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Kendra Howard
"I clearly see myself at a young age, fascinated with the intricacies and movement potential within classical music such as Claude Debussy's 'Afternoon of a Fawn' or the 'storyline' possibilities within songs from Neil Diamond and Three Dog Night. I would sit and imagine how the movement would flow to the music, and then with tenacious stamina, dance for many hours what my imagination saw. Funny how I grew up to now do that for a living!" Kendra grew up in a counter-culture blended family, attended 17 different schools and lived in 33 different places, including 9 states in the US as well as Hawaii and New Zealand. A Colorado native, Kendra ended up graduating from Estes Park High School and attending the University of Colorado at Boulder, earning a degree in journalism in 1991. In 1995 her life changed forever when her dad passed away and she inherited the liquor store he ran for 48 years. "I knew deep inside that running a liquor store in Golden Colorado was not my destiny. I did it for a year; however, the universe clearly had other plans for me. To maintain my sanity and my physical fitness, I joined a health club in Boulder, Colorado, found a dance fitness class, and from the very first song of that first class, I knew I had to sell the liquor store and become a dance fitness instructor." Kendra hit the ground running and has never looked back. She has studied under many talented movement instructors since that time, including Vinn Marti, creator of Soul Motion; Carlos and Debbie Rosas, founders of the Nia Technique; Wilber Alix, TranceDance shaman; and a multitude of instructors teaching movement with their unique signature stamped upon their form. Kendra now teaches others to do what she does in her Planet Motion teacher training courses, conducts sacred dancing retreats to spiritual retreat centers in Colorado, and is currently creating her fourth performance for stage with the Planet Motion dance troupe. She wishes to clone a fully adult version of herself so she can get done what she was put on this planet to do. "All I can really say is WOW! This class is so incredible on so many levels. The first part... I think Kendra (the teacher) called it Meditation in Motion, really helped ground me in my body cause I was pretty nervous not ever having done this class before. And then Kendra launched in to this totally funky, fun, work your butt music and dance that was... not really that hard to follow. It took me a few times, but I got some of it. The energy of the class was infectious. I left feeling exhilarated, sweaty and busy trying to figure out when I could do this Planet Motion thing again." -- Kim, Lyons, CO |
Kendra Howard is a performer, choreographer, composer and writer, and is the creator of Planet Motion, a world dance fitness program. She has been a dance fitness instructor for 14 years, teaching weekly classes in Boulder, Colorado to all levels of fitness and all ages. In 2006, she was a visiting instructor for Cirque du Soliel's wellness program in Las Vegas, NV. Kendra has been exuberantly engaged in the synergy between choreography and music since she was a child.