Biography

Rebekah Chappell is a Visiting Assistant Professor and Assistant Director of MFA Program at Hollins University. She has taught dance throughout The United States, Costa Rica, and Nicaragua. She holds an MFA in Dance from The University of Iowa and a BFA from Shenandoah University.  Rebekah has served as a Teaching Assistant for technique, theory, and history courses at The University of Iowa, as adjunct faculty at San Jacinto College South and has taught master classes at Old Dominion University and Rice University.  Rebekah also has a passion for teaching children and has taught dance at The Kinkaid School,  Cathedral House Montessori School,  The University of Iowa Youth Ballet and Dance Community School, as  well as at dance studios  across the country.  She has taught in community programs including Kids Make Art (Roanoke), Promethean Spark: Danza para la Vida (Costa Rica), Iowa Correctional Institute for Women (Mitchellville, IA), Citizen Schools (Houston, TX), and Manna Project International (Ecuador & Nicaragua).

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Teaching Statement

As a teaching artist, I approach the classroom as a laboratory, a space to play, investigate, and conduct embodied research. I give my students the freedom to explore how movement manifests in their own bodies, encouraging them to follow their curiosities and impulses within the framework of the class. I stress the importance of a strong technical foundation while at the same time recognizing that it is impossible to perform a movement exactly the same way every time. When working with learned movement patterns I am interested in drawing attention to sensations, focus, and energy, building clarity, fluidity and efficiency while being conscientious of body alignment and biomechanics.

I approach movement holistically, drawing connections between what we are practicing in the classroom and how it is applicable in our daily lives. For example, when I teach a class through the lens of breath support I discuss how it provides stability by grounding and centering us in movement and stressful situations. We then experiment with how this applies to turning or balancing, putting theoretical ideas into practice.

The discoveries of my students expand my own understanding of the work and I encourage them to share their observations throughout class. I do this by cuing my students to discuss what they have noticed from their own experience as well as sharing what they saw happening in the room. One of the outcomes from this process is that it develops their eye for movement and their kinesthetic awareness. In return this process allows me to assess their understanding of the material and provides me with valuable feedback on how to direct my comments and corrections.
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I emphasize the concentration, discipline, and rigor needed to find clarity in the work. I teach with compassion and love, connecting with my students as individuals. I share my own understanding and approach to movement as one of many possibilities, facilitating an environment where collective research is valued and multiple perspectives are honored.