Well I've been very negligent lab scribe as the weather has been nicer and I've been resistant to sitting down at the computer, but now it's Monday yet again so I better get on with it. I have some very basic notes of what I can remember from the last two (very lovely) lab sessions.
Lab on 4/16 lead by Cyrus
Everything flowed together so smoothly that it is hard to separate out the different explorations/exercises, but this is some of what we covered.
Started in pairs and one trio, head-to-head, exploring and mapping the surfaces of the skull. This tender attention transitioned into the spine and a sense of fitting into the curvature of the partner's body.
Cyrus talked about the care around the head, the gentleness we give that sensitive area and compared it to how we treat children--with care and sensitivity. We danced again with that idea, to treat each person with the care we would give a child. Someone brought up the idea of having t-shirts printed with a childhood photo.
Then trios took turns with witnessing.
Here are some key words I jotted down during discussion:
Beauty, lack of agenda, no ego, high levels of coordination, finding stillness, organic discovery, fitting, feeding, nuzzling.
And some ideas:
Allowed to be open/non-defensive because you know everyone is in a state of care. Soft placed faces, eyes at back of socket. A score that is easy to stay with. The head is easy to return to. The head is the new pelvis.
Lab on 4/23 lead by Christian
Christian took the concept "what do you love about contact" and ran with it. We got to do some of Christian's favorites!
Started in a place of eyes closed and Christian paired us anonymously with partners for a ouija-style single fingertip dance of non-ambition, waiting, and listening. After a long while this was permitted to grow. Then one partner opened eyes and did the "Brushin' Russian" exercise (credit given to Michal) where one person gave little brushes that lead their partner on little movement journeys. Evolved from brushing into other qualities of touch. Then partner left alone to do a little solo of "surprises" imagining impulses coming at unexpected times from unexpected directions, imitating the quality of having the partner's information. Then we switched roles.
Then we did trios building on the idea of giving information through manipulation rather than center-weighted rolling point of contact. Then we had quartets where three people would fly one person through the air, and then the flying person would rotate. Then we did a 12 minute dance where there was always a trio and a quartet but it could shift fluidly.
Monday, April 30, 2018
Monday, April 16, 2018
A Dance for Michal
A little video we made Monday the 9th for Michal. Thankfully her surgery went well on Thursday, but sending continued love for her during recovery.
Tuesday, April 10, 2018
Lab Notes: Heart #4
Led by Kaitlin
Also in attendance: Scott, Christian, Denise
Thinking about the heart and it's functions.
--It pumps blood. Get it pumping, move blood through the body. Warm the core, wake the edges.
Dance Party:
One song solo warm up(Can't Hold Us by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis)
Three songs collective dancing--maybe some contact but primary directive dance party. Finding some idea of ensemble. (Sweet Dreams by Eurythmics, Stay by The Zodiacs, Higher & Higher by Jackie Wilson)
--Heart brings blood to the lungs to be oxygenated. It is vital, it is vitality. Life-blood. It is the pleasure of being alive.
15 minute duet of vitality:
Dance of vitality. Indulge in your aliveness, witness and celebrate your partner's vitality too.
We did two 15 min duets, swapping partners.
Reflections:
"Lungs are the wings of the heart"
"Look at all the things I can do with my human body"
Denise: Melded the quality of appreciating little moments, but also energy. These are not always dances that go together. ie detailed dances tend to be non-energetic, energetic dances not as focused on listening/nuance.
Christian: A sense of appreciating each other's choices and noticing being appreciated. The time to stay with the person and develop that noticing.
Kaitlin: Nice mindset to return to: positive and open. Places an intention around it that gives it a shine.
Denise: Gave a sort of permission to do anything because we're just honoring each other's vitality.
Christian: the way an electromagnet responds to polarity, pushing off, flipping back and forth, feeding off reciprocating energy
--The heart is the center of the circulatory system. A network. We have heart strings attached to people across our community.
Dance as prayer:
12 minute duets. Each person takes a turn tracing the names of those who they would pray for, those who are pulling on our heart strings, placing those names in the vessel of our partner. (Found a lovely melting-in or sand sensation if the back surface is smoothed with the palms between names.) Then together a dance of prayer, honoring the names placed inside both of you.
❤️
Also in attendance: Scott, Christian, Denise
Thinking about the heart and it's functions.
--It pumps blood. Get it pumping, move blood through the body. Warm the core, wake the edges.
Dance Party:
One song solo warm up(Can't Hold Us by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis)
Three songs collective dancing--maybe some contact but primary directive dance party. Finding some idea of ensemble. (Sweet Dreams by Eurythmics, Stay by The Zodiacs, Higher & Higher by Jackie Wilson)
--Heart brings blood to the lungs to be oxygenated. It is vital, it is vitality. Life-blood. It is the pleasure of being alive.
15 minute duet of vitality:
Dance of vitality. Indulge in your aliveness, witness and celebrate your partner's vitality too.
We did two 15 min duets, swapping partners.
Reflections:
"Lungs are the wings of the heart"
"Look at all the things I can do with my human body"
Denise: Melded the quality of appreciating little moments, but also energy. These are not always dances that go together. ie detailed dances tend to be non-energetic, energetic dances not as focused on listening/nuance.
Christian: A sense of appreciating each other's choices and noticing being appreciated. The time to stay with the person and develop that noticing.
Kaitlin: Nice mindset to return to: positive and open. Places an intention around it that gives it a shine.
Denise: Gave a sort of permission to do anything because we're just honoring each other's vitality.
Christian: the way an electromagnet responds to polarity, pushing off, flipping back and forth, feeding off reciprocating energy
--The heart is the center of the circulatory system. A network. We have heart strings attached to people across our community.
Dance as prayer:
12 minute duets. Each person takes a turn tracing the names of those who they would pray for, those who are pulling on our heart strings, placing those names in the vessel of our partner. (Found a lovely melting-in or sand sensation if the back surface is smoothed with the palms between names.) Then together a dance of prayer, honoring the names placed inside both of you.
❤️
Monday, April 2, 2018
Lab Notes: Heart #3
(Heart #2 I was not in attendance)
Tonight's lab led by Hallie!
Also in attendance: Cyrus, Denise, Julius, Connie, Kaitlin
As always, my memory is limited and selective!
Began sitting in a circle, pressing our hands into the hands of the people on either side of us. Pushing harder, then barely touching, then finding the middle. We did a little dance of hand departure and found our way into the ground. Hallie invited us to find "arrivals and departures" with the floor, to notice as we roll that as one part arrives, another departs, and vise versa. She then invited us to find a stillness, and do a meditation on gratitude--picking a person, or switching between people, and remembering things they've done for us or things about them we are grateful for. We then broke into three duets of arrivals and departures. Hallie invited us to play with primary position (fetal) and secondary position (arching/reaching) and to use these to support and wrap around the energy of our partner. Then we paused and noticed the heat spots of where we in contact with our partner. We carried that heat with us as we did dances of arriving and departing with the whole room (grazing sort-of).
After some group reflection we did the following structure:
Two lines of three people. The 1st person in line (Person A) solos while Person B and C watch.
When Person A feels they have arrived, they invite person B to join, Person C witnesses the duet. When Person A feels the duet has arrived, they depart and join the back of the other line while Person B is left to solo. Eventually they invite Person C to join them, thus restarting the pattern. Both lines go simultaneously, and cycle through so you are always dancing with a new person. This was really lovely, even though yours truly got confused about which party initiates the joining, thus resulting in some extra-long solo action!
To finish up we had on person solo, and then, when invited, two others enter together to join for a short trio. The other three witness. Then we switched groups.
Tonight's lab led by Hallie!
Also in attendance: Cyrus, Denise, Julius, Connie, Kaitlin
As always, my memory is limited and selective!
