Susannah Keebler
susannah@motionartsmallacoota.com 04.00092721 PO Box 533, Mallacoota, VIC 3892
EDUCATION
Victorian College of the Arts at University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
• Candidate Master of Dance, expected Graduation, July, 2019.
Bennington College, Bennington, Vermont, USA.
• B.A. with a major in dance, Sept, 1994 - June, 1998 (4-year degree).
Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, Dallas, TX, USA.
• Graduate, dance major, May, 1994
PROFESSIONAL TRAINING:
School for F.M. Alexander Studies Teachers’ Training, Melbourne and Healesville, VIC, Australia
Professional development intensive with Caren Bayer (110 hrs), March 2017
Creative Dance Center – Dance Institute for Teachers, Seattle, WA, USA
Brain-Compatible Dance Education Intensive with Anne Green Gilbert (100 hrs), July, 2010
Yoga Vidya Gurukul, Nassik, Maharashtra , India
Certified Yoga Instructor (200 hrs), November-December, 2014
Tamalpa Institute, San Rafael, California, USA
• EMPOWERING CREATIVITY THROUGH MOVEMENT & DANCE
Professional development intensive with Anna Halprin (100 hrs), June, 2010
American Center for the Alexander Technique, New York City, NY, USA.
• Certification (diploma) as an Alexander technique teacher by the American Society for the Alexander Technique, Sept, 2002 - May, 2005. (1600-hour training over three years)
WORK EXPERIENCE:
Performing Artist/Chorographer
1995 – 2006, 2013 - present
As a dancer and choreographer, I am required to maintain an on-going practice for a healthy, skilled, intelligent body. As a part of this practice, I have attended classes at Movement Research, Merce Cunningham Studio, Dance New Amsterdam, Danspace, and Trisha Brown Studio. I have also studied Alexander technique, Chi Kung, Pilates, Yoga, and Body-Mind Centering. I have attended auditions and rehearsals where I developed and learned choreography. Rehearsals and performances have varied in length, quantity and intensity from project to project as does the style of choreography.
I have performed in my own choreography and the work of others at a range a venues including: Dance Theater Workshop, The Kitchen, Judson Church, Williamsburg Arts NeXus, the Ohio Theater, Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, MoMa PS1, and Chez Bushwick.
As professional dancer in New York City, I had the opportunity to work collaboratively with Daria Fain, Heather Kravas, Amy Cox, Willa Carroll, Eva Lawrence, Nathalie Jonas, and Jessica Dessner.
My most recent performances place a strong emphasis on collaboration and community involvement. In 2015, in collaboration with Padma Newsome, Aunty Fay Stewart Muir and Lisa Kennedy, “Living Connection,” and “Brush-Reed Dance” for 2015 The Shearwater Festival.
In 2016, I co-produced a full-evening-length concert at the Mallacoota Art Space with coposer/performer Padma Newsome. It featured the Mallacoota Community Choir, a community dance piece, several solos by Padma, and premiered 4 Pocket Commissions from (F)route, as well as two solo dance pieces: “I am the Water,” with a digital soundscape, and another solo, “Andrea’s Pocket,” with live prepared piano piece by Padma.
In 2017, as both a performer (singing and dancing) and choreographer, I worked on another collaboration with composer, Padma Newsome. It is a full length music narrative, a “P’opera,” called 2 Moon Smile, which was premiered in Vermont, USA in April, featuring Clogs, The Heliand Consort, 4 dancers, and Mary Bonhag, soprano.
In 2018, I made two different student works as part of the Master of Dance course at VCA, collaborating with Myfanwy Hunter, violist and Chelsea Byrne, dance artist. Additionally, I attended and performed two collaborative pieces with Myfanwy at the Melaka Art and Performance Festival in Melaka, Malaysia.
Motion Arts Mallacoota, director, dance artist, and educator
2009 - present
Motion Arts provides service in arts and well-being for my community. It seeks to promote integration of art, movement, and nature in everyday life as a pathway to wellbeing. I offer programming through a diverse array of venues and events that service a wide range of community needs for different age groups from early childhood to the needs of Mallacoota’s ageing population.
