The old saying, things aren’t always as they appear describes my exploration of the improvisational art form. I had walked into improvisational exercises with the initial feelings of discomfort and a preconceived notion that I wasn’t good enough to excel in this foreign dance style. To me improvisation wasn’t worth all the stress because this style didn’t seem as valuable as perfect technique. My first semester in contact improvisation opened my eyes to a world where improvisation was not only used as a perfect tool for getting in touch with one’s body, but also choreographing routines. Once I was asked to form my own definition of improvisation I stumbled upon a paragraph that really opened my eyes to how closed minded I was towards the idea of improvisational aspect of the contact improvisational technique. According to Ann Cooper Albright in Taken By Surprise, “we read that it’s the process of letting go of the minds thinking so the body can do its moving in its own unpredictable way” (6-7). After researching, I found this definition to be far from the actual experience and technique of any improvisational form.
The first common misconception within this definition is the idea that to improv one has to “let go” of thinking. The improvisational technique is full of awareness that is found through a deep relationship between the mind and body. The art form includes actions where the dancer is required to think in advance and actions where the motion requires the dancer to become more conscious of the physical tendencies of the body. These actions keep the mind constantly thinking in a state of “hyperawareness” where both the body and mind can come to an agreement of the movement they would like to initiate. In contact, this idea is even more important because the dancer has to be aware of the needs of their partner almost more than that of themselves. This is hard to do if the dancer hasn’t established a strong bodily awareness within himself or herself before attempting to understand another individual. With improvisational dancing, especially contact, the dancers aren’t in a state of choice between following the body itself or the mind (isolated self). The body is not an object within this style and after many years of silence needs to be re-taught how to develop consciousness (Albright 15). This consciousness will allow the body and mind to acquire that hyphened relationship to engage the individual into the improvisational form. The dancer needs to gain an “awareness that expands to hold entire self” (Albright 22).
Another element that separates the contact improvisation from other dance forms is not just the formation of a mind and body relationship, but being able to listen and adhere to the physical desires of the body and compromise this with the partners desires as well. In Bruce Curtis’s essay, the idea that improvisational dance is not about controlling the body but “to listen to it, accepting whatever movement was inherent” is quite different from that of ballet (Albright 16). The style focuses more on what the body needs than what is technically perfect so there is no stress or strain on the body thus allowing it to feel less venerable. The mechanical mode that dancers constantly place on their body is difficult to break, yet once broken it becomes easier for the dancer to keep focused in the deep bodily communication. Thus, the excitement of the performance comes from the dancer’s constant fading in and out of listening to the body and its connection between another individual. This sense of uncertainty is the experience many often mistaken for “being free” and “letting go,” giving the improvisational technique the inaccurate definition it has come to hold.
Before further studying the complex technique of improvisational dance, I would have referred it to it as a way of releasing the mind and just dancing. Now I have come to realize the more almost spiritual technique to the form that is both a dance experience and sensation of dancing combine. I now have a greater respect for contact improvisation and when asked how to describe it to newcomers I would have to say it is the ability to listen to the entire body while extending this hyperawareness through to their partner making an immediate formation of natural movement that satisfies both souls.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Posting by Maria Sullivan
I have come to recognize that the topic of breath in everyday life, in movement, in relaxation and focus has become a challenge and evolving thought process and practice in my current state. I have been questioning myself how have I evolved with breath, concentration in all forms, and within the subject of contact improvisation, allowing others to take my weight. Easy breathing and relaxation comes easy to some, however with much practice, I have come to learn that breath can focus me, bring me into my body, connect the movement between others, and myself and inspire movement.
The process of inspirational and focusing breath does not come easily, and full concentration is still not there, but I feel comfortable relaxing and coming into the room with determination to move forward.
While evaluating myself, and my progression in contact improvisation, I judged in terms of where is stood in the beginning, the middle and the end. At the start of this course, I often laughed at everything; got stuck in strange, and at the time, very uncomfortable situations, especially on the floor and I always found myself going back to simple hand contact. Once we were introduced to new moves and ways to transition to and from the floor, it became easier to contact others and become fluid. The dreaded awkward moments have now been replaced with new movement options, many possible scores, tempos, etc.
There will always be awkward moments, but I have noticed the pauses happen less often, especially when actively concentrating on my partner, and what I would like to accomplish. I have experienced that feeling of, “yeah, this is awesome,” a few times while dancing with classmates. Everything was working out, the movement was fluid, and little thought was involved. I enjoy doing contact when I have a good experience. Not only does is make me feel that I have learned how to interact with others through skin and movement, but I feel that when dancing with someone, and all goes well, it is also possible to have a well presented dance. I am well aware that not all contact dances will go as planned, and feels fluid; for me, that is where the learning process continues. I find some people intimidating, those with confidence, love for the style and obvious comfort. Therefore I feel that dancing with them may be difficult, but the amount of information available to obtain from someone talented, confident and skilled would be very beneficial.
A constant fear while dancing with someone is the weight exchange. I am often nervous to give my weight to others. I constantly fear that they will not be able to handle my weight, possibly because I am not as comfortable in my own body as others are; so I find myself questioning, “if I am not comfortable, how will others be?” Due to this doubt and resistance, my dances with others have moments where weight could add such an interesting dynamic to our movement, but I opt out, and move to something different, something safe.
I would like to explore what movement creation can stem from contact improvisation. Simple contact between others in choreography can be a very powerful aspect to a dance, and being that I am interested in choreography, I am happy to have learned some of the basics to contact, so I can further experiment and see what comes of it.
Focusing on my breath has become a constant practice in my improvisation classes. Connecting to myself and focusing seems to come easier in contact because we have the designated ten or fifteen minutes to get into our bodies. With that time, I find that I do not move. I can find my breath, and feel it in my stomach, down to my feet, and out through my arms when I am just lying there with closed eyes. The common saying in dance “leave everything at the door,” is often difficult to accomplish, but with the given time, I have found being present in the room with my peers comes through my breath and relaxation.
The process of inspirational and focusing breath does not come easily, and full concentration is still not there, but I feel comfortable relaxing and coming into the room with determination to move forward.
While evaluating myself, and my progression in contact improvisation, I judged in terms of where is stood in the beginning, the middle and the end. At the start of this course, I often laughed at everything; got stuck in strange, and at the time, very uncomfortable situations, especially on the floor and I always found myself going back to simple hand contact. Once we were introduced to new moves and ways to transition to and from the floor, it became easier to contact others and become fluid. The dreaded awkward moments have now been replaced with new movement options, many possible scores, tempos, etc.
There will always be awkward moments, but I have noticed the pauses happen less often, especially when actively concentrating on my partner, and what I would like to accomplish. I have experienced that feeling of, “yeah, this is awesome,” a few times while dancing with classmates. Everything was working out, the movement was fluid, and little thought was involved. I enjoy doing contact when I have a good experience. Not only does is make me feel that I have learned how to interact with others through skin and movement, but I feel that when dancing with someone, and all goes well, it is also possible to have a well presented dance. I am well aware that not all contact dances will go as planned, and feels fluid; for me, that is where the learning process continues. I find some people intimidating, those with confidence, love for the style and obvious comfort. Therefore I feel that dancing with them may be difficult, but the amount of information available to obtain from someone talented, confident and skilled would be very beneficial.
A constant fear while dancing with someone is the weight exchange. I am often nervous to give my weight to others. I constantly fear that they will not be able to handle my weight, possibly because I am not as comfortable in my own body as others are; so I find myself questioning, “if I am not comfortable, how will others be?” Due to this doubt and resistance, my dances with others have moments where weight could add such an interesting dynamic to our movement, but I opt out, and move to something different, something safe.
I would like to explore what movement creation can stem from contact improvisation. Simple contact between others in choreography can be a very powerful aspect to a dance, and being that I am interested in choreography, I am happy to have learned some of the basics to contact, so I can further experiment and see what comes of it.
Focusing on my breath has become a constant practice in my improvisation classes. Connecting to myself and focusing seems to come easier in contact because we have the designated ten or fifteen minutes to get into our bodies. With that time, I find that I do not move. I can find my breath, and feel it in my stomach, down to my feet, and out through my arms when I am just lying there with closed eyes. The common saying in dance “leave everything at the door,” is often difficult to accomplish, but with the given time, I have found being present in the room with my peers comes through my breath and relaxation.
Monday, December 28, 2009
Posting by Dana Cosgrove
Looking back on the semester of contact improvisation I have really seen my growth as an individual. I have not become an expert at contact improv but I have become proficient with many of the skills that have been taught to me during the course of the semester. Going back over my strengths and weaknesses from the midterms and I can gladly say I have overcome all of them especially my biggest struggle, giving someone the control and going upside down.
