Through place-based, playful movement practices, we empower participants to reconnect with their bodies.
Our programs focus on movement-based healing to help marginalized communities, especially those from Southeast Asian, Pacific Islander, Black, and Indigenous backgrounds across ability and age.
Moving Rasa helps people break free from limiting habits by exploring movement and connecting to their Rasa—their "essence" or the feeling they sense with their heart. We guide individuals to reconnect with their bodies, spark curiosity, and take charge of their lives to create meaningful relationships and caring, inclusive communities.
Trust: Building safe and supportive environments.
Vulnerability: Encouraging openness and honesty.
Cooperation: Promoting teamwork and mutual support.
Perseverance: Cultivating resilience and determination.
Play: Embracing joy and creativity in movement.
Wisdom: Valuing lived experiences and diverse perspectives.
We work with marginalized communities, especially Southeast Asian, Pacific Islander, Black, and Indigenous people, including those of different ages and physical abilities. Our programs are created to support the unique challenges these communities face, using movement to promote healing and empowerment.
Indonesian philosophy: Scaffolds growth and transformation of our consciousness on indigenous world views.
Body Awareness: Helping individuals reconnect with their bodies and lived experiences.
Community Connection: Encouraging co-regulation, investigation, and co-creation within communities.
Cultural Reflection: Supporting the recovery of relationships to culture and community.
Andrew Suseno (he/him)
Andrew Suseno is an Indonesian-Chinese American residing on the unceded land of Lenapehoking, aka New York City. He is a doctor of Physical Therapy with an advanced certificate in Orthopedic Manual Therapy. He has extensive training in Somatic Education with Dr. Martha Eddy through her Dynamic Embodiment program, the Feldenkrais Method, and Laban Movement Analysis. Andrew has also graced modern dance stages from the Cooper Hewitt Museum in NYC to concert halls across Germany. He is a seasoned Contact Improvisation practitioner and has taught it and his work that is inspired by it in colleges and universities across the country.
Nhu Nguyen (they/them)
Nhu Nguyen is an artist and maker with interests in dance, photography, and wearable art. They were born and raised in Ho Chi Minch city, Vietnam prior to settling in Kumeyaay and Luiseño/Payómkawichum’s shared homeland, aka San Diego county, California. Since their immigration to the United States in 2008, Nguyen has been working in various capacities as a dancemaker, improvisor, and somatic educator; partnering with multiple creative youth development organizations in the San Diego region. Nguyen use movement art as a vehicle to spark dialogues and raise awareness on difficult topics such as suicide and sexual violence. Nguyen joined the Moving Rasa team as a lead facilitator in 2023.
Karin Moriarty (she/her)
Karin Moriarty, a native of Chile, immigrated to the United States in the late 70s and earned her bachelor’s degree in Dramatic Arts Dance from the University of California at Berkeley in 1986. Karin danced with many Bay Area artists, including the Dance Brigade, the Ellen Webb Dance Group. She trained with Tony Kramer in Contact at Stanford University.
Having lived under the dictatorship of a military coup as a child in Chile, Karin’s choreographic works are inspired by her life experience, human rights issues, and the suffering of disenfranchised groups of people.
Karin continues to teach modern dance, and contact improvisation in the Bay Area, the Big Island (Hawaii) and abroad. She is a guest artist at Stanford University. She is also a teacher and a former organizer of the Contact Improv Festival at UCB.
