Teaching
Trailer for Victoria’s contemporary class
Connecting to self, other and community
With 15 years of teaching experience, I bring pedagogical training as well as my own artistic practice to each class.
Teaching Philosophy
No matter what I am teaching, my eye is on relationship, on in-between spaces, connections. Whether professional training or beginning students, I cultivate awareness of self and others, body and space. My classes are thoughtfully structured to lead participants through warmup, elements of technique, improvisation, and, when appropriate, learning phrase work. Always connecting mind and body in order to expand dance vocabulary, my aim is for participants to investigate physical textures and individual movements as equally as experiencing healthy alignment and moving efficiency, so we can enjoy the full range of dynamics in any dance technique.
Kunstdünger Sommerakademie, July 2024. Photo — Victoria McConnell
Weekly Open Classes
Wednesday 18.15-19.45 - Contemporary (Beg/Int) - Tanzfabrik Kreuzberg
Thursday - 20.00-21.15 - Contemplative Groove (open level) - Tanzfabrik Wedding
Victoria is back and, aside from an Easter break, classes are their regular schedule.
follow me on instagram for weekly updates
Workshops & Specials:
Coming soon —> Contemplative Groove Deeper Groove Session
Deeper Groove Session offers the chance to go deeper into the embodied mindfulness and joyful physicality found in Victoria’s weekly class. If you haven’t yet joined a class, Contemplative Groove brings together elements of contemporary dance practice, yoga, task-based improvisation, movement research, dancing in clubs, and meditative practice.
For this workshop-style format we divide the time into mini-sessions and move through different themes to create more space for exploration and re/connecting with the body, to your sense of creative flow and cultivating awareness of self and others.
By tuning in to thought patterns and to bodily sensations while moving and dancing, the workshop develops the idea of listening as a corporeal and mental practice. We will attune to our own body first and then we can broaden our awareness outwards into the space and towards others. Elements of dance technique emerge as a vehicle for exploring an idea and submerge again in improvisation. Reflecting and exchanging are equally part of the process through pauses between movement sessions as well as writing prompts, one-on-one dialogues or group chats.
Video Trailer from Contemporary Dance Intensive - Kunstdünger Sommerakademie July 2024
Course Descriptions
Victoria's Contemporary class begins with guided improvisations to warm up, ground and center the body, while becoming aware of the breath. The class continues to move through structured exercises activating the core, emphasizing alignment and engaging large muscle groups while flowing in and out of the floor. Weaving improvisation with technique, each class focuses on a movement theme which returns throughout the session. As her class progresses across the space with spirals, floorwork and turns, there is a mix of exploration tasks and short phrases to integrate improvisation with more complex movements. Bringing all these elements together Victoria's class culminates in phrase-work, integrating individual movement qualities into the structure or choreography.
Contemplative Groove is a movement experience where all are welcome. No matter what your background — whether you dance in clubs, do ballet, or don’t dance — you can join. This class is designed to be a welcoming space for all who are curious about mindfulness, like to move, or want to dance up a sweat. In Contemplative Groove, Victoria brings together her training and experience in contemporary dance, yoga, improvisation, and meditative practices to offer a joyful guided-flow.