Welcome
to Dance & Arts Therapy NZ.

We are here to empower and support

Our Mission

Dance Therapy NZ is a registered Charitable Trust. Our Mission Statement is to support and empower individuals & groups in Aotearoa/NZ through the use of Dance Movement Therapy and Arts Therapy, with a focus on those with disabilities, special needs, and at risk/low income communities.

To achieve our mission we are working hard to deliver programmes and projects which support vulnerable communities through therapeutic support and empowerment through the creative arts.

Our Team

We are a team of Professionals who value Creativity, Connection, Nurturing, Growth, Integrity & Collaboration.

DTNZ consists of senior therapists who have been trained as Dance Movement Therapists Internationally, therapists who have completed or are completing Clinical Arts Therapy training in New Zealand specialising in Dance Movement Therapy, and Dance Education Specialists who specialise in the area of disability and dance.

Our Therapists & Assistants Our Admin Team Our Advisory Board

Programmes

We have 8 programmes to choose from depending on your therapeutic needs.

Upcoming Events & Programmes

11 - 8

February - April

11:30 am - 12:30 am

Roskill Youth Zone

740 Sandringham Rd, Mt Roskill

Dance 4 Us! Mt Roskill

Dance Movement Therapy group sessions for Adults or Teens ...

REGISTER

12 - 16

February - April

1:30 pm - 2:30 pm

Pearce Hall

1 Pearce Street (behind Onehunga Community Centre)

Dance 4 Us! Onehunga

Dance Movement Therapy group sessions for Adults or Teens ...

REGISTER

12 - 9

February - April

3:30 pm - 4:30 pm

Dunkirk Community Centre

50 Dunkirk Rd, Panmure, Auckland

Arts 4 Us General: Panmure (Dunkirk)

An Arts therapy programme held during term time for ...

View Programme

12 - 9

February - April

4:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Oranga Community Centre

52C Waitangi Road, Oranga

Arts 4 Us General: Oranga

An Arts therapy programme held during term time for ...

View Programme

13 - 10

February - April

3:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Riverside Community Centre

Cnr Bernard Street & Peace Ave, Otahuhu

Arts 4 Us General: Mt Wellington (Riverside)

An Arts therapy programme held during term time for ...

View Programme

14 - 11

February - April

10:30 am - 11:30 am

Takapuna Methodist Church Hall

cnr Lake Road and Tennyson Avenue, Takapuna

Dance 4 Us! Northshore

Dance Movement Therapy group sessions for Adults or Teens ...

REGISTER

14 - 11

February - April

3:45 pm - 4:45 pm

Manu Tukutuku

Arts 4 Us General: Manurewa

An Arts therapy programme held during term time for ...

View Programme

15 - 12

February - April

10:00 am - 11:00 am

MPHS Hubwest

27 Corban Ave, Henderson

Dance 4 Us! West (Henderson)

Dance Movement Therapy group sessions for Adults or Teens ...

REGISTER

18 - 8

February - April

11:30 am - 12:30 am

Roskill Youth Zone

740 Sandringham Rd, Mt Roskill

Dance 4 Us! Mt Roskill

Dance Movement Therapy group sessions for Adults or Teens ...

REGISTER

19 - 16

February - April

1:30 pm - 2:30 pm

Pearce Hall

1 Pearce Street (behind Onehunga Community Centre)

Dance 4 Us! Onehunga

Dance Movement Therapy group sessions for Adults or Teens ...

REGISTER

19 - 9

February - April

3:30 pm - 4:30 pm

Dunkirk Community Centre

50 Dunkirk Rd, Panmure, Auckland

Arts 4 Us General: Panmure (Dunkirk)

An Arts therapy programme held during term time for ...

View Programme

19 - 9

February - April

4:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Oranga Community Centre

52C Waitangi Road, Oranga

Arts 4 Us General: Oranga

An Arts therapy programme held during term time for ...

