- Video of Kathy Johnson Teaching a Modern Dance Class to Elite Ice Skaters
- Kathy Johnson Photo Gallery
For more information on modern classes or workshops, contact Kathy Johnson at ktdanco1@aol.com.
Elite Figure Skaters Kathy Johnson Has Worked With:
'I work with most skaters at the Colorado Springs World Arena either in classes or in private lessons addressing their particular programs. I also work in Detroit with some of the ice dancers there including Maia and Alex Shibutani and Charlie White & Meryl Davis among others. Some of the elite skaters with whom I work or have worked include : Matt Savoie, Jeremy Abbott, Ryan Bradley, Rachael Flatt, Brandon Mroz, Alexe Gilles, Andrei Lutei, Todd Gilles and Jane Summersett, Piper Gilles and Zachary Donohue, Rachel Tibbetts and Colin Brubaker, Marissa Secundy, Joshua Farris, Jamal Othman, and Canadians Vaughan Chippeur and Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir.'
How Kathy Johnson Helps Figure Skaters:
'I believe that the better mover you are the better skater you are. Through modern dance, the skater learns how to shift his/her weight appropriately and that is the same whether on the floor or on the ice.
As the skaters become more comfortable with controlling their weight and movements on the floor, they eventually translate that to the ice. When they get control over the center of their bodies, and move from their core, they can free their upper body, head, neck and arms to be more expressive with greater ease and flow of movement.
If they do not develop a sense of where their weight is over their supporting (skating) leg(s), they will never have total control of their body and total freedom of movement and expression. They learn how to move through space, how to use their music, how to express physically what they hear in the music, how to incorporate a wide range of dynamic qualities, how to change levels, and how to connect to their audience. It is not just enough to skate through the shapes to the basic timing of the music. The new system in skating requires a greater knowledge of movement and dance, greater skills in musical interpretation, and a full range of expressive, dynamic body movements.'
For more information on modern classes or workshops, contact Kathy Johnson at ktdanco1@aol.com.
