Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Brand New Classes for 2012

A little late but HAPPY NEW YEAR! 


I know a lot of you (like us here at Just Breathing!) will have made resolutions to get fit in 2012 and to try out new things this year and so we're here to help with our brand new classes starting in Limerick city this month.


Last weekend we offered some taster classes to great response - thank you to everyone who came! - and on this coming Saturday January 21st our 6 week courses begin. We have two courses starting.


The first is Ballet: Power and Fitness


There is no dancing involved in this class. Instead we use ballet exercises in a low impact one hour long workout. The course will start from the very basic principles like how to hold your posture in neutral position to a very simple workout and will break down and explain each exercise and counter it with stretches to train your muscles to develop in length and strength. As you progress within the course the classes will become more fluid and as your stamina increases the exercise intensity will increase with you. Towards the end of the 6 weeks you should notice the differences in your body. This is a great experience and workout without the use of dance. The classes are based on progression and are a fun way of keeping fit, flexible and toned. 


The second is Complete Beginner's Ballet for Adults


The Complete Beginner's Ballet class is obviously aimed at complete beginners! It's for adults who never got the chance to do ballet as a kid or who always wanted to do ballet but never did for whatever reason. We really believe it's never too late to start learning any form of dance! Over the course you will learn the terms and exercises that ballet dancers use every day in their training. We'll start at a very basic level and build things up gradually over the course.




The Benefits!


There are huge benefits to taking up ballet as an adult including improvements in posture, flexibility and strength. Ballet exercises also challenge your body in a way that other forms of exercise might not do. Ballet involves using and thinking about the entire body at all times rather than focusing on just one area. It can really help to tone up the muscles all over the body. Working on finding the correct posture and placement of the body will of course have health benefits that will spill over into our everyday lives. 

Ballet also exercises the mind. It requires the use of both sides of the brain. It exercises our concentration and memorisation skills when learning new steps and also requires us to keep in time with music and to express ourselves creatively through the steps. A lot of people find it to be really relaxing and listening to the music and moving to it can be an excellent way to de-stress. 

Aside from all of that...ballet is just fun and is a different way to get yourself moving if you find that the gym just isn't for you.
There is no dress code for our adult classes. Just wear clothes you can move easily in...a tshirt with leggings or tracksuit pants is perfect with soft ballet shoes or just socks. 






The Details!

Ballet: Power and Fitness - 6 week course starts Saturday January 21st 1130am-1230pm


Complete Beginner's Ballet for Adults - 6 week course starts Saturday January 21st 1-2pm


All our classes take place at Studio 21, 84 O'Connell Street, Limerick (under Café Noir)


www.studio21.ie


Cost: €60 for 6 weeks (€48 for 3rd level students or unwaged)
A discount is available for anyone who signs up to both our courses. Each course will cost you €57 (€45 for 3rd level students or unwaged)


Drop-in classes are available at a cost of €12 per hour. However, since our courses are based on progression we would encourage you to sign up for the 6 weeks to really get the most benefit out of the classes.


For more information email us justbreathingarts@gmail.com
Or check us out on Facebook





Thursday, December 29, 2011

LOOKING BACK ON 2011

We've been very slack on the blog updates we know!!! It's on the list of new year's resolutions to keep you all updated here on everything we're up to!

So just a few more days left in 2011! It's been quite a year for us with lots of exciting things happening. The last time I wrote we were just in preparation mode for our shoot with Apate Films for their upcoming short "Trip". We had such an amazing experience working on this project and are so grateful to the guys at Apate for bringing us on board. Choreographing for a film was new to us and it was a really great process for us to brainstorm ideas with Apate before really getting into the script and the track we were using (Supermodel Twins - One Step Behind) in our workshop rehearsals. We spent a few weeks developing the dance scene in workshop and designing our costume, hair and make-up styling before bringing two other dancers on board for the last couple of weeks of intense rehearsal. Dancers Robyn Cunneen and Jenny Brown joined the Just Breathing company dancers Krystal O'Brien and Emily Waters on the project.


We're really looking forward to seeing the final product now and sharing it with you all. In the meantime you can watch the trailer for "Trip" here Apate Films - Trip - Trailer




We were delighted to be asked to perform at a number of events over the past few months, most recently at the Hunt Museum on December 8th. Mags and Emily spent the morning at the museum hosting a workshop on the doll dance from The Nutcracker with some wonderfully talented boys and girls. In the afternoon they were joined by Clara Casey and Hazel Fenton (students of Limerick School of Classical Ballet) and the girls performed some variations from ballets including Esmerelda, Paquita and La Bayadere. 
You can check out photos from the performance here These were taken by Pa Reidy who worked with us last year on our first ever photo shoot in the People's Park, Limerick. Make sure to check out his Facebook page Pa Reidy Photography 

We also performed at the interval of a fashion show held in aid of Limerick Animal Welfare. You can watch part of that performance here!


Our work with photographer Galvin Abercrombie (Abercrombie Photography) is still continuing and we've had two amazing shoots with him over the last few months - one at the lake in Cratloe Forest and the other at Mount Keneth Skatepark in Limerick. Emily put together this great video of behind the scenes footage at our skatepark shoot - Behind the Scenes - Skatepark - but for the actual photos you'll have to keep an eye out here and on our FB page to see those some time in 2012. In the meantime, have a look on our page at all of Galvin's photos he has taken with us so far. These are all available for purchase from Just Breathing. Just contact us on justbreathingarts at gmail.com for more info. They'd make a great gift for anyone with an interest in dance.



