During the 4th July Jam in Earthdance, I have a special connetion with Neige Christenson and Aaron Brando.
They easily convinced me to spend one week in Ausgust to the Dance Camp of New England, in Freedom (New Hampshire).
It's a creative collective of individuals (around 500!!) who love to dance, as well as a consortium of cooperatively-run, not-for-profit freestyle barefoot dances in New England area (Boston, Northampton, New York). Camping close to lake, many workshops, many people from different style, generations, crazy dancefloor every night (I mean Night, not evening, NIGHT until the sunrise...), dance parade, beach party, cabaret. Everyone was participating activily, we all sign-up in task group when we arrived.
PS: most of the photographs are not mine. I was so choked by the beauty to take any photo!
When I arrived from Vancouver, my dear friend Neige, she has already prepared my sleeping place I was traveling without tent...), welcoming like a princess...
Brando invited me to prepare and give with him the Advance CI classes during the Dance camp. Gorgeous experience. It was the first time for me... But I didn't feel any fear, I felt so conforable... I specially enjoyed the preparation phase of the class process. I introduced some precious teaching I received in Lasqueti island, like the Suspension from Eryn (Skinner releasing technique).
Total satisfaction, like a small one to one lab, trying again and again, we reached to create our proper Pattern! this point is very important for me, Contact improvisation has a particularity which is the absence of copyright and formal teaching certification programs. Classes, lab, festival, jams are place of evolution-cooking of the CI. People with different style, different body, different background, different culture take over the CI. Is it not the best way for building a Community? Going further than simple movement imitation... We have to trust on that the essence of the CI will not change and the time evolution is only getting it richer.
From my understanding the essence of the CI is the practise of inner awareness and principles of gravity and physics. The most amazing thing is that with the Russian, German, Spanish, French, Italian, Japonese, American, Argentinian, Brazilian CI dancer with who I have a dance, we used together a common language based on the essence of the CI but each one of us prononciate it with a proper accent!
Below there is a draw from Susan Arnsten-Russell, of a part of our class during a session of witness/mover, and other drawing she did and I like.
I remember 2 workshops, I really appreciate (to be honnest I didn't do so much workshops, due to the late crazy dance night floor!):
Neige Christenson offered me an inestimable gift with a workshop she gave. "Freeing the contact mind". She based her workshop on a method of self-inquiry called The Work of Byron Katie." An amazing tool to manage the thoughts that can be at the rootof mental pain.
It let me think about my mental in the jam... generally I had the chance to do not have to much mental noise/ disturb. But I remember for my first jam, that the mental and its question/doubt provocated on me to tense my body, to be disconnected to my body, to my partner, to the group and to the space, to not be present here and now.
Neige went from the point that "as a dance form, CI is open-ended and indefinable and is so full of ambiguous layers of possible physical and emotional intimacy that it is distinctly ripe for personal interpretation and "story-making". Life in general, and jams in particular, can be emotionally exhausting experiences if we attach ourselves to our thoughts, as fast and furiously as they arise. I know I' not alone on this. Students and friends complain that they cannot easily "get out of their heads" and just dance, or that they get stuck in mental "ruts": habitual interpretations and judgements of themselves and others. For example: why she leave the dance, was it something I did that scared her off or was she bored with me? I'm too heavy/ too light/too inexperienced to dance with that person, etc. ".
She has the brillant idea to apply The Work to this particular stressful thought. "It consists of asking four questions and then turning the thought around to see if the opposite is a true or truer. All it takes is the willingness to drop in and wait for one's own truth to emerge. The four questions are as follows:
1. Is it true?
2. Can you absolutely know that it is true?
3. How do you react when you think that thought?
4. Who would you be without that thought?
Then turn the thought around, and play with its opposite, to see if you can find genuine examples of how this might be as true or even truer than your original statement."
She published an article in the Contact Quartely Magazine, winter/spring 2008. It's a very interesting article because using a very concret example, she go very deep in her investigation, saying aloud what our mind whisper to our body... Thanks you for your generosity Neige.
- breathwork with Holly. Neige was my partner. I didn't have any idea of what was this work. Hyperventilation, the voice of both teacher and the music help you to attain alternate state of counsciousness.
I will never spend holidays as a turist anymore, I want Camp every Summer!!!
In my life, I had such a complex link with the concept of community... Many friends are from different commnity but no community atracted me. I really do not like so much ideology for masses...
But in New Engalnd, I really feel part of the community because we share so many principles of life. "Commitment to the acceptance of and respect for all people and cultures, the empowerment of children, and the acknowledgement that our bodies and our environment are sacred... Cooperative spirit, sustainable volunteerism, consensus decision-making, non-violent communication, collective work, personal responsibility..."
They have been so welcoming with me... many smiles, many hugs, many dances, many laugh , many fingers to wipe my tears... waooo
Later, the idea of staying there really cross my mind.
But Morocco was calling me so much. Letting New Engalnd will never bore the connection I have with this Community, never.
