Am J Dance Ther (2011) 33:18–27 DOI 10.1007/s10465-011-9105-7
Men in Dance/Movement Therapy: The 2010 ADTA International Panel Patricia P. Capello
Published online: 21 April 2011 Ó American Dance Therapy Association 2011
Introduction Existing in a world traditionally founded on patriarchal societies, dance/movement therapy flourishes as a predominantly feminine field. In the 16th International Panel of the American Dance Therapy Association, Dr. Miriam Roskin Berger, founder and chair, opened the forum for the first time to an investigation of the complex role of men in dance/movement therapy as both therapists and clients. The respectful and enthusiastic response from the audience proved the merit of initiating this informed discussion. Coming from backgrounds that included medical doctors, psychologists, psychiatrists, choreographers, and dancers, the panelists candidly described their personal and professional journeys to becoming dance/movement therapists. The panel also looked at the singular experiences of male survivors of trauma of abandonment, sexual abuse, and war for clients in dance/movement therapy.
The Panel Overview Representing ten countries, the panel explored a multitude of issues related to the position of men in the practice of dance/movement therapy, as well as the specific experience of male clients. Topics included the challenges faced by male dance/ movement therapists regarding the limitations posed by traditional gender roles and negative stereotypes. These were juxtaposed with the unique and specific potential of using masculine traits as avenues to access healthy strength and power. Other significant concerns focused on their personal and professional struggles associated with dance/movement therapy training and employment opportunities. The following
P. P. Capello (&) 4917 Bay Parkway, Brooklyn, NY 11230, USA e-mail:
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is a brief synopsis of the intriguing observations and unique perspectives of male dance/movement therapists across the globe. Japan Long-time panel member, Shoichi Machida illustrated his presentation with a series of engaging slides introducing the men who have been influential in the field of dance/movement therapy in Japan. He observed that although women represent the majority of dance/movement therapists, it is typically men who serve as officers in the national organization, JADTA (Japan Dance Therapy Association). This is culturally dictated in that male leadership in organizations is both expected and promoted. Japanese culture, he says, also traditionally supports more men in professional dance than women. Machida presented interesting information gathered from a survey about gender issues in dance/movement therapy in Japan. The trend indicated that male clients may find it ‘‘easier to participate’’ when the therapist was male as well and the ‘‘level of energy was better matched.’’ For female clients, working with a male therapist helps them learn to ‘‘connect to men within their social life.’’ Although members of Japanese society continue to place more trust in a male authority figure, the status and impact of women is rising. Machida hopes that dance/movement therapy helps to play some role in this expansion. South Korea As new member of the International Panel, Sunyoung Park, PhD, from South Korea, candidly described his experience as both a dance/movement therapy client and therapist. As a young dancer, Park studied and performed Korean traditional dances (Masque dance, Buddhist dance, Crane dance) and later was a member of the Daejeon Municipal Dance Troupe. He went on to detail his educational journey, earning a Master’s degree in dance/movement therapy and a PhD in counseling. While he was a client in dance/movement therapy, Park felt that he was witness to what he called ‘‘feelings of anger and sadness’’ as expressed by the female group participants towards the men in their lives. He also described conflicting personal feelings of both isolation and inability in getting along with others, or being ‘‘treated in a special way.’’ He also noted that while the majority of group members were female, the group leaders were typically male. This may be a direct result of the Korean patriarchal system. Additionally, he reports, Korean men are expected to be the major financial support of their family; thus, since finding well-paying, secure careers in dance/movement therapy may be problematic, men may have to leave the field. Italy According to panelist Vincenzo Puxeddu, MD, PhD, the proportion of males to females in dance/movement therapy is similar to that of men and women in
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professional dance in Italy, wherein women are the great majority. In the professional registry of the Italian Professional Dance Movement Therapy Association (APID), there are only 19 males in a membership of 300 dance/ movement therapists. In Italy, only 3 of 10 accredited educational programs have a man as their director. Currently, research is underway focusing on the specific elements regarding dance/movement therapy practice by male professionals in Italy. As he began his personal dance training in contemporary dance at the age of 19, he revelled in the experience of feeling the deep correlation between himself and the language of movement, together with the pure physical pleasure of dance. At the same time, he became aware of the prejudices related to gender roles, particularly in ballet, that ‘‘focused on the feminine traits of lightness and grace.’’ He credits the development of modern and contemporary dance that highlights the individuality of both female and male dancers in overcoming such rigid roles. Still, he says, in Italy the number of male dancers remains significantly fewer than those of females. Puxeddu noted that, in dance/movement therapy, gender identity is a specific part of personal awareness that impacts the development of one’s own ‘‘inner witness.’’ Its characteristics and qualities are important for the clinician’s presence in the therapeutic relationship. Polarities expressed along the movement continuum can be ‘‘great resources for the discovery of feminine and masculine elements’’ since these coexist inside that dimension of consciousness we call ‘‘gender identity.’’ He went on to say that the creative process inherent in dance/movement therapy fosters integration of the less known or unrecognized parts of the self by experiencing feminine and masculine polarities. This melding of the feminine and masculine, he concluded, may increase the ability to be more receptive and reflective and ultimately affect the ways in which we act and make choices.