Began sitting in a circle, pressing our hands into the hands of the people on either side of us. Pushing harder, then barely touching, then finding the middle. We did a little dance of hand departure and found our way into the ground. Hallie invited us to find "arrivals and departures" with the floor, to notice as we roll that as one part arrives, another departs, and vise versa. She then invited us to find a stillness, and do a meditation on gratitude--picking a person, or switching between people, and remembering things they've done for us or things about them we are grateful for. We then broke into three duets of arrivals and departures. Hallie invited us to play with primary position (fetal) and secondary position (arching/reaching) and to use these to support and wrap around the energy of our partner. Then we paused and noticed the heat spots of where we in contact with our partner. We carried that heat with us as we did dances of arriving and departing with the whole room (grazing sort-of).
After some group reflection we did the following structure:
Two lines of three people. The 1st person in line (Person A) solos while Person B and C watch.
When Person A feels they have arrived, they invite person B to join, Person C witnesses the duet. When Person A feels the duet has arrived, they depart and join the back of the other line while Person B is left to solo. Eventually they invite Person C to join them, thus restarting the pattern. Both lines go simultaneously, and cycle through so you are always dancing with a new person. This was really lovely, even though yours truly got confused about which party initiates the joining, thus resulting in some extra-long solo action!
To finish up we had on person solo, and then, when invited, two others enter together to join for a short trio. The other three witness. Then we switched groups.
Monday, March 19, 2018
Lab Notes Heart #1
3/19/18
***Disclaimer: my memory is not always great. If I've forgotten something just email me and I'll add it in***
"Heart" #1
Led by Connie
Connie, Kaitlin, Cyrus, Denise, Julius, Sheila, Hallie in attendance.
Began with eyes closed on the floor, Connie led us through guided meditation, touching base with the heart beat/pulse, through the face, chest, and low belly. Invited us to make way across floor. When you run into someone keep eyes closed and say hello with hands. Find each other's pulse, feel both pulses together. Then move on.
---
Walk through space, find human, settle into a hug. Get the hug you want to get, give the hug you want to give.
---
Rotating 4 minute duets
In stillness, connect to each other's pulse. Swiftly/softly tell your partner one thing in the past week that brought joy/comfort, and one thing that was hard or frustrating. Then dance the remainder of the time.
---
Whole group gathers with hands on one person's back, sensing heart beat. "It" person feels support, then moves through space however they like. They place their hands on someone else when finished to change 'it' person.
---
Open dancing.
---
Sheila leads next week. I will be gone, so I deputized Julius to take lab notes in my stead.
***Disclaimer: my memory is not always great. If I've forgotten something just email me and I'll add it in***
"Heart" #1
Led by Connie
Connie, Kaitlin, Cyrus, Denise, Julius, Sheila, Hallie in attendance.
---
Walk through space, find human, settle into a hug. Get the hug you want to get, give the hug you want to give.
---
Rotating 4 minute duets
In stillness, connect to each other's pulse. Swiftly/softly tell your partner one thing in the past week that brought joy/comfort, and one thing that was hard or frustrating. Then dance the remainder of the time.
---
Whole group gathers with hands on one person's back, sensing heart beat. "It" person feels support, then moves through space however they like. They place their hands on someone else when finished to change 'it' person.
---
Open dancing.
---
Sheila leads next week. I will be gone, so I deputized Julius to take lab notes in my stead.
Monday, March 12, 2018
Historical Lab Luck Notes 2014-Present
Included for posterity are Lab Luck notes copied from previous lab luck emails. This is not comprehensive, just what I could find, digging out of my emails. Some editing has occurred discussing membership.
1/8/18
Happy 2018 everyone!
1/8/18
Happy 2018 everyone!
Lab notebook recovered, thanks to Sheila 
Upcoming Retreat: Speaking of whom, Sheila has been so kind to head up the retreat planning process. Please figure out your schedules and communicate with her your availability for the retreat so she can plan. March 8-11 is the window.
Other news:
Rager at Scott's house on Sunday. Anytime after 6. You can meet Scott's brother and be part of a secret plan to get Scott's coworkers dancing sometime after 8pm.
Kaitlin's CI fundamentals class Also on Sunday right before the jam (1:30-2:50). Had a lovely but low-attendance class this past Sunday, and am a bit worried about ending up with a very small awkward number on the upcoming holiday weekend, so if you're able to drop into the class no charge for lab members! Or tell your friends to come!
Details for the upcoming session:
Dates: Jan 15-Mar 5
(The mar 5th may be part dancing part retreat planning)
People:
1. Christian
2. Connie
3. Katherine
4. Scott
5. Sheila
6. Liz
7. Cyrus
8. Denise
9. Julius
10. Spring
11. Michal
12. Kaitlin
13. Mike MAYBE
Hallie has to bow out this session : ( BUT it's because she's rehearsing for an upcoming show! : )
Payment
Please pay Liz $35 for the session via Venmo or Cash app. Her Venmo handle is @Liz-Mattson.
Session Theme: Ensemble Continued
Leading 1st lab: Katherine
Notes/Minutes, paraphrased:
-Discussed the way in which the mosh pit/exhaustion into calm resetting was an effective tool
-The group accumulation was a tool we explored, and thinking about duets in duet rather than a quartet, for example, as an effective way in
-Questions around what is ensemble--that everyone internally feels they are part of ensemble or that externally we display group continuity.
We seemed to agree in the group that it was more about what folks were feeling.
Scott: When i'm deep in duet it's hard to expand my awareness and when I'm aware of ensemble my duet is not so great
Katherine: Is it possible to develop skill around both
Christian: What if we played with one parameter---from duets , just paying attention to group level, or speed, etc.
Katherine: A robust ensemble can benefit from a pair diving into a duet
Scott: Support and Focus--acting as background or foreground
Cyrus: Sensing autonomy and potential of autonomy--ensemble is built from a built, shared vocabulary
Kaitlin: Maybe ensemble is just deciding/believing that whatever you are doing is part of the whole
Mike: The metaphor of the network--rather than conviction--atunement. Attuning with ourselves, then with our partner, these connections exist even once we shift our attention. It can be resilient. And it doesn't have to be egalitarian. It's ok for roles to form.
Cyrus: That takes time!
Connie: Can we only achieve ensemble if we're starting with small groups and building up? Listening to what mike just said and what we have been working on. Can we all smash together and find ensemble? We all know each other.
Sheila: Yes, but a week has passed, we only have 2 hours...seems like a personal experience for every individual. How do we check in?
Cyrus: A good improvisation can happen without one or two people contributing.
Christian: Each facilitator can show their own kind of ensemble.
Sheila: Ensemble is like meditation--tamping down ego, paying attention to stimulus in the room. We have our habits, our tendencies, our "shoulds and musts" --noticing
Cyrus: I want to go deeper and identify what worked about these two special labs that reliably produced good ensemble (Mosh lab and one after with accumulation)
Connie: Or can we get to it through a different process?
Scott: It's a good reminder that we dont' have to innovate every week--we could continue exploring something that works. We should develop as a lab some exercises to help our atunement.
Kaitlin: Can the second duet, group, etc. be an influencing factor similar to music--where it doesn't pull the duet apart but is instead a unifying factor
Christian: What other kinds of atunement?
Mike: Maybe we need to practice atunement through these extensive processes, but over time we'll get better and won't need all these things to get there.
______________________________________________________________________________
11/15/17
Hi Labbers,
Here are the details:
-Every monday now though December 18 (the monday after centrum
-Next Lab Luck in the new year
Who's in:
1. Scott
2. Hallie
3. Cyrus
4. Michal
5. Katherine
6. Sheila
7. Connie
8. Mike
9. Christian
10. Denise
11. Kaitlin
12. Spring (we think? please confirm)
All those people are in the "to" field on this email, so anytime you want to send a message to everyone in this session you can copy paste and if it's a new topic please start a new thread because sometimes these threads get out of control!
Theme:
Hack the Connected Ensemble
with emphasis on Contact!
