Alexander Technique

I'm a nationally certified teacher of the Alexander Technique (since 2008), M.AmSAT, and am a certified Art of Breathing® instructor. In my practice I work with a range of students, supporting them in post-surgery recovery, injury rehabilitation, resolving sciatica, chronic neck and back pain, repetitive motion strain, managing scoliosis, and a range of issues related to movement impairment. I've worked with clients with MS, neuropathy, chronic pain, degenerative and structural spinal issues, among others.

Learning to let go on musculo-skeletal level can also be an emotional process and I consider the whole person in my practice. It's valuable to acknowledge the pyscho-physical nature of this work and it helps to be open to things as they come up. As a teacher I'm here to support my students and follow their lead on this journey. I am sensitive to things when they arise: a need for more processing or more time to rest.

As a teacher and a dance artist, I specialize in working with performing artists, individually and in groups, to help them gain greater facility and sensitivity and to deal with performance anxiety. In this capacity I've been on faculty and been a guest teacher at universities, conferences, movement studios, and festivals across the US and abroad, most recently at Dartmouth College, department of music and at Yale School of Music’s Morse Summer Music Academy. I also teach dance, somatic movement and improvisation.

I've had a private practice in New Haven, CT since 2008, and taught locally at The Neighborhood Music School, The Educational Center for the Arts performing arts high school (ECA), and Yale University. I now move between New Haven, CT and White River Junction, VT where I have a part-time private practice.

I trained at the American Center for the Alexander Technique (ACAT) in NYC and continue regular study with my teacher, mentor, and founder of the Art of Breathing®, Jessica Wolf. In service to the larger AT community, I am a member of the Judith Leibowitz Scholarship Fund committee, whose mission is to support Black, Indigenous and People of Color with scholarships to earn an AT teaching certification and to support the continuous efforts to unveil racism and any forms of oppression in the work, the writings and the institutions of the Technique.

I hold an MFA in Dance from NYU, Tisch School of the Arts. I have a B.A. in English Literature from Macalester College. I'm an avid student of Iyengar yoga and Feldenkrais. As a dancer and dance maker I often work in collaboration with artists from a range of disciplines.

I currently see students in White River Junction, VT and in New Haven, CT.

Mondays & Tuesdays in White River Junction,VT:
85 N. Main Street, #224

Wednesdays & Thursdays in New Haven, CT:
Erector Square, 319 Peck Street

Visit my Alexander Technique website for more info

Rates
Alexander Technique takes time to learn and incorporate. It should be affordable for you.

Single Private Alexander lesson: $105

I offer a sliding scale for lessons of $70-$100 for those who need it.

Package Rates (all packages must be paid for in advance):

3-lesson package: $300
5-lesson package: $475
10-lesson package: $900

I sometimes see people in their home. Rates vary depending on location/travel time.

Contact me directly at rachelbernsen@gmail.com or 917.531.4484