Train with us!

Be part of a global network sharing the joys and benefits of dance with people living with Parkinson's

"Dance for PD is a hands-down success. It's one of the most important programs for Parkinson's disease in the country."

—Mary Ellen Thibodeau, RN

"From your exceptional training, I've reached another level."

—Dance for PD trainee

Training process

Launch your training process with four steps:
1. Apply online for one of our two training tracks using one of the links below
2. Take the prerequisite online course on your own schedule
3. Join us for an in-person or online workshop.
4. Complete the online assessment

Introductory workshop highlights

► For dancers, dance teachers, students, therapists, care partners, people with Parkinson's and allied health professionals.
► Learn best practices and methods from the program’s master teachers.
► Hone your teaching skills.
► Deepen your knowledge with our specially-created modules and acclaimed interactive sessions.
► Participate in an actual Dance for Parkinson's class with members of the local Parkinson's community.

Join us in person or online
 

Since 2007, more than 2,500 people from 30 countries have participated in Dance for PD® workshops and seminars, designed and produced by the Mark Morris Dance Group. Join us for an interactive, comprehensive workshop near you or online.

Online: Self-directed Blended Learning path | Anytime

Designed for busy teaching artists and dance educators, our new self-directed Blended Learning training allows you to start training at any time and to train on your own schedule, without needing to travel. Interactive mentoring sessions and a live practicum supplement comprehensive video-based self-directed learning modules.

In-person: Liège, Belgium | January 25-26, 2025

Join Maïté Guérin, founder and director of Care to Dance and a Dance for PD Certified Teacher, for a two-day introductory workshop co-presented by Care to Dance and Quand on Danse/Mosa Ballet School. This Dance for PD-affiliated workshop is offered exclusively in French.

Online: Blended Learning path with cohort | March 2025

Similar to our self-directed Blended Learning training, this training includes scheduled weekly conversational Zoom seminars with your training cohort. With a combination of self-directed coursework and weekly opportunities to connect and share with other learners, this training is perfect for busy people who want a more structured and interactive training experience. This workshop takes place over four Fridays - March 7, 14, 21 and 28, 2025.

In-person: Washington, DC | March 1-2, 2025

This workshop takes place at The Kennedy Center's state-of-the-art The REACH, dedicated to education and professional development. Lucy Bowen McCauley, Maria Portman Kelly and David Leventhal co-facilitate this annual workshop. Offered in partnership with The Kennedy Center.

In-person: Portland, OR | April 10-11, 2025

Returning to Portland for our first Oregon-based workshop in 8 years, David Leventhal and Shawn Roberts co-facilitate this training at the beautiful Lakewood Center for the Arts. Day 2 takes place on World Parkinson's Awarness Day, and will feature a special post-workshop community event. Offered in partnership with Lakewood Center for the Arts, Parkinson's Resources of Oregon, and 1 World Chorus.

In-person: Chicago, IL, | June 20-21, 2025

Join us for our first-ever training workshop in Chicago, offered in partnership with The Joffrey Ballet and Dance/USA. Designed in tandem with Dance/USA's National Conference June 17-20, this workshop takes place at Joffrey's beautiful studios in Chicago's downtown Loop.

Interested in training later in 2025? Dates for additional workshops in 2025 will be announced once they are confirmed.

About Dance for PD

The Mark Morris Dance Group's Dance for PD® program invites people with Parkinson's and their families in more than 400 communities and 30 countries around the globe to experience the joys and benefits of dance while creatively addressing symptom-specific concerns related to balance, cognition, motor skill, depression and physical confidence.

Through its innovative, internationally-replicated in-person and online classes, acclaimed teacher training program, and high quality media resources, Dance for PD's fundamental working principle is that professionally-trained dancers are movement experts whose knowledge about balance, sequencing, rhythm and aesthetic awareness is useful to persons with PD. In class, teaching artists integrate movement from modern, ballet, tap, folkloric, traditional, improvisation, and social dancing, along with choreographic and cultural repertory to engage participants' minds and bodies and create an enjoyable, social environment for artistic exploration.

Dance for PD has been featured in The New York Times, USA Today, Dance Magazine, The Guardian and hundreds of other publications, and has been honored by several local, national and international awards, including the Parkinson Awareness Award, Alan Bonander Humanitarian Award, and the Sapolin Public Service Award from the New York City Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities.

Evidence from more than 50 peer-reviewed scientific studies from the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, Italy and Germany serves to underpin the effectiveness and benefits of the Dance for PD teaching practice and suggests that dance provides a range of benefits, including improved walking and short-term mobility, enhanced quality of life and self-efficacy, and improvements in mood and social inclusion among people with Parkinson's.

Dance for PD, which began in 2001 as a collaboration between MMDG and Brooklyn Parkinson Group, leverages technology—online classes, on demand resources, and training and a popular instructional At Home video series—to make the program more available to its diverse and expanding network of constituents around the globe.