• Dance on the Mat / Yoga for Athletes
Besides being a choreographer and former dancer, Stephen is a longtime yoga instructor and avid amateur athlete. Borrowing from many yoga traditions as well as dance and sport, he developed a mongrel style of yoga to stay fit in body and mind. Called Dance on the Mat, Stephen's classes are playful, constantly flowing experiences with an unique vocabulary of poses. Not just for dancers but for yogis and yoginis of all experiences.

A series of three 2-3 hour master classes. Each individual class consists of two parts:
Part 1) Dance on the Mat building blocks (1.5-2 hr): Full-body warm-ups, strength-and-stretch (antagonistic stretching) series, coordination techniques to develop skills like handstands and meditations/relaxations to prepare the mind for theater stages and the stages of life.

Part 2) Doing Yoga in America (.5-1 hr): Short discussions that provide a context for further explorations. Includes talk about various popular lineages (from Bikram to Anusara to Kundalini); physical and mental applications of yoga; and basic yogic philosophy (like the pursuit of life balance-- purursharthas) and how it offers ideas that run against the current of American culture.

• The Businessman Artist: A Survival Guide
From guerrilla marketing to financial statements, Stephen has over 15 years of experience running a small arts organization. In art, we strive for originality. In the arts business, we want stability. This series of three, 2-hour lectures discusses the fundamentals most important to emerging artists of all ages.

1) Nonprofit Status
Should you form one? Alternatives to forming one. How it works-- from the legal process to forming a board. What it means in terms of time-commitment, record-keeping, reporting and fiscal responsibility.

2) Fundraising
Why do individuals and institutions give away money? Sources of funding, writing grants, forming relationships and where to begin.

3) Operations
Signing contracts, paying yourself, revenue sources, production schedules, copyright concerns and audience building.

• Writing for Dance
Stephen has created over 15 evening-length works, most of which involve some kind of script. His experience includes everything from conceptual dance with spoken word to book and lyrics for a musical to a straight play. Three, 2-hour classes gives students a framework to understand how words fit with movement.

1) Survey of contemporary traditions
From musicals to dance theater to performance art, how different mediums have mixed the specificity of spoken language and text with the abstract language of dance. First writing assignment-- imitation.

2) Writing for dance
Examples of how pre-recorded language, live speaking and projected text have been woven into dance performance. Second writing assignment-- adaptation.

3) Putting pen to paper
Narrative applied to dance, poetry and dance and the need for speed.