When: 11 & 12 May 2024 

Where: Vasim Circus Space, Winselingseweg 41, 6541 AH Nijmegen (NL)

Times: 

10:00 doors open

10:30-18:00 (1,5h lunch)

Fee: 

200€ normal ticket

140€ Vasim Circus Space community ticket (details on the Facebook event)

Registration now open: send an email at: info@arnhemse-meisjes.com

For who: professional dancers, dancers/movement lovers with interest for contact improvisation, (partnering) acrobats with curiosity in broadly exploring movement.

*DESCRIPTION*

The focus of our practice is physicality. We flow in and out of contact, viewing the dance as a playful dialogue which breathes freely as it develops. Presence and awareness help to expand the horizon of choices and directions, and opens up more possibilities.

We work both technically - concentrating on building up a functional understanding of underlying physical principles and structures of contact improvisation- and experientially - widening the trust to instincts, impulses and intuition. Also building up an understanding of how our bodies work. How the joints, bones, muscles and skin function to bring clarity and more awareness to movement.

The principal themes behind our work are organic, fluid and functional movement. Effortless transitions. Efficiency. Sequentiality.

Some of the movement principles and patterns we employ are sourced from developmental movement patterns and floor-work.

The sessions develop slowly from inside to out. Ending towards more technical material. We often start with individual floor-work, offering particular principles and tasks, and then gradually build up to standing using the natural spirals of the body. Material alternates between contact and solo tasks, and also exercises that connect the group as a whole. Creating an open, safe environment to explore.

We focus on cultivating a deeper awareness of listening, breathing, giving, receiving, and timing.

Within specific exercises we explore tools that are helpful to work in contact such as; sharing weight, center-to-center, leaning and supporting, rolling point of contact. Also using ideas around momentum, suspension, inertia & falling. We will find effortless ways into weight transfers and lifting.

Falling and catching. Suspending the time.

Lightness. How do we distribute our weight intelligently, and when do we give weight? Fine tuning and subtle precision.

Awareness in timing allows us to take easy rides to fly !

Technique and Poetry.

Structure and Freedom.

Playful Beings in Motion.

*BIOGRAFIES*

# VEGA LUKKONNEN

I am a dancer, dance-teacher, performance-artist and bodyworker made in Finland.

I have studied dance and theatre pedagogy in Finland, Helsinki.

In Theatre Academy of Finland, from where I got my master´s degree in 2008.

I would say my dearest high-school and university in contact-improvisation has been the finnish contact community, where I have learned so much from my colleagues, friends and fellow dancers, by sharing the dance and rolling point almost 30 years... 

Contact Improvisation has been my lover since i was a teenager ! 

So, I've gone through many kind of chapters with her.

Recently, I'm more and more interested in details, quality, fine tuning, listening, presence. Accompanied with deeper understanding of underlying principles of contact improvisation. 

Breath plays as well big part in my dancing. It brings me naturally into moments of momentum, falling, flying, swinging and bouncing.

# HUGH STANIER

I am a Contemporary Dance Artist specialising in Contact Improvisation with over 15 years of teaching & performance experience. I began dancing when I was 15, training in Break dance and Contemporary. I went on to train at Northern School of Contemporary Dance (NSCD), graduating in 2008. Since then I have worked with companies such as 2Faced Dance, Tom Dale, STAN Won’t Dance, and most recently Wim Vandekeybus/Ultima Vez. 

I have taught intensives internationally at the Goa Contact Festival (2015-16-18-19-20), Goa Dance residency(2019-20), Thailand Contact and ecstatic arts festival(2019), Berlin contact festival (2014-19) and Portugal Contact gathering(2018-19), and for National Dance company Wales (NDCW) as well as organising my own workshops and retreats in the UK, Portugal, Germany, Israel and India. 

Presently, what interests me most about teaching and facilitating movement is how to create and hold spaces for other people to find a deeper connection to themselves through playful exploration. Whether it is improvisation, contact Improvisation, or a choreographed dance class, the focus and intention lies in finding the joy and power of a personal movement practice connected to presence, awareness and breath.

Stay UPDATED through our facebook event bellow.

https://facebook.com/events/s/contact-improvisation-workshop/747456586886898/