- PhD 1989, Curriculum Development and Exercise Science, University of Colorado, Boulder
- MA 1984, Dance Training and Dance Science, University of Colorado, Boulder
- BA 1975, Dance Performance and Choreography, University of Colorado, Boulder
- PhD 1989, Curriculum Development and Exercise Science, University of Colorado, Boulder
- MA 1984, Dance Training and Dance Science, University of Colorado, Boulder
- BA 1975, Dance Performance and Choreography, University of Colorado, Boulder
Feldenkrais Method® Training Coordinator for Dance at UO
Areas of expertise: Modern Dance training and performance, pedagogy, program development, dance science, Feldenkrais®
Dr. Chatfield began his career in movement during the early 1970’s in Boulder, Colorado, USA where he studied Tai Chi Chuan and served as Master Ch’u-Fang Chu’s teaching assistant prior to earning his BA in Dance at the University of Colorado in 1975. He toured internationally with the Nancy Spanier Dance Theatre of Colorado and co-founded the award winning Verve Dance Co. Inc. He earned an MA in Dance in 1984 and a PhD in Exercise Science and Curriculum Development in 1989 both from the University of Colorado, Boulder. In 1986 he accepted a full time teaching position as Assistant Professor of Dance at the University of Hawaii, Manoa. He has been in the Department of Dance at the University of Oregon since 1989. At UO he has served as Director of Graduate Studies from 1992-2006, he designed and implemented an MFA in Dance in 2000, and he is currently serving as the Feldenkrais Coordinator between the UO Department of Dance and training programs accredited by the Feldenkrias Guild® of North America (FGNA). As the Feldenkrais Coordinator in Dance, he supports UO student participation in accredited Feldenkrais training experiences at UO that can be used to earn credit to become a Guild Certified Feldenkrais PractitionersCM. He has served as the Executive Director of the International Association for Dance Medicine and Science since 2001.
Dr. Chatfield’s teaching and research integrates esoteric and practical aspects of artistic creativity and scientific knowledge. His interests include choreography, teaching practices, neuroscience in dance, and program development. Current projects and publications focus on neuromotor profiles of good dancing and optimal neuromotor training practices. His publications appear in the Journal of Dance Medicine and Science, Dance Research Journal, the Journal of Dance Education, and Impulse: The International Journal of Dance Science, Medicine and Education.
Dr. Chatfield sits on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Dance Medicine and Science and the Review Board of the Journal of Dance Education. He serves as a reviewer for Research in Dance Education, the Journal of Dance Medicine and Science (the official journal of the International Association for Dance Medicine and Science), the Journal of Dance Education (the official journal of the National Dance Education Organization), and Gait and Posture (the official journal of: the Gait and Clinical Movement Analysis Society, the European Society of Movement Analysis in Adults and Children, Società Italiana di Analisi del Movimento in Clinica, and the International Society for Posture and Gait Research).
SELECTED WORKS
Chatfield, SJ & Meenan, M. (In production). Motor control and neuroscience in dance: Theoretical aspects and practical applications. A podcast for the Rudolf Nureyev Foundation Medical Website, directed by Erin Sanchez, Healthier Dance Programme Manager for Dance UK and web administrator for nureyev-medical.org.
Meenan M & Chatfield SJ. (2013). Dance in the 21st Century: The Neuroscience of Mindfulness and its Presence in Dance. Abstracts of the 23rd Annual Meeting of the International Association for Dance Medicine and Science, 67-68.
Mockli, S. & Chatfield, SJ. Prism: Choreography meets neuroscience. A multi-media presentation/lecture demonstration for the May 3, 2013 National Dance Week UO Dance Department Research Forum.
Chatfield SJ. A Feldenkrais Awareness Through Movement® lesson for musicians. Presented to the School of Music Student Forum on Feb 28, 2013.
“Prism.” A collaboration with Shannon Mockli, co-choreographer and performer. Faculty Dance Concert 2013, Robinson Theater, University of Oregon.
Why & How is Research in Dance Important? A podcast for the National Dance Education Organization’s Online Professional Development Institute. See OPDI-105: Introduction to Dance Education Research at ndeo.org. Posted November 2012.
Chatfield, SJ. (2012). Dance Neuroscience Research and its Application in Practice. Abstracts of the 22st Annual Meeting of the International Association for Dance Medicine and Science, 60-61.
Chatfield, SJ. Entrainment in Dance: Dancing into the Mystic. Presented at the March 16, 2012 Dance Department Research Colloquium.
Chatfield, SJ & Cherry, CB. (2011). Rhythmic entrainment of movement and music as an intervention to enrich the quality of functional motor performance. Abstracts of the 21st Annual Meeting of the International Association for Dance Medicine and Science, 76-77.
“Mens Agitat Molem.” A collaboration with 8 undergraduate and 3 graduate students for their UO School of Music and Dance graduation ceremony in Beall Hall, June 13, 2011.
Chatfield, SJ. (April 2011). Using ‘variability training’ to optimize whole body neuromotor coordination patterns. Presented at the Spring 2011 Dance Department Research Colloquium.
“Dream of the Blue Dolphin.” A collaboration with Liz Foster, BS student majoring in Dance and Human Physiology, for The UO Faculty Dance Concert 2011 in Dougherty Dance Theatre, Eugene, OR.
Chatfield, SJ. A neuro-cognitive test of dance skills. A poster presentation of original data at the 20th Annual Meeting of the International Association for Dance Medicine and Science in Birmingham England, Oct 28-31, 2010. Winner of the “Contribution to Dance Medicine and Science” award in the Annual IADMS Poster Competition.
Chatfield, SJ. (2009). A method of teaching dance technique that encourages automatic neuromuscular reorganization instead of conscious muscular control. Abstracts of the 19th Annual Meeting of the International Association for Dance Medicine and Science, 59-61.
Chatfield, SJ, Eddy, M, & Batson, G. (2009). Integration of somatic methodologies and practices into the traditional dance technique class. Abstracts of the 19th Annual Meeting of the International Association for Dance Medicine and Science, 33-34.