My daily duties include marketing, coordinating, and secretarial work as well as delivering all programs and performances. I manage finances, order and maintain equipment, build and update a mailing list, send newsletters and other marketing promotions. I am adept with word processing, data entry, blogging, and social media. I co-created the motion arts website and Body of Knowledge Blog, www.motionartsmallacoota.com.
I teach creative dance and natural movement for all ages, Yoga, and the Alexander Technique. I have taught group classes and workshops at the Mallacoota P-12 College, the Mallacota District Health and Support Services Hall, the Mallacoota Neighborhood House, the Mallacoota Planned Activity Group, the Art of Flourishing: a Mallacoota Community Event, The Far Easter a Mallacoota Boardriders event, the Funhouse Studio in Bega, NSW, the East Gippsland Sings Festival, and the Phillip Island Shearwater Festival, an annual event that aims to develop partnerships, cross cultural understanding and environmental awareness.
I was a guest speaker at the 2015 Connecting Women Across Gippsland Conference. In addition to teaching at special events, workshops and festivals, I choreograph, perform, and direct my own concerts and dance pieces. These performances place a strong emphasis on community involvement.
When I am in Mallacoota, I am run yoga classes at the Mallacoota Mudbrick Pavilion and at Bastion Point Beach.
Teacher of the Alexander Technique
2005 - present
The Alexander Technique is a method for learning to move with more ease and efficiency through body awareness. People often come to the technique seeking relief from back or neck pain or repetitive strain injury. I educate my students in basic anatomy and through verbal, visual, tactile, and conceptual cues, I guide students in activity, helping them develop freedom of movement and balance in daily activity. Alexander Technique can also be applied to more skilled activities such as sports and the performing arts. I have worked with a diverse array of people including dancers, actors and musicians as well as IT professionals, retail sales associates, and retirees.
COMMUNITY WORK:
THE ART OF FLOURISHING, a Community Event
Facilitator and director, September, 2014
The Art of Flourishing was a celebration of Community Health, Wellness, the Arts and local culture for adults and children of all ages and levels of health and mobility in Mallacoota.
It included: a Friday night performance featuring local artists and a Saturday full of workshops including: Storytelling, Music, Dance, Restorative Exercise & Movement, Meditation for Releasing Your Creativity, and Creative Design Collage.
My duties for this event included co-writing and submitting a successful funding grant to the East Gippsland Shire council as well as the final acquittal of the event. I was also the main event coordinator, helping develop the budget, and coordinating volunteers and workshop facilitators.
MALLACOOTA HEART & SOUL, teacher of restorative dance, Alexander Technique, and yoga 2012-present
The mission of The Heart & Soul Health & Well-Being Group is to enhance the art of creating a unified culture of wellness, environmental awareness, and community health, offering unique opportunities to experience and learn creative skills, tools, and practices for health and well-being. We meet monthly and share our practices with community in the spirit of reciprocity. These practices include: yoga, restorative dance, meditation, Creative Design Collage, and storytelling. We also put on occasional special events like the Art of Flourishing.
Secretary of the Strum Club Committee of Management
November 2009 – 2016
Strum Club is a non-profit, incorporated body that encourages community music making in Mallacoota. Strummers meet every couple of weeks to play guitars, percussion, sing, and have fun. Periodically workshops are held with local or visiting musicians to learn new music skills or styles. Several times of year, Strum Club participates in performances for the community. Over the years, it has made huge contribution to the community music/arts culture of Mallacoota.
Member of The Graham & Grunden Music Scholarship Committee
November 2009 - 2014
I have been sitting on this committee since its inception and took an active role in drafting the core values, vision, objectives, and strategies of this unique scholarship program that seeks to support young people from Mallacoota and Cann River in reaching their musical aspirations and help them see the power of their music in creating common ground. The program is continuing to develop and we are working to establish it as a bi-annual award/event.