The Dart Procedures are an evolving sequence of carefully executed “postures” and movements that Professor Dart developed after having had lessons in the Alexander Technique in 1943. He described them in a series of articles (the Dart papers) addressed to his medical colleagues written in the late 1940’s. This is a 1-day workshop for al ages to get introduced to The Evolution of Movement  by Robin Simmons, a guide to the Dart Procedures based on the Alexander Technique

Who might be interested to explore the Dart Procedures? 

Any person interested to improve their body awareness, coordination, their poise and freedom of movement might be interested to explore the Dart Procedures. This may include movement professionals, actors, dancers, musicians, gymnasts, athletes, physiotherapists and other health professionals, but you do not need to have any professional interest in the movement to benefit from these procedures. 

A Brief Background: the re-discovery of the Procedures

The 3 articles (the Dart papers), and the procedures contained within them, lay undetected until Alexander Technique teacher Alex Murray re-discovered them in 1967. Alex Murray complied a document to outline and formally organise (with illustrations by Pam Hartman), the sequence of procedures Dart had described. Murray later went on to publish a more expanded version contained in a book Skill and Poise (1996) with illustrations by Delia Hardy.

Features of the Dart Procedures 

The procedures are both practical and psycho-physical, and they are also concerned with an evolutionary ancestral perspective. 

1. An ancestral evolutionary perspective is concerned with the evolution of movement from invertebrates to vertebrates to mammals and eventually to human movement.
2. Practical considerations involve the considerations of an evolutionary series of postural attitudes and carefully executed movements based upon the principle of “temporary fixation” (splinting) of body weight-bearing points. The series ranges from attitudes of complete safety (there is nowhere to fall to), to utter precariousness (there is everywhere to fall to).
3. Principles: As well as the basic principle of temporary fixation Dart also incorporates a principle of temporary eliding.

In this way, the procedures explore not only the limits of the range of movement and balance from each of the postural attitudes but also explore the full freedom of visual range and of respiration.

The Teacher

Robin John Simmons

ROBIN JOHN SIMMONS (SBAT, MSTAT) has been teaching the Alexander Technique since 1971 and training teachers since 1982. Robin was introduced and learnt the Dart Procedures originally from Walter Carrington during 1970-71 and, subsequent to his graduation from Walters training school (in 1971), he continued to explore them both on his own and with a small group of like-minded friends who were also Alexander Teachers including Don & Carmen Burton (now Tarnowski) and Jean Clark.

As of today Robin has been teaching the Dart Procedures for over 40 years and has presented numerous workshops to Alexander Teachers and others in various countries worldwide. His book on the Dart Procedures ‘The Evolution of Movement‘ is now published and available everywhere. At present, he resides in Switzerland and is the Co-Director of his training school, ATLAZ, in Zürich along with his wife Béatrice. He also teaches T’ai Chi, Nordic Walking, Dart Evolution Procedures, and is the author of the pathbreaking work ‘The Evolution of Movement’.