Benjamin Berry

Hello! My name is Benjamin Berry, and I am a professional teaching artist and performer based in Alfred, NY.
 

My mission is to spread the physical, emotional, and social benefits of creative movement to people of all ages and levels of ability, helping them become more confident, empowered, and embodied.

I was led down this unconventional path when I first picked up a hoop in 2013. I was hooked when I realized the many benefits of having a regular practice. For the first time I felt truly confident in my body - moving, expressing, mindful, and free of self-doubt. Eager to share these gifts with others, I became certified in hoop dance and began teaching in 2015. 

Since then, I have hosted workshops in over 50 cities across the country and connected with the hooping community by participating in the online contests Hooping Idol Season 5 and the Electric Forest Hoop Troupe, ultimately earning Hooping.org's Male Hooper of the Year as well as nominations for Instructor, Tutorial, and Video of the Year in 2016.

 

In 2019, I enriched my teaching by receiving training in Holistic Circus Therapy, which utilizes occupational therapy principles to build physical, cognitive, emotional, and social capacities, as well as the developmental movement-based BrainDance Method through the Creative Dance Center.

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Toward the beginning of the pandemic, I relocated to Alfred, NY and began offering my movement-based programs online through Zoom. During the "transition" period, I have begun to offer my services in-person again following CDC guidance for mask wearing and physical distancing.

These customizable programs include a variety of themes (Hoop Dance, Circus Arts, and Seated/Standing Creative Movement) and are geared towards a wide variety of settings including: libraries, physical education, after school programs, recreation centers, senior care facilities, adult day programs, recreation for neurodiverse individuals, and more.

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To keep folks moving at home, I also have begun shipping handmade hoops in my Pop Up Hoop Shop! I love to make hula hoop designs that allow people to express their personal uniqueness and creativity. 

Finally, I have launched the Accessible Circus Project, which is a fiscally sponsored project of the 501(3)(c) organization Accessible Festivals! This project aims to make circus arts and creative movement accessible to people of all levels of ability by providing free/subsidized instruction and circus props to groups and individuals that have been impacted by the pandemic. Your donation helps us reach our current goal of sharing circus arts with 500 individuals in one year, and is 100% tax-deductible. Click here to read more about this project and Accessible Festivals.