Dynamic Bodies

Movement plays a fundamental role in human life, shaping how we think, communicate, and engage with ourselves and our surroundings. Somatic practice, which focuses on deepening the relationship between body and mind, offers a framework for understanding the human experience. This book examines the theoretical foundations of somatics and introduces SomaLab®, a system designed to support integrated mind-body learning. Practical applications are offered for dancers, musicians, and others who use movement as a means of expression, interaction, or connection.
The book contextualizes somatic experience by exploring how humans learn, regulate, and respond to different environments. It outlines the SomaLab® methodology as a process for developing mindful habits that strengthen the connection between mental and physical awareness. Examples demonstrate how somatic experiences can be designed across educational, artistic, and community contexts, with attention to both shared human capability and individual differences.

A professor of contemporary dance at Indiana University in Bloomington, Elizabeth Limons Shea is a dance artist, scholar, and educator whose choreography for live performance and film has been presented across the U.S. and abroad. She specializes in somatic theory and practice, teaching her self-developed system, SomaLab®, for dance professionals and community practitioners.