View Programme

20 - 10

February - April

3:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Riverside Community Centre

Cnr Bernard Street & Peace Ave, Otahuhu

Arts 4 Us General: Mt Wellington (Riverside)

An Arts therapy programme held during term time for ...

View Programme

21 - 11

February - April

10:30 am - 11:30 am

Takapuna Methodist Church Hall

cnr Lake Road and Tennyson Avenue, Takapuna

Dance 4 Us! Northshore

Dance Movement Therapy group sessions for Adults or Teens ...

REGISTER

21 - 11

February - April

3:45 pm - 4:45 pm

Manu Tukutuku

Arts 4 Us General: Manurewa

An Arts therapy programme held during term time for ...

View Programme

22 - 12

February - April

10:00 am - 11:00 am

MPHS Hubwest

27 Corban Ave, Henderson

Dance 4 Us! West (Henderson)

Dance Movement Therapy group sessions for Adults or Teens ...

REGISTER

25 - 8

February - April

11:30 am - 12:30 am

Roskill Youth Zone

740 Sandringham Rd, Mt Roskill

Dance 4 Us! Mt Roskill

Dance Movement Therapy group sessions for Adults or Teens ...

REGISTER

26 - 16

February - April

1:30 pm - 2:30 pm

Pearce Hall

1 Pearce Street (behind Onehunga Community Centre)

Dance 4 Us! Onehunga

Dance Movement Therapy group sessions for Adults or Teens ...

REGISTER

26 - 9

February - April

3:30 pm - 4:30 pm

Dunkirk Community Centre

50 Dunkirk Rd, Panmure, Auckland

Arts 4 Us General: Panmure (Dunkirk)

An Arts therapy programme held during term time for ...

View Programme

26 - 9

February - April

4:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Oranga Community Centre

52C Waitangi Road, Oranga

Arts 4 Us General: Oranga

An Arts therapy programme held during term time for ...

View Programme

27 - 10

February - April

3:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Riverside Community Centre

Cnr Bernard Street & Peace Ave, Otahuhu

Arts 4 Us General: Mt Wellington (Riverside)

An Arts therapy programme held during term time for ...

View Programme

28 - 11

February - April

10:30 am - 11:30 am

Takapuna Methodist Church Hall

cnr Lake Road and Tennyson Avenue, Takapuna

Dance 4 Us! Northshore

Dance Movement Therapy group sessions for Adults or Teens ...

REGISTER

28 - 11

February - April

3:45 pm - 4:45 pm

Manu Tukutuku

Arts 4 Us General: Manurewa

An Arts therapy programme held during term time for ...

View Programme

1 - 12

March - April

10:00 am - 11:00 am

MPHS Hubwest

27 Corban Ave, Henderson

Dance 4 Us! West (Henderson)

Dance Movement Therapy group sessions for Adults or Teens ...

REGISTER

No event found!

"Our daughter has been able to bond with people like her and make real friends and the impact of this on her wellbeing cannot be underestimated."

–mother of 14 year old girl with ASD
"Anaia is a dedicated, highly skilled therapist with a confident, calm, reassuring manner. Her work with my son was uniquely creative and deeply moving. My son has Autism and yet her ability to connect and relate to him was outstanding. Our time with Anaia has opened up a whole new way of understanding and using DMT as both a mother and a teacher."

–Teresa, Parent and Teacher
"Anaia brings an open-hearted, authentic, spacious presence that invites everything a woman harbours to be present. She is an expert guide, skilled at intriguing participants with their own inner landscapes and creating a sense of reverence among group members for one another’s processes and differences, as well as for the community that is formed in her work."

–Grace, Life Coach
"When her clients appear with an issue, Anaia takes them, very gently, right to the longstanding roots. Somehow her invitation to speak about the issue from several relevant viewpoints takes the sting out. And remarkably swiftly, Anaia’s line of questioning allows people to regain a sort of centred, confident neutrality to those very areas that were previously deeply confusing and troubling."

