EPISODE 139 | The Power of Embodied Activism: How Dance, Story, and Healing Are Changing Communities
In this insightful conversation, Nashville, Tenn. teaching artist, Amanda Cantrell-Roche talks about how movement, storytelling, and art intersect to foster individual healing, social justice, and community change.
Watch Amanda Cantrell-Roche’s interview on Human Amplified with Brandi Fleck on YouTube.
Listen to Amanda Cantrell-Roche Talk Creative Movement
About Episode 139
When art, activism, and anatomy meet, movement becomes medicine. Nashville choreographer, writer, and community organizer Amanda Cantrell-Roche explains how embodied storytelling heals personal trauma, fuels social-justice campaigns, and even reshapes the immigration debate.
Along the way she shares the “rewilding” experiment that turned her lawn—and her creative process—into a living laboratory for empathy.
We talk about:
00:50 — Why “being human” means accessing play—and caring beyond your immediate circle
03:08 — How body-connection ripples from individual healing to societal change
06:59 — Art as activism: pairing recorded narrative with dance to spark action
13:45 — Telling clear stories with movement (and why the body never lies)
16:53 — The high cost of disembodiment in a screen-driven culture
20:13 — Bounce, shake, scream: practical tools to transmute grief, rage, and anxiety
29:26 — Improvisation 101: shared leadership inside a safe creative “container”
35:34 — Rewilding nature and ourselves (yes, Amanda let her grass grow waist-high)
40:24 — What refugee students taught her about joy, resilience, and allyship
47:16 — Community as co-regulation—and why empathy must scale fast
52:27 — How to experience the Rewilding Project in Nashville this July (2025)
Episode 139 is for You If...
You find yourself asking questions such as:
How can storytelling through movement drive real-world change?
Why is full-body embodiment essential for mental and emotional health?
Which simple practices help release stuck grief, anxiety, or rage?
How does structured improv cultivate leadership and trust?
What does “rewilding” look like for both nature and human behavior?
How can allies materially support immigrant and refugee neighbors under threat?
Why does empathy—not algorithms—hold the key to societal healing?
You Might Also Like: Befriending Your Nervous System through Breath, Somatics, and Reiki
Read the Interview Transcript - Episode 139
Read the full episode transcript here.
Links and Resources - Episode 139
Amanda Cantrell-Roche’s website: amandacroche.com
Rewilding Project tickets and passes for Amanda’s Rewilding project at the Kindling Arts Festival Nashville
Vimeo dance & film portfolio: vimeo.com/amandacroche
Art and Soul Nashville classes with Amanda
Narrative 4 Story Exchange: narrative4.com
Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition: tntogether.org
Somatic healing sessions with Amanda at The Healing Society
Sponsors and Affiliates - Episode 139
Support for this podcast comes from Intuitive Bodywork TN.
When I’m not podcasting, I’m working at Intuitive Bodywork TN friends, and I love it. Intuitive Bodywork TN is a holistic wellness center with a peaceful, healing vibe based in Franklin, Tennessee. We offer services like different types of massage therapy with highly skilled massage therapists, Reiki, trauma-informed coaching, immersive sound baths, popular classes like yin yoga, chakra balancing, and book studies, and we even have a relaxation room where you can come in for red light therapy, leg compression therapy, facial acupressure, or just to meditate or journal. The owner, Laura Stendel and I are actively growing and building out the space to be a safe refuge for you with different forms of healing support. So come check us out soon.
Learn more or book a service at intuitivebodyworktn.com.
Love This Episode? Subscribe to Human Amplified for more interviews like this.
EPISODE CREDITS: Original intro and outro music by Ryan Sauls. Episode creation and graphics by Brandi Fleck. Editing by Natasha Rivera. Sound effects from zapslat.com. Bio and photos provided by Amanda Cantrell-Roche.
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Hi, I’m your podcast host, Brandi Fleck. I’m a recognized communications and interviewing expert, a writer, an artist, and a private practice, certified trauma-informed life coach and Reiki healer. No matter how you interact with me, I help you tell and change your story so you can feel more like yourself. So welcome!
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