Blanch Evan: Functional Technique

 

 I
 
Unit: Blanche Evan
Theme: Functional Technique 

Introduction

 
Functional techniques refer to a movement-education approach developed by Blanche Evan to focus on body mechanics. It includes a series of systematic exercise progressions and movement sequences to increase strength, flexibility, and resiliency. 

II

Learning Objectives
 
  • Understand why functional technique is functional 
  • Explain why ethnic dance can be used with clients
  • Gain an awareness of the meaning of insight-creative improvisation
  • Experience body/movement, homework and mind-body centering, 


III

Check In
Create Presentation Groups 

 
IV

Main Lesson
 
1

Healing Through Dance (7:50-12:52)
Anne Krantz, a UCSF Clinical Psychologist and Dance Therapist 

 

2

 

Functional Technique

 
In the Evan method, rehabilitating the body is intrinsic to the restoration of psycho-physical health. Through this work the client is helped to release "non-functional" tensions, modify movement habits, and restore the natural abilities of the body.  
 
"Functional technique is not an accessory, but an integral ingredient within the whole therapy process" (Evan, 1979, Personal Communication).
 
Question 1
 
Why is functional technique functional? 
 

3
 
Types on Functional Techniques
 

a). Ethnic Dance

Ethnic dance, which enhances the therapy process, includes resources of multi-cultural dance and music, such as the creation of dances inspired by international music, the inclusion of therapeutic dance rituals based on those from other cultures, and the utilization of ethnic movements and dances to evoke specific emotional content.
 
Question 2

Based on your origin and ethnic group, what ethnic dance would you use with your client?


b). Creative Dance

Creative dance, as taught in the method of Blanche Evan, provides experiences that can stimulate the client's often limited or inhibited use of imagination, fantasy, and imagery. Dancing themes such as the violence of a storm, the aggression of a wild animal, or the building intensity of waves, may enable a client to express a range of feelings and body states, without direct focus on painful issues. Evan developed a unique style of using creative dance as a bridge to insight-oriented improvisation (Benov, 1991).

Question 3

Explain the following statement:
 
 "Using creative dance as a bridge to insight-oriented improvisation"


c). Language and Vocalization

Language and vocalization are actively utilized in Blanche Evan's methods. Liberating the voice in emotive expression is encouraged. To "actionize words" (Evan, 1979, Personal Communication) is to improvise on a specific verbal statement, so as to elicit meaningful content. A client might, for example, "actionize" the statement "I feel tormented" by dancing her own experience of torment in movements of twisting tension and perseveration. In a more usual use of verbalization, discussion among group members can create peer support and articulate important links between the client's dance experiences and her life.
 
Question 4
 
In which way voice and body movement combined benefit the therapeutic process?
 

d). Homework

Homework is encouraged in the Evan method. From homework the client learns how to bring new insights and new movement skills into actions taken between therapy sessions. "The client needs to know that work is not done in session, but during the week, and clarified in session" (Evan, 1980, Personal Communication). 
 
Homework, developed out of session material, helps to connect therapy to life outside of therapy and encourages autonomy while promoting life-style change. 
 
Examples of homework include noticing one's movements while speaking to a boss or improvising with assertive movements before visiting family members.
 
Question 5
 
What is problematic about homework as a functional technique?
 
 

4

Summary

In sum, Evan's theories and methods serve as a rich foundation for work with sexual-assault survivors. Evan states that "experiencing the physical equivalent of the psyche in body action is a universal basic need which the dance is abundantly qualified to fill" (cited in Benov, 1991, p. 57). As the survivor is exposed to the world of movement she is provided with invaluable tools to cope with emotional and psychological trauma.

 ----------------------------

 

V

 A Note to Remember 

 

Functional technique refers to a movement-education approach which focus is on body mechanics through a series of systematic exercise-progressions and movemen-sequences to increase strength, flexibility, and resiliency.



 VI

 Case Study

 

Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen

 

Practicing the Basic Neurocellular Patterns

Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen is a movement artist, researcher, educator, and therapist. She was born on December 31, 1941 in Miami, Florida. Her parents, Ruth Wilder and Joseph Bainbridge, worked with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus.

Body-Mind Centering is an integrated and embodied approach to movement, the body and consciousness. Developed by Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen, it is an experiential study based on the embodiment and application of anatomical, physiological, psycho-physical and developmental principles, utilizing movement, touch, voice and mind.
 
Its uniqueness lies in the specificity with which each of the body systems can be personally embodied and integrated, the fundamental groundwork of developmental re-patterning, and the utilization of a body-based language to describe movement and body-mind relationships. Similar to Evan's focus on body mechanics through systematic exercise progressions and movement sequences, Body-Mind centering rehabilitates the body by restoring the client's psycho-physical health or what Bainbridge Cohen call body-mind relationships. 
 
As it happens with the application of Evan's Functional Technique, through Body-Mind Centering the client is helped to release "non-functional" tensions, modify movement habits, and restore the natural abilities of the body. 
 
The study of Body-Mind Centering is a creative process used here to illustrate Evan's Functional Technique. The material presented in the video above explores movement within the context of self-discovery and openness. 
 
Question 6
 
What is your impression of  Body-Mind Centering in relation to the Basic Neurocellular Patterns?
 
 
VII

Activity

Basic Neurocellular Patterns (BNP)

  • Crawling: Moving forward on the hands and knees or by dragging the body close to the ground.
  • Creeping: Growing along the ground or other surface by means of extending arms, neck and legs.
  • Sitting: A continuous period of being seated, especially when engaged in a particular activity.
  • Standing:
    Standing, is a position in which the body is held in an erect  position and supported only by the feet.
  • Walking: Moving at a regular pace by lifting and setting down each foot in turn, never having both feet off the ground at once.
 
Explore these five movements in the order they appear above as you try to reproduce the 5 stages of locomotion development. Write about your experience. 
 
Source: Body-Mind Centering. https://www.bodymindcentering.com/bonnie-bainbridge-cohen-bio/
 
 
 
VIII
Journaling
 
 
IX
Glossary
 
 
X
Sources
 
 
XI
Students' Work

 

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