[中][ENG]舞蹈治療師何天虹 Rainbow Ho: Dance Therapist
舞跡可尋
In Search of a Dance Story
何天虹Rainbow Ho; 攝Photo: Thalia Wong
何天虹教授（Rainbow）是一位舞蹈治療師。我們在香港大學行為健康教研中心傾談，教研中心的牆上掛著一幅幅粉筆畫、油畫，充滿天真直率的筆跡。何教授介紹說這些畫作是接受治療的求助者（Client）作品。其中一幅配了一句：「我的世界是彩色的，但是有黑色的爪在爪我」，每一幅擦身而過的畫作，都是一個經歷和寫照。教研中心裡有好幾個寬敞的舞蹈和活動室，也有製作陶瓷和畫畫的工作室，彷似一所小型藝術學校。
舞蹈室的窗台上列了多盤形態不一的盤栽植物。其中一盤的主幹扭曲，枝葉末端垂下生長。我笑說那盤栽奇怪像在跳舞，何眼亮起來說以欣賞的角度去看，很多東西都是舞蹈。
Professor Rainbow Ho is a dance therapist. We talked with her in the Center on Behavioral Health at the University of Hong Kong. Hanging on the wall along the way were chalk and oil paintings teeming with innocent and candid strokes. Prof. Ho said these paintings were her clients works. One of them comes with a caption, “My world is colorful, but a black claw keeps coming after me.” Every painting represents an experience and reflection. The Center also features a few spacious dance studios, activity rooms, and classrooms for pottery creation and drawing, making it similar to a small art school.
The windowsill in the dance studio is decorated with many quirkily-shaped plants, one of which has a twisted trunk with the leaves growing downward. The plant seems to be dancing, I told Prof. Ho, amused. She brightened and said if we see things from an appreciative perspective, a lot of objects are dances.
舞蹈室裡的植物 Plants in the dance studios; 攝Photo: Thalia Wong
身體動作是治療師的聽筒
何教授成為舞蹈治療師前，在生物學、解剖學、及免疫學都有深入研究。她說舞蹈治療的專業領域裡「舞蹈」是廣義的，「舞蹈治療師看的所有身體動作都可以是一種舞蹈，任何時候見到求助者的動作，都可以算是舞蹈，那怕只是一個呼吸或者一個眼神。」
舞蹈治療師以身體動作切入，協助求助者渡過心理障礙。在治療期間，治療師除了透過傾談了解求助者的情況，舞蹈就是此治療方式的獨有診斷和交流媒介。一些與身體記憶和經驗相關的創傷往往難以言喻和抒發，在安全和求助者已有充分預備的情況下，以舞蹈治療這類個案會比較直接。她形容治療期間看到的舞蹈都蘊含「來至靈性層面」的美，是身體與心靈相通的經驗。
至於治療師是如何從求助者的舞蹈中發現蛛絲馬跡，並再加以診斷和治療？「每一個動作都有意思」，動作觀察和分析是每個舞蹈治療師的必要技能。專業舞蹈中也經常用的拉班動作分析系統（Laban Movement Analysis），其實都能應用於舞蹈治療，例如拉班系統中的身體（Body）、勁力（Effort） 、形體（Shape）和空間（Space）的概念。另外，凱氏動作剖析系統（Kestenberg Movement Profile）亦常用於兒童個案分析。治療師透過觀察求助者的動作韻律，加上傾談和其他觀察做整全的分析，以了解求助者的整體狀況。
Movement: A Therapists’ Stethoscope
Before Prof. Ho became a dance therapist, she made an extensive study of in biology, anatomy, and immunology. In dance therapy, ‘dance’ has a broad definition. “To dance therapists, every body movement is a kind of dance. Whenever I see client's movement, it’s dance, even if it’s just a breath or an expression from his eyes,” she said.
Dance therapists help their clients overcome psychological stumbling blocks with body movement. During therapy, the therapist is able to come to understand the client’s situation via conversations and dance serves as a unique diagnostic medium. Trauma concerning body memories and experiences are hard to put into words so, dance therapy for these cases is a more straightforward solution. Prof. Ho said that dance during therapy “exudes spirituality” and an aesthetics of fusion between body and mind.
How do dance therapists examine their clients’ dancing for analysis and diagnosis?
“Every movement means something,” she said.
