The Dance of Resilience: Transforming Lives and Staying Vibrant Through Partner Dance

Attorney and former Minnesota state senator Reichgott Junge (Zero Chance of Passage) offers a wide-ranging examination of the healing power of dance. Reichgott Junge, who took up ballroom dancing at 35, writes that it has taught her resilience and helped her become a more authentic person, one “who could love myself first—then love another person.” Elsewhere, she demonstrates how, by encouraging movement, dancing can improve quality of life. Case studies of individuals who have benefitted from ballroom dance include Dennis Yelkin, who found it helped him with his cancer recovery; Lisa Davis, who is blind and has Meniere’s disease and says partner dance has helped with her posture and agility; and married instructors Gene and Elena Bersten, who have witnessed dance help young people build confidence. Reichgott Junge points to studies that show regular dancing lowers the risk of dementia and slows the progression of Parkinson’s disease and urges medical institutions, insurers, and policymakers to invest in “social prescribing”—connecting people to nonmedical activities, like dance, to improve their overall well-being. While Reichgott Junge effectively shows how movement can improve people’s lives, she struggles to tie the account’s various strands together with a clear through line. Still, this is a loving testament to the transformative potential of dance. (Jan.)