How come we do all this deep, connected dancing during lab and then at the end the open dancing seems to fall into flighty ensemble mush? How do we keep connection in larger numbers? How do we still keep emphasis on Contact (rather than just group improv)? What are the strategies to sink in with 5 or more people?
Request to have (as warm up) some exercise to ground in self, and some exercise to ground in CI.
________________________________________________________________________________
6/19/17
Hi Labradores,
Thanks to Mike and Liz and Alder Street Coop for hosting!
Good food and good company. Light discussion--clearly, we're ready to start a flexible summer session.
SESSION DATES: June 19-July 24 (ending before SFDI)
Special August Session: August Mondays will be "Nomad Lab" -exploring the outdoors or alternative locations and will be organized at the time by anyone who is around and feels so motivated.
NEXT LAB LUCK: September 11, the Monday after labor day
THEME: Dealer's Choice: Research Question Edition
Come up with a question you are interested in researching and email it to the group on like the Wednesday or Thursday BEFORE lab, so it can marinate a bit*. Then explore your question through leading lab.
*A question, meaning, no "homework" like listening to a podcast or reading an article. It's summer for Pete's sake!
First up is Michal!
Summer Attendance Policy:
Try not to miss, but we know there are lots of travel plans in the summer, so if you're missing more than two feel free to still participate. $35 for the session (payable to LIZ on Venmo or cash or with real money in person) or, if you can only come to one or two, $10 per lab to drop in.
Summer Guest Policy:
You can bring guests! Just be diligent about the language you use so it's not confusing. Something like: "I'm part of a research CI group, and in the summer months we invite guests to participate, would you like to come as a guest on Monday?" Guests pay drop-in fee. Also, just email the group and give a heads up about bringing someone!
WHO'S IN:
1. Mike
2. Liz
3. Michal
4. Scott
5. Sheila
6. Julius
7. Katherine
8. Connie
9. Spring
10. Denise
11. Cyrus
12. Christian
13. Kaitlin
14. Hallie?
I will be gone the next two labs, and maybe a third depending on how jet lagged I am (I fly back to SEA on Monday July 3) but I'll see you EVENTUALLY.
Happy Summer!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4/24/17
Hi All,
Below are notes from last night's lab luck.
Everyone in the "TO" field are the people in this session (sans Nita if she takes us up on our offer), so when communicating via email within this session, please use all of these email addresses and not an old thread that has different people on it.
DATES: May 1st through June 5th
NEXT LAB LUCK: June 12th
WHO'S IN:
1. Sheila
2. Cyrus
3. Hallie
4. Katherine
5. Liz
6. Scott
7. Mike
8. Kaitlin
9. Roel
10. Michal
11. Denise
12. Julius
13. Connie
14. Spring
***You may notice that this is more than our cap of *12* but we but we have decided for this session to let it slide.
THEME: Wanting to get specific, we landed on "Tessellating Turtles." We will "go deep" with very slow movement and our bodies fitting perfectly together, with our backs maintaining a curved, immobile protective shell. We will eat iceberg lettuce without our hands. We will address such questions as, What does it mean to dance from a defensive place--when we pull our heads inside our bodies? and If we don't have ears, can we really be "listening"?
just kidding
ACTUAL THEME:
Balance (trios?)
Everyone seemed to have a positive reaction to "Balance" so we went with it. It was also suggested that perhaps we could start in trio as a structure, or suggest that trio is used unless it is no longer serving us.
SOME NOTES:
-People are concerned with a larger group that the talking will get out of hand, or that a few personalities will dominate the conversation and not everyone will get a chance to share due to time. Facilitators are instructed to structure reflection time so that this doesn't happen. Also, using structures (such as trio/observing) with a large group so that everyone has room to dance.
WHO IS FACILITATING THIS COMING MONDAY: We forgot to decide. Any volunteers? If no one comes forward I will choose someone. 
xoxo,
Kaitlin
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10/30/16
below are the notes from the most recent lab luck. Please add comments and content if I missed something essential. I also added a few of the notes from the previous lab luck as reminders.
Julius
Lab Luck Oct 30 at Camp Casey Retreat
Present: Katherine, Christian, Denise, Cyrus, Connie, Sheila, Julius
Discussion Topics:
- Theme for next session
- Incident during Retreat
Session Details:
- Theme: Personal Stories / Body Stories
- Session runs from Mon Nov 7—Mon Dec 19
- Next lab luck will be Mon Jan 2 (if we skip Mon Dec 26)
- Plan for Mon Nov 7: Sharing of Appreciation Jar, first lab facilitated by Sheila (?)
Who’s In:
Scott, Cyrus, Denise, Connie, Sheila, Christian, Katherine, Hallie, Julius, Liz, Michal (11 people)
We did not discuss adding new members.
Open Questions:
- Who is collecting money for this session? $30-35
- Who is facilitating the first lab?
Discussion:
- Lab Theme
Suggestions for session themes included body stories / sharing more personal stories, giving each other feedback / soliciting feedback from specific people, back space / expanding on Mike’s back space lab, exploring pet peeves in CI versus dangerous situations, safety in CI / extracting yourself from or resolving dangerous situations. The topics not picked for this next session were earmarked for exploration in later sessions.
Some time was spent discussing a good structure if we were to explore the theme of giving each other feedback / soliciting feedback from specific people. Some of the questions about a potential feedback structure were: is it helpful to ask just a few or all lab members for feedback? What are constructive and helpful feedback questions? If this type of exercise is not about liking or accepting how someone dances, how can the structure make that clear? Is the goal of feedback to provide an opportunity to help someone learn about/explore their own blind spots? Those interested in this theme should research “structures for feedback” that might work for lab/this group and share any discoveries at the next lab luck.
- Incident during Retreat
This refers to Kaitlin’s injury, in which Scott was involved. Scott and Kaitlin were not present at the lab luck, but there was a general desire to talk about the injury. The fact that it happened provoked some thoughts and emotions. Cyrus brought up that his dance company’s insurance was used for the retreat. Further discussion revolved around general (physical) safety in lab: do we as a group and as individuals have enough skills for avoiding injuries, is there room for improvement, does anyone feel unsafe, is there anything to be done in response to Kaitlin’s injury? There was no consensus or main point, other than empathy and love for Kaitlin and Scott.
Lab Luck Notes from 10/19/16
New Session Topic Brainstorm:
-East Coast and West Coast dancing
-Performance practices
-"Devised" style--director desire
-Derivative Tuning Score
-Anatomy
-Live music
-Whole self/Life stories
-Long, uncomfortable scores, like hour long quartets!
-Invisible factors that guide our dancing and decision making in the dance
-Witnessing
-How do you make an offer/invitation
-Accessing technical ideas through a research question (ex. How do you make yourself feel as light as possible?)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9/12/16
Hello Labbers,
Here is the nitty gritty from Monday's meeting. If you are taking part in this session, please read it so we are all on the same page!
Everyone in this session is in the "TO" field of this email, so you can copy and paste anytime you want to send an email to this session's group.
Also copying Roel and Nadia on here (in the CC field) just to keep them in the loop. And because they are special and we miss them.
DATES FOR THIS SESSION: September 19 through THE RETREAT (October 27-30)
Who's in: Mike, Hallie, Kaitlin, Michal, Cyrus, Scott, Denise, Julius, Sheila, Connie, Katherine (1st 3), Christian (maybe just 1st one but we gave him the OK)
A few IMPORTANT reminders:
1) Mike is collecting funds for Summer and Fall and we want to make it SUPER easy for him. He has requested that we all be responsible for paying either at the Luck or the first Lab, so that he doesn't have to track you down, etc. You can also use easy apps like "cash" and "venmo" to pay Mike. Be responsible for yourself and do it!
2) There is a process for inviting people to join lab, and that process happens at lab luck. You cannot just offer someone a spot in Lab, no matter how famous or influential or awesome they are. I know we all get excited, but please be mindful of this going forward.
