About this Event
This 90-minute workshop will examine how movement has been used within church traditions to express praise, testimony, prayer, grief, joy, liberation, and collective memory. Participants will explore gesture, musical interpretation, improvisation, intentional movement, and the development of movement phrases grounded in spiritual meaning.
The workshop invites participants to consider not only how liturgical dance is performed, but what the movement carries: personal experience, shared history, cultural memory, and connection to spirit. Participants will be encouraged to move authentically and thoughtfully while exploring the relationship between faith, body, music, and community.
This experience is part of Empower’s Mapping the Movement: Durham’s Black Dance Legacy Project. The project traces the people, places, practices, relationships, and forms of transmission that have shaped Black dance in Durham—including the essential role of church dance ministries and sacred movement traditions.
Drawing on Nicole’s experience as a dance educator, choreographer, artistic director, and dance/movement therapist, the workshop will offer both historical context and an experiential movement practice.
Participants from all movement backgrounds are welcome. Wear comfortable clothing that allows freedom of movement. Participants may dance barefoot or wear appropriate dance footwear.
Event venue & nearby stays
Empower School of Movement, 807 East Main Street, Durham, United States
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