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15 Goals Tai Chi

Happy Earth Day 2024: 15 Goals Tai Chi

Happy Earth Day 2024! To celebrate, please enjoy, share, and support this new project, for the benefit of everyone and the future of tai chi. Right now all contributions to Taproot Tai Chi go towards furthering the mission of 15 Goals Tai Chi. How to Support 15 Goals Tai Chi 15 Goals Tai Chi with Ilona Bito

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#earthday #meditation #taichi

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Earth Month 2024: A Poem

While my monthly writing for Push Hands Now is dedicated to making sense of tai chi, allow me to surrender momentarily to its mystery. World Tai Chi Day, the last Saturday of each April, arrives during Earth Month, twinning Earth Day. In this poem, I contemplate the dynamic phases of each movement, imagining these two initiatives playing together. -Ilona Bito  Song of 15G Tai Chi (Twenty Twenty…

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#earthday #peace #poetry #pushhands #sdgs #tai-chi #taichi

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Notes From a Tai Chi Family

“Give Everything Up.” -GGM William CC Chen Parenting is humbling. When there seems to be no more time, attention, or energy left to give, that is when we are asked to give more. Push Hands is like parenting because you are always being tested. Playing, working, or struggling together depends on a secure root. Rootedness in push hands allows you to literally stand your ground. With your child,…

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Root Up to Uproot: Where the push comes to shove in Tui Shou

I wouldn’t know if it is the same in Chinese, but the most common English name of the first movement in our matching set, “push,” seems a bit misleading. In the solo form, a preconceived image of push gives some people the idea of shoving their arms forward, or of leaning their torso into the direction. Instead, the action is to uproot- to control or unbalance another body’s center of gravity. To…

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If Tai Chi Were Taught In Schools…

Happy New Year! After wrapping the semester at Little Red School House in NYC with a share for families, I was so impressed by how far my students have come. They are my inspiration to share this piece I've been thinking about for so long. More monthly..

The world would be a different place. At least three different people have shared this idea with me this week. From a dedicated practitioner now in her 70s, to a first time student in my YMCA class who works in NYC public schools, there is a sense of awe and urgency behind this statement. Their hope lies in people sharing a way to embody peace with the next generation. I assure them that this is…

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#afterschool #education #exercise #games for kids #martial arts #nyc #peace #pushhands #qi-gong #taichi

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We Did It!

Check out opportunities to train with me and support my campaign on my push hands blog!

#taichi #martial arts #goldmedal #personal trainer #world champs #qigong #crowdfunding #team usa #woman power #nyc

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Dancing Families Classes: Fall 2023

After a long hiatus, I am thrilled to announce the new season…

Dancing Families with Ilona 

Sundays in Soho 4-4:45 Kids crawling- 5 years old with their grown ups  9 sessions ($200) / $25 Drop in / $15 sibling discount

Oct 1, 8, 15, Nov 5, 12, 19, Dec 3, 10, 17

Please RSVP to [email protected] for Studio address

Dancing Families (SUN 4-4:45) with Ilona invites Babies, Toddlers and pre-K/K kids to learn and participate in Creative Movement with their grown ups by their side. Together, we will sing songs, play movement games, explore with instruments, props, and obstacle courses, and create dances to feel good music!

Creative Dance with Ilona

Mondays on the Upper East Side  Ages 4-8

Please RSVP to [email protected] for Pricing, availability, & Studio address

In Creative Dance (MON 1:15-2:15) with Ilona, 4-8 year olds are guided by curiosity and the joy of movement: we warm up to music, improvise and play games with our imaginations, and practice modern dance skills to challenge individual dancers. The dance making process engages kids with artistic expression through movement concepts.

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Dear Dancing Families, 

Kids class is finally back this fall. 

On a personal note, after a decade of teaching early childhood movement, I’ve enjoyed taking some time to be one on one with my toddler at home, and be in parent-child classes with other great teachers. Since she is starting preschool for the first time this September, I’ve decided to start our Dancing Families class next month.

Along with the Dancing Families Sunday sessions (previously known as Tiny Taproots!) I'll be starting a small group for homeschoolers on MONDAYS 1:30-2:30 PM September 18- December 11 on the Upper East Side for kids ages 4-8. For more info e-mail [email protected] & keep in touch @dancingfamilies

Dancing Families classes are dynamically inspired by kids and 5 Core Values: Creative Choice, Problem Solving, Joyful Expression, Healthy Embodiment, & Connection to Nature and Community. 

Ilona Bito, MS. Ed, has brought a diverse technical background and a decade of experience teaching children and performing in NYC to these unique classes. To find out more follow Dancing Families on Facebook and Instagram!