Giving someone all of the control has always been hard for me not only in dance but also in life itself. I felt that if I didn’t have that control it was a way for me to become vulnerable as well as a way for me to get hurt. As I slowly came to grasp with pinpointing my fear it was easier for me to push past it. It wasn’t until the class before thanksgiving where I really felt I have completely let go of my weakness of always having to be in control. It was during a round robin, where I just let my body get into the dance and ignore what was going on around me by focusing on the point of contact with the other body. This made my movements flow together and disregard any awkward moments due to the commitment between my partner and I. I finally let my dance partner take control at times and that being so turned it into a satisfying dance.
As far as my other weakness of going upside down that too also has to do with being in control. I cannot say I have fulfilled my goal with letting myself go upside down but I have come really far from where I use to be. It was during a class exercise where we had to go up in inversions and have our partner catch us when they thought we were ready. This exercise made me realize that my dance partner was not going to let me fall and they were there to catch me, all I had to do was use my breath and push past my insecurities.
My last weakness was getting out of the awkward moments and I can now say I don’t even realize when there is an awkward moment in a dance anymore. Now that we are at the end of the semester and have learned many different skills, it is now easier to get out of an awkward moment by moving the dance into something else we have learned throughout the semester and just letting our movements flow.
Giving someone all of the control has always been hard for me not only in dance but also in life itself. I felt that if I didn’t have that control it was a way for me to become vulnerable as well as a way for me to get hurt. As I slowly came to grasp with pinpointing my fear it was easier for me to push past it. It wasn’t until the class before thanksgiving where I really felt I have completely let go of my weakness of always having to be in control. It was during a round robin, where I just let my body get into the dance and ignore what was going on around me by focusing on the point of contact with the other body. This made my movements flow together and disregard any awkward moments due to the commitment between my partner and I. I finally let my dance partner take control at times and that being so turned it into a satisfying dance.
As far as my other weakness of going upside down that too also has to do with being in control. I cannot say I have fulfilled my goal with letting myself go upside down but I have come really far from where I use to be. It was during a class exercise where we had to go up in inversions and have our partner catch us when they thought we were ready. This exercise made me realize that my dance partner was not going to let me fall and they were there to catch me, all I had to do was use my breath and push past my insecurities.
My last weakness was getting out of the awkward moments and I can now say I don’t even realize when there is an awkward moment in a dance anymore. Now that we are at the end of the semester and have learned many different skills, it is now easier to get out of an awkward moment by moving the dance into something else we have learned throughout the semester and just letting our movements flow.
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Focusing in Contact by Maria Parise
In the Contact Quarterly article Harvest: One History of Contact Improvisation, Nancy Stark Smith informs us that one of the most challenging aspects of performing contact is focusing on your partner. In my experience throughout this course, I have found that to be entirely true. Focus is a very difficult but much needed aspect of contact improvisation.
Steve Paxton created contact improvisation in the early 1970s. One of the first exercises of this new dance form came from his dance State in which a group of people performed the small dance. The small dance consists of standing in one spot and just allowing your body make the little adjustments that it needs. This exercise takes immense focus. In a room filled with external stimuli, you must stand completely silent and intently focus on your body. As one of the first exercises we learned in class, it helped prepare for the focus that is needed when contacting with a partner.
Along with the small dance, many other exercises also work on focus. In the article, Smith tells us that Steve had them identify small sensations in their bodies by using different images of the skeleton, expansion of the lungs, and flow of energy. We did a similar exercise to this in class by moving from different parts of the body such as skin, organs, and skeleton. These exercises forced me to internalize my focus and pay attention to where every movement I made was coming from. Rolling point of contact is another exercise that works on focus. Being one of the first exercises we did with a partner, it helped me to get used to the idea of focusing on the movement of another person. In all other dance forms that I have studied, focus is solely on yourself. It is a much different experience to have to listen to the needs of another person. Another exercise that strengthened focus was walking shoulder to shoulder with someone and getting your pace in sync. Your attention must be on the other person’s movement as well as the point of contact between you.
Throughout these exercises, I felt like I was progressing, but still had not quite gotten the entire concept of what it meant to be completely focused on the dance and your partner. I still felt like my focus would drift from the dance; my mind would wander to other things. I was stuck in a rut and was not sure if I would ever be able to get past this awkward stage. Then we focused on breath for an entire day of class. This is when I feel like I finally ‘got it’. Breathing helped me to clear my head of all the distracting thoughts that would normally affect my duets. I felt like when I began to dance with my partner, I was able to stay in tune with them. This made me available; I was ready when my partner needed me. This also helped me tremendously in coming up with new movement and ways of doing things.
Contact improvisation is a form of dance that requires a specific concentrated focus. According to Smith, “You are following the point of touch, and if your mind starts to wander, you lose contact. And that wakes you up to the fact that you’re not focusing on the present, on the touch. You’re somewhere else. And then you come back.” Before the day of breathing, I never understood this. However, once I realized what it was like to be completely focused on the moment, my dancing changed. From then on, I felt like every duet I had was successful in its own way. I could finally identify the moments when I was not entirely focused on the dance and was able to bring my attention back to it. For me, focus was the most difficult concept to grasp in contact improvisation but ultimately the most rewarding.
Steve Paxton created contact improvisation in the early 1970s. One of the first exercises of this new dance form came from his dance State in which a group of people performed the small dance. The small dance consists of standing in one spot and just allowing your body make the little adjustments that it needs. This exercise takes immense focus. In a room filled with external stimuli, you must stand completely silent and intently focus on your body. As one of the first exercises we learned in class, it helped prepare for the focus that is needed when contacting with a partner.
Along with the small dance, many other exercises also work on focus. In the article, Smith tells us that Steve had them identify small sensations in their bodies by using different images of the skeleton, expansion of the lungs, and flow of energy. We did a similar exercise to this in class by moving from different parts of the body such as skin, organs, and skeleton. These exercises forced me to internalize my focus and pay attention to where every movement I made was coming from. Rolling point of contact is another exercise that works on focus. Being one of the first exercises we did with a partner, it helped me to get used to the idea of focusing on the movement of another person. In all other dance forms that I have studied, focus is solely on yourself. It is a much different experience to have to listen to the needs of another person. Another exercise that strengthened focus was walking shoulder to shoulder with someone and getting your pace in sync. Your attention must be on the other person’s movement as well as the point of contact between you.
Throughout these exercises, I felt like I was progressing, but still had not quite gotten the entire concept of what it meant to be completely focused on the dance and your partner. I still felt like my focus would drift from the dance; my mind would wander to other things. I was stuck in a rut and was not sure if I would ever be able to get past this awkward stage. Then we focused on breath for an entire day of class. This is when I feel like I finally ‘got it’. Breathing helped me to clear my head of all the distracting thoughts that would normally affect my duets. I felt like when I began to dance with my partner, I was able to stay in tune with them. This made me available; I was ready when my partner needed me. This also helped me tremendously in coming up with new movement and ways of doing things.
Contact improvisation is a form of dance that requires a specific concentrated focus. According to Smith, “You are following the point of touch, and if your mind starts to wander, you lose contact. And that wakes you up to the fact that you’re not focusing on the present, on the touch. You’re somewhere else. And then you come back.” Before the day of breathing, I never understood this. However, once I realized what it was like to be completely focused on the moment, my dancing changed. From then on, I felt like every duet I had was successful in its own way. I could finally identify the moments when I was not entirely focused on the dance and was able to bring my attention back to it. For me, focus was the most difficult concept to grasp in contact improvisation but ultimately the most rewarding.
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Hey Stranger, Let’s Roll on the Floor by Dylan Roth
After completing almost a full semester of contact improv, I truly do feel I have learned a lot of useful material to use later on in my dancing career. At the beginning of the semester, I did not know too much about contact improv. I was not too comfortable with the idea of touching someone and roll around on the floor with them, especially if I did not already know them. This minor fear distracted my focus and did not allow my attention to be at a hundred percent. I had the trouble of getting in a rhythm of getting into a contact improv dance. After several classes and exercises learning how to develop a trust with a partner, the touching has become more comfortable and therefore I am able to focus more productively and produce a substantial contact improv dance.
The main battle I found I had to conquer for myself was definitely establishing a type of trust between my partner and me. I always found the warm up dance to be very awkward, because it was the first person I would be touching for the class. However, the warm up dances did help get a lot of the awkwardness out of the way so it would not occur later on during class. Naturally as time went on, the overall level of awkwardness lowered and lowered, but when we stopped having warm up dances I was relieved and scarred at the same time at first. I was relieved I would not have to deal with any awkwardness, but I was scared that some awkwardness would still be present in more important dances, not letting me perform well.
