Standing Down Straight: Jump Rhythm Technique's Rhythm-Driven, Community-Directed Approach to Dance Education

“Standing down straight” means to stand on two feet with both stability and relaxation. Using standing down straight as the foundation of class work, Jump Rhythm Technique offers a fresh alternative to conventional systems of dance study. It bases its pedagogy on three behaviors: grounding the body so that it can move with power and effciency, singing as well as dancing the rhythms of movement, and using rhythm-driven group and partner dancing to build community. The behavior-based practices and the pedagogy of how standing down straight strengthens rhythmic and dynamic expressiveness and the way students relate to self and community are described.