#kids educational #danceclass #dancemom #toddler fun #dancingfamilies

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Summer 2023 Highlights!

Push Hands Workshops:

June 9th in Seattle, WA hosted by Seattle Sil Lum Kung Fu (in photo)

August 19-20th in Beacon, NY hosted by Valley Spirit Acupuncture and Internal Arts

Weekly Training in NYC: pushhandsnow.com

#martial arts #peace #contactimprov #taichi #personal trainer

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TUESDAY C O R E M O T I O N +

PUSH HANDS

FEB 14, 21, 28

10AM-12PM

RANDY WARSHAW STUDIO, NYC

-> REGISTER HERE

$25 single class

C O R E M O T I O N WEEKLY CLASS: Ilona's class will include a QIGONG warm-up and Tai Chi Push Hands (Tui Shou)

On Tai Chi Push Hands (Tui Shou):

Ilona will introduce the Push Hands form as taught by Cheng Man Ch’ing and explore the body mechanics of Tai Chi as developed by his student Grandmaster William CC Chen. Tai Chi Push Hands (Tui Shou) is the two person application of Tai Chi Chuan. As part of Tai Chi training, practicing push hands with a partner develops rooting, yielding, and issuing energy. As an approach to self defense, it is peaceful, safe, and effective. As a competitive game, it benefits all kinds of sparring athletes by training strength, stamina, sensitivity, and responsiveness within safe sets of rules for both fixed step and moving step push hands: contact is between the hips and the collarbone; no grabbing, striking, or joint locks are allowed. The objective is to uproot your opponent, or make them lose their balance, while maintaining your own root.

“If we examine the concept of four ounces repelling a thousand pounds, it is clear that it is not brute force that prevails.” From Yang Cheng Fu’s Self Defense Applications of Tai Ch Chuan, Yang Family Secret Transmissions.

#taichi #qigong #performingarts

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Dancing Families Spring ‘22

Spring is Here! Kids Classes are Back!

Dear Dancing Families,

Join Ilona for a Free Trial Class on Sundays, beginning 3/20 in Soho, NYC.

SUNDAYS SPRING '22

Dancing Families with @ilonabito

4-4:45pm Tiny Taproots (Outdoors): Creative Movement for ages Crawling-5 At Washington Square Park SW Kids Turf

5-5:45pm Taproot Kids (Indoors): Tai Chi and Qi Gong for ages 6+ At Randy Warshaw Dance Studio

... 5 Elements Dance Makers Camp: Coming this Summer for ages 6+

REGISTER HERE

Tiny Taproots (SUN 4-4:45) with Ilona invites Babies, Toddlers and pre-K/K kids to learn and participate in Creative Movement with their grown ups by their side. Together, we will sing songs, play movement games, explore with instruments, props, and obstacle courses, and dance to the music!

Taproot Kids (SUN 5:00-5:45) will learn about the art of Tai Chi and Qi Gong through “peace games” and mindful movement. Tai Chi and Qi Gong are the internal practices that have developed alongside Chinese martial arts to support balance, sensitivity, and good health. Ilona’s teaching connects the energy (chi) of young movers ages 6-16 with nature, wellness, creativity, and peaceful self defense.

5 Elements Dance Making Camp (dates & times TBD) is time to create your own dance composition. Young artists from 1st grade upwards will express their own joy of movement and making inspired by nature. Through improvisational scores, creative problem solving, and collaborative reflection, we will dance our way through the 5 Elements & the choreographic process and build a performance platform for original student work.

Ilona’s mission is rooted in play and child centered learning. She is a professional dancer with a Masters in The Art of Teaching from Sarah Lawrence College, extensive early childhood classroom experience, and a toddler of her own. She has danced with hundreds of babies, toddlers, and pre-K- 5th graders as a teaching artist with Movement Research, Abrons Arts Center, and many more NYC arts programs since 2011. She was certified to teach Qi Gong by Master Mantak Chia in 2019 and Tai Chi by Grandmaster William CC Chen in 2020.

Your dancing family can include anyone who celebrates a magical moment of moving and making together. Ilona hopes joyful movement will support healthy embodiment and meaningful connections at home, in school, and on each child’s unique journey.

Dancing Families began at Brooklyn Studios for Dance in 2015 and 6th St. Community Center in 2018. Thanks to all the dancing families who have participated along the way!