–Rosie Walford, Leadership Coach and Journalist
"Anaia is a warm and skilled therapist. Through her joyous blend of movement and loving communication, she helped our 2.5 year old son (diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disorder) come out of his shell and become much more verbal and interactive. She is the first person outside of our family that our son let into his world (and bonded with), and for his tremendous growth we are eternally grateful to her!"

–Joelle Van Sickle and Steven Petkus
"My two sons have made great strides since seeing a DTNZ Therapist. She is very intuitive to how they are feeling and how she can help them. She has a thoughtful, gentle and caring approach that has enabled my sons to form a bond with her, and through this they have improved their social skills, self-esteem, and ability to express emotions. They are now more able to self-regulate when they are having a meltdown or get overloaded with sensory issues. Best of all, my sons think it’s fun and love going to see her! We feel very blessed and can’t recommend her enough."

–Mother of 10 & 9 year olds with Autism
"Since our boy has been attending the dance therapy workshops his communication, interaction and negotiation skills have vastly improved, he no longer operates in isolation, he is more connected with the family and his peers."

–Grandmother of 6 year old boy with developmental delay
"The Programme exceeded my hopes. The therapist is very positive and skilled at including my son. We also met lovely parents who understood ASD and its reality which made it a relaxing place. It was therapeutic for me as well."

–mother of 5 year old
"My son is on the autistic spectrum, has ADHD and other learning difficulties. The class he attends with DTNZ is teaching him skills he would not learn anywhere else- social awareness, appropriate behaviours in different circumstances, how to concentrate, follow instructions and how to self regulate his behaviours in different circumstances in a fun environment where he gets to interact with children similar to him. What he learns in this programme has a follow on affect when he is at school and in his social interactions with his peers which have always been difficult for him"

–mother of 8 year old
"Our son (who has Autism) has only been on the Dance Movement Therapy for the past two months. Already, we can see significant improvement in his social skills, confidence level and general improvement with the way he carries himself…he enjoys the sessions and is beginning to make some friends. he looks forward with great enthusiasm to Friday evenings!"

–mother of 12-year old
"Being a mainstream student, dance therapy is the one place where (my son) can spend some time with kids that go through the same or similar difficulties that he goes through. He can relate to others, and others to him. He has fun, he works on his motor skills, but most importantly: he makes friends."

–mother of a 12 year old boy with Cerebral Palsy and Asperger’s Syndrome
"After several months of my daughter attending your Dance Therapy class, I can definitely say that there’s been a marked improvement. My daughter is on the Autism spectrum, mainly having difficulty with social interaction. She is now able to take turns and instead of reacting to situations, is able to take time to assess and decide how to react. This is not perfect and there are times when this doesn’t happen, but I can say that incidents are few and far between now. I believe that her sessions with you and one other girl, gave her the time and space to work through those difficult situations, and she now has the tools and strategies in place to help her in situations that she finds difficult. I can highly recommend this type of therapy (dance / art) and think that this is an invaluable resource for children on the Autism Spectrum."

–mother of a 10 year old girl with ADHD and Asperger’s Syndrome
"When we heard of Dance Therapy, we were pleased since we would like our son to enjoy music (which he fears) and dance through therapy. Jacquelyn showed us even more. Dance Therapy was not just about dancing with music but coordination of movement through play. Our son made leaps-and-bounds with Jacquelyn. She made such a huge connection that our son keeps reminding us of his Dance Therapy schedule every week. And Jacquelyn did not stop there, she keeps giving advice on how we can understand our son and work on his behaviour. Surely, Jacquelyn has made a mark in our son’s life. Cheers to the Dance Therapy team!!!"

–parents of an 8 year old boy with ADHD and ASD
"Dance Therapy provides (my son) with a sense of belonging. He enjoys the routine ,the gentleness of the staff and familiarity he has gained with sessions and he has made friends."

–mother of 16 year old boy with Asperger’s Syndrome