We've recently started teaching classes in Ballet: Power and Fitness and Complete Beginner's Ballet for Adults at Studio 21, 84 O'Connell Street, Limerick (under Café Noir) and are looking forward to starting our 6 week courses very soon. We'll be having a taster class of each on Saturday January 14th for a special offer price of €8 with 6 week courses of each starting on Saturday January 21st (€60 for 6 weeks or €48 for 3rd level students/unwaged). The Ballet: Power and Fitness class will take place from 1130-1230 and Complete Beginner's Ballet from 1-2pm. This is a great opportunity to try out a different form of exercise for the new year and to take up ballet if you never had the chance to as a kid. It's never too late to start! Not only will you get great enjoyment from learning ballet you'll also receive so many benefits that will spill over into your daily life - improvements in posture, strength, flexibility and keeping your mind active. We'd love for you to come along and try it out! If you have any questions at all please contact us through our Facebook page or email us justbreathingarts@gmail.com


Just to finish, we want to say a massive thank you to everyone we worked with in 2011 and to everyone who supports and encourages us in everything we do.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

Mags, Krystal, Emily

xoxo

Friday, July 15, 2011

Summer Happenings

It's all go here with the gang at Just Breathing! We had a great time performing to 'Human Nature' for the recent Michael Jackson tribute night in the Daghdha Church. A night full of great music and dance. Huge thanks to everyone who came out to support it. You can check out some of the photos from the night here. Photos by Dolf Patijn for www.ilovelimerick.com



We've started preparations for our next photo shoot and are really excited to be teaming up with photographer Galvin Abercrombie once again. Take a look at some of his previous work with us here:

 Abercrombie Photography

We're checking out the venue for the shoot tomorrow and will have more info on it coming soon!

And more exciting news! Right now we're busy choreographing a scene for Apate Films' next project which we are due to shoot later this month. Head over and 'like' their Facebook page to keep up to date with all the latest news on that: Apate Films

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Michael Jackson - Tribute to the King of Pop

Right now we are busy in rehearsals for the Limerick Artists' "Michael Jackson - Tribute to the King of Pop" event that takes place on June 25th in the Daghdha church, John's Square, Limerick. Loads of performances on the night and the band are sounding great so it promises to be a really fun event! Tickets are €12 and are available from Epic Cafe on Denmark St.

Michael Jackson - Tribute to the King of Pop Invite

Friday, May 20, 2011

ka-lei-do-scope and Catherine Street Cultural Dig 2011

It's been a busy month here at Just Breathing and we have just finished our first exhibition which launched the ka-lei-do-scope project. ka-lei-do-scope will comprise of a series of photographic projects depicting ballet taken out of it's normal setting and brought to the street. ka-lei-do-scope for CatDig 2011 was the third part of this series which has already seen us dancing in People's Park and in the snow outside the Hunt Museum.



We were really excited to be a part of this year's Catherine Street Cultural Dig. CatDig, which is now in it's  second year, is a wonderful weekend that brings music, dance, art, crafts, poetry & more together. Unfortunately the weather was against us over the weekend and we couldn't perform. Rain and pointe shoes don't mix! But we spent the weeks leading up to the CatDig working with some amazing photographers and dancers (and one very obliging German Shepherd!) exploring every part of Catherine Street. The exhibition took place over the weekend of the CatDig in Fine Wines on Catherine Street and the photos are now available to be seen on our Facebook page.

Just Breathing on Facebook

We want to thank all the dancers who took part in this project with us - Sarah, Robyn, Conor, Maeve, Claire, Aisling and of course German Shepherd's Next Top Model, Ghost!
And our super talented photographers -  Check out the links to their pages to see more of their work!
- Dave O'Brien
- Michelle Ansaroglu
- munsterimages.ie Facebook Page Website
- Laur Ryan Photography Facebook
- Galvin Abercrombie Photography Facebook

Any enquiries about individual photos can be sent to us at justbreathingarts@gmail.com

Monday, March 7, 2011

We like to.....Move It!

We're busy here planning our next few projects but for now Krystal & Mags of Just Breathing are heading off to London this weekend to attend Move It. Move It is the UK's largest live dancing experience with classes, performances, exhibitions, shopping and much much more. We've booked into a number of classes in styles including ballet, hip hop, tap, zumba, contemporary, jazz, South Asian dance and Bollywood so we're looking forward to having lots of new ideas and experiences to incorporate into our own work when we come back.

You can find information on this year's Move It here. Move It 2011
It is always an excellent weekend and we highly recommend it for anyone interested in dance.

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Just Breathing is looking for....you!

Firstly, we'd like to thank all the amazing photographers who have contacted us over the past few weeks. We look forward to working with you all over the coming year and will be in touch with you all soon.

We are now looking for dancers and models (preferably with dance experience) to join us. Currently we are looking for 3-4 male dancers/models for a shoot. For this particular shoot you must be over 18 and available to work in the Limerick area. Please email your contact info and a photo to justbreathingarts@gmail.com

We would also love to hear from stylists, hair stylists and make up artists who would be interested in working with us. Unfortunately we cannot offer any financial pay for this work at the moment but it would be well suited to a student or someone looking to boost their portfolio.  Again, send on your info to justbreathingarts@gmail.com

Finally, we want to give a mention to a Limerick Tango event taking place in Limerick this weekend. Limerick Tango are hosting an Argentine Tango workshop for couples this Sunday Feb 13th in The Strand Hotel from 2pm. You can find the info here:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=189702877706459
Emily from Just Breathing will be there working with Neville Gawley on this workshop and it promises to be a great day for all involved.