Zwei Personen sitzen auf dem Boden und halten sich gegenseitig an beiden Händen fest. Die Arme sind dabei überkreuzt.

Dance for People With Dementia

Based on the Scottish Ballet's pilot program SB Time to Dance®, tanzhaus nrw has been offering dance classes since 2024 that are uniquely tailored to the needs of people with neurodegenerative symptoms, such as Alzheimer's dementia. Dance in particular enables people with Alzheimer's disease to be socially integrated into the group again, based on their abilities and positive self-efficacy. In addition, it stimulates neuroplasticity in the brain and thus counteracts neurodegenerative processes, especially in the early stages of dementia. Dance is a wonderful way to experience joy, expression, and community, enriching the well-being and quality of life of participants.

With our dedicated instructors, we are currently active in our cooperation with Diakonie Düsseldorf at the Tersteegen Haus in Golzheim, where we offer a closed dance course for people with dementia. Participation is limited to the residents of the house.

Instructors

Portrait photo: Alfonso Bordi

Alfonso Bordi

Show courses (41)

Dancer, teacher and choreographer Alfonso Bordi, born in Mexico, followed his dance education the Boston and Atlanta Schools of Ballet. Following different dancing engagements in Canada, Ireland and Germany, he is now among the most outstanding protagonists at Düsseldorf company NEUER TANZ under the direction of visual artist VA Wölfl.

Portrait photo: Dawna Dryhorub

Dawna Dryhorub

Show courses (68)

When Dawna Dryhorub first started ballet dancing at age three, the decision was already taken: “I want to be a dancer!” She took additional classes in tap dance, jazz dance and folkloristic dance, subseqently pursuing her dance education at the School of Toronto Dance Theatre where she specialised in Graham and classical dance. She received an invitation to collaborate on a project in Düsseldorf during the mid-1990s and swiftly became an artist close to the “Werkstatt”, the precursor of tanzhaus nrw. The native Canadian remained in Germany and participated in various productions by, among others, Rodolpho Leoni and Samir Akika. She offered trainings at Folkwang Tanzstudio for many years and was a guest lecturer for classical dance at the Folkwang University of the Arts. 2020 will see Dawna concluding her Master’s degree in dance sciences from Bern University in 2020.

Portrait photo: Giuseppina Fregapane

Giuseppina Fregapane