Argentina Guillermo Molina began his discussion of dance/movement therapy in Argentina by citing the significant presence of women in the field with little, or sometimes, no presence of men. In trying to understand this common problem, he thought it was important to first analyze the social and cultural aspects of gender and male identity particular to Latinos. The traditional model of the Latino man is to function as the ‘‘provider’’ and be successful at work, thereby wielding power, wealth and status. There is, he says, a strong, mostly critical reaction to men engaging in work that appears ‘‘too feminine.’’ Culturally, he also states, being vulnerable and seeking help as a client in a therapeutic relationship, or simply expressing emotions is ‘‘synonymous with weakness.’’ Molina described his own journey to becoming a dance/movement therapist as he struggled with leaving the field of architecture to become a licensed clinical psychologist. Eventually he began to realize that verbal communication was insufficient to deal comprehensively with the problems and conflicts of his patients. At the same time, he also acknowledged his long-time desire to dance. Subsequently, he began his training in dance/movement therapy with Argentinean pioneer Maralia Reca and presently works with a variety of client populations.
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As part of the panel, Molina chose to cleverly demonstrate some examples of the more masculine dance/movement phrases of sudden, linear, vertical motions with strong and direct effort elements. Gathering all the male panelists to stand together in a circle, he led the group in the ‘‘Pogo dance.’’ The pogo is a dance done by men that involves increasingly energized jumping (as if using a pogo stick) and bumping against each other (shoulders, torsos, backs). Despite its aggressive-looking nature illustrated by strong pushing and loud rhythmic shouting, this dance is considered a celebration of male expression that begins to test, compare, and measure masculine forces; these forces can then generate collective gestures of camaraderie, mutual trust, and unity. As in any ritual, Molina believes, it evokes deep layers of the psyche that refer to latent archetypal images. Finally, the pogo dance allows men to share the joy inherent in the discharge of emotional tension through movement. ‘‘It connects us,’’ he contends, ‘‘directly to the root of dances of ancient and primitive tribes where the man was a vital player.’’
Russia Alexander Gershon, PhD, from Moscow, titled his discussion ‘‘Lonely Man in the Female Group,’’ which seemed to exemplify many of the panelists’ experiences of being one of a small number of males in either a dance technique class or dance/ movement therapy training group. Coming from a background that examined different approaches to personal development, he began to teach a course of ‘‘integrative dance and movement psychotechnics.’’ Of the hundreds of students that Gershon and his colleagues taught throughout Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, and Israel, there were only twenty men. When informally questioning male clients and students (the ‘‘rare species’’ as he calls them) about their experiences in predominantly female groups, he discovered some interesting dynamics. Initially, he says, men may feel a combination of excitement and anxiety as they respond to the unconscious pressure of internal and external expectations. Males, he says, may experience the contrasting feelings of being the focus of group attention, while simultaneously feeling excluded from fully participating in the ‘‘group life.’’ Gershon claims that a sense of confusion or disorientation may occur for men as a result of the lack of support they openly express to each other. He hopes that the concept of ‘‘brotherhood,’’ which he believes is deeply embodied in the male soul, may foster an on-going search for ‘‘brothers in a female world.’’
