Founding directors Julie, Jessica and Gail are all highly experienced community dance practitioners and educators with knowledge and skills working with older people who are dealing with diverse health conditions and at different levels of ability. They collectively bring a wealth of experience and knowledge to dance based programs with a fall prevention focus to optimise the health and wellbeing benefits dance offers.
Having seen so many wonderful outcomes for participants in their respective dance practices – they are passionate to share the Sound Moves 55+ Approach with everyone!
Sound Moves 55+ plans to add more artists, dance styles and genres over time to offer a rich repertoire of tailored movement and music choices.
Photo: Julie leading a dance session
Julie Chenery is an award-winning dance educator and community cultural development practitioner whose work sits at the intersection of dance and social innovation.
As co-director of Helicon Dance, she led transformative projects engaging diverse communities, producing DVDs, CDs and large-scale public performances that celebrate community voices. Her current focus is on dance for health for older adults.
Julie’s media production work included creating 21 interactive satellite transmissions produced for the Queensland Performing Arts Trust that reached audiences across the state — a genuinely pioneering use of broadcast technology for arts education. Her choreographic projects range from contemporary dance solos and small groups through to the 100-performer Shared Gift Dance for Rotary International, demonstrating a rare capacity to weave together cultural traditions at genuine scale.
Julie is a 2002 Ausdance Life Member. Julie has taught dance across secondary, tertiary and community settings, and contributed to shaping the field through her decade as Ausdance Qld Executive Officer and as co-producer of the 2nd National Community Dance Forum. Her current practice focusses on sharing the many benefits of dance with older people in her own community practice and in partnership with Gail Hewton, as Gold Moves Australia, delivering training for dance teachers in working safely and effectively with seniors.
Jessica Conneely is an accomplished dance artist, Dance for Health practitioner and accredited trainer with more than three decades of experience across performance, teaching and advocacy.
Based in regional New South Wales, she designs and leads tailored dance programs for older adults that combine creativity, music and safe movement to support health and wellbeing.
Her practice spans community, health and aged care settings, with a strong focus on accessibility, inclusion and meaningful participation. Her career has taken her from professional company dancer in France, Asia and Australia to tertiary and vocational dance education, giving her a distinctive ability to bridge the arts and health sectors. Through this work, Jessica has developed an approach that is creative, holistic and responsive to the needs of older people, encouraging confidence, connection and quality of life through dance practice.
Since founding Dance4Wellbeing in 2017, she has delivered community and aged care programs, trained artists and professionals, and advanced safe, evidence-informed dance practice for seniors. Jessica is an ongoing teaching artist of Dance for Parkinson’s Australia, worked as lead dance artist with the Arts Health Institute, and contributed to research initiatives with Monash, Newcastle and Western Sydney universities.
Jess has been the recipient of numerous arts, regional health and business awards which has also taken her to study best practice in programs for older adults in the UK and study with international specialists working in the areas of Dementia, Parkinson’s and Stroke research and practice. She is particularly passionate about using technology to extend access to high-quality dance experiences for older people in regional, remote and underserved communities.
Photo: Jess in Aged Care
Photo: Gail leading a dance session
Gail Hewton is an award-winning dance artist and educator with almost 50 years of professional experience spanning performance, choreography, teaching, community practice and creative production.
She performed with Expressions Dance Company and Queensland Modern and Contemporary Dance Company and undertook extensive freelance commercial and contemporary dance work throughout the 1980s and 90s. As a choreographer, Gail has created work for Expressions Dance Company, Queensland Theatre Company, Queensland Dance School of Excellence and major public events including South Bank Parklands’ Celebration of Dance Concerts and New Year Celebrations.
Her dance film In a Different Space, featuring dancers aged 60–101, won the 2018 Australian Dance Award for Outstanding Achievement in Dance for Film or New Media and screened at 25 festivals across eight countries. A pioneer of dance education in Queensland, Gail contributed significantly to curriculum development, pre-service teacher training and ongoing professional development at primary, secondary and tertiary levels, including twelve years lecturing at QUT.
As a creative producer she has directed large-scale events incorporating thousands of performers. Since 2012, through her RIPE Dance practice and co-founding of Gold Moves Australia in 2018, Gail has become a nationally recognised leader in dance for older people for health and wellbeing, working across community, health and aged care settings.
Our artists are collectively members of the following associations and stay current with continuing professional development
