From University of Wisconsin, Whitewater, where, during a single week, Delsarte was used to teach acting, directing, contemporary dance, choreography, conducting skills, and general musicality.

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It was my feeling, based on student response and my own observations, that having Joe there was a terrific experience for the students. The Delsarte work is very gentle, so less physically adept students felt confident and successful, it is very intellectual, which satisfied those students looking for "formula" and it is also very emotional, so less open students were able to access a vulnerability which had not been open to them before.

Angela Iannone: Theater/movement

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Absolutely outstanding!  My students gained so much with regard to relaxation of the body and conducting.  Additionally, he taught insightful techniques for conducting different styles. I wish he were on our faculty!
Glenn Hays: Conducting

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This was a very valuable experience for both me and the students.  Joe Williams gave us a quick understanding of the history of the Delsarte method and how it relates to the founders of 20th century dance.  The students gained new perspectives on basic/fundamental movement patterns done in all dance styles – plié, relevé, walking, skipping, and other locomotor movements – as well as ideas new to them about turning “on” and “off” various body parts and the Delsarte ideas of balance in the body.  Perhaps the most revelatory moments came when talking about movement and meaning which is the heart of the Delsarte technique.  The students and I truly enjoyed the mix of verbal presentation and movement exploration of our bodies as makers of meaning.  The technique gave us a new lens with which to explore how to be specific and intentional with our dancing, performing, and choreographing.  Amy Slater: Contemporary Dance

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Joe Williams gave a great movement class presentation for our students last Wednesday night.  24 students participated, mostly from the orchestra program with some brass, piano, and voice majors as well.  He chronicled different movements that match rhythms in music, had students conduct in the "zones" that represent body, mind, and spirit,  and then used practical application with 4-5 instrumental and vocal musicians.  He even stayed afterwards for those who wished to ask him any additional questions. He was a delightful kind person who showed the students a new dimension of musicality, and I think the experience was beneficial for all involved.   Julie Cross: Music

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From Burlesque Artist, Paco Fish  :"Joe Williams' class on the Delsarte system of interpretation of body language opened me up profoundly to understanding how I relate to the world through my body and how I can use my body as a tool for communicating with an audience (and also with myself). I see it as a crucial turning point in my path to uniting my whole self." 

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From Pilar Garcia:  I have long wished I could find a teacher that could unlock the scope of Delsarte and his Science of Expression, as I instinctively knew it could be a valuable tool.  I didn't know how valuable until your classes.  Your understanding and clarity in carefully guiding our class through the beginning exercises and helping us to build a good foundation is so basic to real development.  But it is your facility in applying the Delsartean principles to the variety of work we bring into class, no matter if a song, a dance, or a monologue that completely excites me.  It opens the curtain on the powerful potential that Delsarte offers to all the performing arts ... that of a deeper, freer, more truthful, beautiful, and artful way of communicating.  Thank you for sharing your mastery and love of this work, and helping us to find the keys.      

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Pilar Garcia, actress/mime, is also an acting coach for dancers , and movement coach for actors / theater productions.  Artists & productions incl:  prima ballerina, Gelsey Kirkland; performance artist, Joan Evans; B'way's "Elephant Man" w/ Philip Anglim, Jack Weatherall, David Bowie;  GeVa's "Quilters";  Chicago Symphony Orchestra Youth Concerts;  Concertante di Chicago.

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Dearest Joe,

I just wanted to express my deep gratitude for all of your help, not only during these rehearsals for Faune, but for all you have done the past five years. It is truly an honor to be your student and the success of my performance is due in large part to you and your Delsarte training.  In truth, had I not found you I don’t know if I would still be dancing today.

Fortunately, I am. And I gave a performance last night that was, as my friends Leslie and Becky said, utterly magical and sublime.  Thank you for everything!
       From Michael Novak, Graduate of Columbia U ( dance) Currently Paul Taylor Dance Company member.


