Finding joy ... maybe it's in a dance class, maybe it's in a flower, maybe it's in seeing whales!

 

🐋 I went whale watching this week 🐋

Every now and then in life, if we are lucky, we get to do or experience something that we've wanted to do for a long time. Last week, this 41 year old got to fulfill her inner 7 year-old's bucket list wish and go whale watching in Canada, in the Salish Sea. It was an incredible experience; we saw bald eagles, cormorants, jellyfish, tiny deer on an uninhabited island, wildlife conservation areas, and yes... a family of orcas! Three generations in one family, in fact: a grandmother, the mother, and the children (a 1 year old and a 2 year old among them). And on the 2+ hours back to shore I sat (and danced, as you can see) on the bow of that boat in absolute bliss. (Not many of you know this but I was brought up in a sea town and spent a lot of my childhood on and driving boats, partly for Dublin Bay Rescue, so it was just lovely to get back out on the water; the whales were a bonus!) The point of all this is: I think we all need to seek more joy. And it doesn't have to come from big bucket list experiences - this was a particularly amazing one and I feel immense appreciation for the person who made this happen for me. It can come from stopping to smell that wee flower on your morning walk, meeting up with a friend, or going to see the Barbie movie damnit, or attending dance classes with your besties! Joy is important. It doesn't mean we negate the hard stuff. But it's important to remember bring it alongside for the ride. To whit: 🐋 Danceypants is tonight at 7:15pm Youth Annex, Sebastopol Community Cultural Center Sign up here Danceypants is capped at 20 (and already almost half full as I'm writing this) so please sign up in advance if you can $15 online in advance / $20 cash on the door P.S. If you have been to Danceypants and want to join the Facebook group, here's the link. (You must answer the questions!) ~~~   🐋 expandance in person is next Wednesday July 26th 9am - 10:30am Sign up here in the same place as Danceypants $35 expandance is a small group class for exploration and creativity, and as such is capped at 6 people. This class is also currently half full; I recommend signing up soon if you would like to come! ~~~ Never been to expandance and want a taste from the comfort of your home?   🐋 expandance: the basics is tomorrow morning Tuesday July 18th ONLINE 9am - 10:15am Sign up here $20 THIS CLASS IS FREE for BIPOC and the trans community if needed; please e-mail rachel@expandance.com to request free access if this would help you attend. If you have any questions about any of my offerings, please email me! Here's to more joy... wherever we can find it. xo, Rachel

Register for Danceypants!

Register for IN PERSON expandance

Register for ONLINE expandance

“I did expandance this morning with Rachel Wynne. If you have been thinking about doing this, Do It! I am not a dancer, I don't exercise regularly and I have chronic pain. I loved the unconventional warm up she lead us through and the visualizations with movement. Afterwards, I felt relaxed and energized at the same time. Most notably, I was able to release a considerable amount of tension that I was carrying in my body. I did all of this a short amount of time and in a small space.” - B, California   you don’t have to be a dancer  you don’t have to be “fit” or look a certain way   all you need is zoom and you

Classes for cancer wellness

expandance classes for the cancer community (open to anyone, regardless of where you are being treated or where you are in the world, and also to survivors) are on:

Fridays
10:30am - 12 noon PST
(That's 1:30pm EST / 6:30pm GMT)
FREE and ONLINE

To register, please e-mail our cancer wellness program co-ordinator Sharon Doughty at Sharon.doughty@stjoe.org to get on the list. Other classes are also available free through this program, including Qigong, sound meditations, gentle yoga, patient support groups and art classes. Feel free to forward this to a friend who might benefit from having more community on their journey with cancer.

"Thank you, Rachel, for another wonderful class today. Your classes really help keep me going" - a participant in the cancer wellness classes

COMING SOON: expandance membership

 

People who are on my mailing list already know about this

COMING SOON

 

The first ever expandance membership!

This is a membership for people who have already taken an expandance class, retreat, workshop or private session in the past and would like to:

• have anytime-access to expandance classes and workshops online
• be FOUNDING MEMBERS in this 3 month BETA
• have a say in shaping the membership for future expandancers

I've had a positive and excited response to this so far; thank you! I'm working on it at the moment on the back end and hope to have the sign-up window open before the end of the year, so that we can start in January. If you are interested in being a founding member and haven't yet told me, please just e-mail rachel@expandance.com and let me know.

