Gentle Glory
Spring 2026
Saturday May 9th, 11am at Alliance Française de Vancouver
Rachel & Ben Helten wil be performing Gentle Glory alongside many talented artists.
This program is made possible thanks to Dance West Network, through the Des Arts Dehors / Arts Outside program
Winter 2026
Gentle Glory: Dance Performance & Artists’ Talk-Back
Saturday January 31st – Join us at the Dance Centre for an afternoon of dance! Free and open to all
2:00 pm – soar, a work-in-progress by ventricule gauche, Marcuse studio
2:45 pm – Gentle Glory, Birmingham Studio
Gentle Glory is a solo dance work by Rachel Helten that explores gentleness and empathy as pathways to liberation. Drawing from her personal experience navigating mental health challenges Rachel examines how a deep connection to self mother earth and the wisdom of animism fosters healing and strength in an often violent world. The piece advocates for emotional intelligence as essential for greater awareness celebrating vulnerability as a courageous act of alchemical transformation. It also reflects on how proximity can humanize or dehumanize emphasizing the need to lean in and honour the sensitivity sentience and humanity of all through care.
The performance will be followed by an informal artists’ talk-back and refreshments in the Dancers’ Lounge.
Free and open to all
This program is made possible thanks to the support of the Province of British Columbia and Metro Vancouver as well as The Dance Centre
Fall 2025
Gentle Glory: Dance Performance & Movement Workshop
Saturday October 11th 2025 – Join us in North Vancouver for an afternoon of dance! Free and open to all
2:00 pm – Civic Plaza,126 14th St W, North Vancouver, BC V7M 2M9: Performance + Artists’ talk-back
3:30 pm – North Vancouver City Library, 120 14th St W, North Vancouver, BC V7M 1N9: Movement workshop
Gentle Glory is a solo dance work by Rachel Helten that explores gentleness and empathy as pathways to liberation. Drawing from her personal experience navigating mental health challenges Rachel examines how a deep connection to self mother earth and the wisdom of animism fosters healing and strength in an often violent world. The piece advocates for emotional intelligence as essential for greater awareness celebrating vulnerability as a courageous act of alchemical transformation. It also reflects on how proximity can humanize or dehumanize emphasizing the need to lean in and honour the sensitivity sentience and humanity of all through care.
The performance will be followed by an informal artists’ talk-back and a 45-minute creative movement workshop creating a space for collective exploration of themes such as embodied empathy and resilience.
Free and open to all
This program is made possible thanks to the support of the Province of British Columbia and Metro Vancouver as well as the City of North Vancouver and the District of North Vancouver through the Arts & Culture Grants Program of the North Vancouver Recreation & Culture Commission
Summer 2025
Gentle Glory: Dance Performance & Artists’ Talk Back
Monday July 31st 2025 – Join us At PoMo Arts Out Side Festival for an afternoon of dance! Free and open to all
Gentle Glory is a solo dance work by Rachel Helten that explores gentleness and empathy as pathways to liberation. Drawing from her personal experience navigating mental health challenges Rachel examines how a deep connection to self mother earth and the wisdom of animism fosters healing and strength in an often violent world. The piece advocates for emotional intelligence as essential for greater awareness celebrating vulnerability as a courageous act of alchemical transformation. It also reflects on how proximity can humanize or dehumanize emphasizing the need to lean in and honour the sensitivity sentience and humanity of all through care.
The performance will be followed by an informal artists’ talk-back creating a space for collective reflection on themes such as embodied empathy and resilience.
Free and open to all
This program is made possible thanks to the support of the Province of British Columbia and Metro Vancouver
Spring 2025
Gentle Glory explores gentleness, empathy, and our profound interconnectedness with nature. This deeply personal work reflects on my experience navigating C-PTSD and how attunement to Mother Earth fosters ease and nervous system regulation amidst a chaotic world. Through contemporary dance, music, and poetry, I investigate themes of adaptation, evolution, and sentient intelligence, drawing parallels between human healing and the wisdom of the natural world.
Over the past few months, Rachel has been immersed in research for her new solo work, Gentle Glory, during an artistic residency in Argentina. This piece delves into gentleness, empathy, and our deep interconnectedness with nature.
We’re thrilled for the opportunity Alvin Erasga Tolentino has given us to further explore and share our work-in-progress at Co.Erasga’s Studio Salon Series – Spring 2025.
Join us at PoMo Arts Out Side in July and in North Vancouver in the Fall to witness Gentle Glory!
More info very soon!
Collaborators
Concept, Direction & Performer:
Rachel Helten
Composer & Musician:
Ben Helten
Recorded music:
green to blue – daniel.mp3, retire (final) – alvedon, unmade – thom yorke
Projections:
Ezequiel Peralta
Outside eye(s):
Alyssa Favero, Ana Sosa, Carline Dolmazon & Alana Gerecke
Gentle Glory Trailer
In research at Planta Inclan residency, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Music: Thom Yorke – Unmade
May 9th – 11am at Alliance Française: Gentle Glory
Did you miss our last public showing of Gentle Glory? Don't worry! Rachel and Ben will be performing Gentle Glory at Alliance Française de Vancouver on May 9th, 2026 at 11am, alongside many talented artists. Please, join us! We are so thankful to Dance West Network...
Saturday October 11th, 2pm – Join us in North Vancouver for Gentle Glory
Saturday October 11th, 2025 Gentle Glory is a solo work-in-progress by Rachel Helten that explores gentleness and empathy as pathways to liberation. Drawing from her personal experience navigating mental health challenges, Rachel examines how a deep connection to...
Spring Salon Series March 2025
We would like to express our deepest and sincere appreciation to our funders, partners, volunteers and supporters who made this project possible.
This project is made possible thanks to the support of the Province of British Columbia and Metro Vancouver as well as the City of North Vancouver and the District of North Vancouver through the Arts & Culture Grants Program of the North Vancouver Recreation & Culture Commission
We acknowledge that the land I live, work, and create on is the stolen territory of the Coast Salish Peoples, including the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.
This statement reflects a commitment to contributing to a more just, loving, and equitable world as we strive to learn from past mistakes, and move forward in a spirit of care, honoring the interconnectedness of land and community during this time of climate crisis and social injustice.