For months I had been hearing whispers on the wind. They started growing in the last few weeks into murmurs, until this week, all of the sudden, they seemed to explode into… well, a lot of Facebook posts at least,…
Category: opinion
Teacher education in CI: Experimenting with teacher education in Buffalo (part 2 of 2)
This is the second of two parts by Alexia Buono, discussing teacher education in contact improvisation. Her first part, Teacher education in CI: What does teacher education have to do with safer dance spaces?, discussed how justice-oriented pedagogical teacher education…
Teacher education in CI: What does teacher education have to do with safer dance spaces? (part 1 of 2)
Hi blog readers! I’m happy to introduce a new writer on my blog, Alexia Buono. Alexia is CI dancer with a PhD in education who specializes in teacher education and dance pedagogy in particular. I invited her to write on…
A Helpful Supplement to Myth #6: “It’s just not my thing” — addressing facilitator doubts (Part 2 of 2)
In Part 1 of this article, “Myth #6: Written guidelines keep CI spaces safe,” I discussed why having written guidelines is an insufficient strategy for creating safer CI spaces, and explained why CI teachers and facilitators need to model talking…
Myth #6: Written guidelines keep CI spaces safe (Part 1 of 2)
I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but in 2020, written guidelines alone are not sufficient for contact improvisation (CI) communities to uphold a standard of intolerance toward sexual transgressions on and around the dance floor. No matter…
Myth #5: I can handle it myself
I’ve heard it expressed that it’s patronizing, or paternalistic, to suggest that people can’t “handle” themselves, set their own boundaries or make educated choices about how and with whom they dance. In other words, some people in the CI community…
Myth #4: It’s okay to heal me with contact improv
Sometimes, by dancing contact improvisation, we encounter and expose parts of ourselves that we usually keep guarded. We can find ourselves opening up in the presence of our dance partners, and because touch has the capacity to unwind emotions and…
A response to a reader regarding Myths to Break Down
Hi Readers! In response to my post, “Myths to Break Down: Moving Toward Ethical Communication and Ethical Sexuality in CI,” a reader asked what I felt was an excellent question. Because the conversation deserved greater visibility, I’m writing my response…
Myths to Break Down: Moving Toward Ethical Communication and Ethical Sexuality in CI
Hi all, this is Richard. I’m pleased to introduce guest blogger Sarah Gottlieb, who has been thinking about topics related to contact improvisation, sexuality, consent, and rape culture, and who will be sharing some of those thoughts on my blog.…
NYC Contact Improvisation Practica returns — now with more practica (and less fun)
Something extraordinary happened when I taught at the Ontario Regional Contact Jam this past April. Charlie Halpern-Hamu, one of the organizers, gave me free rein to discourage people from taking my class. So I tried to make it scary. I…