More on Moving Dreams

An Articulate Body is a wellspring, a surprising find, a tuning fork vibrating towards what is stirring.  Supporting, not suppressing, movement choices and movement intentions, an Articulate Body sees shape-shifting as a quest for authenticity, like the river ribboning its way towards the sea.

There are many ways to approach our dreams.  As we move our dreams, we draw from the wisdom of the body, seeking to cultivate trust in both psyche and soma to arrive at new forms of expression. This offering draws inspiration from Authentic Movement, in which a witness holds space for a mover who closes their eyes to explore their imagination and their own unconscious. Authentic Movement is a container, more than a process. Within this container, symbols rooted in dreams can be given space to breathe and find expression.

In addition, Laban and Bartenieff Movement Analysis provides a framework for exploring dreams, offering a way to describe and experience the dream from a movement perspective.  

This work is not so much about making meaning (which can be the case in traditional movement and dream analysis) as it is about opening oneself to curiosity, providing a way to meet dream images as they present themselves.  It is an approach guided by questions like: Who is here now?  What are the particularities of the image, be it a person, an animal, a landscape, or another symbol? And what is happening?  This is similar to the fundamental stance of the Laban and Bartenieff Movement Analyst, who holds curiosity towards a mover or movement event with questions like: What is happening in movement?  And more particularly, how is it happening?

Polarity spectrums permeate the L/BMA system.  These are opposites that are interdependent and work together to support a common goal.  One is incomplete without the other, and together they are more than the sum of their parts.  The following are organizing themes within the Laban and Bartenieff Movement System.  These themes support movement exploration and readily support an inquiry into the contents of a dream.  They can stand alone or be woven together based on what is present for the dreamer.  They are as follows:

Inner-Outer is an inquiry of senses, impulses, internal motivations, and physical manifestations.

Whole-Part-Whole takes in the whole (here is the dream), then zooms in to explore details, and finally back out again to see what has changed or what wants to be integrated based on this work.

Stability-Mobility is curious about what is solid and what is supple.  What is happening in the dream that speaks to these themes?  Where is the dream shifting?  Morphing?  Inviting change?  

Function-Expression asks what the dream is communicating in a metaphorical sense about the body's functions.  Are there feeling tones or impulses that arise and yearn for expression?

Exertion-Recuperation - Where is the energy in the dream?  What is its quality, and where is it going?

Subtle-Simple-Complex refers to the spectrum of movement from the subtle, quiet, and internal to the overt, complex, and full-bodied.  

In addition to organizing themes, L/BMA, with its four main categories for analysis—Body, Effort, Shape, and Space—provides a wealth of resources for play and exploration when working with our dreams.  We are movement, and so this material is a resource for all of us.