Beginner Contemporary Dance classes at Peridance have several instructor options. Please see instructor methods & styles below and choose an instructor that best aligns with your needs and wants:
1) Mathew James earned his MFA at Tisch School of the Arts in Performance & Choreography, as well as his Yoga teaching certification at The Perri Institute of Mind and Body. He received his BA at Loyola Marymount University, where he performed repertoire by Barak Marshall and Lillian Barbeito, Co-Artistic Director of BODYTRAFFIC. Mathew has performed works by Bill T. Jones, Shannon Gillen, Felipe Barrueto of Joe Good Performance Group, former NYC Ballet Soloist Nolan T’sani, Kevin Williamson, and Lauren Adams. He has performed professionally with Red Bucket Dance Theatre, NickersonRossi Dance, Los Angeles Movement Arts, and consistently worked in the commercial industry as a dancer and movement director with brands such as Diesel Jeans and Disney Channel. Mathew produced his first evening-length work, Hostage in Sovereignty, in 2013. Last year, Mathew choreographed a work for the Jewish Community Center: Manhattan, worked with creative team, Sonya Tayeh, The Bengsons, and Joe Lampert on the development of the production, The Lucky Ones, and performed work by Mat Elder Dance in NYC, Baltimore, & Boston. Currently, Mathew is the Artistic Director and Choreographer for U R B A N / T R I B E. Mathew has presented work with U R B A N / T R I B E at Stub Theater in Los Angeles, The Jack Crystal Theater and Access Theater in NYC. U R B A N / T R I B E recently presented work at The Dance Theater Lab in Purchase, an evening length work at Green Space in January 2017,and premiered a new work at the KnJ Theater in February 2017. Mathew is looking forward to being Steffi Nossen Dance's Resident Choreographer in Fall 2017.
Class Description: Mathew James ignites the body by weaving ideas embedded in his training as a yoga instructor, competitive wrestler, and dance artist. These blending of techniques are delivered through a social and communal environment that cultivates group support and motivation. This class is designed to condition the mind and body through movement focused on the musculoskeletal system, mind-body connection, and testing the body's limits. By adopting yoga philosophies, the class draws in keen body awareness, flexibility, strength, power, and balance. The class structure allows dancers to have a highly physical experience that challenges them both physically and mentally. Come test your boundaries.
Schedules: Thursdays 5:30PM-7:00PM; Saturdays 3:00PM-4:30PM
2) Mike Esperanza was born in Manila, Philippines and raised in Southern California. He has established himself as a sought after teacher and choreographer throughout the nation. With a BFA in graphic design from California State University, Fullerton, Mike's approach to visual construction has influenced a unique movement orchestration on stage. His works have been commissioned by prestigious college and university dance programs including Chapman University, Loyola Marymount University, UNLV, Cal State Long Beach, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, and Utah Valley University to name a few. Six choreographic works have made regional gala appearances at the American College Dance Festival with 3 going on to perform at the American College Dance Festival National Gala held at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. In 2005, Mike was awarded the "Dance: Creation for Performance" grant presented by Dance/USA and the Irvine Foundation. With this distinguished award, BARE Dance Company began. BARE has produced numerous show around Southern California including the Lestor Horton Award nominated "Manhattan" - an alternative take on West Side Story. Mike has also been a finalist at the Palm Desert Dance Under the Stars Choreography Festival in 2006, 2008, 2009 and 2010 taking second place in 2009 and winning the paid engagement award in 2010. BARE was recently part of the "Innerstate" roster presented by ODC Theater and funded by the Irvine Foundation. The program allowed the company to perform numerous cities in Southern and Northern California.
Class Description: Class focuses on the understanding of movement construction and its connection to musical phrasing. An environment where students are taught to become present in space and capture the essence of human mobility.
Schedules: Wednesdays 2:30PM-4:00PM; Thursdays 2:30PM-4:00PM
3) Elisabetta Minutoli is from Rome Italy and she is a ballet and contemporary dance teacher in NJ and NY , free lance Choreographer and GYROTONC® pre trainer and GYROKINESIS@ trainer. As a choreographer, she has been commissioned between Europe and the USA for videoclip, film, orchestra, theatre productions, and by many artists. She has screened her work in over 20 festivals both nationally and internationally.
Elisabetta’s work has been seen at Sheen Center, Baruch Performing Arts Center, Steps on Broadway, Martha Graham Theatre, KnJ Theater (Peridance) , Gelsey Kirkland Arts Center, Aaron Davis Hall, City College - New York, Green Space in Queens, Maxxi Museum, Teatro Palladium in Rome among many others. Among the most recent works there are "Mother Warrior" ,a short film created for the Virginia Experimental Film Festival 2021 and the Well Pennies' music video "Stressed Out" filmed during the pandemic in 2020,she is currently working on the duet “As you wish" for Peridance Contemporary Dance Company.
Class Description: In addition floorwork and improvisation technique are introduced. After having prepared the body for a long time, the movement sequence gives each person the possibility of entering into themselves and and to explore movement by taking inspiration from the experiences of everyday life without neglecting the technique and choreographic structure.
