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I walked into Art and Marylea’s Tantra Dance class thinking I was going to learn how to dance more freely, perhaps mostly on my own, being present in my body.
Then we were immediately paired up. And I panicked.
When I was around twelve years old, I was a head taller than most of the boys in my class. In traditional dance, that often meant that I had to take the “male” role and lead. Somehow, that experience stayed in my body for years. I never really learned how to follow in dance unless the person leading me was extremely clear, and being asked to follow could bring up a surprising amount of fear and insecurity.
So there I was, in their class, with tears starting to run down my face, thinking, “I don’t like this. I can’t do this. I want to leave.”
A friend convinced me to stay and told me he would help me through it.
And I am so grateful that I did.
What Art and Marylea taught had almost nothing to do with what I thought I knew about dancing. It wasn’t about remembering steps or trying to guess what my partner wanted me to do. It was about learning to listen through the body.
At first, the movements were very clear and playful. I could be sent away almost like a shopping cart, keep moving until my partner found my hand again, and then be drawn back like a catapult. A hand could stop me, redirect me, invite me somewhere else, and suddenly I understood.
I didn’t have to know what came next.
I only had to listen.
By the end of the class, I was dancing blindfolded.
And I was crying again, but this time from joy.
For the first time in my life, I felt like a queen on the dance floor. I could follow. I could relax. I could even become playful, because the technique gave me enough safety and clarity to trust what was happening between two bodies.
That class changed something I had carried with me around dance for most of my life.
A year later, I had the pleasure of dancing with Art again, and I felt that same sense of being completely taken care of in the dance. His leading was so subtle that sometimes there was hardly any pressure at all, and yet my body somehow knew where to go.
At one point he said to me: “Jenny, your body knows what to do. Just trust it.”
Even writing those words now brings tears to my eyes.
Art and Marylea, thank you for creating a way of teaching dance that is not only beautiful and playful, but deeply embodied. You didn’t just teach me how to follow a dance partner.
You helped me trust my own body.
And that is something I will carry with me for the rest of my life.
https://www.instagram.com/jennypuronne/reel/DeJiVwrop6v/?hl=en
Art and Marylea's dance class offers a uniquely enriching experience, characterized by their open-hearted approach and deep connection to their craft and participants. They foster an environment where individuals feel warm, included, and empowered, facilitating an atmosphere conducive to learning, discovery, and personal growth. Their instruction style is inclusive, making dance accessible and enjoyable even to those without prior experience, while also ensuring that everyone feels affirmed and capable within the space.
Both instructors bring extensive experience and passion to their classes. Art, with years of dancing and teaching, pairs his expertise with Marylea's diverse practice in various dance modalities. Together, they create a supportive and nurturing environment that promotes fun, growth, and discovery. Their sessions are celebrated for their ability to leave participants feeling joyful, enlightened, and connected to the essence of dance and movement, as well as to themselves and others.
Participants consistently describe their experience as transformative and uplifting, characterized by an infectious joy, playfulness, and a renewed connection to music and movement. Art and Marylea's classes are thus a genuine gift to those seeking to explore dance as a medium for personal expression and connection.
Art and Marylea's amazing dance class. Art and Marylea are a beautiful couple, and they carry the fun, the play, the joy, the heart when they dance and they lead classes. They are both gifted. Their hearts are very open and connected to each other and to the field and the space of the room that they teach in. And the participants feel warm, and there's a warmth that they bring forth that everyone feels comfortable and warm and included. And affirmed, and there's space for one to learn and grow in a way, an environment that is supportive, empowering, and elicits learning, discovery, and growth. And even if somebody isn't a dancer or doesn't know how to dance, they make it fun and easy. And inclusive, so people feel that they can learn and enjoy and be empowered and affirmed in the space.
They create a relaxing, warm environment, and people leave their dance classes with a smile on their face and a warm, good feeling inside of just experience dance and movement, learning and discovering.
Marylea and Art work from their heart and their joy and their vast experience as Art has been a dancer for years and an instructor for years, highly refined, and Marylea has been dancing for years and has much dance practice herself in different modalities. So they're both highly trained dance instructors and dance instructors. And they bring their art and their heart and their knowledge and wisdom, creating a beautiful environment for growth, fun, discovery, play, dance, in a warm, nurturing environment. They are truly champions of what they do, and it's always lovely.
It's always lovely to be in their field for they are masterful in their art on multiple levels, from their dance, to their movement, to their heart, to their communication, to everything they bring to the party. So if you ever get a chance to experience them and their dance classes, you will truly enjoy it and be left with a warm feeling of opening, discovering, play, and learning new things about dance, movement, awareness, the heart, and connecting with another.
Thank you, Art and Marylea ~ You are truly a gift.
- SH
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