Around the same time though that we eliminated warm up dances, we started spending most, if not all, of the class period with the same partner. At first I would be thinking “okay, when are we going to switch partners” but then that feeling would past and at the end of class I would realize I had a really good dance. Since I had spent so much time touching and rolling with the same person, the awkwardness was not there. After spending many classes with one person (a different person at each class) I feel now and in the future that I will be able to automatically match up with them and have the trust automatically established.
After watching some partners closely, I realized time can be very helpful. A contact dance does not have to be really slow or really fast. Speeding up at moments and pausing with stillness at others changes the dynamic greatly. I need to start incorporating the use of time because I keep feeling like everything needs to be continuously and constantly going in a dance. Having the reminder of stillness is great. Stillness allows me to give all of my weight into my partner and lets me feel all of their weight as well. Stillness also lets me have time to clear my head for a second and prepare for whatever will come next. As I watch other duets, I see some really cool moves that are produced and wonder if in my duets I am giving off the same vibe. It is hard to not “grab” your partner and take control, and is equally as hard when my partner is “grabby”.
During the December 7th’s class, we did the “soul train” line. I really enjoyed this because we were partnered up instantly and had to do a contact dance right then and there, but it did not last for a really long time. I felt since the time period between duets was so short, that I needed to try and make everything count and not just float by. At the end of the class Julia told us we were starting to look like real contact improvers. I am not so sure if that is so true for me, but I defiantly feel ten times better as a contact improviser now than I did at the beginning.
The main battle I found I had to conquer for myself was definitely establishing a type of trust between my partner and me. I always found the warm up dance to be very awkward, because it was the first person I would be touching for the class. However, the warm up dances did help get a lot of the awkwardness out of the way so it would not occur later on during class. Naturally as time went on, the overall level of awkwardness lowered and lowered, but when we stopped having warm up dances I was relieved and scarred at the same time at first. I was relieved I would not have to deal with any awkwardness, but I was scared that some awkwardness would still be present in more important dances, not letting me perform well.
Around the same time though that we eliminated warm up dances, we started spending most, if not all, of the class period with the same partner. At first I would be thinking “okay, when are we going to switch partners” but then that feeling would past and at the end of class I would realize I had a really good dance. Since I had spent so much time touching and rolling with the same person, the awkwardness was not there. After spending many classes with one person (a different person at each class) I feel now and in the future that I will be able to automatically match up with them and have the trust automatically established.
After watching some partners closely, I realized time can be very helpful. A contact dance does not have to be really slow or really fast. Speeding up at moments and pausing with stillness at others changes the dynamic greatly. I need to start incorporating the use of time because I keep feeling like everything needs to be continuously and constantly going in a dance. Having the reminder of stillness is great. Stillness allows me to give all of my weight into my partner and lets me feel all of their weight as well. Stillness also lets me have time to clear my head for a second and prepare for whatever will come next. As I watch other duets, I see some really cool moves that are produced and wonder if in my duets I am giving off the same vibe. It is hard to not “grab” your partner and take control, and is equally as hard when my partner is “grabby”.
During the December 7th’s class, we did the “soul train” line. I really enjoyed this because we were partnered up instantly and had to do a contact dance right then and there, but it did not last for a really long time. I felt since the time period between duets was so short, that I needed to try and make everything count and not just float by. At the end of the class Julia told us we were starting to look like real contact improvers. I am not so sure if that is so true for me, but I defiantly feel ten times better as a contact improviser now than I did at the beginning.
Friday, December 25, 2009
Eyes Closed by Daniell Filetti
At the start of the semester I was very skeptical about contact improvisation. I did not know what to expect going into the class, but I was excited at the same time. I have seen people do contact before and it is an art form that I did not know how my body and mind would react to. As the weeks went by the class became more interesting and I was becoming more open minded about contact. As the semester went on everyone started to become closer to each other and more comfortable trusting each other with our bodies. Some weeks felt better then others, but overall I have learned a lot and received a lot more tools for coming up with movement material. It opened my mind up to a lot of possibilities that I will use in the future.
During the middle of the semester we did an exercise with a partner. We had to dance with our eyes closed while our partner watched us and examined our movement. During our dance our eyes had to be closed and while our partner watched us they were also looking out for us so we did not collide with anyone else in the class. During this exercise I initiated a lot of movement with the weight of my head. I felt off balance and it really helped me find the movement that felt right in my body. There was a point where we were told to keep dancing but open our eyes and once I opened my eyes everything fell apart. I lost my sense of letting my body do whatever it wanted.
As I talked to my partner, after the dance, I realized that I find it easier for me to do contact improv with my eyes closed. This is from a post on Yahoo Answers ,"Closing your eyes stops you from processing information about your surroundings and moving objects, and your position in 3-dimensional space. Less information is sent to the middle ear and balance mechanism loses its equilibrium and falters." This quote made a lot of sense to me because I was wondering after that exercise why everything changed so suddenly when I opened my eyes and also why I could keep up with the fluid movement my body was doing. Once I opened my eyes my equilibrium came back and I saw others dancing and the 3-dimensional space I was in. It was harder to become off balance and let my body take over because my eyes were taking in too much information from the space around me. This did not allow me to listen to what my body wanted because I was processing the space around me. This made me think how this can apply to me and how I feel when my eyes are closed while doing contact.
Another thing I realized during the semester was the more weight you give to your partner the better off you will be. This is what I have put in my head every time I do contact because it helps me get into the mind set and get my body to do what I need it to do. Being more open to movement and having my body be relaxed enough to let my partner feel my weight was helped by the fact that my eyes were closed most of the time. After I had this light bulb go off in my head I investigated this idea more. I tried to keep my eyes open for a whole dance and it brought more ideas to my head and it felt totally different. This was exciting for me because, as a dance maker, I am always trying to find new ways to create movement. It was an interesting experiment for me to put on myself and I learned a lot from it and received a lot of information from it.
Over all this class has taught me a lot. I learned different techniques for creating dance movement and found a different way to dance. Dancing with my eyes closed really opened my eyes to a lot of different possibilities and I am glad I opened myself up for this class and was able to take a lot from it.
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Contact Improv and Other Partnering Styles by Jessie Wise
Through taking contact improvisation, I have learned some good techniques for partners to learn how to get in-synch with each other. I have done a lot of ballet partnering and have also been involved in swing dancing for a while now and have really enjoyed learning and doing ariels. In general the lifts are very momentum based. After taking contact improvisation, I feel like it would be valuable for swing dancers to learn a little bit more about weight sharing.
I think that swing aerials would benefit from using gravity more effectively. Sometimes I feel like my partner and I “muscle” through some of the lifts. The lifts would probably be easier for the both of us if worked with using the momentum of weight sharing and more connection between the two of us. To start off, I think that some of the beginning exercises that we practice would be good to get connected and in tune with each other. One exercise in particular that I thought would be very helpful is when two people grab hands and lean away from each other and play with weight that way. Working with the tension between the two of them would help with some of the ariels that deal with swinging and momentum. Another exercise that I thought would be very helpful is when one partner stands, bent at the waist so their torso is parallel to the ground, and allows for the other one to lay on their back and really melt their weight into the standing partner. Many lifts have moments in them in them where you sort of pose in a position and I think that it would be more comfortable and less straining if both people were giving their weight appropriately to each other instead of being stiff and resisting against each other. And one last exercise that I think would be valuable is the one in which one partner runs and jumps into the other’s arms, and the other catches and uses momentum to swing the “jumper” around. For a lot of swing lifts, the dancers start apart; this exercise would help the partners get in tune and timing with each other and teach them how to use momentum to their benefit. I think that some of our contact improv exercises would definitely help two partners to be in more in-sync and efficient together.
I thought that while I was sharing about my personal thoughts and discoveries about this subject that I would look up where contact improve and other partnering forms have intersected in the past. And I really could not find that much information, which I found interesting. I know that a lot of modern partnering incorporates contact improvisation but besides that, I think that because the form is so new, that there has not been a lot of integration.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Posting by Joshua Rackliffe
At the sunset of my first course in Contact Improvisation discoveries, conflicts, and growth surface as the most apparent memories. Learning how to distribute weight is something constantly addressed within modern dance pedagogy, so being able to apply this to different investigations of the form has proven beneficial to me as a dancer, improviser, and performer. Combining these foundations of dance with an organically conscious style of motion has lent itself well to choreography and other types of movement invention. Rather than appropriating haphazard, hetero-normative ballet partnering, Contact Improvisation offers an innovative, contemporary alternative to displaying relationships on stage. As I begin to formulate fresh choreographic works, the utilization of CI becomes all the more obvious.