Membership will include:

* Access to an ever-growing vault of expandance practices, with a new class added each month
* One live Q&A with me per month, where you can ask me anything about the practice or give feedback about the membership
* A private FB group (different from this one) for you to build community with fellow expandancers around the world and brainstorm, with me, ways to build the membership in the ways that you'd like
* All for the price of one class / month 

 

"My greatest lessons from expandance have ultimately been about fearlessness. The meditative technique goes beyond other types of sitting or moving meditation I've practiced. That is, it accesses deep awareness, calm acceptance, and loving-kindness...and also manages to make me feel like a better communicator and more confident in general. This technique has allowed me to give myself permission to take risks...at work, at play, and in my relationships with other people."

- Erica Frankel, New York

 

"I have worked with therapists on and off throughout my adulthood. I have always enjoyed dance and danced much of my adulthood for exercise, but more meaningfully as a fun, liberating, empowering and spiritual practice! Rachel's capacities and tools are among the most impactful and transformative I have ever experienced. In each of two 90 minute sessions, I felt and saw things that will carry me closer to the Me and Life I want. She has so much to offer!"

- A.H., Oregon

 

 

SIGN UP FOR MY NEWSLETTER HERE! I promise never to spam you or sell or share your information, and you can unsubscribe at any time. 

 

WE DID IT! Filming is done, and editing begins

Hello lovely! I'm delighted to announce that we wrapped filming of ''Barely a Person'', my dance theatre piece giving voice to Postpartum depression, this past weekend. On our (covid safe) set were myself, Jess Headington (director), Sean Pettis (filmmaker) and Dana Hunt (lights, B camera). I was relieved that, what with it being a personal, vulnerable and emotionally taxing piece to dance, I had such a supportive group to work with. It made a huge difference.  THANK YOU so much to all of you who contributed your voices to this work. We ended up with several mother's voices from 4 different countries making up the soundtrack.  We head into editing now and the film will be available in May. More details then!  Here are some shots of our shoot, from Jess and I.    April 2021 Register for CLASS

Classes! Do you have a friend who'd like to try expandance?  Bring them to class this month and they get their first class FREE! FRIDAYS Starting Tomorrow Fri April 2nd 9:30am - 10:30am Pacific (5:30pm Ireland and UK) *** Remember to register for each class! Registering will get you an e-mail with the zoom link *** For expandance classes, you'll need: * Something to draw / write with / on * A couple of cushions and a blanket for relaxation at the end Please note: These 1 hour classes are sliding scale $10 - $25. Anything you give above $20 will help pay for someone else who can't afford that much, or for BIPOC and immigrants, who are welcome to come for free. Thank you.  See you there! RPW

December class, gratitude, and connection.

 

Let's connect and get warm this Decembrrrrrrr...

Happy Holidays, Blessed Solstice, Merry Christmas, Happy Hannukah, Happy Kwanzaa! Thank you so much for supporting expandanceduring a year that was so difficult for so many of us. The theatre I work at has been dark since March, the studios I teach in closed, so teaching expandance for you all has been my primary creative focus and outlet. You showing up to class has helped me continue to be ''dancer Rachel'', when it felt like 36 years of commitment to dance was all suddenly for naught, so thank you. It has also helped me remain connected to my body, to my practice, and to you, my community. Even though I didn't get to choreograph the planned 2020 spring season this year, or teach Danceypants, I've taught more expandance classes than in any of the other 15 years of expandance prior.  Now it's the holiday season, and even though this one is different than most, to say the least - one thing that stays important is connection. Connection with family and friends may be limited to Zoom calls for many of us, but connection within is always available, whenever we choose to take the time and listen. I hope you will continue to join me in class to connect within, move, stretch, create, release and restore, and connect with your #globalexpandancefamily!  This month I am offering two donation based classes, and one extended workshop in which the extra time will give us an opportunity to go even deeper. Put these three classes in your calendar now! And remember to register for each class, so I have an idea of how best to tailor the class for YOU! And donate, because that's just nice.  Friday December 11th 9:30am Pacific (5:30pm Ireland) Friday December 18th 9:30am Pacific (5:30pm Ireland) Both Friday classes this month are 1 hour and donation based ($5 - $25 suggested) Saturday December 26th  10am Pacific (6pm Ireland)  Saturday 26th workshop is 1.5 hours and is a sliding scale of $15-$25 - please pay in advance  * You must register for class to get the Zoom link. It takes 10 seconds - you'll just be asked to write in your name and e-mail address * *** No dance experience required *** You don't need much room to move, and you can come with body ''stuff'' / injuries / pregnant / tired etc. Everything is welcome. I have over a decade of facilitation experience and 20 years teaching dance under my belt.  Donations and payments to: Venmo / CashApp expandance or https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/expandance Thank you  Friday classes are FREE for BIPOC and undocumented immigrants, regardless of what country you're currently in, and workshops are sliding scale. December 2020 Sign up now! REGISTER for Fri 11th REGISTER for Fri 18th REGISTER for Sat 26th

