Hooping Archives - Page 4 of 7 - Caroleeena's Circles Of Joy

Why Are Hoop Retreats So Expensive?

By Caroleeena July 3, 2012hoopdance, Hooping, Uncategorizedhoop convergence, hoop retreats, hoopdance, hoopfest, snow flow12 Comments

I remember a time when there were no hoop retreats. I remember playing in my backyard with Patika and AliCat and Christine and Valerie, dear friends and hoopers, all of whom lived a long drive away, and daydreaming aloud, "Wouldn't it be great if there was a retreat for hoopers!?! A…

Honing Performance and Shaking off Anxiety

By Caroleeena May 23, 2012hoopdance, Hooping, Poi, Uncategorized2 Comments

Someone recently asked me, "When did you stop being nervous before a performance?" I responded, "Stop? Maybe one day ... but I don't think they make calendars that far in advance." I am always nervous before a performance or speaking engagement or even before teaching my classes. I'm a shy person…

A Short Building Posture Ritual

By Caroleeena May 16, 2012hoopdance, hoopdance, Hooping, Poi, Uncategorizedmovement arts1 Comment

It only takes a second to reset optimal posture for movement arts, to build a posture of strength in your full range of motion. You start from the ground up: Feel your weight in your heels. Lift and then place the ball of each foot on the ground, one at a…

Directed Gaze – Directing Energy in Dance

By Caroleeena April 27, 2012hoopdance, Hooping, Poi, Uncategorizedcaroleeena, dance, directed gaze, hoopdance3 Comments

Directed Gaze is a dance concept, a way of directing focus, a way of directing energy. We can make people look at things by looking at them. Don't believe it? Go out on any street, stop and look up in the sky. Watch what happens. By directing the gaze, the…

Fire Performance at the new Museum of Natural Sciences

By Caroleeena April 20, 2012hoopdance, Hooping, Poi, Uncategorized

I am very excited to be fire dancing with Mesmerizing Arts at the 24-hour grand opening of the Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh on Earth Day, April 20th, from 9 pm to midnight. There will be bands and many other activities, including LED performances from midnight to 1 am. They…

Utilizing the Free Hand in Hoopdance

By Caroleeena April 17, 2012hoopdance, Uncategorized1 Comment

Often when we hoopdance, one hand is busy but the other hand is free. This is never more prominent than with lifts. One hand is doing the lifting and the other hand is just hanging there. We've talked about using the hands to do pretty hand and armwork. This idea holds…

Sculpting a Performance

By Caroleeena April 11, 2012hoopdance, Hooping, Poi

Performance is more than object manipulation. When paired with music it becomes dance, it becomes story telling with the body. Once we know this, we can create a more powerful performance by pairing it with story telling devices. In this class we discussed sculpting a performance, prepping for that performance, stage…

Size Matters

By Caroleeena January 19, 2012Hooping, Uncategorized

I am a total size queen There I said it I like 'em big Big as I can get 'em Big as I can manage High as my nipples So fat I can just close my fingers barely Hold 'em comfortably Big as I can get 'em and still pull off…

The Beauty of Stillness in Hoopdance

By Caroleeena December 21, 2011hoopdance, Uncategorizeddance, hoop dance, hoopdance, hula hoop, stillness1 Comment

Sustained spinning is beautiful. It is a hoop-related art all its own. And art, heck, Life, is filled with duality. There is black and there is white, there is earth and there is sky, there is up and there is down. So what is the opposite of constant movement? Stillness. I…

Music for Learning the Three-Beat Weave

By Caroleeena December 18, 2011Hooping, Poi, Uncategorized

When you're learning the three-beat weave, whether it be with hoops or poi, it can be helpful to learn it to three beat music. Some slow waltz music is good but I have some personal favorites I thought I'd share. Here they are: · "Kiss Of The Rose" Seal · "Rainbow…