For pre-registration Fill out this Form: https://forms.gle/HV6Pr1bagWxRe6269

For other inquiries please contact Ilona Bito

[email protected]

Tumblr  ~  Facebook  ~  Instagram

#dance #choreography #kids learning #kids educational #toddler #children #rhymes for kids #parent #creativity #classes

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Performance Announcement Spring 2021

Dear world,

While live performances are starting to revive NYC (yay!) I’m excited to announce two virtual performances coming up (also yay!):

RSVP + Save the Dates:

Monday April 12th 7pm: https://www.chezbushwick.net/recess

Friday April 16th 7pm: http://www.freeskewl.com/fern.html

RECESS “at” Chez Bushwick will be an hour spent with me and my collaborators- Lydia Love, Joel Mellin + Gamelan Dharma Swara- on Zoom, sharing and talking about two performance projects I have been working on adapting for video this year- Nor’easter and Tantrum Alchemy. I had originally been invited to Recess last April, to dance for a live audience while six months pregnant, so this really feels like a full circle, sharing developments since then.

FERN will be an evening shared with 5 other choreographers- Ronya-Lee Anderson, Jimena Bermejo, Ilona Bito, Mira Göksel, Octavia Rose Hingle, Mia Martelli- chosen by an application process thanks to the amazing adaptable platform that is Freeskewl. I’ll be sharing “Vernal Anura” which is the video experiment that was born from Tantrum Alchemy.

Honestly I’m considering taking a hiatus from performance, to spend time with my family, so it would mean the world to me to see you there.

With spring and things, Ilona

#dance #nyc #gamelan #video #zoomparty #choreography #collaboration #invitation #performance

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Qi Gong + Tai Chi on Zoom with Ilona Bito 

UPDATED LINKS: @taproottaichi www.taproottaichi.com 

Private training and recordings available by request: e-mail [email protected]

Beginning Spring 2020 :

Qi Gong practice supports balance, adaptability, and healthy connections. Every session concludes with a Meditation on The Six Healing Sounds. 

Tai Chi practice of the Yang Style 60 Movements cultivates the body mechanics of rooted action. 

Paypal.me/IlonaBito ~ Venmo @Ilona-Bito

Your support is warmly appreciated. All are welcome!

Ilona Bito is a certified instructor with Universal Healing Tao, Mantak Chia (R),  C O R E M O T I O N, and Grandmaster William CC Chen Tai Chi Chuan.

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https://www.facebook.com/SistersDance

Sisters Show’s 5th Production, and first press review!

Read Here: 

http://seattledances.com/2020/02/coasts-collide-at-sisters-show/ 

SUNDAY FEBRUARY 16th 7PM at BASE 

Works by: Ilona Bito (NYC) @ilonabito​  Amy J Lambert | AJnC Dance-Theater @ajncdancetheater  PRICEarts N.E.W. @pricearts_ Danica Bito Lydia Love | Sans Inhibition (NYC) @sansinhibition 

photo credit: Sisters IB + DB by Brandon Perdomo at Sisters Show NYC 2019 @wowcafetheater​

#dance #performance #sisterhood

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PERFORMANCE CALENDAR:

photo: Ilona in Research for Tantrum Alchemy at Sisters Show NYC 2019 at WOW Cafe Theater, music by Lydia Love, photo by Brandon Perdomo 

WINTER 2019-2020

Friday DEC 20th 8:00PM Gamelan Dharma Swara Works in Progress Showing SAGE Music 44-02 23rd St #204, LIC (subway to Court Square) https://www.dharmaswara.org/

Monday DEC 30th 7:00PM Sans Inhibition (@sansinhibition) 30-30-30 Dixon Place 161A Chrystie St, LES http://dixonplace.org/performances/30-30-30-2019/

Saturday JAN 11th 2:00PM Rambler: Worlds Worlds Apart, by Kathy Westwater Live Artery NYLA 219 W 19th Street, Chelsea https://newyorklivearts.org/event/rambler-worlds-worlds-a-part-live-artery/

Sunday January 19th 9PM NYC Talent Show at the Creek and the Cave 10-93 Jackson Ave, Long Island City Livestreamed on Twitch

Monday JAN 20th 8PM Tantrum Alchemy (WIP) Studio Showing Soho  POSTPONED: RSVP for details: [email protected]

Saturday JAN 25th 7:00PM Tantrum Alchemy (WIP) Moving Body Salon 112 W 27th St, Ste 400 www.movingbodyresources.com

SUNDAY FEBRUARY 16th 8:00PM Sisters Show Seattle 2020 Base Art Space  6520 5th Ave S #122Seattle, WA 98108

Spring 2020 Dates Sneak Peak:

MARCH 9th  Movement Research at the Judson Church: Tantrum Alchemy (excerpt)

April 7th  Mark De Garmo Artist Salon: Tantrum Alchemy (excerpt)

April 27th  Recess at Chez Buchwick: Nor’Easter with Gamelan Dharma Swara 

#performance #dance #choreography

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Next Up: Danica and I are co-organizing Sisters Show Seattle 2020. 

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