Not the Same Old Song and Dance: Two Partnerships between UF Health/ Shands Arts in Medicine and the Senior Recreation Center of Alachua County, FL

Focus on group selected physical, mental, emotional and social goals such as balance, coordination, range of motion, memory, fun, sense of accomplishment and community.Session content: warm up, skills and conditioning, creative exercises, and dance phrase work. This material is built into a short cohesive set of phrases to bring the class to an apex and closure. Group members bring ideas for class focal points, themes, movement phrases or whole dances.

Encore Dancers Workshop: A Second Chance to DanceA program fostering healthy aging through appropriate physical experiences, respect and inclusion, community building, and creative activity.Facilitator: Rusti Brandman, Ph.D., Dancer in Residence, UF Health Shands Arts in Medicine, Dance Faculty Emerita, University of Florida.

Evaluation on desired outcomes show that participants are grateful for the opportunity to re-kindle their dance practice in an environment where the normal physical consequences of maturing are common and therefore necessary adaptations are accepted as normal and expected. They value sequential learning aspects such as memorizing movement phrases and carrying them over from week to week for fostering a sense of accomplishment. The Encore Dancers are creating a collaborative piece using a song developed in the StorySongs Workshop.

Session content: Individuals share writing that’s based on a theme or a suggestion from group members. The facilitator guides discussion about types, styles and elements of songs: Tempo, Rhythm, Mood… major or minor? Does it have structure, or is it more free form? With input from the group, the facilitator creates a melody and makes a recording. The entire group may learn and sing the song. Since there are both long-term and new members, it is important to create something at every session, and also to maintain a sense of continuity.

Comments from Participants : “Very therapeutic” "Who'd of thought I'd wind up with a song?" “Thank you for your gentle and positive coaching." "You take a stone, then make it a diamond!" "I'm thrilled to know that I've created a song that may actually make a difference in the world.“

For more information, contact cathy@cathydewitt.com

Storysongs: Making Your Memories into MusicA program that gives people an opportunity to learn about and experience songwriting from their own words, fostering creativity and community. Facilitator: Cathy DeWitt, Musician in Residence, UF Health Shands Arts in Medicine; multi-award winning songwriter.

Storysongs gives seniors a chance to share their stories in a supportive, respectful group environment, and participate in the process of making their own and others' words into songs.Benefits: creative writing, reminiscence, social interaction, fun, sense of accomplishment and community.

Rusti Brandman

Cathy DeWitt

Encore provides seniors with previous experience in technical dance such as ballet, jazz, or modern dance with the opportunity to continue their practice in an adult- friendly environment.

For more information: contact drdance@ufl.edu