Germany ‘‘Yes, I am a dance/movement therapist!’’ panelist Roland Schankula from Germany emphatically stated. Schankula detailed his personal and professional struggles as he explored careers in professional dance, dance teaching, and choreography before committing to dance/movement therapy. Currently he practices in a clinic and on an open ward in a hospital setting. Here, he has identified some challenges from the
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staff regarding their attitudes and perceptions of dance/movement therapy. Schankula has noticed that staff members who had a personal background of physical activity (sports, running, ice skating, skiing, climbing) seemed to acknowledge the value of dance/movement therapy and support his work more positively than those who did not. He also reported that some psychiatrists felt that nonverbal therapies, in general, may evoke fear and that the physicality related to dance/movement therapy may be ‘‘too much for patients at the beginning of treatment.’’ While Schankula continues to educate the staff about dance/movement therapy he is also learning how to navigate through the various attitudes and reactions to sessions from the multi-disciplinary team. There is progress towards a better understanding of the theoretical and clinical foundations of dance/movement therapy. He particularly believes that dance/movement therapy groups, which include both male and female participants, provide opportunities that may challenge clients to learn from each other through experiencing the variety of movement styles and preferences demonstrated by each gender.
Ukraine Choosing to concentrate on his dance/movement therapy work with boys in foster care, Oleh Romanchuk, MD, from Ukraine, detailed his decision to ‘‘integrate power and tenderness’’ as a remarkable tool in treatment. Romanchuk described how the foster care system in Ukraine is relatively new, with the current push to move boys from large institutional settings where abuse and neglect have been typical, to individual family-based care. The challenges faced by these boys have continued in their new environments as they struggled to learn to trust their new foster or adoptive parents, particularly fathers. Romanchuks’ discussion focused on the importance of the presence of adult males in the healing process, with the goal of developing healthy personalities and identities. By using dance/movement therapy to practice expressions grounded in ‘‘masculine dances,’’ he believes that these boys can reclaim a healthy male identity rooted in the ‘‘integration of power and tenderness.’’ While incorporating perspectives and techniques from other psychotherapy approaches, he sees dance/ movement therapy as the fundamental opportunity for an embodied experience leading to a healthy attachment relationship with others. Romanchuk outlined his personal dance/movement therapy practice guidelines when working specifically with his male clients and their foster/adoptive fathers: 1.
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Observing and identifying patterns of movement and interaction in a family (all members are included) while being offered a spectrum of interactive movement/dance games and activities. These activities focus on establishing a sense of safety, acceptance, nurturing care, and belonging. Helping the foster/adoptive father to prepare for his role in the healing process through experiential work that attempts to rediscover the playfulness, creativity, and relational openness of his ‘‘inner child.’’
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3.
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Using dance/movement therapy methodologies to aid in the healthful integration of past traumatic events within the clients’ movement/interactional repertoire while in a safe and supportive setting. Helping the boys develop a more positive male identity, with fathers and male therapists supporting and leading them as adult models.
Czech Republic Pavel Bic acknowledged his mother’s encouragement to take ballroom dance classes as a young man in the Czech Republic. It was here that the love of dance and passion for movement began to determine his life’s path to become a dance/ movement therapist. Bic saw a need to integrate a degree in psychology and dance/ movement therapy coursework as the only avenue to practice with clients in his country. Currently he works with people with autism, cerebral palsy, and with dancers and clients with neurotic disorders. Bic identified some of the issues that male clients in dance/movement therapy may have, as they struggle with difficulties improvising movement and feelings of embarrassment as their emotions get stimulated through the spontaneous dance experience. He observed how the males in the group tend to talk more and move less. Using techniques to improve awareness and integration of body parts, connecting and interacting with others on a movement level, and learning how to be less critical of themselves have enhanced their sessions. As a fledgling therapist, Bic recognizes the value of seeking out others in the field to help him continue to expand his dance/movement therapy knowledge and gain insight into issues, specifically as related to being both a male dance/movement therapist and to working with men as clients. Finally, he also acknowledged the impact of what he described as the culturally-based temperament of ‘‘being critical of self and others’’ that makes it difficult for group leaders and members alike to accept positive feedback from each other.