3) Lab Luck is part of lab and the collaborative process we take on together and a big part of reflection and planning. Obviously sometimes there are conflicts and you can't make it...BUUUUUUUT I think sometimes it can be easy to think of the Luck as a Monday off. Let's all make an effort in the future to attend the lab luck if planning on being in the session.
THEME:
Inspired by the "marriage counseling" lab that Roel led a while back, the theme is: "COUPLES THERAPY" which is shorthand (and a bit tongue-in-cheek) for using communication/therapy/
A few notes on this if you facilitate:
-About knowing ourselves better, not about revealing ugly truths
-Limit the talking so we can all get in lots of dancing
-Come prepared, this may take a little research beforehand and thoughtfulness about how to apply to CI.
We thought this would be fun, weird, and interesting, and a good way to lead into the retreat!
Christian will lead the first and Katherine the 2nd.
Meeting Minutes:
Reflections on Summer Lab Theme: BRING IT
-Scott loves dancing outside. Let's do it more often.
-We worked with 1st choice vs. 2nd choice and decision vs. impulse.
-We did lots of long dances! Yay!
-Sheila brought music with seeds and also led a lab on "percentages" that was inspired by Hijack's SFDI workshop
-Katherine did one on "sensation as composition"
-Scott likes the ease of summer--the come and go, the light
-Sheila: Sparsity was really nice--both in numbers and in scaling down ideas
New Session Topic Brainstorm:
-East Coast and West Coast dancing
-Performance practices
-"Devised" style--director desire
-Derivative Tuning Score
-Anatomy
-Live music
-Whole self/Life stories
-Long, uncomfortable scores, like hour long quartets!
-Invisible factors that guide our dancing and decision making in the dance
-Witnessing
-Couples Therapy
-How do you make an offer/invitation
-Accessing technical ideas through a research question (ex. How do you make yourself feel as light as possible?)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
2/29/16
Hello Labsters:
Thanks to Scott for hosting on Monday. In the "to" field are all the folks who are "in" for this session: March 7-April 18. If you want to send an email to the group, be sure to copy from this "to" field for the duration of this session, starting new, appropriately subject titled threads when the subject at hand shifts. Hallie, please confirm that you got this email since I have never emailed you before I want to make sure I have it correct!
Next Session:
Mar 7-April 18
April 25 Lab Luck
Theme: Observing and exploring the specific relational chemistry between two (or more?) individuals and sharing. Seeking to deepen our understanding of the specific "pair stories" and co-created chemistry! Basically, what is the magic of the Nadia-Christian dance? Or the Mike-Sheila dance? Etc.
If this is confusing, don't worry, Mike is really good at explaining it and he is facilitating first, on March 7th!
Who's in:
1. Scott
2. Mike
3. Hallie
4. Christian
5. Katherine
6. Cyrus
7. Denise
8. Sheila
9. Julius
10. Connie
11. Nadia (1st half)
12. Noa (1st half)
Yours truly is pretty stressed out about the coming 6 weeks and so, with a heavy heavy heart, is taking a break this session.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1/4/16
NEXT SESSION:
January 11-February 22
NEXT LAB LUCK:
LEAP DAY! February 29
WHO'S IN:
1. Kaitlin
2. Nadia
3. Christian
4. Connie
5. Mike
6. Roel
7. Denise
8. Sheila
9. Julius
10. Katherine
11. Noa
12. Michal (if childcare can be arranged. Let us know.)
13. Liz (if childcare can be arranged. Let us know.)
14. Cyrus? (Did not let us know, Connie thought he might be traveling? Cyrus, please confirm.)
Also, because we are overfilled, we are asking for commitments of attending at least 5 of the 7 weeks. (understanding that there is some flexibility for people who are dealing with finding childcare since I hear that can be hard to have secured 7 weeks in advance). There was a call at the Luck for more commitment. Scott has bowed out for this session because he would have to miss 3 labs, but he'll be back.
THE THEME: DURATION
Mike will facilitate the first lab on monday.
I'm not going to do the "play-by-play" style email as I am busy AF right now, but to sum up:
Folks were interested in seeing what new territory could be found by "staying with." What happens after the point you would normally say, "I think I'm gonna get a drink." How does perception of the dance length (knowing or not knowing from the beginning) change how the dance unfolds? "Duration" could be applied in many ways, open to the facilitator to interpret, although we may continue with some discussion at the end of each lab discussing what areas we'd like to explore the next week.
We also discussed what we would like the next session to be. Roel brought up again the idea of working at limitations--specifically, if there's a bunch of weight coming his direction, he often yields as opposed to using force/strength in response. He would like the opportunity to practice more active responses with an experienced group (us) in a safe space (lab). Maybe in a Dojo. Mike shared anecdotes of "rowdy dancing" with mats in college, and how it recalibrates the body response. The group was generally interested. We want to predetermine next lab to be something along this line so that:
A. People not interested in more radical movement will know ahead of time and maybe not do that session.
B. So we can arrange some time in a padded space. Maybe one or two times.
Also, it was noted that Scott wants a baby. So if anyone has any extras lying around...
See you Monday
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10/19/15
NEXT SESSION:
October 26-December 14
NEXT LABLUCK:
January, 4 2016!
WHO'S IN:
1. Michal
2. Julius
3. Christian
4. Katherine
5. Cyrus
6. Mike
7. Scott
8. Connie
9. Sheila
10. Noa
11. Denise
12. Kaitlin
13. Liz?
THE THEME: GAMES AND MINI SCORES
INTENTIONS FOR FACILITATOR TO REMEMBER:
-Continued practice of not-chatting at 7pm
-Continued practice of leaving last 10 minutes to plan for next Lab
-Duets are great, but let's do trios, quartets, etc. also
-20 minutes of open dancing at the end, with moment of clearing/transition.
-Creating openings for the group to determine secondary explorations (making sure group is focused on what it needs to do next, rather than evaluation of what has just happened).
-Let Games be focused and not get too rowdy.
-Make Scott get sweaty.
Minutes from 10/19 lab--Hosted at Christian's! Thanks Christian and Abigail!
**As always, sometimes I have to paraphrase or don't get everything exactly how you said it. Someday I will learn shorthand, but until then please forgive any misquotations**
Reflecting on "fundamentals" from last session:
Michal-It was invigorating to learn "Spread/collapse/roll" from Mike's lab. It infused dancing after with energy.
Sheila-Sharing pathways people have developed in their own dancing was useful/inspiring/invigorating.
On the theme:
Scott-Games. Rule-based limitations that create complexities. Constraints. Task oriented. Mini-scores. Often he does "opposite" score in which he does the opposite of his habitual reaction.
Noa- Habit breaking?
Christian- Often, for instance, we'll always lift on one side, can we practice shifting and equalizing? Also, did Kurt's workshop. Very torso-based without a lot of weight-sharing or limbs. It was very rich territory.
Sheila-This group is a great place to try material that pushes at habits.
Denise-Felt like Kurt's workshop shifted jam dancing experience.
Cyrus- Loves the "no hands" dance.
Kaitlin- Recently watched out-of-towners use their legs more than I normally see. Asking my legs to direct within a dance makes for interesting choices.
Cyrus- Or layering things on top of each other can make for interesting/challenging dances.
Sheila- Maybe "intention" of score could be the through-line?
Scott- How about "habit-enhancing?" People present what they are good at?
Connie- Doesn't want to feel limits, limits, limits--worried that mini scores could be all restriction and taking away.
Cyrus- Loves the "bad" improv. Like the magic Twin Peaks night. Seems like there are 4 things here: 1. Restriction of Senses, 2. Permission/Bad improv, 3. Physical restriction/enhancement, 4. Habits
Mike- I like "games" over "habits." It encompasses all these things but also has this element of play, mischievousness, and creativity. We've often done physical restrictions combined with emotional narrative. Like the day Kaitlin put tape on the floor in shapes, or we played with Dixit cards, etc.