FRIEND ON FACEBOOK FOLLOW ON INSTAGRAM VISIT OUR BLOG

October 2020 Schedule of classes

 

October: The best month.   Traditionally my favorite month of the year is October, my birthday month. It's autumn, the weather is a little cooler, I get to wear jeans and make soup again. And yes, it's now apparently "wildfire season'' here in California, which sucks. I hope if you're reading this, you're safe from fires and any other natural disasters. We had the Shady fire here last week, about 10 miles from us, so that was an intense few days, but despite the smoky air outside we seem to be safe for now. Many of our friends are still under evacuation orders.  So while the fires burn, 2020 continues in all it's tumultuousness, and we're keeping tabs on the external in our lives, let's make sure we also tend to our internal body of affairs: our bodies, our hearts, and our nervous systems. Yesterday at our expandance and restorative yoga class for the cancer community, a few people joined who are currently evacuated. Having a space to come to (albeit virtual) to let go of stress and tension can help ground us so profoundly. Here's what a couple of them said:  "That's the most relaxed I've felt in five days. I felt the fear and the sadness just melt away. A real healing, thank you" - S.A. (currently evacuated) "Thanks so much for this class. I really enjoyed it. Going to keep this in mind to do daily. I really liked it" - J. H. With the recent fires, on top of the pandemic, life with a toddler and everything else, I found myself ending September completely exhausted and drained, and decided to make a few changes to my classes during October in order to give myself a re-set. It's no good preaching self care if I don't practice it too ;-)  See below for the schedule changes for October, (yay extra classes!) - I hope you'll join me for your own re-set. Remember: A rested activist is a more efficient activist! ~ Rachel, about to turn 39 p.s. Fun fact: my little brother and I share a birthday, yet we're not twins! Each year we get on the phone and sing ''happy birthday to us!"

Get your calendars out! Here's the October schedule: Thursday Oct 8th / 9:30am - 11am Pacific 1.5 hour expandance workshop $23  Register here You registration is not complete until payment is received: You can pay via Paypal  or CashApp / Venmo @ expandance  Please write in the memo the date of the workshop you're attending Tuesday Oct 13th / 8pm - 9pm Pacific  1 hour class Donation based  Register here FREE for Black, Indigenous, and People of color, as well as for undocumented immigrants (regardless of what country you're in). For everyone else, please pay what you can; $5 - $25 suggested.  Donations can be made via PayPal here or Venmo / CashApp @ expandance Friday Oct 30th / 9:30-10:30am Pacific Donation based  Register here FREE for Black, Indigenous, and People of color, as well as for undocumented immigrants (regardless of what country you're in). For everyone else, please pay what you can; $5 - $25 suggested.  Donations can be made via PayPal here or Venmo / CashApp @ expandance Ongoing Wednesday Classes "Release & Restore" / 5:30 - 7pm Pacific 1.5 hour class - expandance & restorative yoga every Wed Taught by Rachel Wynne & Sarah Jenness in conjunction with St. Joseph's Healthcare These are FREE wellness classes for the cancer community - wherever you are at in your journey with cancer (in treatment / remission / survivor). Modifications available for anyone with mobility constraints. Feel free to e-mail me with any questions.  Please RSVP to Sharon at Sharon.doughty@stjoe.org  "Release and Restore was exactly what I needed. It is true to its name: I was gifted with the space, safety, freedom, and encouragement to listen deeply to my body, contact my inner experience, and move and release what had been stagnating within; then, I got to melt into a warm, cozy sound bath while resting in regenerative yoga poses. Really, what more could I ask for?! I have been twice already, and will go again. Every time is a different experience. As a mom of a toddler, taking this time to care for myself is invaluable (not only for me, but for my family who receives a more grounded and rejuvenated me afterward!) and worth every penny". - Erin W. PLEASE NOTE: NO Friday morning classes for the month of October Remember; with expandance:  you don’t have to be a dancer  you don’t have to be “fit” or look a certain way   all you need is zoom and you  "Expandance is where your mind is set free and your inherent body wisdom opens up to releases with movement. Rachel's kind voice reminds you to let go of self judgment and free your mind. A beautiful healing experience!  Truly love your work!  Thank you!" - Nicole Incaudo, May 2019 Register for Oct 8th workshop Register for Oct 13th class Register for Oct 30th class New Instagram! Have you checked out the expandance Instagram? I'll be sharing my artistic and choreographic processes, old and new videos, class reminders and more. (Hopefully, one day, post-Covid, there'll be performance updates on there too again) Come say hi! https://www.instagram.com/expandance/