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"this is Casey Scott Leach, a junior from CCM Drama.  I'm emailing to thank you again for coming on a whim to teach Delsarte method at our school.  As I said, and continue to tell those whom I talk to about it, that it has profoundly influenced my understanding and appreciation for the Michael Chekhov training and just.. being a human being as well.  Through the lens of Delsarte training I see deeper meaning in everyday behavior.  It was such a pleasure getting to know you and the Delsarte method, and I can't wait for you to come back to Cincinnati to teach again!  I've talked about you and your teaching to some of my friends and they too are interested in what you're doing, so you might see some new faces next time you come this way."


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Dear Joe,

One student who you taught is an acting major and dance minor. This student was blown away with your teachings and said that it changed his whole outlook on his artform.

That was just one of many students who were deeply affected in a positive way. Congratulations and thank you "from the bottom of my heart". I hope you can teach the music and acting students as well here at Adelphi.

Regards,
Frank Augustyn Director of the Dance Department at Adelphi U.

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"Joe
Greetings from Chandigarh, India
Great to hear from you! i have thought of you often. i did so many
Delsarte exercises with the people i have trained to work at our school
for children here. It has proven so ennobling to these people who are
considered of the "untouchable" caste. i don't now how to explain it, but i
was able to easily integrate the Virtues workshop into Delsarte so nicely;
especially the concepts of "claiming all of ones territory" (the whole
9) not just through movement, but through taking the opportunity to exercise
virtue with every challenge in life, (if you don't take the opportunity, you
  don't explore the territory). But seeing the beauty in one another with new
eyes was most powerful. You can imagine the affect on a people who are
largely manipulated into shutting down so much of their being in order to
conform to caste pressure."   
             Will Brashear, owner and director of Cincinnati Yoga School

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"During my international research about Delsarte and his practical teaching, after many books, papers and persons speaking on Delsarte, I met Joe Williams, the only person who shared first and foremost a physical experience of Delsarte technique, rather than only words. With gratitude, I say that, for me and my research, meeting him was to go from the head, to the body and to the heart. Joe shows, in fidelity to Delsarte's own teaching, that our body is in link with the universe, and with our inner being. Therefore, study with him is not just physical exercise, but, at the same time, new material for an Inner Way. Joe's research into the philosophical roots of the exercises gives him great authority to describe the techniques and their purpose. Maybe even more important for me is that Joe believes in the depth of the Delsarte method and theory, and in the efficiency of those simple exercices – so simple that anyone can practise them – but really essential. The fact that he is loyal with Delsarte teaching for nearly 15 years is for me the best proof of the authenticity of his walk."
      Franck Waille, teacher in French primary school, and student at Lyon University, preparing the first  PhD thesis ever made in France about Francoise Delsarte.

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"Thank you for the master class yesterday.  It's an effective and organic way to refocus an actor's thinking about intentional choices."***** 
    Cathy Springfield, theater professor, Xavier University, Cincinnati, Ohio
       ("effective and organic" is very far from the traditional view of Delsarte as melodrama.)

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"Joe Williams embodies the spiritual essence of Delsarte's message for a contemporary world, and for many people of many walks of life. It is a pleasure to understand body language through the Delsarte system, and Joe is a master of it. *******
        Lori Belilove Artistic Director, The Isadora Duncan Dance Foundation

 

******************************************************************                                                                                                                                                                                      "With my many years of research into the various aspects of the work of Delsarte and his followers in Europe and the United States, I considered the concepts and exercises very significant historically, but I assumed they were not relevant for use in the present-day training of actors, dancers, and other performing artists. I learned otherwise when I participated in a class taught by Joe Williams in New York a couple of years ago. He is using the Delsartean principles and practices in an extremely effective way in teaching movement and physical expression to students who have a range of experience. His class was so enlightening to me and stimulates me to consider how I might follow his lead in my own studio teaching. He demonstrates that the Delsartean theory and practice can be as important a pedagogical approach today as it was in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.******
            "Nancy Lee Chalfa Ruyter: Dance historian and professor of dance at University of California, Irvine; author of Reformers and Visionaries: The Americanization of the Art of Dance (1979) and The Cultivation of Body and Mind in Nineteenth-Century American Delsartism(1999).

