC) and Ladies of Hip-Hop Festival. Her Master’s in Ethnochoreology (NYU Gallatin (2019) and continuing research are working to bridge the gap between communities of practice and academic cultural dance representation and pedagogy. Goals aside, Barnes’ forever purpose is to cultivate authenticity in the creative expressions and daily lives of all she meets.

About Gibney’s Training Program

Through the cultivation of an inclusive and positive space, our offerings make space for exploration, risk-taking, personal and artistic growth, connection, and fun. It is our priority to listen to and support our community and to empower the future leaders of the field. Learn more

Wendy Reinert Photo By Chris Comfort