My next step was Boston. I didn't have any pre-idea of this city. I trust in following blindly my dear friend Neige. And, during the camp, I met Olivier Besson who is a great dancer teaching Dance improvisation in the Boston conservatory. He offered me to dance with him in the Conservatory.
They easily convinced me to spend one week in Ausgust to the Dance Camp of New England, in Freedom (New Hampshire).
It's a creative collective of individuals (around 500!!) who love to dance, as well as a consortium of cooperatively-run, not-for-profit freestyle barefoot dances in New England area (Boston, Northampton, New York). Camping close to lake, many workshops, many people from different style, generations, crazy dancefloor every night (I mean Night, not evening, NIGHT until the sunrise...), dance parade, beach party, cabaret. Everyone was participating activily, we all sign-up in task group when we arrived.
When I arrived from Vancouver, my dear friend Neige, she has already prepared my sleeping place I was traveling without tent...), welcoming like a princess...
Brando invited me to prepare and give with him the Advance CI classes during the Dance camp. Gorgeous experience. It was the first time for me... But I didn't feel any fear, I felt so conforable... I specially enjoyed the preparation phase of the class process. I introduced some precious teaching I received in Lasqueti island, like the Suspension from Eryn (Skinner releasing technique).
Total satisfaction, like a small one to one lab, trying again and again, we reached to create our proper Pattern! this point is very important for me, Contact improvisation has a particularity which is the absence of copyright and formal teaching certification programs. Classes, lab, festival, jams are place of evolution-cooking of the CI. People with different style, different body, different background, different culture take over the CI. Is it not the best way for building a Community? Going further than simple movement imitation... We have to trust on that the essence of the CI will not change and the time evolution is only getting it richer.
From my understanding the essence of the CI is the practise of inner awareness and principles of gravity and physics. The most amazing thing is that with the Russian, German, Spanish, French, Italian, Japonese, American, Argentinian, Brazilian CI dancer with who I have a dance, we used together a common language based on the essence of the CI but each one of us prononciate it with a proper accent!
Below there is a draw from Susan Arnsten-Russell, of a part of our class during a session of witness/mover, and other drawing she did and I like.
Neige Christenson offered me an inestimable gift with a workshop she gave. "Freeing the contact mind". She based her workshop on a method of self-inquiry called The Work of Byron Katie." An amazing tool to manage the thoughts that can be at the rootof mental pain.
It let me think about my mental in the jam... generally I had the chance to do not have to much mental noise/ disturb. But I remember for my first jam, that the mental and its question/doubt provocated on me to tense my body, to be disconnected to my body, to my partner, to the group and to the space, to not be present here and now.
Neige went from the point that "as a dance form, CI is open-ended and indefinable and is so full of ambiguous layers of possible physical and emotional intimacy that it is distinctly ripe for personal interpretation and "story-making". Life in general, and jams in particular, can be emotionally exhausting experiences if we attach ourselves to our thoughts, as fast and furiously as they arise. I know I' not alone on this. Students and friends complain that they cannot easily "get out of their heads" and just dance, or that they get stuck in mental "ruts": habitual interpretations and judgements of themselves and others. For example: why she leave the dance, was it something I did that scared her off or was she bored with me? I'm too heavy/ too light/too inexperienced to dance with that person, etc. ".
She has the brillant idea to apply The Work to this particular stressful thought. "It consists of asking four questions and then turning the thought around to see if the opposite is a true or truer. All it takes is the willingness to drop in and wait for one's own truth to emerge. The four questions are as follows:
1. Is it true?
2. Can you absolutely know that it is true?
3. How do you react when you think that thought?
4. Who would you be without that thought?
Then turn the thought around, and play with its opposite, to see if you can find genuine examples of how this might be as true or even truer than your original statement."
She published an article in the Contact Quartely Magazine, winter/spring 2008. It's a very interesting article because using a very concret example, she go very deep in her investigation, saying aloud what our mind whisper to our body... Thanks you for your generosity Neige.
- breathwork with Holly. Neige was my partner. I didn't have any idea of what was this work. Hyperventilation, the voice of both teacher and the music help you to attain alternate state of counsciousness.
I will never spend holidays as a turist anymore, I want Camp every Summer!!!
In my life, I had such a complex link with the concept of community... Many friends are from different commnity but no community atracted me. I really do not like so much ideology for masses...
But in New Engalnd, I really feel part of the community because we share so many principles of life. "Commitment to the acceptance of and respect for all people and cultures, the empowerment of children, and the acknowledgement that our bodies and our environment are sacred... Cooperative spirit, sustainable volunteerism, consensus decision-making, non-violent communication, collective work, personal responsibility..."
They have been so welcoming with me... many smiles, many hugs, many dances, many laugh , many fingers to wipe my tears... waooo
Later, the idea of staying there really cross my mind.
But Morocco was calling me so much. Letting New Engalnd will never bore the connection I have with this Community, never.
My next step was Boston. I didn't have any pre-idea of this city. I trust in following blindly my dear friend Neige. And, during the camp, I met Olivier Besson who is a great dancer teaching Dance improvisation in the Boston conservatory. He offered me to dance with him in the Conservatory.
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