Eurythmy – a new dance

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The scenic expression of speech and singing

In 1912, in response to a young woman's yearning for a "type of dance or gymnastics" that could harmonize with man's spiritual knowledge, Rudolf Steiner gave the first indications for the creation of a new art of movement, based on the conception of the world. and in the vision of the human being according to Anthroposophical Spiritual Science.

It was the young Lory Meyer-Smits, aged 19, who developed the first elements of this new art, always under the guidance of Rudolf Steiner and, very soon, with the participation of Marie Steiner von Sivers. Soon after, she was joined by other personalities who participated in the gradual expansion of the elements of this new dance.

Eurythmy has the particular power to unite movement, emotion and thought, and to make what is stagnant flow, favoring good breathing, expanding body, spatial and social perception, sharpening musical and poetic awareness, strengthening thinking, producing well-being. being and health. His movements are choreographies, solo or in groups, over poetic language, in verse or prose, and over instrumental music played live.

As an art, it proposes to research the intrinsic movement of poetic language and music, how it is configured in the flow of speech and in the development of sounds, with all their nuances of feeling, also taking into account the specific content expressed by the poet or composer. This plastic artistic element of speech and music is transposed to the scenic space through choreographic movement, complemented by the colors of the clothing and lighting. Simultaneously with recitation or live music, Eurythmy dances, thus developing the sounds of poetry and music, in all their complexity.

Since its original creation in 1912, it has been developed, especially in Europe (Germany, Holland, Switzerland and England), and today also in Scandinavia, Russia, the United States, Argentina and Brazil. Over the years, numerous courses have been held and works, books and articles have been published on this new art, including its pedagogical and therapeutic application.

Source: Anthroposophical Society of Brazil website

To give you a better idea about Eurythmy, we have added two videos below. One shows children starting to learn it in kindergarten, and the other shows a performance performed by young people.