About Michelle Ava
Michelle Ava, M.A. in Dance Education, is the Founder and Artistic Director of AVAdance.
Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York (where she started dancing at 5 years of age!), Michelle went on to pursue her love for dance and related arts throughout the years. At The George Washington University in Washington, DC, she focused her studies on modern and improvisational dance. In 1975, she received her Master of the Arts in Dance Education from GWU. Her graduate thesis, entitled “The Effects of Transcendental Meditation on the Learning of Dance,” paved the way for what became her mission of bringing dance to the community for creativity, collaboration, and connectivity.
As an innovative dance educator, performer, choreographer, bodywork therapist, and spiritual teacher with over three decades of experience, Michelle inspires people to recognize their potential through dance, yoga, and personal expression. She approaches movement as a healing art, a way to embrace possibilities through the fusion of mind, body, and spirit. With a vision of creating “dance for everyone,” she founded Joy of Motion Dance Center in 1976. She is a vital force in DC’s dance and holistic community and teaches and presents her work both locally and nationally. In addition to her long-term, ongoing classes and specialized workshops at Joy of Motion, Michelle teaches at a variety of venues throughout the DC region. She has also been featured as a guest artist with her work in transformational dance at venues including the Omega Institute in New York and the Maharishi International University in Iowa.
As a dancer, choreograher, and producer, her most recent presentations have appeared at the inaugural Capital Fringe Festival (2006) and the International Improvisation Festival (2005-2007).
Through AVAdance workshops and her private practice in movement therapy, life-enhancement coaching, and healing motion, Michelle provides opportunities and environments for self-learning, building connectivity, and deepening community through the expression of movement. Her focus these days is to bring dance to the Baby Boomer and senior communities through AVAdance’s Dancing Forever programs.
“Quiet the mind. Listen to the body.”
“The mind questions; the body knows.”
“Dance is an expression of our divine nature, a place where we can open our hearts and experience the pure joy of Being in motion.”
© 1998-2010, Michelle Ava/AVAdance, All Rights Reserved
Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York (where she started dancing at 5 years of age!), Michelle went on to pursue her love for dance and related arts throughout the years. At The George Washington University in Washington, DC, she focused her studies on modern and improvisational dance. In 1975, she received her Master of the Arts in Dance Education from GWU. Her graduate thesis, entitled “The Effects of Transcendental Meditation on the Learning of Dance,” paved the way for what became her mission of bringing dance to the community for creativity, collaboration, and connectivity.
As an innovative dance educator, performer, choreographer, bodywork therapist, and spiritual teacher with over three decades of experience, Michelle inspires people to recognize their potential through dance, yoga, and personal expression. She approaches movement as a healing art, a way to embrace possibilities through the fusion of mind, body, and spirit. With a vision of creating “dance for everyone,” she founded Joy of Motion Dance Center in 1976. She is a vital force in DC’s dance and holistic community and teaches and presents her work both locally and nationally. In addition to her long-term, ongoing classes and specialized workshops at Joy of Motion, Michelle teaches at a variety of venues throughout the DC region. She has also been featured as a guest artist with her work in transformational dance at venues including the Omega Institute in New York and the Maharishi International University in Iowa.
As a dancer, choreograher, and producer, her most recent presentations have appeared at the inaugural Capital Fringe Festival (2006) and the International Improvisation Festival (2005-2007).
Through AVAdance workshops and her private practice in movement therapy, life-enhancement coaching, and healing motion, Michelle provides opportunities and environments for self-learning, building connectivity, and deepening community through the expression of movement. Her focus these days is to bring dance to the Baby Boomer and senior communities through AVAdance’s Dancing Forever programs.
“Quiet the mind. Listen to the body.”
“The mind questions; the body knows.”
“Dance is an expression of our divine nature, a place where we can open our hearts and experience the pure joy of Being in motion.”
© 1998-2010, Michelle Ava/AVAdance, All Rights Reserved
