Forget standing up straight. Contemporary dance has a deep, intimate relationship with the floor. It’s not a surface to avoid, but a partner to embrace.

What it is: The art of moving efficiently and expressively on the ground. It involves rolls, slides, falls, and recoveries, using the floor for support and momentum.

Why you need it: Floorwork builds incredible core and upper body strength, teaches you how to fall safely, and adds a layer of dynamic range to your movement—from low and grounded to high and soaring.

Beginner Tip: Start simple. Practice a basic contraction (curling your spine forward) while sitting, and gently roll down onto your back. Focus on moving sequentially, one vertebra at a time.

Inspired by Martha Graham, this is the heartbeat of much contemporary movement. It’s about finding power in opposition.

What it is: A "contraction" is a sharp, inward curving of the torso, originating from deep in the pelvis. The "release" is the subsequent letting go and lengthening of the spine back to a neutral position.

Why you need it: It’s the foundation for expressing powerful emotions like grief, joy, and conflict. It teaches you to initiate movement from your center (your core), creating more powerful and authentic motion.

Beginner Tip: Sit on the floor with your knees bent. Place your hands on your lower abdomen. Exhale sharply and pull your navel towards your spine, curving your back. Inhale and release back to neutral. Feel the rhythm of the breath driving the movement.

Pioneered by Doris Humphrey, this technique is all about the drama of balance and the beauty of surrender.

What it is: The controlled movement between balance (a stable, off-balance position) and the subsequent giving in to gravity (the fall), followed by the effort to regain balance (the recovery).

Why you need it: It builds incredible trust in your body and teaches you to use momentum instead of fighting against it. It’s a physical metaphor for resilience—how we fall and get back up.

Beginner Tip: Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Shift your weight off-center until you *must* take a step to catch yourself (that’s the fall and recovery!). Make the step part of the dance, not an accident.

This is where you find your unique voice. Technique provides the vocabulary, but improvisation is how you learn to speak your own language.

What it is: Spontaneous, un-choreographed movement. It’s about listening to music (or silence), responding to an impulse, and exploring how your body wants to move in the moment.

Why you need it: It breaks the habit of overthinking. It builds creativity, musicality, and confidence. It connects your internal state to your external movement, making your dancing truly yours.

Beginner Tip: Don’t aim to be "good." Aim to be authentic. Put on a song you love, close your eyes, and just move. What does the drum make your shoulders do? How does the melody shape your spine? There are no wrong answers.

This is the magic trick—the illusion of defying gravity, even if just for a split second.

What it is: Suspension is the peak of a movement, the fleeting moment of balance and hang-time before gravity takes over. Momentum is the controlled use of energy to swing, sway, and spiral through space.

Why you need it: It adds texture, dynamism, and breathtaking beauty to your dancing. It transforms simple steps into something that looks and feels weightless and effortless.

Beginner Tip: Try a simple swing. Stand and let one arm swing forward and back like a pendulum. Let the momentum build. Now, just as it reaches the peak of its forward swing, use a little muscle to *suspend* it for a millisecond before letting it fall back. That tiny moment of control is suspension.