Contemporary into Contact - Open session

About this event

Contemporary into Contact by Alkis Barbas & Johanna Sauër

🌞Thursday evenings from September until (including) January.
18.30 - 19.30 Contemporary by Johanna Sauër
19.45 - 21.30 Contact Improvisation by Alkis Barbas and Johanna Sauër (alternating)

This class on 3 September is an open class, for new participants intrested in joining our group! We're in a larger studio, and that we celebrate with giving this class as a stand-alone. Meaning: come train, no strings attached. Pay-what-you-want after ✨

🌳You can choose to join one of these classes or both. They are connected to each other and explore similar themes in different ways of movement. They are also designed as separate entities, allowing you to follow one of them without feeling you are missing out.

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💃 Contemporary class by Johanna Sauër

In this one hour class we will work with both improvisation and set movement patterns (choreography). We use improvisation to develop an understanding of different tools we can use to enrich our dance. Tools can be for example; spirals, tension and release, working with the floor and the anatomy of the body. The tools we will work with are connected to the tools that will be used in the contact improvisation class afterwards.

We will also work with set movement to develop coordination, strength, flexibility and musicality. We train both sides and we will widen your movement vocabulary to enrich your dance. We will work on tools that we also touch in the contact improvisation class, but then in a solo setting to develop a deeper understanding of your own dance.

🦋 Contact Improvisation class by Alkis Barbas & Johanna Sauër

In this class we dive deeper into contact improvisation and its tools and techniques. Every month the practice centres around a different theme, each with various key elements like grounding, extension, spiralling, action and reaction, playfulness, falling into contact or group improvisation. There are exercises addressing the different experience levels of the group, with some classes being more foundational while others more challenging and combining principles. Alkis and Johanna will be alternating the teaching, and sometimes lead the class together (mostly at the start and end of the trajectory).

During these 5 months you will have a chance to:
🔅Experience new ways of expressing yourself and connecting freely with others in the dance
🔅Expand your physical and mental capacities to sense, offer, and make use of support - without overthinking it
🔅Cultivate a healthy relationship to the self and others, within a touch-based practice
🔅Try lifts/moves further away from your comfort zone in a safer container.
🔅Practice movement patterns for a body that stays elastic and dynamic without chronic pain.
🔅Enjoy dancing in a supportive environment, embedded in the local CI community.
🔅Have a weekly appointment with yourself to be present and embodied

and much more…

Accessibility
Both these classes are meant for everybody that wants to explore movement together, with a curious mindset and an eagerness to learn. Previous experience with CI or other dance practices is welcome. We wish to make these classes more inclusive and accessible, while keeping the focus and quality on movement. That means we will curate the level of classes throughout the weeks to fit the range of levels in the group. We will also have a look at the composition of the group that comes to the open class and have a talk with those who we doubt would match the class. Reach out to us in advance with your thoughts or questions!

If you want to join one or both of these classes, we do ask you to commit to either one or both of them for half a year. We ask this in order to create a group of people that you train with. In this way, we build trust together and from there we can grow as a group. We want to give you the chance to really develop a deeper set of skills in this practice and we see this works better when the group commits to the training. Of course, you are free to miss some sessions if you have reasons to do so.

(New: committing for two seasons back-to-back gives gets you a discount on the second season!)

If you are not ready to commit for half a year yet, we also offer a drop in class on Wednesday evening at the Vasim Circus Space in Nijmegen with a potluck afterwards. That is a great to get to know us as teachers, and build up your condition and familiarity with the form.

For any other questions you can email Johanna Sauër johannadanst@gmail.com. We'd love to hear from you, and even more to meet you on the dance floor!