How do we know what our bodies need? Sometimes our bodies whisper to us - maybe with a yawn to let us know they're tired. Maybe with a signal to the brain saying ''I'm thirsty'' if we're dehydrated. And sometimes, when we don't listen for a while, our bodies need to get loud in order to get our attention. That can show up in the form of ailments, pains, muscle spasms, the ''back going out'' etc. What if we started listening on a regular basis? When I first started expandance (the dance company) with Laurie Schneider and Alicia Christofi Walshe, many years ago in Ireland with grant support from the Arts Council of Ireland, we were in the studio 5 days a week doing our expandance practice. From that practice, we created choreography and went on to perform those pieces at various theatres and festivals in Ireland and New York City. And for those first few years when we worked together, something interesting happened. None of us got injured. In a full time working and performing dance company, do you know how rare that is? All because we were listening *deeply* to our bodies every day, and responding to what they needed. That is why I now teach expandance practice not just to dancers, but to everyone. I know from experience the power of listening, and of moving from that deep listening place. I invite you - if it's been a while since you did expandance, or if you've never tried it - to join me tomorrow for class. You can tilt your camera up while we are dancing if you don't want others to see you. It's a beautiful, freeing practice. You don't need ANY dance experience, or even a lot of space. Here are the details: Every Friday 8am Pacific / 11am Eastern / 4pm Ireland & UK Register here: (takes 10 seconds, and you'll get an e-mail with the Zoom link) https://bit.ly/RegisterExpandanceFri   FREE for BIPOC & U.S. immigrants Donation based for everyone else. Donate here: https://www.paypal.me/expandance or CashApp expandance Suggested donation $5-$20 *or whatever you can do* * Calm your mind and clear mind chatter * Find those places in your body you're holding tension and let it go * Get grounded and centered * Feel more free, easier in the body and mind, and more uplifted I look forward to seeing you tomorrow! I'll open the room 5 minutes early so we can all get settled. Keep moving, my friends, Rachel x P.S. I'm also teaching Release and Restore (expandance and restorative yoga, with Sarah Jenness) every Wednesday at 5:30pm PDT through St. Joseph's Health. This class is FREE for the cancer community - patients, survivors and caretakers. Please register with the lovely Sharon at Sharon.doughty@stjoe.org and just let her know where you are in your cancer journey.  Listening within; listening without It's important to listen to our bodies. It's also important to listen to people who have been oppressed for hundreds of years. Here are just a few of the people I'm listening to and learning from online: https://www.instagram.com/rachel.cargle/ https://www.instagram.com/thenapministry/ https://www.instagram.com/janayathefuture/ https://www.instagram.com/iamrachelricketts/ https://www.instagram.com/urdoingreat/ https://www.instagram.com/philipattar/ One documentary that was particularly helpful to me was ''13th'' on Netflix, and this video (posted this week by @janayathefuture) is beneficial in learning more about racial structures and belief systems: https://www.instagram.com/tv/CBbY19ABa54/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link Feel free to share with me any BIPOC authors, speakers, and artists you know and are learning from.