My main conflicts arose from certain artistic dissonance amongst my peers. Often times when I felt it necessary to apply weight-sharing techniques there was hardly anyone available to explore this with. I struggle with certain concepts at times but if there is collective hesitance that ensures conflict. For instance, I still don’t believe everyone is equally willing for proper cooperative weight sharing, though that may be from our naiveté to the form. Many lifts and possibilities share the universal foundation of weight bearing. Perhaps it is a lack of confidence or the fluctuation of presence that appears within us all. Even a detail seemingly trivial as weight sharing or sensory awareness establishes connections and trust that can produce wildly visceral moments.
Retrospectively, Contact Improvisation is an immensely valuable tool for all practitioners of movement-based art. The esoteric attributes such as mind-body centering and the ability to be fully aware can cause collateral fortification of any dance technique. Partnering and contact are synonymous, and the communal aspect of this idiosyncratic form encourages movement exploration with limitless opportunity and happenings.
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Contact Improv And Our Love-Hate Relationship by Sarah Wattles
This semester of contact improv has proved to be interesting. Upon entering the class, strictly for the credit to be honest, I was dreading the work. Throughout my career as a dancer I’ve rarely participated in work where I was required to avidly partner with somebody. Though I enjoy it in reparatory work, I don’t have the desire to roll around with other people just to do it. I’ve spent a lot of time in the city, and even though I lived in land of the hippies in Colorado for some time, I never became a touchy-feely person. However at the conclusion of these fifteen weeks, I can say that I have become much more comfortable with the form and even found myself utilizing it in some of my own work.
There were definitely some exercises that were more comfortable than others. I found that when we were working on specific exercises or tricks it was much easier for me to concentrate than during warm-up dances or round robins. That also really depended on who my partner was. I discovered that when partnered with men I had a lot easier time rolling with the movement and not over-thinking it. Especially when working with Josh from the class. I don’t know if it was because the partner dancing I have done, such as swing and salsa, has been with male partners or if it was a feeling of security when giving my weight. However when practicing rolls or lifts or back walkovers, I worked better with the women. The back walkovers were definitely my least favorite thing we ever did. I completely feel that there is justification in pushing your comfort zone and boundaries, but this typically just left me feeling sick. So if I ever decide to put that in my work it will be on someone else!
I did find it interesting how scientific this form can be. It taught me a lot about distributing my weight and how to give and take it better. I’ve been this size since I was twelve, so I’ve long had a lack of trust for people being able to take my weight, usually due to the height difference. I was dropped on my head once while swing dancing and that left a pretty deep imprint on my trust in the physical strength of others. It takes a lot for me to trust someone in both life and dance, so this was one of my personal challenges. Although I wouldn’t say the class made me a more trusting person overall, it did open up my confidence in the dance realm.
I most recently found myself using contact improv during a fight scene in my senior show. It was inspired by an exercise we practiced one day in class where we were partnered up and began by simply applying varying amounts of pressure to our partner on the floor. Progressively the floor partner would begin to try to move and the other would continue to push down one their body in different areas. This is exactly how the scene started out. Granted in turned into something more intense and forceful, but I was able to approach it differently so that I think it became more natural and believable. Also we rolled across the stage together which is something that before this class I probably wouldn’t have thought of.
Due to injuries I’ve had to sit out and observe a few classes. They ended up being close to the beginning, middle and end of the semester. I’ve found that in technique classes I spend more time looking at and considering my own movement, but with contact I’m more interested in what other people are doing. I don’t feel as judged, if you will, in contact the same way I do in ballet. Granted it is improv so that may sound a tad redundant, but watching the growth and development of the rest of the class has been one of the most interesting aspects for me. There was an interesting mix of students in our class, many senior and many sophomores, and each group originally preferred to stay within their cluster when partnering. I think there is definitely some credit in that especially when trying to begin the initial exploration, but as time went on and the groups intermixed, the class became much more relaxed as a whole. I had to observe about half of the class yesterday, and it was fascinating to see the growth in ability and risk-taking of the dancers. So although at the beginning of the class I found a great discomfort with the form, I feel that at the conclusion of the semester I am at least taking some new skills and ideas with me.
There were definitely some exercises that were more comfortable than others. I found that when we were working on specific exercises or tricks it was much easier for me to concentrate than during warm-up dances or round robins. That also really depended on who my partner was. I discovered that when partnered with men I had a lot easier time rolling with the movement and not over-thinking it. Especially when working with Josh from the class. I don’t know if it was because the partner dancing I have done, such as swing and salsa, has been with male partners or if it was a feeling of security when giving my weight. However when practicing rolls or lifts or back walkovers, I worked better with the women. The back walkovers were definitely my least favorite thing we ever did. I completely feel that there is justification in pushing your comfort zone and boundaries, but this typically just left me feeling sick. So if I ever decide to put that in my work it will be on someone else!
I did find it interesting how scientific this form can be. It taught me a lot about distributing my weight and how to give and take it better. I’ve been this size since I was twelve, so I’ve long had a lack of trust for people being able to take my weight, usually due to the height difference. I was dropped on my head once while swing dancing and that left a pretty deep imprint on my trust in the physical strength of others. It takes a lot for me to trust someone in both life and dance, so this was one of my personal challenges. Although I wouldn’t say the class made me a more trusting person overall, it did open up my confidence in the dance realm.
I most recently found myself using contact improv during a fight scene in my senior show. It was inspired by an exercise we practiced one day in class where we were partnered up and began by simply applying varying amounts of pressure to our partner on the floor. Progressively the floor partner would begin to try to move and the other would continue to push down one their body in different areas. This is exactly how the scene started out. Granted in turned into something more intense and forceful, but I was able to approach it differently so that I think it became more natural and believable. Also we rolled across the stage together which is something that before this class I probably wouldn’t have thought of.
Due to injuries I’ve had to sit out and observe a few classes. They ended up being close to the beginning, middle and end of the semester. I’ve found that in technique classes I spend more time looking at and considering my own movement, but with contact I’m more interested in what other people are doing. I don’t feel as judged, if you will, in contact the same way I do in ballet. Granted it is improv so that may sound a tad redundant, but watching the growth and development of the rest of the class has been one of the most interesting aspects for me. There was an interesting mix of students in our class, many senior and many sophomores, and each group originally preferred to stay within their cluster when partnering. I think there is definitely some credit in that especially when trying to begin the initial exploration, but as time went on and the groups intermixed, the class became much more relaxed as a whole. I had to observe about half of the class yesterday, and it was fascinating to see the growth in ability and risk-taking of the dancers. So although at the beginning of the class I found a great discomfort with the form, I feel that at the conclusion of the semester I am at least taking some new skills and ideas with me.
Compare and Contrast - Contact Jams by Shante Readus
I chose to write about the Jams given that it was a time for me to explore total freedom to do whatever came to mind. It was not based on what technique I wanted to improve or even set by set instruction on what I was given to accomplish. It allowed me to pour out my strengths, my weaknesses and my emotions. I did not have to worry about being judged. The contact jams was based upon what I was inspired to show and give to either myself or to the person or persons I chose to dance with. As I wrote in my journal, I realized the differences and similarities from the jams that took place at the dance theater and at the studio (in class). What did I enjoy? How was it different? What was similar? Did the music help or complicate the dance? As I asked myself these questions, it prompted me to write about the two.
I must say in comparison, I truly enjoyed both jams. In similarity I was able to be free at both jams, which is what I ultimately enjoyed. The freedom to move across the space, the freedom to be myself, and perform in my own way made me want to dance even more. The freedom allowed me to be more involved and investigate what I was developing. It pushed me to give my all and it was an amazing experience. At both jams I noticed that I was not apprehensive to touch my partners. As my partner and I analyzed the progression of touch, our movements became more fascinating. We were not afraid to try new movements. We felt comfortable with thinking outside the box. For instance, through Josh and I connection, we discovered that dancing on the floor was great! We tried difficult movements and succeed. The floor became our friend, whereas before the floor was always known as the place to get stuck, which meant the dance was done or incompleted. This discovery was the same at the second jam when I danced with Jordan. We experienced weight, lifts and connections that moved us to the next movements in space rather it was on the floor or standing.
In contrast I observed that I was more comfortable dancing at the second jam than the first jam. This is in reasoning that the first jam we were in the dance theater and the second jam was in class. I believe anyone would have a more calmness about themselves and what they are going to perform around people who have been in the same situation as the other. The first jam was unfamiliar territory. The other dancers that were not apart of our class was not likely to perform contact improv dancing. This made me shy away from others and I internalized my dance movements alone at a period of time.
I investigated the music that was played at both jams and I found that the music was totally different. Although the musicians set out to accomplish the same job, it brought a different affect. The first jam was very musicality. The musician played the entire time, but with pauses in between. When he stopped playing the dancers stopped dancing. In this jam the musicians controlled the dance, therefore making them the power of the dance piece. However in the second jam, it was not quite the same. The musician was not the focus. As a matter of fact, we danced while the musician was in the process of setting up his equipment. We did not depend on the music to lead us. The dance was formulated around what we created. Therefore the music stood out as a prop that we used at certain times of the dance, but it was not our focus.
