WHAT THIS IS 

​

A contemporary teaching guide for instructors who want:

​

• dancers who commit instead of hesitate

• movement that looks intentional, not vague

• classes that feel structured without killing creativity

​

This is not combinations.
This is not a style.

​

This is how you teach dancers to think, decide, and own their movement.

​​​

​​

​

If you’ve ever said:

​

• “Commit more”

• “Use your breath”

• “Use your musicality”

• “Dance bigger”

​

…and nothing actually changed. You’re not alone.

​

Because those aren’t corrections. They’re outcomes without a process. Your dancers aren’t resisting.

 

They don’t know how to get there.

​

​

​

Most contemporary training focuses on:

​

• shapes

• performance

• imitation

​

The Work focuses on:

​

• decision-making

• transitions

• cause and effect

​

So instead of dancers asking:
“Was that right?”

​

They start asking:
“Why did I make that choice?”

​

​

​

WHAT’S INSIDE 

​

Inside the guide, you’ll get a clear framework for teaching:

​

• What contemporary actually is (and what it’s not)

• How to train transitions, not just shapes

• The building blocks dancers are missing

• How to teach alignment without rigidity

• How to use improvisation with purpose (not filler)

• How to build a classroom where dancers take real risks

​

And most importantly:

How to create dancers who don’t need to rely on you to move well.

​

​

​

WHY THIS WORKS

​

Because contemporary isn’t vague. It’s purposeful deviation.

​

And dancers can’t deviate with intention if they don’t understand structure first.

 

This framework gives them:

​

• structure without rigidity

• freedom without chaos

• risk with responsibility

​

​

​

WHO THIS IS FOR

​

This is for teachers who:

​

• are tired of surface-level contemporary

• want dancers to stop “marking” and start committing

• care about both technique and artistry

• know something is missing in their training… but can’t quite name it

• are ready to create mature looking and thinking artists

​

​

​

WHO THIS IS NOT FOR

​

This is not for you if you want:

• quick combos to teach next week

• choreography to copy

• a “look” to replicate

​

This is deeper work.

​

​

​

After using this framework, you’ll start to see:

​

• clearer movement without over-cueing

• dancers taking initiative instead of waiting

• stronger transitions (not just big moments)

• more grounded, believable performance

• less repetition of the same corrections

​

And classes that actually move forward.

​

​

​

Created by Lauren Carnesi Daniels
BFA Dance Performance and Choreography, MS Arts Administration

 

Over a decade of training dancers for:

• college dance programs

• competitive environments

• professional pathways

 

Students have gone on to programs including: USC Kauffman, NYU Tisch, Marymount Manhattan, Point Park, University of Arizona, PACE, Shenandoah Conservatory, FSU and many more.

​

​

​

This is not a one-use resource.

​

It’s something you return to:

• when class isn’t clicking

• when dancers feel stuck

• when your corrections aren’t landing

​

Because it doesn’t give you more material.

​

It changes how you teach the material you already have.

​

​

​

If you’re ready for dancers who think, not just perform—

 

​

​

Get access to The Work: A Contemporary Teaching Guide