The Netherlands Dance/movement therapist Zivka Frank has been working with sexually abused men since 1990. With the body as the core of his focus, he believes that dance/movement is precisely the type of therapy which can effectively bring about integration of intellect and emotion, so often lacking in victims of sexual abuse. Working through emotional content by using dance and movement, Frank maintains, is particularly useful when violation of the body results in feelings that are deeply buried. Dance/movement therapy can identify and guide these blocked emotions into actions, leading to greater trust of the body and a healthy sense of satisfaction and pleasure. By establishing the crucial therapeutic movement relationship first, and working from a strong, intuitive base, Frank sets the parameters of treatment goals: building
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safety and self-confidence, trusting in self and others; constructing healthy boundaries and body image; becoming self-confident in the expression of feelings; and learning to be comfortable with social and physical contact with others. The culminating treatment goal, says Frank, would be guiding the men towards addressing issues of intimacy and sexuality by providing an opportunity to verbalize what ‘‘has been moved.’’
The United States The United States was represented on the panel by three New York State Licensed Creative Arts Therapists. A psychoanalyst and dance/movement therapist, James Murphy, MD, began his remarks by pointing out how, while patriarchy in the U.S. may not be as evident as in other parts of the world, it continues to maintain its position in professional dance: males make more money, are more likely to be employed full-time, and hold more positions as directors and choreographers than women. Yet, he continued, this trend does not cross over into the field of dance/ movement therapy, where men remain a minority. Murphy described how the women’s movement in the 1970s shifted sex roles and concepts of gender behaviors towards a more egalitarian approach. This resulted in women engaged in what were once customarily male pursuits and men undertaking more traditionally female activities. In the dance world, he also credited famous performers such as Fred Astaire, Mikhail Baryshnikov, and Alvin Ailey, for projecting strong masculine images, thus making dance professions more acceptable to males. A hurdle though, for both male and female practitioners of dance/movement therapy, says Murphy, is that generally the U.S., like most Western societies, has separated mind and body. In traditional psychotherapeutic treatment, the clients’ mental/cognitive or left-brain processes are separated from their spatial/bodily or right-brain processes. After coming into contact with dance/movement therapy in its formative years in the 1960s, Murphy was pleased to meet others who understood and worked with the connections of dance and movement to feelings and psychological states. As one of the first men to join the ADTA, Murphy helped to bridge the gender barrier and was grateful to be a clinician who used action as well as words in his practice. A second senior clinician on the panel from the United States, Ted Erhardt, concentrated his discussion on the way he thinks his own maleness elicits images of authority or father figure (or now, as he put it, a ‘‘grandfather figure’’) from his clients in dance/movement therapy. He said that he is alternately called ‘‘Poppy’’ by Hispanics and ‘‘The Man’’ by African-Americans, sometimes ‘‘doctor’’ or ‘‘priest.’’ He believes that it is difficult for clients to understand that a man about whom they have such feelings would want to dance with them. Erhardt found that women clients may be the first to attend his groups on the psychiatric unit where he works, whereas the men come only after he has earned their trust. This trust is slowly built as he explains who and what he is as a dance/movement therapist, and has engaged them in mirroring and listening, while waiting patiently for their responses. Another test Erhardt faced as a male dance/movement therapist was learning how to be a colleague or peer to women in the field. From feelings of prejudice and
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confusion, to finding a balance that allowed him to ‘‘embrace his sexuality, but without emphasizing it,’’ he candidly described his professional journey. In talking about his role as clinical internship supervisor and mentor to nineteen women and a single man, he revealed the hurdles he faced and the complexities of being a male dance/movement therapist. He concluded by reaffirming his satisfaction in witnessing the personal and professional development of interns and helping them to shape the experience by which students can ‘‘master the basic skills of our craft.’’ David Alan Harris, a U.S.-based dance/movement therapist working in West Africa, shared sociological observations on the ‘‘performance of masculinity’’ within the context of dance/movement therapy groups in which ‘‘the dancing practitioner and the dancing clients are male.’’ Video of a dance/movement therapy group Harris conducted in Sierra Leone with a dozen teenagers—all former boy combatants—and three Sierra Leonean adult male co-facilitators supported his remarks. In that group, members’ histories of direct involvement in violent conflict, and their anxieties over their role in causing others to suffer, seemed certainly to heighten aggressive elements in the performance of masculinity within the sessions. All twelve young members of that group had missed out on the culture’s mandated rites of passage by which boys become men. In place of secret society initiations, Harris felt, the youths had instead undergone inauguration into rebel fighting units through horrific acts of slaughter and mayhem. It was years later, according to Harris, when the group came together to ‘‘dance as one,’’ where they discovered new pathways to collectivity—and to adulthood. Within the liminal safety of the dance/movement therapy session, they embraced intimacy, cooperation, and authentic mutual affection—performing these so-called feminine elements of identity with the same commitment as they did the perceived masculine attributes of boisterousness and aggression. Harris highlighted another dance/movement therapy session led with three Sierra Leonean co-facilitators and eight young male participants who were all devotedly practicing Muslims. Survivors, too, of the eleven-years war, members of this group had nonetheless managed to avoid participating in violence. Already in their early twenties, they were on the verge of completing primary school and did not consider themselves to be adults. His description of the session illustrated the group’s venture into the provocative mixing of physical aggressiveness with intimacy. Harris postulated that through the heightened expressiveness of their dancing, the young men performed their masculinity within a context fraught with a combination of hope and desperate anger connected to a terrifying past and an uncertain future. Embracing the license to embody unconventional roles within the group, members acted out the challenges of moving toward adulthood outside the conventional timeline and without support of cultural traditions.
Concluding Remarks In a remarkable series of candid and persuasive presentations, the participants of the 2010 International Panel helped the audience to better understand the complexities
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and vulnerabilities of being both male practitioners and clients in the practice of dance/movement therapy. Using slides, video, music, and a rousing dance experiential, these clinicians, from beginners to seasoned professionals, succinctly depicted their challenges and successes in a field in which men are a minority. Through their journeys we glimpsed the intrinsic value and potential of the masculine perspective in clinical practice. From providing positive role models to negotiating the delicate balance between power and tenderness, this group of male dance/movement therapists reinterpreted gender stereotypes and traditional roles for the men they treat. In the transformation of the aggressive tendencies of traumatized victims into constructive affirmations expressed in a healing dance of physical and emotional strength, we saw clear evidence of the need to expand the role of men in dance/movement therapy. Perhaps, then, we can take our cue from the duality in dance expression that is the foundation of our profession: the balance of lightness and strength, rhythmic shifts of quickness and sustainment, the flow between free and bound, and maneuvering directly and indirectly in space. The 2010 International Panel illustrated the significance of a more egalitarian appreciation of the essential roles of both women and men in the practice of dance/movement therapy.
Courtesy of Yukari Sakiyama, International Dance/Movement Therapy Panelist, Japan
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Author Biography Patricia P. Capello MA, BC-DMT, NCC, LCAT A Senior Dance/Movement Therapist and Acting Team Leader for the Therapeutic Activities Service at Maimonides Medical Center’s Department of Psychiatry in Brooklyn, New York, Ms. Capello has been on the adjunct faculty in the Department of Dance and Dance Education at New York University and teaches at the Harkness Dance Center. As co-owner of a community dance studio, she taught a variety of dance forms to children and adults, and performed with the Judith Scott Dance Theatre. She has served over 16 years on the Board of Directors of the American Dance Therapy Association and is Associate Chair of The International Panel of its annual conferences. She trains and supervises students both in the US and abroad, while maintaining a private practice, specializing in developmentally delayed adults. A regular contributor to The American Journal of Dance Therapy, Ms. Capello’s writing is also featured in the recently published book The Art and Science of Dance/Movement Therapy: Life is Dance (Routledge, 2009).
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