In summary, comparing and contrasting the jams was a great tool to use and observe how I have grown in my contact improvisational class. I discovered my comfort points, as well as what made me uncomfortable. I discovered when I had to move on if the other person is not willing to dance. I sought out how to stabilize my mind and give my all in the dance. I even cultivated how to use the music to my advantage. I explored a great deal of information from attending the two jams and I look forward to depositing what I have learned into others by hosting my own jam in the near future.
Monday, December 21, 2009
Posting by Jamie Antonick
I found the Contact Improvisation class with Julia Rae Antonick at Columbia College extremely beneficial and inspiring. I feel that this class has helped me to solidify my future aspirations in dance. It has guided me in finding a community that I feel a close connection to at Columbia College and within the dance world at large. Due to this course, developing my own artistry has been a natural process of enjoyment, instead of a struggle. I am fully confident that contact improvisation is and will always be a very important aspect of my dancing and I am left feeling inspired to continue my studies in this form.
I feel that contact improvisation is useful to dancers of all forms. It introduces new processes to creating movement, gives options for partnering, and creates a greater self-awareness. I am grateful that contact improvisation is a required class and that Columbia College recognizes its significance. I am, however, disappointed that contact improvisation in the classroom has to come to an end because the course was completed. This is the main form that I am interested in and would like to focus on, and I would like to pursue this practice further at Columbia College. Along with many other students, I wish that there were an opportunity to be in an advanced contact improvisation class at Columbia College. Having completed essentially an introduction to contact improvisation, many of us feel eager for the opportunity to develop further and to proceed to more advanced work and concepts.
In the last couple weeks of the semester I have recognized my own improvements, as well as the growth the class has experienced together. We are now able to have fruitful dances and jams. Whether we were exploring a new idea of touch or a different aspect of the body, working out kinks in how to fall or jump, we were leaving each contact class or practice feeling successful. The explorations were endless and the discoveries always rich. I believe that having an advanced contact improvisation course would allow for our progress in this form to flourish. I would be one of many students to sign up for an advanced contact improvisation course if Columbia College offered it. This would create a community that would be beneficial to the students and would offer the Chicago dance community a flow of Columbia graduates well-versed in this important form.
I feel that contact improvisation is useful to dancers of all forms. It introduces new processes to creating movement, gives options for partnering, and creates a greater self-awareness. I am grateful that contact improvisation is a required class and that Columbia College recognizes its significance. I am, however, disappointed that contact improvisation in the classroom has to come to an end because the course was completed. This is the main form that I am interested in and would like to focus on, and I would like to pursue this practice further at Columbia College. Along with many other students, I wish that there were an opportunity to be in an advanced contact improvisation class at Columbia College. Having completed essentially an introduction to contact improvisation, many of us feel eager for the opportunity to develop further and to proceed to more advanced work and concepts.
In the last couple weeks of the semester I have recognized my own improvements, as well as the growth the class has experienced together. We are now able to have fruitful dances and jams. Whether we were exploring a new idea of touch or a different aspect of the body, working out kinks in how to fall or jump, we were leaving each contact class or practice feeling successful. The explorations were endless and the discoveries always rich. I believe that having an advanced contact improvisation course would allow for our progress in this form to flourish. I would be one of many students to sign up for an advanced contact improvisation course if Columbia College offered it. This would create a community that would be beneficial to the students and would offer the Chicago dance community a flow of Columbia graduates well-versed in this important form.
Do you want to DANCE? by Analy Gamino
At the beginning of the semester when I was introduced to Contact Improvisation I couldn’t really understand why I had to take it. My feelings toward the art were very bitter. I tried to figure out why I had to take it as a dancer major. Contact Improvisation to me wasn't a form of dance in the beginning. I just couldn’t see Contact Improvisation being a form of dance, yet I saw it as a physical experience.
When I began to take the class all I thought the class was going to involve was rolling around on top of one another and bodies touching all the time. I didn’t see that as a form of dance at all. I would get so bored in class and frustrated that we weren’t connecting in a mental or emotional way. It was so hard for me to focus because I wasn’t used to physically connecting with someone in such a way that involved full body connection. I didn’t see that being dance at all. I felt as though it had no meaning, story, or emotion. However, I was trying hard not to hate it so I wanted to find out about it.
I didn’t want to make assumptions of myself as to if Contact was really a dance form or not. When I read about it and looked for definitions on what Contact was I would find many similar definitions – and they all involved dance. One definition was that Contact Improvisation “is a dance where points of physical contact provide a starting point of exploration through movement improvisation. It is also a form of dance improvisation.”
In the history of Contact we are given a more detailed definition. It has to do with your whole overall body. Reading online on ContactImprov.net I was able to get a better understanding of it. I read that contact originated by an American choreographer Steve Paxton in 1972. He comes to understand that it was based on the communication between two or more bodies in movement that are in physical contact. That allows them to move through gravity, momentum, and inertia.
After reading these definitions and applying it to what I had been doing in Contact I finally saw a connection. I understood the background of it and how it all connected to becoming a form of dance. However, I had yet to experience it. Every time I had a dance with someone in class I never felt it being a dance. I simply saw those partnerships as a time of rolling points on each other. However, when I watched people like Josh, Julia and Jaime do their dances I saw all the components of dance in it. I could see them releasing their muscles to let go and simply discover different movement. There was a certain flow of movement in their dances that I wish I had.
It was until after midterm week that in my mind Contact was a form of dance. I walked in class that day very tired and wanted to avoid every partnership I could. I just wanted to spend time focusing on my own dance. However, that class turned out to be the most eye-opening of the semester. I partnered with three different people in class that day. My first duet was okay. I wasn’t feeling all into that partnership because all I was thinking about was class ending of how tired I was. However, the dance began to start flowing, but towards the middle it began to lack commitment so I decided to end it.
My second duet got a lot better. It was a fun partnership because we found a certain detail to focus on and play with. My nails were a bright red color in class that day so we decided to focus on hand movement and direction. The dance started with just me dancing and focusing on my body and arms. When Sarah noticed what I was doing she came over and joined. She began to mimic some of my movement until we both became drawn to my nails. After a while the dance became driven by both of us. We both wanted to lead so there were certain hiccups in the dance.
I began to feel as if I was never going to reach that high point in Contact Improv where I would experience the complete dance form. I began to get frustrated and didn’t want to dance at all anymore. When I noticed that Brittany was approaching me to dance I began to move away slightly to indicate that I didn’t want to. However, I felt bad in doing so that I ended up partnering with her. Today I’m so thankful that I had the courage to take the third partnership. Like they say thirds times a charm. Partnering with Brittany that day opened my eyes and allowed me to experience Contact as a dance. When we partnered it felt like a performance full of emotion and movement.
That partnership allowed me to see that it is a form of dance. I was able to see that it was a performance. I felt as if I was on stage just expressing myself through movement. I realized that dance doesn’t have to be choreographed. My partnership with Brittany to me was a performance. I realized that contact improv could have ins and outs, pauses, and communication. It was simply amazing for me to feel the connection with it. I felt as if we had a story going on and the emotion was there. Contact to me isn’t rolling on one another anymore. It is an improv of all types of movements such as plies, lifts, rolling, falling, support, upside down movement, etc. It is dance.
Today I’m really thankful for having had Brittany as my partner that day because I was able to release my mind and body and be driven by movement. I was allowed the experience that I had been longing to discover – contact improv as a dance. It was simply amazing. It simply took patience to discover it.
When I began to take the class all I thought the class was going to involve was rolling around on top of one another and bodies touching all the time. I didn’t see that as a form of dance at all. I would get so bored in class and frustrated that we weren’t connecting in a mental or emotional way. It was so hard for me to focus because I wasn’t used to physically connecting with someone in such a way that involved full body connection. I didn’t see that being dance at all. I felt as though it had no meaning, story, or emotion. However, I was trying hard not to hate it so I wanted to find out about it.
I didn’t want to make assumptions of myself as to if Contact was really a dance form or not. When I read about it and looked for definitions on what Contact was I would find many similar definitions – and they all involved dance. One definition was that Contact Improvisation “is a dance where points of physical contact provide a starting point of exploration through movement improvisation. It is also a form of dance improvisation.”
In the history of Contact we are given a more detailed definition. It has to do with your whole overall body. Reading online on ContactImprov.net I was able to get a better understanding of it. I read that contact originated by an American choreographer Steve Paxton in 1972. He comes to understand that it was based on the communication between two or more bodies in movement that are in physical contact. That allows them to move through gravity, momentum, and inertia.
