CLASS DESCRIPTION

This class will teach students the basic fundamentals of the Horton technique, designed by Lester Horton and the foundation of choreography performed by the Alvin Ailey Dance Company. The class will consist of studies to stretch and strengthen different areas of the body. Many of the movement studies which are taught will include flat backs, primitive squat, lateral stretches, release swings, leg swings, deep lunges, and lateral T positions. Simple combinations are taught to introduce musicality and dynamics to the dancer's vocabulary.

Margaret Westby

Dr. Margaret Jean Westby is an artist, researcher, and educator, who is currently a Lecturer of Dance Studies at the University of Malta. She completed her PhD in Humanities- Fine Arts at Concordia University in Montréal, Québec, Canada, where her research-creation dissertation makes a mess of dance through feminist Science and Technology Studies. She studied the intersections of dance and technology through earlier degrees (BA Marymount Manhattan College) and (MA Brunel University). Hailing from Detroit, Michigan, USA, she is an alumni of Interlochen Arts Academy and The Ailey School. She received intensive training from dance companies including Paul Taylor, Mark Morris, Jose Limon, Kaatsbaan Extreme Ballet, Ballet Internationale, Bossov Ballet Theater, Ballet Intensive from Moscow, and ABT. She holds certifications from Yoga Alliance Teacher Training from Modo Yogo, American Ballet National Training Curriculum, Laban Movement Analysis and Language of Dance for Dance Educators, and Alvin Ailey School for Horton Technique. She has created and collaborated in over 20 performances in Austria, Canada, Finland, Trinidad and Tobago, United Kingdom, and the United States. Her practice as research involves creating and collaborating in dance performances, installations, and films internationally.