Category: Boundaries

My Entire Body Shook: A Woman Leading a Dance Jam Speaks

TRIGGER WARNING: refers to aggression and sexual violence towards women Contact Improvisation Leaders. I have had a man yell outside the door of my jam for 30 minutes because I denied them entrance because they were breathing heavily and dry-humping woman while dancing. I went home that night, walking alone to the subway, scared I would be attacked. When I reached the safety of my home the trembling began and my entire body shook and shook...

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Part One In The “Dancing in the Land of Spiritual Bypassing” Series: Dorit’s Story

I sit in my garden with my eyes closed and meditate. I chant,“There are no weeds. There are no weeds”. Yet there are weeds! And if I pretend they are not there, I will not be adequately set up to deal with them. And if I do not see the weeds, I am more likely to blame the vegetables for growing poorly. I sit in a studio with a hundred other people. I am looking out large windows at a mountain view, and find comfort nestled in this mountain valley. It is the start of a retreat, and the participants all sit in a circle awaiting the opening instructions. I feel brave or perhaps naïve or a mix of both. I say this because I have returned to this retreat where I was sexually assaulted a year previously. The retreat organizers dealt with the assault in an appropriate manner and made many changes to their event to increase safety. But still, I am feeling unsure how being here will work out for me...

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“I’m sorry my actions triggered you”: Apologies that deflect responsibility.

Author: Kathleen ReaPublished October, 2021This past week I was on the receiving end of several apologies. Many were solid effective apologies, however, in the mix were some that were renditions of the “I am sorry my actions triggered you” apology. To these people, I sent a reframe: “Your apology is focused on me, and I... Continue Reading →

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“Lucy’s” Story

Today is a big step for me... I finally decided to put this on paper. I still feel pain in my heart, and my body shivers when I think about these events. I have gathered up all my courage and I will start to write one article (story) at a time about my experiences in the Contact Improvisation (CI) world--as a woman, as a Person of Color, as a beginner--dealing with cis-male power and authority, consent, boundaries, and oppression. This is my story...

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Moving from Bystander to Action: Responding to Manipulative Behaviors

Ella has been doing Contact Improvisation for a few years. At a recent jam she had a dance with a more experienced and well known contact-improviser, Stan. In that dance, he manipulated her body into different shapes and lifts. She had danced with him before and the same thing had happened. She wanted to dance with him because he was fun to dance with, but she wished there could be a more equitable sharing of decision-making and lead/follow. She decided to have a chat with him and let him know...

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20 Years of Coming to Terms: Shifting from Disempowerment to Systemic Thinking

Twenty Years of Coming to Terms: Shifting from Disempowerment to Activism and Systemic Thinking

Twenty years ago, I attended my very first Contact Improvisation workshop. My teacher, Karl Frost, skillfully twirled and swooped me around his body, and I felt a sense of connection and freedom I did not know was possible. The sky opened and a choir of angels sang, and in that moment of life-changing epiphany, I decided to dedicate the rest of my life to Contact Improvisation. And that is exactly what I have done. But something else happened that day that will forever be intertwined with my Contact Improvisation epiphany. The other feeling was not an epiphany at all… it was the opposite. I participated in something that I didn’t want to do, but only figured it out partway through.

Navigating Sex in Contact Improvisation for those in Positions of Power

I wrote this article for members of the contact improvisation community who have positions of power within their community.  Their power can derive from being a teacher or organiser, which is a pretty clear leadership role. But sometimes, even if someone hasn't chosen a direct leadership role, they still may have power and influence as a result of the dominant culture giving them power due to certain defining characteristics. For example, a tall, athletic, good-looking young man who does really fancy lifts will often be given "rock star" status, whether he chooses it or not (or is even aware of it). Or a friendly older person who has been going to the jam forever may be seen as a "guru" or "caretaker of the space", even if they are not a teacher.

Let’s say you are in a position of power and there is someone at a jam or class that you are attracted to. In this post-#metoo era how should you proceed?

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Myths to Break Down: Moving Toward Ethical Communication & Ethical Sexuality in Contact Improvisation

Here is an article by Sarah Gottlieb that was published on Contact Improvisation Blog (contactimprovblog.com) Myths to Break Down: Moving Toward Ethical Communication and Ethical Sexuality in Contact Improvisation #1: It makes people uncomfortable to talk about boundary setting and sexuality right before dancing together. There is an idea that talking about boundaries, sexuality, or... Continue Reading →

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A Compendium of CI Jam Guidelines from around the world

Thank you to Benjamin Pierce for creating a google doc where the Contact Dance Improvisation worldwide community can gather resources. A Compendium of CI Jam Guidelines from around the world This collection of links to guidelines and related resources for contact improvisation jams is “open for comments” -- i.e., you can edit directly, and your changes will... Continue Reading →

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“That lady”: A woman puts up a boundary in the contact improv world

It’s a typical Wednesday night in Toronto. In a third-floor ballroom, some forty people have come to dance together.  A bow lifts and settles on cello strings and one can see the bodies absorb the first awaited note. A couple in the corner are intertwined in a rolling dance in which it is hard to figure out whose body is whose. A high-flying trio graciously makes its way around them. The bodies in this space are engaged in a type of group sensory “listening” that uses all the senses to gauge space and direction of momentum. There are all types of dancers here, from those that dance professionally to those that do it for fun. The ages span nineteen-year-olds to seventy+, and include diverse body types. ....

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