Modern dance teacher offers classes at two sites in Warwick

Warwick — Choreographer and dance teacher Linda Mensch, director of The Moving Company, will be offering classes at two locations in Warwick this fall. The Moving Company is known for its programs in which students learn modern dance and how to choreograph, ultimately producing their own shows from dance to costumes and lighting. “It’s very empowering,” Mensch says, as students take their creative ideas beyond the limits of the typical dance class. While the focus is primarily on modern dance, students learn ballet basics and become technically educated as well, through The Moving Company’s programs. Those who choose to go on to a career in dance have been given a solid foundation. “The focus is on the soul of dance and creativity as something that’s just plain fun,” Mensch says. For those who want to practice creative movement and learn new techniques, The Moving Company is offering a new class “So you think you can’t dance?” for adults. The fee for that class is “pay what you can.” Students leave their fees in an envelope. The Moving Company offers classes for children age 3 through adult; scholarships are available. And, the first class of each session is free so students can sample without yet making a commitment. Classes start the week of Sept. 20 and will be held Saturdays at Kids Clubhouse in Pine Island and Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays for teens and adults at Vastu, the Masonic Temple Building at 17 Main St., Warwick. Among the classes offered this semester are: Creative Dance for 3- to 5-year-olds; Hip Hop for 7- to 11-year-olds; Kids Modern Workshop for 6- to 11-year-olds and Teen-Adult Hip Hop. Well-known in Warwick Linda Mensch has been teaching in Warwick for more than 14 years, has choreographed pieces for the Warwick Arts Festival, led workshops at the Pine Island Elementary School incorporating academic lessons with dance and movement, and continues to teach special workshops for at-risk teens through the Road Recovery program. This summer she taught a movement for actors class to students in a teen acting workshop at the Lycian Center in Sugar Loaf and choreographed “Alice in Wonderland” at the Lycian theater for the teen theater program there. Over the 14 years The Moving Company Modern Dnace Center has been in Warwick, Mensch has brought in guest masters such as Crystalyn Wright from Urban Bush Women, Irving Burton from teh paper Bag Players, Susan Thomasson from Pilobolous, The Saraswati Projec, in which Moving Company students performed as part of aLincoln Center Out of Doors Summer Series. A graduate of Bard College with a degree in dance and choreography, she periodically teaches creative dance at the Bard Preschool. She has taught at the Gowanas Arts Exchange and the Brooklyn Arts Exchange, and has taught for over 30 years at the Center for Modern Dance in Hackensack, N.J., where she continues to do special workshops. Mensch has had her own dance company — The Moving Company — for many years. Prior to that, her MenschWerks dance company performed in New York City and London. In addition, Mensch is well-known for her one-of-a-kind jewelry, which is sold at Whole Foods in Ridgewood, N.J., Maria Louisa in Nyack and at My Sister’s Closet in Sugar Loaf, as well as through private sales. For a schedule of classes and more information call The Moving Company at 986-5359.