Kairos Clubhouse™ Webcast Testimonials
Evidence-Based Arts and Health Engagement for Wellbeing
Kairos Alive!’s wellness work is based in the arts of joyful music, song, dance, story, and health research learning. It’s both fun and serious health promotion.
To date, six research studies have been based on Kairos Alive! In Therese Wengler’s Master’s Thesis (St. Catherine University), “The Importance of a Creative Arts Program for Senior Housing Residents,” published in 2015 from her research on our Dancing Heart™ program for elders, qualitative results revealed six main themes:
1. Novel and engaging group artistic experience provides opportunity to test and overcome limits
2. Feelings of trust, acceptance, and comfort within the group support self expression
3. Transformative creative experience in expressing true self, trying new things, and imagining endless possibilities.
4. The program was experienced as energizing and fun, generating a positive outlook on life, and mitigating signs of depression.
5. Music and dance fostered mutual knowledge, emotional connection to one’s own heritage, and cultural understanding
6. The program resulted in increased social interactions, a stronger feeling of community, and mitigation of isolation.
In a random survey of 300+ participants in Kairos Alive! Intergenerational Dance Hall™ in-person events, including veterans:
87% said they felt recognized and important “Moderately” or “A Lot”
91% said their mood improved “Moderately” or “A Lot”
86% said they connected with others “Moderately” or “A Lot”
79% said they moved in new ways/more than usual “Moderately” or “A Lot.”
Our work has shown to reduce participants awareness of pain. In a random survey of 61 participants in our Veterans Dancing Heart™ program at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center:
30% said they thought about their pain “Not At All”
20% said they thought about their pain “A Little”
13% said they thought about their pain “Moderately”
20% said they thought about their pain “A Lot”
Recent data reviewed by University of Wisconsin Whitewater evaluators proves the efficacy of our 2-way Zoom engagement webcasts to increase participants’ experience of feeling:
1. Connected – mitigating isolation.
2. Valued – cultivating a sense of meaning and purpose.
3. Moving in new ways – embracing a sense of positivity.
Kairos Alive! programs are based on a landmark study commissioned by the AARP, the NEA and the NIMH, directed by the late Dr. Gene Cohen, MD/PhD, of the George Washington University Center for Aging, Health and Humanities. In this study, older adults who participated in weekly artistic programming with professional artists not only showed stabilization, but actual improvement with regard to physical, social and emotional well-being, including:
1. Fewer doctor visits
2. Less use of medication
3. Lower depression
4. Increase of activities.
Intercultural Celebration – Our work is recognized for its nuanced intercultural celebration, its ability to serve as a place and practice for community healing, and its ability to support purpose and creative leadership.
We have collaborated with over 60 arts, social service, healthcare, education and community partners in Minnesota and around the country. We educate about Creative Aging, and the broader inquiry into the positive role of Arts in Health. Our work was featured in the PBS television documentary, Arts and the Mind, and is recognized by the National Endowment for the Arts and the American Public Health Association, among others.
What the Research Says about Kairos Alive!
Summary of:
Kairos Alive! – Promoting Physical, Emotional, Social and Cognitive Wellbeing
Across Generations
By:
Dr Lea Buda, DO
Geriatrics/Senior Care
Hennepin Healthcare, Minneapolis MN
Kairos Alive!™ is a Minneapolis-based nonprofit arts and social outreach organization founded in 1999 by Maria Genné. It was originally called Kairos Dance Theater and was the first intergenerational dance company in the Twin Cities. Now led by Artistic Director Parker Genné and Executive Director Elle Genné, the organization promotes wellness through dance, music, storytelling, and research-based arts and health engagement.
Its flagship program, Choreography of Care™, includes Dancing Heart™ sessions, which are interactive music and dance activities tailored for older adults with various health conditions, including dementia, brain and spinal injuries, and mental health diagnoses. These sessions occur in both inpatient and outpatient settings, and are also conducted via Kairos Clubhouse™, an interactive Zoom platform connecting multiple senior centers. Additionally, Kairos hosts Intergenerational Dance Hall™ events involving large community gatherings of up to 2,000 people.
Research on Kairos Alive!™ programs shows positive impacts on participants’ wellbeing. Studies report improvements in physical ability, cognitive function, emotional health, memory, creativity, social interaction, and quality of life. Although one small study found no statistically significant improvement in fall risk, other research points to enhanced mood, sense of community, self-expression, and spiritual wellbeing. Touch was also found to foster feelings of mutual support in sessions.
Overall, Kairos Alive!™ demonstrates a strong potential to improve physical and emotional health through creative, inclusive, and community-based arts engagement.