An interesting thing happened to me when a few of our social media reels took off. Suddenly, tens of thousands of eyes were watching. Lots of people had supportive comments, appreciating the style that we dance. Others felt the need to comment on bodies and that really got my back up. Even the comments that were intended to be complimentary, were steeped in thin as the ideal. As I sifted through my defensive reactions, I came to realize that the studio’s view that body is a vessel for experience was at odds with a world that seems to view bodies as objects to judge. This post is in response to those comments; a statement about the body neutrality that we practice in this studio.
In the context of Kaleidoscope Irish Dance & Movement Studio, bodies are the means by which we dance. Some people come in with strong bodies and others weaker bodies. Some are young; some are older. Some are healthy; some carry illness and disorder. These are simply facts. What we focus on is moving. One of the best celebratory moments in a class was when some older dancers were excited to start hopping again. They hadn’t hopped in over twenty years and with some practice at home, they came back to class delighted with reclaiming this long-lost skill. We work towards bodies that can do the movements required to generate the rhythms and musicality of the steps. If something is currently out of reach, we build the skills over time to acquire the skill. And we celebrate when someone achieves their goal. Any evaluative framework is based on the movement and the sound.
Dance culture, as most people have experienced it, is appearance focused. Mirrors, costumes, and even performance conventions prioritise how a dancer looks. Even in competitive Irish dance, a dancer is judged from the first they walk onto the platform: their costume and carriage often positioning them before they even dance a step. This emphasis on aesthetics runs counter to our focus on embodiment. When Kaleidoscope dancers start to move, their focus is on how the music feels and when they should be stepping. If their attention turns to concerns about how they look, then the magic of dancing has been lost because it is no longer about the rhythm and music. Dancers who are self-conscious cannot be fully present in the dancing. This is one of the most counter-cultural aspects of Kaleidoscope Studio: we care more about how it sounds than how it looks. We emphasise dancing as an internal, felt experience, rather than as an external performance, even if we are at a performative event.
That this is the studio philosophy, however, is insufficient. Dancers need to bring this on board in their own lives. If you want to develop your own body-neutrality, here are a few tips:
- Reframe your self-talk. Start asking yourself “how does this feel?” Stop wondering “how do I look.”
- Notice what your body accomplishes – things like rhythm, endurance, and connection to the music – rather than how it looks.
- Let go of comparison to other dancers. Look for ways to affirm what they are accomplishing, rather than how you look by comparison. By the same measure, look for ways to affirm your accomplishments. Even if it’s a simple as learning to hop again.
Bodies are a universal experience. We all have one. At the end of the day, dancing should be felt. Consider the rhythm moving through your feet. Assess your connection to the music. Reflect on how your steps are part of something much larger than yourself. When we let go of an evaluative lens and lean into an experiential focus, dance becomes the practice of presence, not a performance.
This is the philosophy we hold at the studio. Every one who walks through the door belongs on the dance floor as they are. No changes required. No ideal to match. You don’t need to look a certain way to dance. Simply show up and get your feet moving. That’s the whole invitation. And that’s always going to be enough.