Schedules: Mondays 1:00PM-2:30PM; Fridays 1:00PM-2:30PM
4) Alexsander Swader is from Birmingham, Alabama where he grew up training at the Royal Academy of Dance accredited Alabama Ballet School. While attending intensives like Hubbard Street Winter Intensive and Nederlands Dans Theater Summer Intensive, they also performed various professional roles with the Alabama Ballet Company. He received a BFA in Dance in 2021on scholarship from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and performed guest works by artists like Shamel Pitts and Rena Butler. He joined Hubbard Street Dance Chicago in 2022 as a guest artist for their Season 45: Sapphire Season and YYDC in 2023 for multiple projects like the world premiere of Nowhere at Chelsea Factory. They continue to work with Yue Yin rehearsing for performances of Ripple and Through the Fracture of Light at APAP and Nowhere at the Schrittmacher Festival in Germany in 2024.
In between rehearsing and performing with YYDC Alexsander also enjoys a successful freelance career in NYC consisting of experiences like performing in the Wiederhoeft NYFW SS 2024 Fashion Show at LaMama Theater, being a filmmaker/choreographer at Films That Move film festival in Virginia, and teaching at/with esteemed institutions like Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Alabama Ballet School, Peridance Center and New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts Dance Department.
Class Description: Class will begin by waking up the entire surface area of the body in order to bring the nervous system into a heightened state of awareness. We will then make our way through a set of improvisational ideas and tasks which we will utilize to build heat, increase blood flow, and gain greater precision regarding qualities and pathways of movement. The goals of the warm up are to find increased physicality, heightened embodiment, challenging athleticism and most importantly the joy of movement. This is all done through a sense of light hearted low stakes exploration in order to facilitate a feeling of safety and welcomeness.
A phrase will be taught during the second half of the class. The phrase will be utilized as a tool to discover and/or better understand qualitative dynamics within the body and how to accomplish them with clarity and ingenuity. It will also be used to find new movement pathways which will challenge the brain to body connection. Speed, full embodiment, qualities, textures, morphing, clarity and articulation are some of the ideas we will be focusing on in this class.
Schedule: Mondays 7:00PM-8:30PM
5) Alexander Anderson is a South Florida native where he attended the Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts, Class of 2010. Upon high school he went on to continue is training at The Juilliard School where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Dance in 2014. While at Juilliard, his choreography received Choreographic Honors and was featured on the Peter Jay Sharp Theater from 2010-2014. He is a 2012 recipient of the Dizzy Feet Foundation Scholarship Award, a 2013 recipient of the Princess Grace Foundation Scholarship Award as well as the Alexander Bay Moore Dance Award. Upon graduation, he began his professional career dancing for Netherlands Dans Theater 2 and later joined as company artist with Netherlands Dans Theater 1. In October 2019, he was mentioned in Dance Europe Magazine by Critic's Choice for 'Outstanding Performance by a Male Dancer' for his performance in Crystal Pite's "Solo Echo". He now is a freelance artist based in NYC and will be working as guest artist with Gibney Dance Company for their spring program.
Class Description: Alexander's class begins with a mindful improv based warm up followed by a movement phrase.
Schedule: Tuesdays 7:15PM-8:45PM
6) Brice Mousset is Founder, Artistic Director, and Choreographer of OUI DANSE, a NYC project based dance company. Born and raised in Paris, France, Mousset studied Biology and Human Sciences at Nanterre University before falling into the world of dance. After an eclectic performing career in Europe in musicals, operas, TV and dance companies, Mousset moved to New York City to begin teaching and choreographing. In Europe and the USA Mousset choreographs for OUI DANSE and for film, fashion, circus, operas and musicals. He has choreographed for Broadway Bares, Broadway Cares/Equity Fight AIDS, and taught and made dances for some of the most prestigious American dance institutions such as SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Dance, Point Park University, Alvin Ailey BFA Fordham program, Broadway Dance Center, Peridance Center, Joffrey Ballet School, STEPS on Broadway. Mousset has choreographed for and performed with Christine Dakin and was chosen by Mr. Robert Battle for the Alvin Ailey Dance Foundation New Directions Choreography Lab. Mousset’s first work for OUI DANSE, “Travailler”, was Reverbdance APAP award winner for Best Choreography and Audience Favorite. The company performs extensively at venues such as Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival Inside/Out Series, Riverside Dance Festival, Danspace Project at Saint Mark’s Church, Luminaria Arts Festival, and Dancers For Good Festival. In France, 2020, at the invitation of Pierre François Heuclin, OUI DANSE will perform at Vaison Danses International Dance Festival and will be in residency at Lachapelle Saint Marie invited by Abou Lagraa. Mousset is thrilled to create a work for Martha Graham Dance Company 2.
Class Description: Brice's contemporary class encourages dancers to approach the movement with risk, athleticism, abandonment, breath, weight and focus. While pushing physical boundaries of the body, playing with lines and techniques, the student is invited to explore new ways to move, with organic and emotional intentions. The class is divided in three segments:
- Warm up to center the body and articulate muscles and skeleton
- Improvisation to develop the artistry and imagination of the dancers but also to discover the infinite possibilities of their bodies.
- Learning choreography to develop specificity of movement execution, coordination and memory
Schedules: Tuesdays 11:30AM-12:55PM; Thursdays 11:30AM-12:55PM
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