Returning to the River: A Community Movement Workshop

Explore memory, place, and return in a movement workshop inspired by Joy Harjo’s journey back to the Chattahoochee River.
About this Event

Returning to the River: A Community Movement Workshop, presented by Dance Waterloo in collaboration with the Asian American Resource Center, invites participants to explore memory, place, and return through movement inspired by Joy Harjo’s journey back to the Chattahoochee River in An American Sunrise.

Through an accessible warm-up, guided improvisation, contemporary movement, and individual and group exercises, participants will consider how places remain with us, what it means to return, and how the body can carry memories of home, land, and change. Movement prompts may draw from the qualities of water, including flowing, gathering, redirecting, pausing, and returning.

The workshop focuses on exploration and personal movement choices rather than memorizing formal choreography. Participants will be encouraged to interpret each prompt in a way that feels meaningful and comfortable to them.

No previous dance experience or familiarity with An American Sunrise is required. Movements can be adapted for different bodies, abilities, energy levels, and comfort levels. Participants may move while standing or seated, take breaks when needed, and choose their own level of participation.

Date and time: Saturday, November 7, 2026, from 12:00 to 1:15 p.m.
Location: Asian American Resource Center

What to wear and bring:

• Comfortable clothing that allows you to move
• Comfortable, supportive shoes
• A water bottle
• Any mobility aid or personal item that supports your participation
• A notebook or journal, if you would like to record thoughts after the workshop

This free workshop is part of Dance Waterloo’s An American Sunrise: A Season of Embodied Return, a yearlong NEA Big Read project featuring movement workshops, book discussions, performances, and community activities inspired by Joy Harjo’s poetry collection An American Sunrise.

This project was supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, with additional support from Arts Midwest. To learn more about how National Endowment for the Arts grants impact individuals and communities, visit .