Film: Breath Made Visible

“Breath Made Visible” is a film of the life Journey of Anna Halprin. 

My friend Sol (Flamenco dance teacher) told me about Anna Halprin, showed me a little Youtube video about her, and told me about this film MOPA is going to be showing about her life and career. Couldn’t make the date, but I was excited to see that this film is available on instant Netflix!

Now in her 80’s, she became a pioneer in contemporary dance. Her inspiration was on emotion, the energy of nature, and social dynamics. Her approach to dance without borders, exploration of self and nature, and constant experimentation lead to a completely different outlook of how powerful body movement can be for the dancer as well as the audience.

Through a drawing Anna was making, she kept shading a black patch on this particular region of her body on several occasions. Anna went to a doctor to see if something was physically wrong with her body, and discovered that she had cancer.

“I was so amazed by this phenomenon of imagery to movement, and what is going on in our bodies. What you image is who you are and how you’re going to live your life. it’s almost like dreams. You can’t try to make things not happen, even if they’re unpleasant, or life threatening. You can’t control that. But everybody can use art as a way to cope with whatever comes up for you.”

When she discovered she had to let go of a lot of darkness and anger she has carried on her back for too long, Anna created a dance, in which she released her burdens, and in so doing, released her cancer.

“Before my cancer, I lived my life for my art; after my cancer, I lived my art for my life.”

Dance is a form of healing, and Anna approaches body movement in a kinesthetic sense. She continues to teach other dancers how boundless body movement can be, and help others discover the healing effects of movement.

Check out a class Anna is teaching this Saturday in San Diego (below is the link)!

 

Netflix link: http://movies.netflix.com/WiMovie/Breath_Made_Visible/70125128?trkid=2431210

Anna Halprin: http://www.annahalprin.org/classes.html