Observing and analyzing movement are the necessary skills for dance therapists. The concepts of body, effort, shape, and space in Laban Movement Analysis, commonly-used in professional dance, can also be applied in dance therapy, while Kestenberg Movement Profile is appropriate for children. Through observing clients’ movements, conversations, and other means, therapists are able to complete the analysis and diagnosis for their clients.
在舞蹈治療的工作坊中的何天虹教授。Prof. Ho in a dance therapy workshop; 圖片由受訪者提供Photo provided by interviewee
舞蹈作為治療
至於了解求助者的情況後，治療師下一步的工作是甚麼？何說舞蹈治療的理論中，情緒思想可以改變一個人的身體動作；反之，改變一個人的動作，亦可以改變一個人的情緒思想。
「舉例來說，如我觀察到求助者的身體動作總是急促，沒有慢下來的一刻。我會猜想是否因為事情太忙令他的身體動作習慣急促而不能慢下來，精神或許亦處於緊張的狀態，身心難以休息。在此情況下，我可能會與這位求助者嘗試用較慢的速度完成一些動作，讓他漸漸發現身體和生活節奏放慢速度的可能性，而他是有所選擇。」
「另一例子是心情沉重的求助者，動作行為可能也帶有重的感覺，治療師就會嘗試與他一起舞動，慢慢引領他體驗『輕』的身體動作，藉此體驗身體和情緒稍稍放鬆的狀態。有時候為了能讓求助者把治療室裡的體驗或所洞悉的經驗實踐於生活中，我們會與求助者『演練』日常生活的狀態和身體動作。」
Dance as Treatment
What’s the next step after analyzing the client’s case? According to dance therapy theories, Prof. Ho says that emotions and thoughts can change a person’s body movement, and vice versa.
“If a client moves hastily and does not slow down for a moment, I will suppose this as a sign of overworking that wraps him or her in an anxiety bubble, making his/her body and mind hard to rest. In this case, I might try to move with the client at a slower speed, so he or she will gradually realize that they have a choice to slow down their bodies and rhythm of life.
“Another example is a depressed client; his body movement may seem heavy. Therapists try to dance with him, guide him to experience ‘light’ body movement and a relaxing state of his body and mind. We even ‘rehearse’ daily movement with the client and tell them how to apply the bodily experience they get in the therapy in their daily lives.”
香港人的身體習慣
身體是一個人的生活習慣、文化、經歷、心理情緒的載體。香港人的身體動作特質，在舞蹈治療師的眼中又是怎樣的？何說她留意到香港人在鬧市中過馬路的動作很Adaptive（高適應力），尤其是肩膀及上身前後左右經常扭動。如在旺角鬧市的十字路口，人從四方八面過馬路，擠擁的人群左右穿插時，香港人身體的靈活動作能巧妙地避開與人碰撞，並快捷到達目的地。她曾經與來至日本的同業討論文化中的身體動作特質，對方說在日本，即使在人多的鬧市中也不常觀察到她所形容如此Adaptive的動作，擠擁中身體發生碰撞的情況時有發生。
在治療工作以外，何曾在演藝學院修讀芭蕾舞專業文憑，亦在國際比賽中代表香港出賽，至今仍熱愛跳舞，經常參與舞蹈相關的工作。她說舞台演出帶給人藝術的體驗；而舞蹈治療工作則常與人共渡困惑和難關。雖然如此，兩者同樣是透過身體動作溝通表達，並在過程中享受到美的經驗。
Movement Habits of Hong Kong People
The body is the medium of an individual’s life habits, culture, experience, emotions, and mentality. What do the movement features of Hong Kong people look like to dance therapists? Prof. Ho said she noticed that Hong Kong people show adaptive movement in crossing hectic streets, especially twisting their shoulders and upper bodies in all directions. For example, at a crossroad in Mong Kok, when pedestrians cross the road, they dash through the crowd, going left and right so to avoid crashing with each other while reaching their destination quickly. She discussed movement features in different cultures with a Japanese colleague and the latter said she did not see the adaptive movement Prof. Ho described in the busy areas in Japan; people crashing with each other is not rare.
Therapy aside, Prof. Ho has completed a Professional Diploma in ballet at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts and has represented Hong Kong in international contests. With a passion for dancing, she frequently participates in dance-related activities. She said performance on stage offers an artistic experience, while dance therapy enables her to go through people’s frustrations and hard times with them. Despite that, dance therapy and performance on stage are both expressed through body movement, and both provide inherent aesthetic experiences.
