Celebrating 45 years!
Join Great River T’ai Chi for in-person and online classes on t’ai chi ch’uan, ch’i-kung (qigong) and I Ching (Yijing)—the Chinese Book of Changes. Visit our “Classes” page for information. Gift certificates available!
T’ai Chi Ch’uan is a unique Chinese discipline that embodies good health, martial arts, meditation, mindfulness, and exercise. Widely practiced for its health benefits, it improves immune function, balance, and coordination. T’ai chi practice helps with fall prevention, strengthen legs, lowers blood pressure, promotes proper posture, and aids mindulness and mental focus.
Founded in 1979, Great River T’ai Chi Chuan offers t’ai chi classes in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota and the Upper Midwest. It is one of the oldest t’ai chi schools in the American Midwest. Classes are taught year-round at all levels by instructors Barbara Davis and Cheryl Powers, who have trained in Taiwan and the US with senior students of the famed Professor Cheng Man-ch’ing, one of the first people to bring t’ai chi to the West.
Davis and Powers bring to their teaching a focus on practical, everyday uses for t’ai chi, from health, relaxation, to self-defense. In addition to their regular classes, they have taught and presented at numerous national and international seminars, workshops, colleges, corporations, and conventions, including A Taste of China, the Zhang Sanfeng Festival, and the International Taiji Forum. Barbara Davis has researched, written, and translated extensively on t’ai chi history, practice, and theory, and edited the acclaimed Taijiquan Journal, while Cheryl Powers has written many articles and essays and served on the Taijiquan Journal editorial board.
T’ai Chi Ch’uan is pronounced “tie-gee-chwan” and is often written out as “taijiquan.” Its name means “Great Ultimate Boxing,” referring to the unceasing interactions of yin and yang.
In-person classes are conveniently located in southwest Minneapolis’ East Lake Harriet neighborhood at Grace Episcopal Church (formerly St. Luke & St. James). Classes are easily accessible by car, bus, bike, and foot to Bloomington, Richfield, Edina, St Lous Park, Eden Prairie, St Paul, and 35W and Crosstown freeways. Online classes are held on Zoom platform.
Great River Tai Chi Ch'uan 