Teachers and Classes

Daniel Lepkoff

PHYSICAL DIALOGUES:

EXPERIMENTS IN COMMUNICATION THROUGH MOVEMENT
a dance technique and approach to movement researchdeveloped by: Daniel Lepkoff

Our living physical interactions with the environment are expressions of our desires, imagination, and intelligence. We frame this spontaneous material as "danced composition".
Addressing all our physical senses, we explore of the details inside of functional movement: breathing, rolling, reaching, crawling, standing, walking, running.....

Practicing:
-OBSERVATION
-THE MOVEMENT OF ATTENTION
-RECEIVING INSTRUCTIONS FROM THE ENVIRONMENT.
lead us, as dancers, to experience being a transmitter of questions rather than the maker of images.

Giorgia Livan

"MARKER: BODYGRAPHY ON THE FLOOR WALL"

How can bodies and surfaces be marked by intentional or unintentional actions?

How do ensembles change composition? And how do solos flourish during these markings?

Through the practice of marking, we will analyse and experience from a scientific as well as an artistic point of view (combining different techniques) the concept of marking in solo dance and in the practice of Ensemble Contact Improvisation. Thanks to these marks, we will translate into space an exploration that is guided at first and spontaneous at a later stage.

The focus will be on the awareness of how these mnemonic and material scars influence the environment of practice and the relationships created in it.

MORE ABOUT THE PROCESS:

The process will be marked in a dialogue between pauses and translation on paper and movement.
The dance will be both ensemble and solo in order to observe the difference of moving from a complex organ such as being in a group and collectivity to returning to oneself with the wake of the marks left by others.

It is not necessary to be a visual artist, this is a device for dancers (especially in the dynamics of Contact Improvisation) to make the intuitive choice that the body feels resurface.
We will work with simplicity and synthesis, taking away rather than adding and without acting automatically and compulsively in flying or falling.

We will also have the pleasure of crossing the perspective of our map directly on the wall, after travelling from the floor.

Pedro Penuela

Supportive architectures in the body

In these two classes we will work on skills, techniques and forms that help us to access a sense and experience of support. This aims to bring safety in motion and to open a wide range of movement possibilities that can be investigated and explored during an improvisation, especially in situations of weight exchange.

To develop it, we'll focus on:

. Sensing, knowing and experimenting with and from our skeleton,
. Dynamic alignments and embodied understanding of our supports and ways to offer support,
. Tuning to the reflex intelligence in our own body and in the others',
. Feeling and playing with gravity and action-reaction interplay with the ground,
. Pathways to connect the whole body and to feel its different architectures in each moment,
. Forms that teach the body important skills when "flying",
. Feeling and getting awareness of the center of gravity and it's role in CI,
. Use of momentum, leverages and centripetal forces.

Lecture with Pedro: "The political relevance of some principles of Contact Improvisation"

The lecture will discuss ethical and political implications that characterize Contact Improvisation, highlighting the relevance of some of its principles, such as:
1. The dilation of time and the stretching of perception,
2. The question of resistance (or the resistance under question),
3. The rupture with the imperative of productivity,
4. The (open) question of community, collective bonds and spaces of "refuge".
By examining these aspects, we highlight how this dance form subverts the hegemonic cultural imperatives of accelerating action, densifying stimulation and increasing productivity, as well as it helps us to problematize the notion of resistance and the strategies of political and cultural opposition to a status quo, thus having the potential to create particular spaces of sharing, articulated by commonalities in perception and sensitivity.

Valeria Chan

THE POETRY OF GRAVITY

Gravity, the most invisible yet ever-present universal force, it never abandons us. It surrounds us in silence, constant and unwavering, a quiet companion that holds us in its embrace, always. It does not discriminate; it treats every body, every object, every movement with the same gentle persistence. In this way, gravity is a great equalizer—a silent, democratic presence that unites us through its constant embrace.

As Steve Paxton observed: "We are born into gravity, and from that moment, gravity becomes part of our movement, our being, our dance."

It is an invitation to explore gravity not just as a physical principle, but as a partner in movement. Gravity is like an invisible rain, always present, or like the wind, constantly flowing through and around us. It is the source of balance, motion, and stillness. To dance is to let these unseen forces move through us while simultaneously asking them to support and shape our movement.

During the workshop, we will explore the idea that flight begins with a state of falling and surrender to gravity. To fly is to fall with purpose and trust, using the kinetic energy of the fall to lift us effortlessly into space. It is through the grace of surrendering to gravity that we find the flow of flight. We will engage with the small dance, the micro-movements of stillness that emerge as we connect with gravity. This foundation will guide us into larger movements, including lifts and flights, as we let gravity and weight shape our improvisation in solo, duets, trios, and group dances.

How can we fall softly, only to rise and fly just as gently? What role does breath play in both falling and flying? What is the difference between surrendering and collapsing? What does it mean to dance, to fly, and to continuously fall while lifting others?

To breath, to fall, to fly: let us embrace and being embraced by the poetry of gravity.

Serhii Semichev (Italy/Ukraine)

The illusion of balance

The class will be of interest to participants with any experience.
The class is dedicated to balance, losing and finding balance and counterbalance.
We will find balance in any position with minimal use of muscle effort. We will explore how changing the position of different parts of the body changes the position of the body's center of gravity and loss of balance.
We will explore how the body organizes itself without unnecessary muscle effort in search of balance when the center of gravity changes position in space. We will explore how the partner's influence affects the position of the center of gravity in space. We will explore how the body organizes itself to find balance when the partner's influence.
We will explore how the position of the partner's body changes the position of the partners' center of gravity and leads to loss of balance for both partners. We will explore how our bodies organize themselves in contact when losing and finding balance. We will explore the intensity and range of movement in losing and finding balance together with a partner.
We will explore how joint loss of balance and organization of the body to find balance in contact without unnecessary muscle effort can become a game and one of the resources of movement in dance.

Ingrid Hörlezeder

"Diving deep and flying high"

How would it be, to always feel your center? To simply “know” your position in space? To feel light, safe, and balanced on the tip of the shoulder of your dance partner? All Limps in a “perfect” position to fly.

If your body is well organized, you don´t have to think while dancing, your body will find the easiest, most delightful shape.

In this class we will use ideas from body mind centering© and the trager® approach to clarify the inner connectivity of our bodies and to get ready for high flying moves.

There will be time to deeply relax and to visit our unconscious mind, as well as time to play and to explore.