After reading these definitions and applying it to what I had been doing in Contact I finally saw a connection. I understood the background of it and how it all connected to becoming a form of dance. However, I had yet to experience it. Every time I had a dance with someone in class I never felt it being a dance. I simply saw those partnerships as a time of rolling points on each other. However, when I watched people like Josh, Julia and Jaime do their dances I saw all the components of dance in it. I could see them releasing their muscles to let go and simply discover different movement. There was a certain flow of movement in their dances that I wish I had.
It was until after midterm week that in my mind Contact was a form of dance. I walked in class that day very tired and wanted to avoid every partnership I could. I just wanted to spend time focusing on my own dance. However, that class turned out to be the most eye-opening of the semester. I partnered with three different people in class that day. My first duet was okay. I wasn’t feeling all into that partnership because all I was thinking about was class ending of how tired I was. However, the dance began to start flowing, but towards the middle it began to lack commitment so I decided to end it.
My second duet got a lot better. It was a fun partnership because we found a certain detail to focus on and play with. My nails were a bright red color in class that day so we decided to focus on hand movement and direction. The dance started with just me dancing and focusing on my body and arms. When Sarah noticed what I was doing she came over and joined. She began to mimic some of my movement until we both became drawn to my nails. After a while the dance became driven by both of us. We both wanted to lead so there were certain hiccups in the dance.
I began to feel as if I was never going to reach that high point in Contact Improv where I would experience the complete dance form. I began to get frustrated and didn’t want to dance at all anymore. When I noticed that Brittany was approaching me to dance I began to move away slightly to indicate that I didn’t want to. However, I felt bad in doing so that I ended up partnering with her. Today I’m so thankful that I had the courage to take the third partnership. Like they say thirds times a charm. Partnering with Brittany that day opened my eyes and allowed me to experience Contact as a dance. When we partnered it felt like a performance full of emotion and movement.
That partnership allowed me to see that it is a form of dance. I was able to see that it was a performance. I felt as if I was on stage just expressing myself through movement. I realized that dance doesn’t have to be choreographed. My partnership with Brittany to me was a performance. I realized that contact improv could have ins and outs, pauses, and communication. It was simply amazing for me to feel the connection with it. I felt as if we had a story going on and the emotion was there. Contact to me isn’t rolling on one another anymore. It is an improv of all types of movements such as plies, lifts, rolling, falling, support, upside down movement, etc. It is dance.
Today I’m really thankful for having had Brittany as my partner that day because I was able to release my mind and body and be driven by movement. I was allowed the experience that I had been longing to discover – contact improv as a dance. It was simply amazing. It simply took patience to discover it.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Posting by Keiran Baliban
Before coming to Columbia, I hadn’t had much experience with improvisation – just a few classes here and there – and I’ve never felt too comfortable with the idea of it. I think I lack a lot of confidence in myself when it comes to dancing, and I don’t trust that the moves or ideas I come up with will be, in a sense, good enough. However, when upon being accepted into a summer intensive program in 2008, the Kentucky Governor’s School for the Arts, I had one contact improvisation class, and that was the first experience that sparked my interest. I supposed it was the thought that contact improvisation is less about doing your own improvisation, but more about learning how to move your body with others’.
After a few weeks of classes, I was really nervous about how this class would be for me. I worried that I rushed into it too quickly, and maybe should have waited a semester or two to take it. But I don’t think I would be getting as much out of my first semester experience had I not taken it now. I find myself relating a lot of key concepts from my contact class into my other dance classes. One major thing would be breathing. Breath is so important as a dancer, not just so you can keep moving, but it allows you to expand and find movement from within. In contact, if ever I feel stuck or lost in a duet, it’s incredible what stopping to take some deep breaths can do; it opens up a whole new set of doors.
In “Taken By Surprise, A Dance Improvisation Reader,” Anne Cooper Albright mentions an exercise she uses called “the small dance,” one I’m quite familiar with. As you relax and stand on two feet, you can feel the tiny adjustments and corrections your body makes to keep you upright without your brain having to think about it. This so closely relates to my daily life as I constantly do small things without thinking twice to keep me succeeding. Anything from eating a small snack when I’m hungry, to writing a paper before the day it’s due, all contribute to keeping me on my feet and ahead of the game.
Anne Cooper Albright also discusses the “Gap” in Taken By Surprise, A Dance Improvisation Reader” and how the beauty of this empty space of life is often ignored. I think college is a perfect example of the Gap – the unfamiliar environment brings a mix of feelings, emotions, and uncertainty that can’t be fixed. And this Gap was not just for a moment, but for the first few weeks. Reading this article helped me make connections back to that time of lack of control and confusion, a feeling I have forgotten. I now appreciate the barrier I’ve overcome in adjusting to this new lifestyle and I know I’m now better prepared for the next Gap I’ll have to face – going home for winter break, starting new classes next semester, graduating from college – the list goes on. But what’s most interesting, I think, is that one wouldn’t initially relate this idea to improvisation. I would have explained it as a moment to grow as you figure out how to adjust, but now I see that’s exactly what improvisation is.
I think as much as I understand how a lot of the activities I participate in require improvisation, it’s just as important to understand how to improvise when you need to. Life is full of disappointments – a restaurant closes before you get there, a store doesn’t have the pair of shoes you love in your size, you fall ill unexpectedly – all things that can’t be fixed by a small snack or anything of that matter. There are times when we all catch ourselves stuck in disappointment, unwilling to move on from these hiccups in life, and improvisation is essential in avoiding just that, and finding something else to do. Not just taking contact improvisation, but studying it in class brings more into perspective about improvisation as a whole. There aren’t many things in dance that pertain to the real world, but this is one thing that truly carries over into everyday life.
After a few weeks of classes, I was really nervous about how this class would be for me. I worried that I rushed into it too quickly, and maybe should have waited a semester or two to take it. But I don’t think I would be getting as much out of my first semester experience had I not taken it now. I find myself relating a lot of key concepts from my contact class into my other dance classes. One major thing would be breathing. Breath is so important as a dancer, not just so you can keep moving, but it allows you to expand and find movement from within. In contact, if ever I feel stuck or lost in a duet, it’s incredible what stopping to take some deep breaths can do; it opens up a whole new set of doors.
In “Taken By Surprise, A Dance Improvisation Reader,” Anne Cooper Albright mentions an exercise she uses called “the small dance,” one I’m quite familiar with. As you relax and stand on two feet, you can feel the tiny adjustments and corrections your body makes to keep you upright without your brain having to think about it. This so closely relates to my daily life as I constantly do small things without thinking twice to keep me succeeding. Anything from eating a small snack when I’m hungry, to writing a paper before the day it’s due, all contribute to keeping me on my feet and ahead of the game.
Anne Cooper Albright also discusses the “Gap” in Taken By Surprise, A Dance Improvisation Reader” and how the beauty of this empty space of life is often ignored. I think college is a perfect example of the Gap – the unfamiliar environment brings a mix of feelings, emotions, and uncertainty that can’t be fixed. And this Gap was not just for a moment, but for the first few weeks. Reading this article helped me make connections back to that time of lack of control and confusion, a feeling I have forgotten. I now appreciate the barrier I’ve overcome in adjusting to this new lifestyle and I know I’m now better prepared for the next Gap I’ll have to face – going home for winter break, starting new classes next semester, graduating from college – the list goes on. But what’s most interesting, I think, is that one wouldn’t initially relate this idea to improvisation. I would have explained it as a moment to grow as you figure out how to adjust, but now I see that’s exactly what improvisation is.
I think as much as I understand how a lot of the activities I participate in require improvisation, it’s just as important to understand how to improvise when you need to. Life is full of disappointments – a restaurant closes before you get there, a store doesn’t have the pair of shoes you love in your size, you fall ill unexpectedly – all things that can’t be fixed by a small snack or anything of that matter. There are times when we all catch ourselves stuck in disappointment, unwilling to move on from these hiccups in life, and improvisation is essential in avoiding just that, and finding something else to do. Not just taking contact improvisation, but studying it in class brings more into perspective about improvisation as a whole. There aren’t many things in dance that pertain to the real world, but this is one thing that truly carries over into everyday life.
Posting by Sara Logan
Contact Improvisation. Those two words I dreaded so much when I entered Columbia’s Dance program. I dreaded them so much that I waited until my senior year to take the “required” class. Before this class, I had not been trained in any contact improvisation or been to any jams in my life. What little I knew about contact came from my small glimpses into this style in my modern classes and a touch in my dancemaking courses. So I was less than enthused to participate in this class, not because I was not open to it, but because I feared the unknown. I’m a perfectionist when it comes to dancing. I enjoy knowing how things should feel and most of all what they should look like in my head. Contact messes with my notion of dance in a way that I feared as soon as I signed up for the class.
