STATIONARY DANCE
.                                                   
No, the title is not a contradiction in terms...  Instead it is an idea that I 
just encountered at a festival this past weekend.  I attended a festival called 
KRAFT KALL down in Meriden CT.  I was very impressed by the entire weekend, and 
learned a great deal, if you are in the New England area, I would recommend it 
when they have the next one...

One of the seminars that I attended was on Sacred Dance, presented by Susan 
Kirsch.  There were lots of different dances that we did, and I will be forced 
to admit that I have an excess number of left feet when dancing in groups...  
However the last "dance" I found very enjoyable, and a technique that answers 
many of the problems with normal dancing that may inhibit some of us from 
performing normally....

1. Some of us have mobility problems, ranging from the wheelchair confined, to 
just  
    "creaky in the knees"....
2. Often if one is having a circle indoors, there just isn't enough ROOM for 
more
    active dancing....
3. Some of us are hearing or speech impaired, restricting the enjoyment of music 
    and/or the ability to join in chants....

etc...

Susan developed this technique that answers these issues, especially the first.

Essentially everyone sits in circle, either in chairs or (possibly better) on 
the floor...  The dance consists of the following chant, and movements;

    CHANT              MOVEMENT

"Earth my body"        Touch/slap floor with both hands
"Water my blood"      Make "rolling" motion with both hands in front of body
"Air my breath"          Reach straight out and pull back in, gracefully
"Fire my spirit"          Reach up and wiggle hands and fingers

Repeat.....

If done as a "round" it is very impressive...  It allows the "mobility 
challenged" to participate, it fits in a small room, and the gestures may not be 
exactly "sign", but they are close enough that the hearing/voice impaired can 
get into the spirit of it...