Cyrus-Sometimes Games get rowdy. Intention for more focused games-more articulation and more cohesion.
Connie-would like to do not just duets. Also, clothes--how do different clothes/surfaces/fabrics affect the dance?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9/2/15
Fall Session 1: September 7-October 12
Next Lab Luck: October 19th
Fall Session 2: October 26-December 7
Who's in:
1. Scott
2. Liz
3. Mike
4. Kaitlin
5. Connie
6. Cyrus
7. Sheila
8. Roel
9. Noa
10. Christian (half session)
11. Katherine (half session)
12. Michal (drop in)
13. Louis (drop in)
14. Nadia (drop in)
15. Julius (drop in)
*Note: Because a large percentage of our normal group is interested in coming, but cannot be available for the normal required minimum attendance, we have opted to make this session open to those in our normal group who can only come intermittently (who are specified above). Normal attendance expected from the rest of the group so we have a core of continuity. Furthermore, we will be returning to commitment of 5/7 weeks for the 2nd fall session.
Theme: Contact Fundamentals (what are they?!?)
Facilitation Goals:
-Encouraging the group toward a non-verbal place shortly after everyone arrives.
-Leaving a good chunk (20-30 minutes) of "open" dancing at the end to explore and integrate idea from lab.
-Checking in with group at harvest about what we want to explore the next week and assigning a new facilitator at that time
Speaking of which: We forgot to assign facilitation for this Monday. Any volunteers?
Some thoughts on the theme from the group:
Mike recalled a class once at a retreat (sorry I missed who/what this was exactly) that went really deep into rolling over each. Very simple but a chance to go deep into something simple and spend a long time and really look at the minutia--it was interesting.
Liz added that the danger of this topic was to become too instructional, and emphasized that we need to leave hefty time for application.
Katherine says that if we do simple and repetitive tasks that it is everyone's job to keep the mystery alive--like a marriage--so that it doesn't become too tedious.
Scott adds that clear restriction often feel like more work dancing, but leads to new discoveries.
We feel this theme is a good one to explore with the drop-in factor.
Some business:
There ares some requests re: email procedure.
This email contain all the addresses for folks involved in the fall session. PLEASE if you are going to email the group, copy and paste from this email. People have been left off the list, and things have gone to the wrong emails.
Also, make sure that if you are starting a new topic of conversation, please make a new email thread with an appropriate subject line.
Little things keep everyone sane and organized.
Membership:
Our dear Louis announced that he may be moving to Portland, OR. To summarize: Louis has been feeling STUCK here in Seattle the past few years, has met a close friend in Portland, which is what he feels he needs. The community there has shown signs of opening up to him, and he is going to spend the month of October there to solidify that the community will continue to embrace him the way he hopes it might. He also expressed that although he keeps wishing it weren't so, CI continually triggers his back pain and more and more his back is saying "no thank you" to dancing.
Lisa let us know via email (in case you missed it) that she will not be rejoining lab. She had a conversation with Katherine, who filled us in on the reasons behind that decision. Essentially, Lisa feels very strongly that CI should not be taught, and that lab resembles a class more than she desires and always has. She has decided to be actively anti-class (which is also relevant regarding the class being added prior to the Velocity jams).
There was some discussion among the group, some themes of which are:
-Lisa's point of view represent a not-atypical opinion. There are definitely philosophical differences re: contact. Is it a set of movements or a philosophy? Both are valid.
-We are excited about her exercising these views.
-We all hope to continue dancing with Lisa in other contexts.
A quick note about the class:
I will be leading the class at Velocity pre-jam (1:45-2:45 starting this Sunday). The cost of the class includes the jam (I will be paying the jam for each student). It is my hope to respect the CI community and varied view-points as much as possible, with emphasis on invitation over prescription. My goals for this class are to make the Jam accessible to those who wouldn't necessarily be able to jump right into jam and learn, and understanding that those reasons might be due to any combination of physical/social/psychological factors.
My broad goals to meet each class are the following:
-Introduce "rules" of a jam. What to expect, what is expected of you, how to keep yourself safe, some tools for navigating times of stress (ex. be okay with awkwardness, choose curiosity over ambition, etc.)
-Introduce tools for solo improvisation that develop body awareness, curiosity, and movement in and out of the floor.
-Create gradual structures into touch so that trust can be established prior to making contact. Starting with light touch and gradually introducing more weight.
-Develop skills of listening and communication through touch.
-Invite individual exploration.
I invite any feedback/ideas that you folks may have to make this a successful experience for students and the community. I will not be able to stay for the jams (I have rehearsal) this Sunday and next. I would love if anyone attending those days would be willing to dance with any new dancers this class might attract.
Thank you all.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4/27/15
As usual, it was a beautiful night for a Lab Luck at Scott's last night!
DATES: 3/9/15 - 4/20/15.
NEXT LABLUCK: 4/27/15
THE THEME: Metaphor. Katherine will lead the first 2 weeks with ——> MATH.
START TIME: 6:50 PM
In the fall we did music, then witnessing, and then EDGE
Over-stimulation of senses, blind dancing to an edge
SESSIONS
Alex: questions, long duration duet, ask q’s of each other- what emotions came for you.
Lisa: dark for a long time, sides, when do you move from being on one side to another
Mike: couldn’t talk on the way to lab about your day. How the person’s body was, danced in the dark. Edge of perception- sensing when someone was moving towards them.
Scott: duration, yes and no- what edges come up around that.
Sheila: edge of self, cloud pillow, where you end and the other people begin.
Cyrus: what we don’t give ourselves permission to do, what we actively resist.
OVERALL DISCUSSION
Scott- Conceptually we struggled, hard to define what we meant by edge. They weren’t building on each other. Scott didn’t find himself confronting edges.
Louis- we have lablucks, we propose these themes- just because we didn’t arrive at something, doesn’t mean it failed- it just means we’re not picking a theme to create a particular response to the theme. Sometimes the discovery is nebulous.
mike- did this lab session have the rigor that we want labs to have. Does it have rigor, will it change our dancing in some way?
Sheila- I felt I heard a lot of people saying that it was interesting that it wasn’t an edge.
Katherine- Usually with labs we’re each able to expand what that theme is to us. Edge- one person’s edge is not an edge for me. Interesting thing about edge. I didn’t want to explore my personal edge in the lab. That felt true for me. I have physical space edges, but that space is too small.
Scot- it would have been different in a country far away to explore this. There is a freedom that comes with being strangers. In lab, I hope to maintain these lab relationships for the rest of my life.
Sheila- a whole weekend I can open up in a way to feel the edge. Felt like I was forcing that experience.
Katherine- sometimes our themes don’t drive the lab indirectly. I got something new out of that lab— that seems like a functional use of the theme. They compost into the facilitator’s mind.
Mike- music- we weren’t exploring what music is— just playing with how it effects our dancing.
Katherine- some are harder to have a common experience of— edge is that. Music is something we all share in the space.
Who is IN?
Katherine is leaving March 21st returning beginning of June.
Louis, Mike, Liz, Cyrus, Connie, Roel, Lisa, Scott, Nadia, Sheila, Julius. Katherine + Michal
Christian suggested ‘surprise’ as the theme.
Dates 3/9/15 - 4/20/15. 4/27/15 next lab luck.
THE THEME: Metaphor - theme- Katherine will lead the first 2 weeks with ——> MATH.
TOPIC DISCUSSION
Scot- scratch.
Mike- interested in numbers- the way that relationships come to play, duets, quintets. Thinking about duration, I like studying the flow of time.
Katherine- metaphor, analogy. A lot of us have metaphors that we are dancing with. Dig into each other’s metaphors. Get into the mind space.
Mike- reminds me of personal scores.
Sheila- use of space. Creating definitions of how we are using the space. Choose space and dancing in it.
Scott- limitations. Forces a creativity that if you are free to break away from it, you are limited.
Liz- Metaphor can get to that. As a score.
