The Teachers’ workshop unlocked the mysteries of the Therapists assessment methods to test if a student is ready for pointe and taught us how to assess our own students. We also learned many new ways that we can support our students through specific strengthening exercises to be ready for the professional therapist assessments and subsequently be working safely en pointe.

The student workshops were amazing and each workshop session was completely full! So many new things to be learned and every student gained valuable knowledge and improved during the course of workshops. The Core Stability workshop was brilliant and the immediate results in the participating students’ were unbelievable. So too was the Foot Massage and Taping Techniques workshop teaching students ways to use safe self help massage techniques to relieve aches, pains and stiffness. The Front Splits Fast! Flexibility workshop dispelled some long believed myths and opened up incredible new ways to relieve nerve tension, which helps to increase flexibility. We saw a marked improvement in all participating students before we even ‘stretched’ a single muscle! We also learned from very recent research about one of the ‘old’ stretching techniques that most of us use that is now considered, by sports scientists, to be damaging to the hips. Being kept up to date on recent sports and dance medicine research was an added bonus!

The Health Professionals workshop was well attended and the response was overwhelming, uncovering a vast array of local North Coast Therapists (Physiotherapists, Podiatrists, Chiropractors, Osteopaths and Massage Therapists) who were all genuinely interested in learning more about how they can support the dance teachers and students in their quest for injury prevention. To be able to send a student to a Physical Therapist for muscle imbalance correction to avoid injury rather than sending them after the injury has occurred will be wonderful!

Lisa’s delivery of all workshops was simple and clear for all to understand from the youngest (9 years old) to the oldest participants. The fact that each participant received very clear, concise, thorough, easy-to-follow manual about all that was covered (and more) in each of the workshops is a testament to Lisa’s passion and meticulous attention to detail to ensure that each participant cam away with a reminder of all that was worked on.

Particularly because we live in a regional country where many talented and passionate dance students are born and where such opportunities are few and far between, we can’t thank Lisa enough for giving us so much of her valuable time over three exhausting 8-10 hour days! We will all be looking forward to the next opportunity to work with Lisa and hope that as many dance enthusiasts as possible will have the opportunity to work with her also. On behalf of all Northern Rivers Dance Teachers and students…