For me, I knew that contact would not come easily to me, and it didn’t. I am an extremely “in thought” kind of person. I’m not necessarily judgmental of myself or insecure, but rather I think way too much about things that have already happened and cannot change. So as we began, I found myself trying to turn my brain off to the useless chatter quite unsuccessfully. It took a few weeks for me to feel comfortable about anything we did in class.
So instead of putting myself down, I tried to really open my mind up to the idea of contact. I began to turn of my useless chatter and focus on the things I thought were my strengths in the form of contact. I’ve always thought that I have a lot of physical strength, and this proved to be true when we began using weight to lift one another and support one another. I found that I had an easier time taking weight than giving weight to my partners. I also learned from this exercise that liked to be in control of what was going on within my duets, so I began to focus on letting things just happen and trusting my partners more with each dance.
I think the most interesting thing that I discovered in contact improvisation class was not a trick, lift, concept, or exercise, but it was something that I have been learning and thinking about for a few years. I once had a teacher tell me that dance is a “metaphor for life.” As I analyze and reflect on my experience through the past 15 weeks of contact, I realize that statement rings true in this situation as well. My conflicts and strengths within contact in general reflect ideas, conflicts, and strengths in my own personal life. For example, I constantly over think many different aspects of my life to the point where I cannot turn my brain off. In contact I worked to do just that, and I found in my everyday life, my over thinking began to disappear. Another aspect would be the idea of taking weight and giving weight. In my own life, I can easily help others and give advice to friends. I actually really enjoy doing that for others; however, I struggle to let people into my life to actually help me out. I feel I always need to do things on my own as if to prove myself. It’s unreal how much contact has taught me about myself in just a very short time.
Reflecting back, my journey into the form of contact has been enjoyable, while still providing a challenge. I love a challenge. The last few weeks I’ve really come into the “zone” and have been focused and excited about the new things I discover with my classmates through our duets and dances together. I’m grateful for having to take a “required” course that I would have never thought I would partake in. Contact has really opened my eyes to a world that I am happily open and ready to participate in and use to further my dancing.
For me, I knew that contact would not come easily to me, and it didn’t. I am an extremely “in thought” kind of person. I’m not necessarily judgmental of myself or insecure, but rather I think way too much about things that have already happened and cannot change. So as we began, I found myself trying to turn my brain off to the useless chatter quite unsuccessfully. It took a few weeks for me to feel comfortable about anything we did in class.
So instead of putting myself down, I tried to really open my mind up to the idea of contact. I began to turn of my useless chatter and focus on the things I thought were my strengths in the form of contact. I’ve always thought that I have a lot of physical strength, and this proved to be true when we began using weight to lift one another and support one another. I found that I had an easier time taking weight than giving weight to my partners. I also learned from this exercise that liked to be in control of what was going on within my duets, so I began to focus on letting things just happen and trusting my partners more with each dance.
I think the most interesting thing that I discovered in contact improvisation class was not a trick, lift, concept, or exercise, but it was something that I have been learning and thinking about for a few years. I once had a teacher tell me that dance is a “metaphor for life.” As I analyze and reflect on my experience through the past 15 weeks of contact, I realize that statement rings true in this situation as well. My conflicts and strengths within contact in general reflect ideas, conflicts, and strengths in my own personal life. For example, I constantly over think many different aspects of my life to the point where I cannot turn my brain off. In contact I worked to do just that, and I found in my everyday life, my over thinking began to disappear. Another aspect would be the idea of taking weight and giving weight. In my own life, I can easily help others and give advice to friends. I actually really enjoy doing that for others; however, I struggle to let people into my life to actually help me out. I feel I always need to do things on my own as if to prove myself. It’s unreal how much contact has taught me about myself in just a very short time.
Reflecting back, my journey into the form of contact has been enjoyable, while still providing a challenge. I love a challenge. The last few weeks I’ve really come into the “zone” and have been focused and excited about the new things I discover with my classmates through our duets and dances together. I’m grateful for having to take a “required” course that I would have never thought I would partake in. Contact has really opened my eyes to a world that I am happily open and ready to participate in and use to further my dancing.
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Posting by Sarah Osterman
“The body, in order to open to these sensations, must learn to release excess muscular tension and abandon a certain quality of willfulness to experience the natural flow of movement.
Contact improvisations are spontaneous physical dialogues that range from stillness to highly energetic exchanges. It is a free play with balance, self-correcting the wrong moves and reinforcing the right ones…leaves the participants informed, centered, and enlivened.”
--- Contactimprov.net
A key word in the first sentence of the definition above is “senses.” While all dancing requires attentiveness to the body, contact improvisation seems to demand an even higher comprehension of bodily sensation. Before you can read someone else’s energy levels and physical impulses, I feel as though you have to develop a profound relationship with your own body. Certain warm up exercises we did at the beginning of class that involved visualizing organs, muscles and bones; breathing; rolling; the “small dance;” walking; sitting and feeling the body in space all increased my understanding of bodily existence. After easing into class this way, I always felt more present and alive.
As a classically trained dancer, and as an avid exerciser, I always find the modern concept of release to be exigent. All of this musculature I work so hard to attain does not give up easily, yet during my contact improvisation experience I’ve found tricks to letting ago. Inclusive of these new discoveries are: Not anticipating or pre-planning certain actions or movements, incorporating deep breath cycles, feeling grounded yet viable and choosing to go along for the ride. The majority of these strategies are mental, but the way of accessing these mental shifts seems to require a certain amount of physical cooperation. That is why it has taken all semester for me to access them; they only come through trial and error, discussion, embodiment and discomfort.
Originally, our class seemed to think contact improv required constant, energetic movement exchanges. We rarely incorporated stillness into our practice; an undervalued state of being that can both infuse a confused dance with wisdom and deepen the experience. Once I started to allow myself awkward pauses and moments of stillness within duets, my work started to mature. Recognizing this maturity took identifying my practice as a “a physical dialogue,” like the definition suggests. In a conversation there are silences, pauses, verbal exclamations, soft utterances, articulation, phrasing, etc. In this sense, viewing my contact practice as a “dialogue” has been beneficial to finding realistic ways of continuing, even after long silences, awkward pauses or bursts of unplanned movement. And as with any dialogue, I became profoundly aware that work couldn’t happen successfully without the awareness and participation of two people.
The most enthralling, albeit exhausting, part of class has been shifting partners several times in each class. This is still a jolting exchange for me in that it requires an entirely different approach, set of movements and energy level each time. An additional challenge to this is not being able to blurt out or talk when trying to communicate a need or want. Finding ways to subtly shift the body, redirect a lift or send waves of trust via movement are all physical efforts that originally came as secondary nature to my primary urge to plan/fix things verbally. Developing physical conversation has grown throughout the semester, but initially I felt flustered and anguished about it.
Overall, I do leave class feeling “informed, centered and enlivened.” I feel informed by other people’s bodies, choices of movement, ability to create, willingness to compromise weight and insights into the work. I feel centered in a strange way after successfully being off balance, tilted, unstable, viable and reliant on another person’s frame for over an hour; if I can survive in those physical predicaments, of course I can function in the other mode, not to mention appreciate it more. And last, I am enlivened by the subconscious creations that construct each class, regardless of our outside baggage and daily distractions. Somehow we are always able to step into the studio and unleash physical possibilities that we weren’t aware of beforehand.
Contact improvisations are spontaneous physical dialogues that range from stillness to highly energetic exchanges. It is a free play with balance, self-correcting the wrong moves and reinforcing the right ones…leaves the participants informed, centered, and enlivened.”
--- Contactimprov.net
A key word in the first sentence of the definition above is “senses.” While all dancing requires attentiveness to the body, contact improvisation seems to demand an even higher comprehension of bodily sensation. Before you can read someone else’s energy levels and physical impulses, I feel as though you have to develop a profound relationship with your own body. Certain warm up exercises we did at the beginning of class that involved visualizing organs, muscles and bones; breathing; rolling; the “small dance;” walking; sitting and feeling the body in space all increased my understanding of bodily existence. After easing into class this way, I always felt more present and alive.
As a classically trained dancer, and as an avid exerciser, I always find the modern concept of release to be exigent. All of this musculature I work so hard to attain does not give up easily, yet during my contact improvisation experience I’ve found tricks to letting ago. Inclusive of these new discoveries are: Not anticipating or pre-planning certain actions or movements, incorporating deep breath cycles, feeling grounded yet viable and choosing to go along for the ride. The majority of these strategies are mental, but the way of accessing these mental shifts seems to require a certain amount of physical cooperation. That is why it has taken all semester for me to access them; they only come through trial and error, discussion, embodiment and discomfort.
