“Week in, week out, Joanne holds a space for 5Rhythms® with passion, patience, clear intention, great eclectic music, a sense of humour and, above all, deep respect for the transformative nature of this work.”
— JB, student
Joanne is skilled at grounding, tracking, and transforming the energy of a group. A natural catalyst, she uses evocative music and language, clear intention, good humour – and her spidey-senses – to consistently create a field where energy moves and healing happens. Her teaching is rooted in a lifelong engagement with her own personal work. Joanne continues to deepen and refine her work through ongoing practice with teachers, mentors, and colleagues from a range of modalities and traditions.
In Victoria, Joanne’s classes and workshops provide a place of nourishment, connection, and steady practice – a local watering-hole – for activists, counselors, parents, healers, gardeners, students, artists, craftspeople, meditators, guides, service-workers, community contributors and soulful seekers of all stripes. She considers it her job, her joy, and her great good fortune to hold space for people whose presence, good work, connection and well-being enlivens and sustains our community.
“Joanne’s teaching style uniquely combines both gentleness and fire: nurturing us where we’re at while also challenging our growth.”
— Tamara, student
Trainings, Mentors, and Teachers:
- Fascinated with dance, gymnastics, yoga, poetry, music, dream, story, art, and other ecstasies from the start
- Modern dance and performance with Lynda Raino, 1985 to 2005
- 5Rhythms® movement since 1996, intensive study/immersion with Gabrielle Roth and Moving Center School faculty (Kathy Altman, Lori Saltzman, Andrea Juhan PhD, and Jonathan Horan) from 1999 to 2013. First teachers: Zoe and Gordy Ryan and Jill Abrahamse
- Organizing workshops and events in Victoria BC with local and visiting teachers, colleagues, and mentors since 2000
- Weekly 5Rhythms® practices and classes in Victoria BC, with support and permission of Gabrielle Roth, since 2001
- Community events and fundraisers to benefit a range of causes including Power of Hope, RAVEN, 5Rhythms Reach Out, and others since 2000
- Mentorship with Kathy Altman and Andrea Juhan, PhD: curriculum design, supporting and facilitating various workshops, ongoing groups, writing and creative projects from 2004 to 2017
- 5Rhythms Teacher Trainings: 2004–2005 (‘Waves’ level with Gabrielle Roth and faculty) and 2014–2015 (‘Heartbeat’ level with Jonathan Horan), currently apprenticing to lead Mirrors
- Creative Coaching and Consulting: Art and Science of Coaching (TASC), led by Marilyn Atkinson, PhD and Erickson College faculty, Vancouver BC, 2010
- Dreamwork, Jungian psychology, mythic imagination, Shaivism, ritual, and initiation with Clarissa Pinkola Estes PhD, Michael Meade, Michaela Boehm, Stephen Aizenstat, and others since 2000
- Orphan Wisdom School with Stephen Jenkinson in Deacon, Ontario from 2014 to 2017
- INELDA: end of life Doula Training with Henry Fersko-Weiss in Seattle WA, 2017
- Ancestral Medicine with Daniel Foor, PhD: Practitioner Training completed in 2018. Ongoing study, group facilitation, and ritual support since 2018, currently completing practitioner certification.
Want to organize a workshop in your community? You can!
To find out more about hosting a workshop – or about mentoring, coaching, and other offerings – please email joanne@danceherenow.ca.
Short bio:
The 5Rhythms® is a powerful movement practice which guides participants to re-connect with their own innate body-knowledge, wellness, and wisdom. Since 2001, Joanne has held a steady space for the growth and evolution of Victoria’s robust dance community, and has shared her love of this practice with hundreds of students throughout the region. As a teacher, student, producer, and collaborator, Joanne approaches this movement practice with a deep respect for its transformational nature, and for the unique discovery process of each participant.