By Anne Price
I was well into my 40’s when I first experienced eurythmy. During a year off between jobs, I decided to attend a Foundations Year at the Rudolf Steiner College in Sacramento, California. Guided by the exceptional teaching of Cynthia Hoven, I was plunged into the amazing world of eurythmy. I couldn’t believe how much better my body felt after each class. Emotionally I felt more empowered. I found myself walking in a more balanced and fluid way in the world. At the time I thought, if only I were younger I would jump into the eurythmy training!
A few years later I experienced a major health crisis. I knew the dis-ease patterns in my body were a reflection of deep imbalances in my overall being. I was certain that an anthroposophical approach to my healing was the path I needed to take. I took myself on a healing journey and consulted with anthroposophical physicians in Switzerland and Germany. These doctors gave me hope that I could significantly and positively impact my healing process through eurythmy therapy. I began a daily practice and saw improvement immediately. My firsthand experience of therapeutic eurythmy was phenomenal. I wanted to learn everything about it!
While in Dornach I heard whispers of an innovative new eurythmy therapy training program. It was going to combine the artistic and therapeutic streams of the eurythmy training together, as opposed to the sequential order on the traditional training path. This approach reduces the overall training time for a therapist from 6-7 years to 4-5 years; a significant consideration for someone like me!
I was excited about the prospect of joining this program after I completed my healing. Then the pandemic happened and any thought of travelling regularly to Europe from the US disappeared. I continued my work with a eurythmy therapist in person and attended classes online offered by Cynthia (eurythmyonline.com) and by Theodor Hundhammer (eurythmy4you.com). I have now fully healed and know in my soul that eurythmy was a huge part of this positive result.
This profound approach to healing is grossly underutilized. This is probably, in part, due to the fact that there are so few trained therapists. There are only 77 eurythmy therapists listed in the Association of Therapeutic Eurythmy of North America directory. That’s less than 100 practitioners of this modality for all of the United States and Canada!
As I continued my healing, I kept tabs on the nascent training program. The Basic Eurythmy Therapy Training at the Goetheanum program moved forward with its first pilot cohort in Fall 2020. This first class of students completed their studies in Spring 2024 and the students now have the option of attending a fifth year practicum. The Basic Eurythmy Therapy Training Program is now recruiting for its next class which will begin in September 2024. Individuals over 21, with an interest in eurythmy and anthroposophy are encouraged to apply.
It is incredibly exciting that this program is now a solid pathway for individuals looking to utilize the therapeutic aspects of eurythmy as their primary offering or as a supplement to other modalities. Clearly I’m even older now, but I think how wonderful it is that I have so much life experience to bring to this path. I’ve been accepted to the program and am working to arrange my life to make this dream happen! I’m hoping to inspire others to look into attending this program as well. The world could certainly use more eurythmy therapists! And most importantly, give yourself permission to dream about eurythmy therapy being a second or third career, regardless of your age. After all – it’s never too late!
Contact Kaspar Zett at [email protected] and for more information on the program, see their website.
I was well into my 40’s when I first experienced eurythmy. During a year off between jobs, I decided to attend a Foundations Year at the Rudolf Steiner College in Sacramento, California. Guided by the exceptional teaching of Cynthia Hoven, I was plunged into the amazing world of eurythmy. I couldn’t believe how much better my body felt after each class. Emotionally I felt more empowered. I found myself walking in a more balanced and fluid way in the world. At the time I thought, if only I were younger I would jump into the eurythmy training!
A few years later I experienced a major health crisis. I knew the dis-ease patterns in my body were a reflection of deep imbalances in my overall being. I was certain that an anthroposophical approach to my healing was the path I needed to take. I took myself on a healing journey and consulted with anthroposophical physicians in Switzerland and Germany. These doctors gave me hope that I could significantly and positively impact my healing process through eurythmy therapy. I began a daily practice and saw improvement immediately. My firsthand experience of therapeutic eurythmy was phenomenal. I wanted to learn everything about it!
While in Dornach I heard whispers of an innovative new eurythmy therapy training program. It was going to combine the artistic and therapeutic streams of the eurythmy training together, as opposed to the sequential order on the traditional training path. This approach reduces the overall training time for a therapist from 6-7 years to 4-5 years; a significant consideration for someone like me!
I was excited about the prospect of joining this program after I completed my healing. Then the pandemic happened and any thought of travelling regularly to Europe from the US disappeared. I continued my work with a eurythmy therapist in person and attended classes online offered by Cynthia (eurythmyonline.com) and by Theodor Hundhammer (eurythmy4you.com). I have now fully healed and know in my soul that eurythmy was a huge part of this positive result.
This profound approach to healing is grossly underutilized. This is probably, in part, due to the fact that there are so few trained therapists. There are only 77 eurythmy therapists listed in the Association of Therapeutic Eurythmy of North America directory. That’s less than 100 practitioners of this modality for all of the United States and Canada!
As I continued my healing, I kept tabs on the nascent training program. The Basic Eurythmy Therapy Training at the Goetheanum program moved forward with its first pilot cohort in Fall 2020. This first class of students completed their studies in Spring 2024 and the students now have the option of attending a fifth year practicum. The Basic Eurythmy Therapy Training Program is now recruiting for its next class which will begin in September 2024. Individuals over 21, with an interest in eurythmy and anthroposophy are encouraged to apply.
It is incredibly exciting that this program is now a solid pathway for individuals looking to utilize the therapeutic aspects of eurythmy as their primary offering or as a supplement to other modalities. Clearly I’m even older now, but I think how wonderful it is that I have so much life experience to bring to this path. I’ve been accepted to the program and am working to arrange my life to make this dream happen! I’m hoping to inspire others to look into attending this program as well. The world could certainly use more eurythmy therapists! And most importantly, give yourself permission to dream about eurythmy therapy being a second or third career, regardless of your age. After all – it’s never too late!
Contact Kaspar Zett at [email protected] and for more information on the program, see their website.