Permission to Pause: Redefining our Relationship to Pain with Robert Tsai
Thu, Jul 17
|Google Meets
What if pain wasn’t a red flag or a weakness but valuable information? In this session we’ll rethink how we talk about pain in the studio & learn how to respond with clarity, care & collaboration. Walk away with real-world strategies to support your dancers without feeding the “push through” culture
Time & Location
Jul 17, 2025, 10:00 AM – 11:15 AM PDT
Google Meets
Guests
About the event
In this session with dance performance physical therapist and dance health educator Dr. Robert Tsai, PT, DPT, we will reframe how pain is understood, discussed, and addressed in the ballet classroom.
Rather than viewing pain as a weakness or inconvenience, we explore how pain is information shaped by physical, emotional, and cultural factors. Through real-world examples and decision-making frameworks, educators will learn how to support their students with clarity, care, and collaboration. We break down the difference between productive discomfort and injury risk, build confidence in how to respond to pain, and challenge the silent norms that often tell dancers to push through at all costs. This session also highlights how teachers can work alongside healthcare professionals to create a dancer-centered support system.
About the Guest
Dr. Robert Tsai, PT, DPT (蔡旭晏) is a physical therapist, dance health educator, movement coach, and owner of DANCE|PREHAB Physical Therapy & Performance. Rob’s clinical and educational work focuses…