100 days have passed for New York City since the mandated order to stay at home was put in place. 100 days for almost 10 million people to learn how to turn their constantly moving lives into a still form of quiet. Many found themselves feeling disconnected, hiding behind a screen while connecting with the world outside who also found themselves behind a screen. This time created a dismantling of “normal life,” and an opportunity for people to innovate routine.
For Dance Entropy and Green Space, they quickly decided to seek ways to reach those that are feeling stuck in their homes and stagnant, that are longing for normalcy, and community. Dance Entropy continued its programming with the Department of Education through virtual classes made accessible to those who once benefited from the classroom setting. DE teachers who once went on sight, now, were being asked to teach remotely. DE recently asked two of their teaching artists about their experiences while teaching from home.
Fanny Lou Hamer Freedom High School
“The Covid-19 pandemic has had a substantial impact across the world. Perspectives shifted as a result of the lockdown and social distancing. Dance Entropy’s virtual space helped to create movement and dialogue between teachers and students, while supporting our dance community through this time of isolation. I taught three times a week for Fannie Lou Hammer Freedom High School through Zoom. It was important for me to give the opportunity to students to keep moving while stuck at home, and to keep sharing creativity together. It took me some time to get used to this “new normal”. Being separated by a screen, I had to figure out how to build the energy of the class, how to handle Zoom’s limitation or sometimes the students not wanting to be visible on screen. However, it was a great experience. “Dancing alone together” definitely helped the students and myself during this quarantine.”
-Manon Bal, Dance Entropy Teaching Artist
"Just want to thank you for your support of Fannie Lou students over the very difficult past months. Having a space for joyous movement was a bright spot for many of our students."
-Nathan Larsen, Assistant Principal, Fanny Lou Hamer Freedom High School
The Young Women’s Leadership of Brooklyn
“I had the opportunity to teach a residency for Hip hop at Young Women Leadership School for 6 weeks, twice a week. I was happy to be able to bring some movement, distraction, and fun to young women while going through a difficult time with the stay-at-home mandate, due to the quarantine. I feel it’s important for teenagers to keep physical activity and take breaks from all the restrictions. As a teacher, it was challenging to teach an online class, and I had to find a new way to engage the students with the same level of connection one has teaching face-to-face. In person it is much easier for both the teacher and the student, you can feed on the student’s energy and adapt more quickly to the needs of the classroom, while they can absorb your energy and lessons a lot faster. It was also a completely different experience to sometimes teach in front of a black screen where you can’t see your student—how they are doing or how they are reacting. Often times, students didn’t communicate verbally. It pushed me to have a much more dynamic and fast-paced class to compensate for the distance between computer screens.
At the same time it was very gratifying to see the consistency of the majority of students, following the class with exuberant energy, which inspired me to always bring something new and exciting to peak their interest and curiosity. Overall, I’m very grateful for this opportunity, I found it a positive learning experience.”
-Miki Tuesday, Dance Entropy Teaching Artist
"Working with Dance Entropy was a fabulous experience! The teachers are knowledgeable, passionate, committed to the art of dance and to inspiring young dancers."
- Carinne Bach-Moran, Teacher, The Young Womens Leadership School of Brooklyn