NITA LITTLE: ISSC Training on Somatic Research
NITA LITTLE: ISSC Training on Somatic Research
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NITA LITTLE
ISSC TRAINING ON SOMATIC RESEARCH FOR (LIFE &) ENSEMBLE PRACTICE
Somatic Research Methodologies, Improvisation & Ensemble Practice
21-25th October 2026
Fools Valley, Lisbon Area, Portugal
*toward the development of the 1st ISSC CoLab in Portugal
ABOUT THE WORKSHOP
This Training Workshop in Somatic Research provides specific research skills for studying the physicality of Somatic Communication through Improvisational Solo, Duet, and Ensemble Practices, using methodologies established by Nita Little* for the Institute for the Study of Somatic Communication (ISSC).
The workshop combines theoretical and practical work, including listening, moving, reading, discussion, and research interview techniques. We will investigate the language of embodied states that support somatic communication within contact improvisation and ensemble practices, creating a shared language from which to anchor research inquiry.
Our intention is to give continuity to this work by establishing the 1st CoLab research group in Portugal under the resource umbrella of the ISSC.
WHAT IS IT?
While the work of Nita Little is inspired by Contact Improvisation, this workshop does not require previous experience in CI nor weight bearing. Movement is part of the workshop yet the focus is on developing particular capacities and skills for artist-based inquiry and research. Expect a balance between moving and speaking.
Participants will explore how Somatic Communication can offer emergent relations of immediate coordination, synchronicity, and play, opening possibilities for Co-Creative Practices where new knowledge and data might emerge.
Movement practices 35%, Training and Discussion 45%, Specific skill building 20%
WHO IS IT FOR?
This Training Workshop is for anyone interested in exploring Somatic Communication, Relational Intelligence, Improvisation, and Ensemble Practices. It is especially suited to those who want to extend their research beyond choreographic choice-making and develop skills for artist-based inquiry into what dancers/movers do when they engage in acts of communication.
WITH NITA LITTLE
Nita Little, PhD, is a dance researcher, theorist/artist, and one of the founding developers of Contact Improvisation. She began working with Steve Paxton on the materials that became Contact Improvisation in 1972 and participated in its earliest performances and teaching.
Her research focuses on embodied attention, somatic communication, relational practices, and the ways physical attention can support communication between humans and the more-than-human world. She received her PhD in Performance Studies in 2014 and teaches, lectures, performs, researches, and writes internationally.
Nita is the co-founder and Executive Director/Core Collaborator of the Institute for the Study of Somatic Communication (ISSC), where she advocates for dancers as embodied researchers and works toward expanding human capacities for relational intelligence.
ABOUT THE ISSC
The Institute for the Study of Somatic Communication (ISSC) is a network of CoLab working groups engaging in Somatic Research through a specific methodological approach.
The ISSC supports the research, community and practice of somatic embodiment and communication across the globe, in a variety of applications. Its mission is to train skills of physical attention in order to generate new knowledge and foster connectivity through somatic research practices.
For more information please visit:
LEARNING OUTCOMES WILL INCLUDE:
- a deeper understanding of the potentials for Co-Creative Practices where new knowledge and data might emerge.
- shared language from which to begin research inquiry.
- research practices and tools that are specific to dancing, improvising, and inquiry.
- materials that outline our work together.
- access to establishing CoLab research groups under the resource umbrella of the ISSC.
- access to a worldwide network of dancer/researchers collectively investigating new ways that dancers bring dance values and potentials into the broader world.
- access to establishing CoLab research groups under the resource umbrella of the ISSC.
WHEN
21-25th October 2026
Partial Participation not possible.
Full commitment is a requirement for this work.
WHERE
The workshop will take place at Fools’ Valley, a research lab, residency space and occasional venue for events and retreats, located around 30 minutes north of Lisbon.
Set within a spacious natural environment, Fools’ Valley offers dedicated spaces for movement and practice, including a 200sqm dancehall, as well as spaces for rest, connection and community. The land also includes a swimming pond, wood-fired sauna, meditation spaces, library and outdoor areas.
For more information please visit:
PRICE (does not include accommodation or food)
Regular: 540 €
Supportive: 490 €
Generous: 590 €
The 3 prices address peoples different socio/economical situations.
We are offering 5 scholarships (50% of regular price) for artists/students in need of financial support. Please send us an e-mail explaining your situation:
www.assembly.contact
ACCOMMODATION
Available at the venue from 20€/night in shared dormitory
FOOD
3 meals/day available from 30€/day
APPLICATION / REGISTRATION
- Visit www.assembly.contact
- Read the workshop information and registration details.
- Complete the application form.
- Submit your application.
- Send application and await confirmation.
Space limited to 35 participants.
+INFO/APPLICATION
assembly.ciresidency@gmail.com
The Assembly Team,
Location
fools' valley, 2590-407 Sobral de Monte Agraço