Louis- metaphor won’t stop me from using my arms.. creates a different view point. Doesn’t prevent the dance from going into familiar patterns.
Liz- sometimes you are saying you can, or you can’t. When you create rules- it is an invitation. Playing with the you can and you can’t.
Scott- I invite you to think about closing your eyes..
Mike- last time we talked about limitation that take you to an edge.
Scott- I like numbers- looking at things that are broad enough. It will create some sense of limitations so that we are problem solving. Love words and image- love metaphor.
Nadia- part of the appeal- look in and see what is happening in there (brians)
Scott- I rarely dance from metaphors.
Louis- dance as a metaphor for personal relationships.
Katherine- a lot of contact, reminds me of math. To invite - however you have filled in that sentence. What goes on it your body.
Scott- contact is like a puzzle
Liz- really evocative language. “ dancing on you like a pad of butter.”
Co-facilitation- drawings. We miss the crayons.
TIME
start at 6:50!
Nadia- we always say.. if we had more time. We have 2 hours- so maximize the 2 hours. Be ready to start at 7. If you get there late, integrate. If you facilitate, don’t wait.
By the way, we are amazing.
------------------------------------------------------------------
6/23/14
Here are Lab Notes from Tonight! Thank you to Michal and Michael for hosting in their beautiful home. Thanks to Mazey for being super cute--a first of many lab lucks for here I hope! Some pictures are attached. Would love to see some of the "heads" pictures.
IMP Classes:
Advertising:
Personally remind folks to check out the classes. Personal reminders might be more effective than online invites.
Kaitlin will write article for Seattle Dances to advertise for our classes.
Someone could post something on Seattle Barefoot Dancers.
Continue to make announcements at the Sunday Jam and other events.
Processing and Debriefing classes from week to week:
Here are the savory details for next session:
Theme: Intimacy and Conflict: The Intersection
New Rule: What about the theme we would like to explore each lab is decided by the group during the previous lab's Harvest time. So leave time at the end!
First Facilitator: Roel
Mondays, May 4th-June 15, including memorial day.
Next Lab Luck: June 22
Who's in:
1. Roel
2. Cyrus
3. Connie
4. Sheila
5. Scott
6. Nadia
7. Lisa
8. Mike
9. Louis
10. Kaitlin
11. Liz dropping in when she can
12. Christian dropping in when he can
13. A NEW labber
Lisa will contact NOA about joining lab. If Noa is unavailable then we will contact JAN. Lisa, please follow up with us about what Noa says.
Minutes: (please understand that I sometimes paraphrase people because I cannot write as fast as folks talk. So none of this is direct quotes really, but at least the gist of the conversation is here. I hope I did not misconstrue anyone)
REFLECTION ON METAPHOR
Lisa: Spotty attendance made metaphor interesting
Mike: Felt like the group was not totally in agreement about what we were trying to get at.
Nadia: Felt the presence always in the room of "Are we doing it?!?" Semantics of what metaphor was or wasn't seemed to dominate. Many of the facilitators were not at the previous lab luck.
Louis: Metaphor should be a defined poetic structure
Scott: Felt like we were doing "Image"
Lisa: Music brings out metaphorical tangent
Louis: Agrees with Nadia. Wants a topic that is concrete enough that he knows what it is, open enough to explore. Topics that are too abstract or too broad are hard to integrate into the body.
Scott: We didn't answer the "because" very much
Lisa/Louis: Would like to pose a query to the group. Fill in the blank: Contact is like __________________ because ___________________. (Louis would like to further specify that the blank following "because" should be something that CI and the comparative entity have in common. Kaitlin would like to specify that technically this is a simile and not a metaphor. Ugh, what pedants!)
Please feel free to reply to this email if you have any fill in the blanks for this you'd like to share!
LAB TOPIC IDEAS/INTERESTS
Mike: Has a few suggestions. 1. Time and experience of time inside of CI. Duration, speed, dance slow and long, dance an exhaustive amount, etc. 2. Relationship inside the dance: Intimacy and conflict. Making situations that create these dynamics. 3. Interested in the Meta-Issue: "how as a group do we do inquiry into movement?"
Lisa: Interested in "state of mind." How do we set up a state that puts us in that zone where we can experience relationships/connections. What puts us there as a group?
Also notes: How is feedback happening? Lab is for experiments and we should be on board with a facilitator bringing in something crazy. Would like to see more feedback in the style of "The Field" (more reflective, non judgmental). Felt like sometimes spent time trying to prepare a lab and then it got shit on by folks who didn't have "good" dances. Finding balance between experimenting and having enjoyable dances.
Roel: feedback is not a topic, but a rule for how we operate. Field structure is useful for really tender, emotionally vulnerable creative works. In lab he would find a more critical feedback more useful, but is open to facilitators requesting different kinds of feedback if they feel their experiment is creatively sensitive.
Louis: Suggests when facilitating to facilitate the Harvest as well. Give direction. Ask for what you want.
Back to session topics:
Roel: Would like to 2nd Mike's idea of intimacy/conflict. Also interested in a Mechanical/Physical topic of receiving force or large amount of weight. When to collapse and fold and when to be rigid. Feels some insecurity about own breaking point, but also feels he's not using the whole physical capacity.
Louis: Interested in taking an interesting concept from a workshop, etc. and taking time to embody that concept. Maybe that's trust, surrender, intimacy, etc. Talk intellectually and then find if physically. Transferred information and embodied learning.
Scott: Likes both of Mike's suggestions. Could see working on time for a long time. Also interested in intimacy/conflict. Also yes to Lisa's idea of State work. Adds that you "don't learn from experience but from reflecting on experience." "I've been to so many labs and don't know what I've learned. I've just had some good dances."
Interested in radically altering lab. Still same time/space/people, but a different, even severe structure. For example: No talking, get heart rate up to certain level in 10 minutes, facilitator says exactly three sentences, etc.
Mike: We've never committed to practice or dialogue outside of lab. (some discussion in group of previous attempts to blog/journal as a general practice, but acknowledgement of no strong commitment for a short time period)
Roel: Not chatting tends to deepen dance experience. We all pretty much agree on this. But we continue to be chatty because our intimacy as a group is important to us.
Nadia: We don't have to wait to make radical changes. Any facilitator could decide to facilitate without talking, for instance.
Mike: We rarely ask during the harvest what is most important question to continue pursuing. Could doing this at harvest (instead of the whims of the facilitator deciding how to tackle the theme) provide more continuity?
Kaitlin: Always is interested in activating the imagination. Is interested in role-playing. Imagining ourselves as other entities as we dance and changing relationships. This could be a way to investigate intimacy/conflict. Is frustrated by constant pressure to tap into "authenticity" and feels bound by exterior definitions of who we are. Thinks changing how we perceive ourselves could lead to shifting dynamics that would be very interesting/revealing. Permission to play a different role with one another.
Nadia: Would like to connect to time, especially through disorientation. Feels like CI connects her to humanness and wants to access that humanness through disorientation. Does not want to play roles.
Roel: Whatever we do we need to add an item of structure. Offers that we decide what we do the next week at the harvest and assign it.
Louis: Facilitating group's continuity over facilitator's interest.
Scott: Two weeks in a row works well too.
Mike: Co-facilitation is great.
Some brainstorm seeds for Roel's facilitation:
-The marriage counseling technique
-Eye contact
-Sustained still contact
-I want this and I'm not telling you
-In to me see (intimacy)
-interpersonal relationships within the group
-deeper level of honesty is intimacy and conflict
A Response:
Great note taking Kaitlin, thank you. I'm looking forward to dropping in this Monday and then I will be gone for three weeks.
Rather than go through the cyber hassle of posting this on the blog, let's just throw our thoughts up on email.
I think this is a very interesting focus for the lab, and I think we should keep trying to push ourselves into livelier dancing and sharing.
I think this is a very interesting focus for the lab, and I think we should keep trying to push ourselves into livelier dancing and sharing.
