Contact Improvisation Class & Jam

Contact improvisation is a movement practice based on physical dialogue between bodies. Through touch, weight, momentum, gravity and shared attention, people explore movement together without knowing in advance exactly where it will go.

It involves listening through the body: giving and receiving weight, following and redirecting momentum, supporting and being supported, and continually negotiating the changing relationship between yourself, another person, and the ground.

Classes at Wainsgate are led by experienced teachers and offer a way into the jam, giving some shared information and focus to move with.

A jam is a space for exploring contact improvisation in a concentrated space, and is an opportunity to dance with different people; to play, explore and discover.

The session starts at 12 midday with a two-hour class, then there’s a break for 45 minutes – a chance to eat something and hang out a bit, and then two hours for jamming.

The class and jam are welcoming, physical and fun, and are open to all.

This month’s class and jam are facilitated by Amani Talheth-Fell (he/him).

"I am a dancer and organiser based in Leeds. I have organised dance events in Leeds for the past 10 years, with the aim of making dance more accessible to all. Within Contact Improvisation, I host a Lab - aimed at creating a broadly non-hierarchical space to explore questions together - and help organise monthly Class & Jams at NSCD. When I'm dancing, I'm interested in how we can generate inspiration and creativity through sheer curiosity, that feeling of equality in the dance, and how our weight can guide us through chaotic scenarios!"

More about Contact Improvisation here: contactquarterly.com/contact-improvisation/about/