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  "I am writing to tell you how much the Delsarte System has affected me.  You may remember me from the workshop at CYS in Cincinnati last month.  I was lucky to attend your workshop as part of my Yoga Training.  I am about halfway through the teacher training now and your workshop remains the highlight of the experience.  I was touched in so many ways.  The Delsarte System is simple but profound.  During the workshop I had great fun but also learned truth about the beauty and harmony of the mind, body and spirit.  I pondered new ideas and since that time, I have  begun to see life differently, with a previously undiscovered appreciation of the expression the mind, body and spirit through movement.  Thank you for all your work in this area and the gift of sharing it with others.  I am sure it will benefit in ways of which I am not aware, for the rest of my life." *********
          Laura Duran, Yoga Teachers' Certification student, Cincinnati Yoga School
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 "Joe Williams has single-handedly brought the wonderful principles and authentic teachings of real Delsarte back to life and to us. It's a necessary addition that improves any performing Art and Joe's clear, loving and gentle explanations make it so much easier for any student to grasp and employ for their betterment. He is simply inspiring." *******
        Morocco (Carolina Varga Dinicu) is considered the leading performer & authority in her field in the U.S., Canada and abroad, evidenced by frequent invitations to teach master seminars and perform in Germany, Sweden, Norway, Austria, Switzerland, Finland, Australia, Israel, Egypt, England, Morocco, Brazil and Italy. She was awarded two grants by the State Council on the Arts for her choreography in 1972 and 1981 - first in her field to be so honored and the only two-time recipient - 3 NYC Department of Cultural Affairs Community Service Grants, 3 Summer Program Grants, a Materials for the Arts Grant and an Arts Exposure Grant.

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"The expressiveness of the body is a very often underrated in our modern society. The study of Delsarte for me brings the focus back on the body and how it is truly is the window to the store house of human emotions. The more that we are connected with our emotions, the more effective our communications will be." ******
        Janice Baker, Director, Iowa State University Dance Dept., Des Moines, Iowa

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From various students:

"I just wanted to personally thank you for coming to Louisville this past weekend to teach your Delsarte Workshop at Ruric-Amari's studio.  It was a profound physical, emotional and intellectual experience.  In 2 hours - and without breaking a sweat - you changed my whole outlook on both my performance concept and ability to connect with an audience. Your warmth and personality made this a truly enjoyable experience and I will certainly take your workshops again whenever I have the opportunity.  Ruric can't say enough good things about you, and now I know why!"  *****   Kim R. Bailey,  Troupe Samovar

The class was amazing and really touched my soul.  It was as though another connection was made in my quest to regain balance in my life.  I am a full-time nursing student with a lot of demands on my time and energy outside of school and have been feeling like I need to do something for my health and wellness.  I was very enlightened by this class and it was nothing like what I expected - it was so much more.  Awesome job, Joe! *** Karen, Frankfort, Kentucky

 "I felt transformed both bodily and spiritually by what happened when I worked with you and even more so by your dedication to what  you do the most beautiful part of your work is the love you give to your students, especially those who could barely get up and then find themselves dancing around the room.

 I'm struck by how easy it became to recognize your students as the week went by -- they were the ones discovering the natural beauty of movement and allowing themselves to express their own beauty.  I also feel "waked up" to a new, deeper awareness of expressive movement across a huge range of experiences - I feel as though you've opened our eyes to see everything from Greek statues to musical comedies with new excitement and awareness."
 
  I came back and did training in walking followed by walking meditations with my yoga classes as well as teaching them how to sit and rise, gently stacking their weight rather than straining their joints, and the friend I taught a new way of walking upstairs based on your principles continues to feel less discomfort in her knees.  In fact she is almost feeling as though she has "new knees!"
 
"I have been worrying that I'm going to lose all that you taught us, only to find myself, the other day, dancing around the house to a Ray Charles CD! Honey, for a girl who believed she could never dance that was a first for me."
 
"You are a gifted teacher, with a perfect blend of seriousness, spirituality, humor and playfulness.  I am much more aware of how I move, sit, stand, etc., and, as I told you, my knees are much happier now that I know the proper way to sit and stand."