Here's my 2 cents: Often times CI gets both "aggressive " and at other times "intimate". Sometimes our dancing becomes more about playing with our power against/with the other. It might represent itself with quicker weight shifts, grappling, grabbing/manipulating the other, which which always feels a little dicey between man and woman. Yet, even more familiar between man and man. Sometimes this power playing becomes flavored with dramatic/character-like images. I think it's interesting when it begins to feel like someone that's not me. Or some part me that I don't really know.... The actor in me, however, loves to explore characters.
Permission to explore these "parts/roles is really delicious. (Nadia your comment about not wanting to play roles got me thinking).
We are playing with energy, shaping our energy with another. Intimacy, then, is another ball of wax, so to speak. More later...
Squeegees
- Christian
- Christian
-------------------------------------------------------------------
3/2/15
(Michal)
DATES: 3/9/15 - 4/20/15.
NEXT LABLUCK: 4/27/15
THE THEME: Metaphor. Katherine will lead the first 2 weeks with ——> MATH.
START TIME: 6:50 PM
In the fall we did music, then witnessing, and then EDGE
Over-stimulation of senses, blind dancing to an edge
SESSIONS
Alex: questions, long duration duet, ask q’s of each other- what emotions came for you.
Lisa: dark for a long time, sides, when do you move from being on one side to another
Mike: couldn’t talk on the way to lab about your day. How the person’s body was, danced in the dark. Edge of perception- sensing when someone was moving towards them.
Scott: duration, yes and no- what edges come up around that.
Sheila: edge of self, cloud pillow, where you end and the other people begin.
Cyrus: what we don’t give ourselves permission to do, what we actively resist.
OVERALL DISCUSSION
Scott- Conceptually we struggled, hard to define what we meant by edge. They weren’t building on each other. Scott didn’t find himself confronting edges.
Louis- we have lablucks, we propose these themes- just because we didn’t arrive at something, doesn’t mean it failed- it just means we’re not picking a theme to create a particular response to the theme. Sometimes the discovery is nebulous.
mike- did this lab session have the rigor that we want labs to have. Does it have rigor, will it change our dancing in some way?
Sheila- I felt I heard a lot of people saying that it was interesting that it wasn’t an edge.
Katherine- Usually with labs we’re each able to expand what that theme is to us. Edge- one person’s edge is not an edge for me. Interesting thing about edge. I didn’t want to explore my personal edge in the lab. That felt true for me. I have physical space edges, but that space is too small.
Scot- it would have been different in a country far away to explore this. There is a freedom that comes with being strangers. In lab, I hope to maintain these lab relationships for the rest of my life.
Sheila- a whole weekend I can open up in a way to feel the edge. Felt like I was forcing that experience.
Katherine- sometimes our themes don’t drive the lab indirectly. I got something new out of that lab— that seems like a functional use of the theme. They compost into the facilitator’s mind.
Mike- music- we weren’t exploring what music is— just playing with how it effects our dancing.
Katherine- some are harder to have a common experience of— edge is that. Music is something we all share in the space.
Who is IN?
Katherine is leaving March 21st returning beginning of June.
Louis, Mike, Liz, Cyrus, Connie, Roel, Lisa, Scott, Nadia, Sheila, Julius. Katherine + Michal
Christian suggested ‘surprise’ as the theme.
Dates 3/9/15 - 4/20/15. 4/27/15 next lab luck.
THE THEME: Metaphor - theme- Katherine will lead the first 2 weeks with ——> MATH.
TOPIC DISCUSSION
Scot- scratch.
Mike- interested in numbers- the way that relationships come to play, duets, quintets. Thinking about duration, I like studying the flow of time.
Katherine- metaphor, analogy. A lot of us have metaphors that we are dancing with. Dig into each other’s metaphors. Get into the mind space.
Mike- reminds me of personal scores.
Sheila- use of space. Creating definitions of how we are using the space. Choose space and dancing in it.
Scott- limitations. Forces a creativity that if you are free to break away from it, you are limited.
Liz- Metaphor can get to that. As a score.
Louis- metaphor won’t stop me from using my arms.. creates a different view point. Doesn’t prevent the dance from going into familiar patterns.
Liz- sometimes you are saying you can, or you can’t. When you create rules- it is an invitation. Playing with the you can and you can’t.
Scott- I invite you to think about closing your eyes..
Mike- last time we talked about limitation that take you to an edge.
Scott- I like numbers- looking at things that are broad enough. It will create some sense of limitations so that we are problem solving. Love words and image- love metaphor.
Nadia- part of the appeal- look in and see what is happening in there (brians)
Scott- I rarely dance from metaphors.
Louis- dance as a metaphor for personal relationships.
Katherine- a lot of contact, reminds me of math. To invite - however you have filled in that sentence. What goes on it your body.
Scott- contact is like a puzzle
Liz- really evocative language. “ dancing on you like a pad of butter.”
Co-facilitation- drawings. We miss the crayons.
TIME
start at 6:50!
Nadia- we always say.. if we had more time. We have 2 hours- so maximize the 2 hours. Be ready to start at 7. If you get there late, integrate. If you facilitate, don’t wait.
By the way, we are amazing.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9/2/14
(Alex)
Howdy
Sweetlings,
Nice
chatting and chomping with most of you last night. I'm jazzed to get our dance
on this session!
Here are
the notes:
Lab-luck at
Scott's House
Attendance: Mike, Liz, Mazey, Scott,
Christian, Lisa, Louis, Pickles, Sheila, Connie, Katherine, Kaitlin, Alex
We each
shared one minute check in's about our summer's while Mazey kicked and
smiled.
Re-cap of
last session: Underscore!
Scott:
Mediocre, flat, not a growth period for me. It felt like we were trying to do
the underscore, but it wasn't really happening. I feel it's better with a
larger group and bigger space.
Connie: I
enjoy the underscore, but only once in a while. Esp w/ppl I don't know. Long
session for the same structure. Enjoyed the non-underscore night a few of us
had.
Louis:
Can we please re-frame and remember the purpose of a lab is to gather
data, not to please ourselves. "I don't like it" isn't helpful. Can
we use non-judgmental comments instead.
Katherine:
I kept feeling like people weren't really doing the underscore and that this
group wasn't that familiar with it. I had a desire to dismantle it, dig in and
found it hard to grow when people hadn't had a lot of experience with it.
Christian:
More rigor!
Kaitlin:
Im part of that less familiar w/underscore group. I felt confused about whether
we were doing it or not. This session re-affirmed the importance of consistency
for me. It could be interesting to have a bunch of unstructured nights and see
what happens.
Katherine:
Or a floating score..
Louis:
Re-frame. Can we try, "doing this illuminated a lot about this.." A
scientist won't go, "I don't really like this discovery.."
Scott:
Dis-satisfaction, yes. But useful and informative. Can use these suggestions.
Neige offered the concept of seeding and more attention to harvest, the night
she joined us. Good to have her exp from Underscore in Mass.
Connie:
It's useful to wonder why did it feel that way??
Lisa: We
were dealing with some environmental challenges. Its nice to have at least 5
ppl, bigger space, and the social period/chatting at beginning makes it
challenging.
Katherine:
IF ppl are going to say "I don't like U.S.", hold out till you
experience it in a better, more contained way.
Mike:
Descriptive. Are we doing a historical re-enactment? Not describing our Seattle
jam culture perhaps? Is it a historical lens? Curious.
Christian:
What would a NW U.S. look like?
Louis:
Not as clear beginning like w/ Nancy
Sheila:
Ive felt the beauty of a solid U.S. Its also feel some fatigue around it
by now. Nancy put this together as a structure. As it stands, clear enterenace,
ambulation, so lovely. She's found meaning herself. I like thinking of all of
it's history. I've witnessed it's glory.
Katherine:
Balancing prescription/description is key. Best U.S are when ppl yield to
prescription. It's beautiful and also totally flawed.