Originally, our class seemed to think contact improv required constant, energetic movement exchanges. We rarely incorporated stillness into our practice; an undervalued state of being that can both infuse a confused dance with wisdom and deepen the experience. Once I started to allow myself awkward pauses and moments of stillness within duets, my work started to mature. Recognizing this maturity took identifying my practice as a “a physical dialogue,” like the definition suggests. In a conversation there are silences, pauses, verbal exclamations, soft utterances, articulation, phrasing, etc. In this sense, viewing my contact practice as a “dialogue” has been beneficial to finding realistic ways of continuing, even after long silences, awkward pauses or bursts of unplanned movement. And as with any dialogue, I became profoundly aware that work couldn’t happen successfully without the awareness and participation of two people.
The most enthralling, albeit exhausting, part of class has been shifting partners several times in each class. This is still a jolting exchange for me in that it requires an entirely different approach, set of movements and energy level each time. An additional challenge to this is not being able to blurt out or talk when trying to communicate a need or want. Finding ways to subtly shift the body, redirect a lift or send waves of trust via movement are all physical efforts that originally came as secondary nature to my primary urge to plan/fix things verbally. Developing physical conversation has grown throughout the semester, but initially I felt flustered and anguished about it.
Overall, I do leave class feeling “informed, centered and enlivened.” I feel informed by other people’s bodies, choices of movement, ability to create, willingness to compromise weight and insights into the work. I feel centered in a strange way after successfully being off balance, tilted, unstable, viable and reliant on another person’s frame for over an hour; if I can survive in those physical predicaments, of course I can function in the other mode, not to mention appreciate it more. And last, I am enlivened by the subconscious creations that construct each class, regardless of our outside baggage and daily distractions. Somehow we are always able to step into the studio and unleash physical possibilities that we weren’t aware of beforehand.
It’s All in a Hug by Maria Macsay
After being sick for a couple weeks, losing a lot of weight, and becoming extremely weak, I was really hesitant about getting back into contact improvisation. The first day back I took it really easy, and had some short and slow dances with a couple of people that stayed on the ground for the most part. During my dances I was so relaxed and comfortable and each time a dance would end I would feel a huge sense of relief, not because it was over, but from having that physical contact with another person. By the end of class I noticed how much better I felt from the little amount of contact improvisation I participated in. I think that I was more sensitive to and appreciative of physical contact with others after being restrained to my apartment for almost a whole month. As I observed how I felt and the reaction I had to this physical touch, I became really interested in the importance of touch and the benefits from it.
From the moment we are born we communicate with the world through our skin. When babies are born they are not fully developed, they cannot see clearly and cannot differentiate sounds, so the way they function and begin to understand the world is through their skin. For babies that are born premature, touch therapy is now an intervention strategy to increase their health. Even though these premature babies do not receive more food than others, Dr. Benjamin states that, “they grow faster, gain more weight, and leave the hospital earlier than their untouched counterparts” (Benjamin). Not only does touch improve our health from a young age, but it also shapes our perception of safety and that have an effect on us for the rest of our lives (Benjamin).
I think many people have the idea that as we get older and become adults the need for physical, non-sexual touch diminishes, however, this idea is incorrect. According to Dr. Benjamin, “our need for touch does not disappear” as we get older. Something as simple as a hugging for 20 seconds has been found to release serotonin and dopamine (the “feel good” chemicals), reduce high blood pressure, reduce stress levels, and reduce the risk of heart disease, especially in women. It has also been found that therapeutic touch can reduce symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, such as restlessness, pacing, vocalization, searching, and tapping (How). Not only this, but it has also been found to reduce pain. People with fibromyalgia who received therapeutic touch, “experienced a significant decrease in pain and reported a significant improvement in quality of life” (Chuong). It is obviously no secret that touch is extremely important and can help with a number of different health problems.
Even with the knowledge that has been found about the benefits of touch in different studies, it does not seem as if this information is utilized to the extent that it could be. I think that considering touch therapy as an alternative to medications that millions of people take for health problems such as high blood pressure, depression, and others, would be so much more beneficial for them. After all the only side affects that come with touch therapy, are increased levels of feeling good, and after all who doesn’t want more of that? In addition, I think it is important for people to be more observant as to how they interact with people and especially their children. I’ve realized that many people I’ve come in contact with are hesitant when it comes to something as simple as hugging, this of course is a result of their experience in the world and the way they were raised. In my opinion, physical contact would not only help with health problems but also with the many aggressive children/teenagers who are acting out for attention. The way that our society tries to discipline these children/teenagers is by making them feel as if they are outcasts, when really a hug would probably be ten times more effect. It really is not rocket science; any form of sincere physical contact, such as a big, meaningful hug would benefit everyone in more ways than one.
Works Cited
Benjamin, Ben, and Ruth Werner. "The Primacy of Human Touch." Health News (22
Nov. 2000). Web. 12 Dec. 2009. <http://www.benbenjamin.net/pdfs/Issue2.pdf>.
Chuong-Kim, Margaret. “The Health Benefits of Physical Touch.” Natural Health: Chet
Day's Huge Collection of Healthy Eating Recipes and Natural Health Articles.
Web. 13 Dec. 2009. <http://chetday.com/gentletouch.htm>
“How Hugs are Proven to Help Your Health: Have You Been Hugged Today?”
SixWise.Com. 26 July 2006. Web. 13 Dec. 2009.
<http://www.sixwise.com/newsletters/06/07/26/how_hugs_are_proven_to_help_y
our_health_have_you_been_hugged_today.htm>
Friday, December 18, 2009
A Reflection on an Experience by Brittany J. Branson
It was mid-term week and everyone around the Dance Center was exhausted. Academic classes were having huge tests and technique evaluations were sending most on an emotional roller coaster. By the time five o’clock rolls around on Thursday afternoon, my last class of that stressful week, the last thing I expected to happen was a break through in contact improv. However, that’s exactly what happened.
Up until this day I had always thoroughly enjoyed the “idea” of being able to take part in contact improv, but was frustrated by not being able to have my experiences live up to what I wanted. My biggest wall I needed to overcome was fear for my grade. With Julia watching me, all I could think about was doing contact “right” or “wrong.” I was very focused, almost to focused, but on the wrong thing. For me, the time that Julia spent giving others evaluations was a golden opportunity to not worry about “right” or “wrong,” just do. Maria Macsey and myself were both doing some improvisation of our own and just naturally let our paths cross one another. I believe it is important to mention that Maria and I are very good friends and have spent the last year and half sharing many dance experiences in Chicago. She was the first real friend I made in college. For that reason I feel a very high level of comfort with her. This comfort leads to a feeling of trust, which I feel is the most important quality for one to have with their partner. When it comes to Maria, I trust her one hundred percent. Although I feel comfortable with everyone in class, I think there is much to say about relationships outside of class affecting how one dances with their partners. There are some things that just cannot be left at the door no matter how hard one might try.
With no inhibitions holding me back and with a partner I felt very comfortable with, I was able to let loose. Our dance started very natural with rolling point of contact on the floor. We gradually progressed to standing. However, even if we were off the ground, we continued to share a very grounded feeling. She was giving me all her weight and I was giving her all of mine right back. Before I knew it, we were flying around the room. Both Maria and I were finding ledges on each other that I had never thought of before. We were so in tune with one another’s movements that I would find myself in Maria’s arms and completely off the ground without any hesitation or noticeable preparation. The smoothness and flow made the dance feel great and continuous. Something I learned from this dance was that continuous does not mean nonstop movement. One of my problems before this dance was not being able to find dance within the stillness. After this dance, however, I found that feeling. Maria and I would find moments of stillness that would calm us from the athletic movements we just finished.
Although this dance taught me many lessons, the most important one I learned was the lesson of time. The most valuable tool I found when learning contact was to allow the dance to blossom. If the dance gets frustrating, just keep dancing. If the dancer does not have time to become comfortable with the dance, it can never reach its full potential. Time is everything. During my duet with Maria, I lost track of that time and I believe that was the key to our successful dance. Before I knew it, Maria and I had danced over a half hour! I was so involved in our dance that I did not even notice when Julia came into the room or that we were the only couple left on the dance floor. We came to an end standing next to each other and matched our breaths to one another until we came to a mutual feeling that our dance was over.
From that point forward, I could not wait until contact class time. I was so excited to have that feeling of a successful dance once again. I wanted to dance with Maria again. I was sure that it was our combination that contributed to the success. However, Maria got sick and was out of class for three weeks! I was so frustrated. Nevertheless, other duets happened and much to my surprise I was feeling the same level of comfort and success. Even with Julia in the room, I could completely focus on the dance because I had reached the point where I understood it was not about “right” or “wrong.” Success can be found if one puts all their effort into it, grades will follow suit.
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