Activities

What is contact?

An invitation to let go in an oasis of peace, that’s what contact improvisation is.

A brief history

Contact improvisation began in New York in the 1960s around the work of the Judson Dance Theater and in the 1970s with the Grand Union dance collective, as avant-garde dancers experimented with the ability of the body to adapt to situations of extreme or accidental contact.

A common vocabulary arose from this practice and became a new paradigm of movement, borrowing elements from dance, martial arts, gymnastics and psychocorporal work. The principles of relaxation, momentum, and body intelligence were present from the beginning and are still taught today in contact improvisation courses and workshops.

How it feels

This form of dance is usually practiced without music, during jams where each participant is free to move as he or she wishes. Musicians are welcome, as long as they remain in touch with the dancers and do not try to impose a mood on the gathering. The heart of contact improv is listening and silence is its kingdom.

The concepts of sharing, cooperation, and equality are at the core of the discipline. Those who come to the jam can make extraordinary discoveries there. Risk, confidence, abandon and gentleness are found in abundance.

Let yourself be tempted!

Impressions, definitions and bibliography of contact

Describe Contact Improvisation is not an easy exercice. It’s the reason why, this bibilography would help you to know more about it : the history, the context, the contents and research, etc.