LIz:
Seattle scene follows what they feel. I do better w/ specifics. Clarity. Lesson
in it for us. Usually what we pick gets diffused over time. Its ok and
satisfying to have more structure and rigor.
Who's
in:
Connie,
Mike, Louis, Kaitlin, Sheila, Christian, Katherine, Scott, Lisa, Alex, Nadia,
Cyrus, Michal (occasionally)
Dates:
9/8-10/20
(7 Weeks)
*Lab-Luck Oct
27th
Sheila
asked if people were open to switching from Monday to Wed or Thurs?
The group
decided to table to conversation till next session. Connie will ask Cyrus about
Grassroots availability and she will make a doodle poll to see people's
preferences.
Theme for
this session: MUSIC! Questions around relationship between music and
dance.
Scott:
Relationship between music and dancing. Fall SFDI re-visit, CI technique,
performance interest. Even if just for us.
Connie:
Yes music. Witnessing. Media, film, light, projecting our dancing onto us
dancing. How do we feel when we see ourselves dance?
Mike:
Music loop
Lisa:
Live, making, bring in meaningful songs. iPod shuffle, observing sound in
space.
Sheila:
Power of authentic movement. Present with another person and self. Deepening
connection with you all.
Katherine:
1/2 room wit, 1/2 dance. weirdly anonymous urban landscape
Connie:
light! How does darkness, or spot light influence us?
Mike:
music plus witness. Blur between witness and begin witnessed. Where we put
attention. Witness brain plus present in our dance. Exploring "blind
spots" , physical choices I'm NOT making. techniques, roads, etc.
...
Louis:
Restriction of body and senses forces us into "blind spots"
Christian:
Larger jamming possibilities. Technical jam. Rigor-limitation, CI technique.
Open ended music.
Scott: We
had a good groove w/ 1 hour directed, then open dance. What about structure and
role of facilitator?
Alex: I
want more attention to harvest. invest in it. use words, images, poems, etc.
Louis:
"Witness" could be our big themed, then have sub themes w/in that.
Scott: or
"Music" could be big theme.
Christian:
Word language.. to capture harvest.
Katherine:
Diff between witness and observe. Witness... authentic, nonjudgmental, emotive,
a-structural. Observe... performance, context, structure.
Katilin:
Diff kinds of observing. Exploring the line between those. Restriction:
Christian knees, Michal's pregnant. Could be good time to play with observe and
restriction.
Connie:
Media falls in to observing.
Alex:
music feels a little vague to me... how do we narrow?
Mike:
inquiry. first session generate questions around music.
Katherine:
every lab could feed your own question. set intention.
Connie:
would that cause us to have trouble working together if we focus on our own
questions?
Christian:
I need slower, more careful. Music excites.
Scott:
contact/relationship to music. Partner w/ music, how it engages
"duet". Music is primary and I think more powerful than dance.
Katilin:
Homework
assignment: Bring
your own question/s around the theme of relationship between music and dance
for next Monday. Scott is facilitating.
Future
theme Ideas:
Witnessing/observe
NEXT SESSION
Media
Restriction
Lab Luck 6/23/14
This is an incomplete recap. Hopefully I didn't misinterpret anyone.
Recap of Body Stories:
Michal-More recountable. Easier to remember stories than dances.
Louis-Tracing of the body is like a polaroid time capsule-->Here we are at this time.
Nadia-Speaking one on one with personal material. Speaking and then listening. She didn't expect it, but it made partnering easier, natural, and safe. Ready to move. Stories helped her engage rather than be mushy/zone-y from a long monday.
Scott-Wonders about the possibility of telling stories simultaniously to dancing/partnering/being manipulated, a la Ami Legonge (spelling?)
Christian-Wonders about going beyond story. Story is about past, while dancing is about present.
Alex-Wishes to revisit Roel's idea of bringing everyday experiences/movements of our lives into our investigations.
Expresses that the beginning of lab can be causal/mushy/chatty/unclear. Also noticed that material was sensitive/deep and that when going to these places there should be time to process/a way to contain so that we are not left raw and vulnerable. Acknowledges that some of this is personal responsibility, but also could be addressed more.
Liz-Suggests a coming together or doing a closing exercise to cap the experience/help create a safe container.
Louis-commends Alex on her bravery to share so intimately. Acknowledges that it is a choice to go into sensitive material.
Kaitlin-Found this session valuable, but struggled to enter satisfying dances.
Scott- Found that he was often in Authentic Movement mode. Remembers a lot of solo work.
Louis-Compares entering duet from story like diving into a lake and the story gets left at the surface. How do we integrate?
Alex--liked having a physical product (the paper body) to ground us and help us stay on our theme. Everyone agreed.
Scott-Liked the paper, but felt it was disruptive to catch up those who had not made a body when they came in halfway through the session. Would like to emphasize commitment and attendance--feels that it is valuable and special.
In regards to attendance
-Some members have been spotty in attendance and may need to be checked in with about their commitment to lab.
-Perhaps we have sessions that are more or less flexible based on their content? Alternate?
-Bringing special guests: default protocol is to email the group the day before (at least) and only bring them if the facilitator says yes and no one says no. Let's create a respectful environment where it's okay to say no and dissenters don't have to be anxious about it. Dissenters can also just simply say "no" and not be aggressive, knowing that their opinion will be valued by the group.
SUMMER SESSION!
June 30-August 18.
(for now we will have the space available both for the day after Orcas and the first day of SFDI)
Next Lab Luck on August 25th, and the fall session will start again after Labor Day.
Summer Session Theme: UNDERSCORE.
Yup. Just and underscore every monday. Between 7pm and 7:05 someone (likely whoever is there and takes a lead) will call out "beginning" or signal in some other way, and then the underscore will commence and talking will stop. Anyone who comes in late will join silently. Dancing will go until 8:40, and then there will be a harvest.
Special SUMMER SESSION policies:
-Come when you can
-No assigned facilitators
-Bringing appropriate guests (use good judgement) is ok--even encouraged! Just notify group beforehand. Also be clear with guests you bring that we are a closed group and attendance is by invitation only.
Other things:
Michal is looking for housing on July 15th for out of town people coming in for Orcas. Let her know if you can offer a space!
Fall session--Focus on music. Maybe with improvised music as part of it.
SEE YOU NEXT MONDAY.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4/28/14
This may have been the
smoothest lab luck to date!
NEW
SESSION:
May 5
to June 16 with the next lab luck on June 23rd.
There
will then be a 3-week mini-session before Orcas TBD at the next lab luck.
PARTICIPANTS:
1.
Lisa
2.
Mike
3.
Scott
4.
Cyrus
5.
Connie
6.
Alex
7.
Louis
8.
Nadia
9.
Sheila
10.
Kaitlin
11.
Roel
12.
Katherine, Michal, and Christian are invited to come when they can, and please
shoot out an email before they come to let us know, and don't make a habit of
being only "sometimers" BUT we love dancing with you so much that we
don't mind if you drop in as guests THIS TIME. : )
THIS
SESSION'S THEME "BODY STORIES"
Sheila-Stories
that we have about our bodies--telling/sharing of these stories. Body Mapping.
History. Areas of the body/experience. Mechanics of different body parts.
Bright places v. shadowy places. Where we tension. Would like to trace paper
bodies to hang on the wall and to record histories/experiences on.
Lisa-The
story of what you usually do with your body--everyday movements and how they
inform your contact practice.
Alex-The
individual experience v. others (ex. "the female experience")
Kaitlin-Suggests
leaving 5 minutes at the end of each lab allotted to recording more
information on our paper bodies.
-Scott
expressed interest in sometimes having the same leader for two weeks in a row
for continuity's sake. Mike seconded.
SHEILA
LEADS FIRST LAB ON MAY 5TH
CYRUS-
please coordinate with Sheila about the Paper Bodies. Can we hang them in
grassroots with painter's tape? Can we leave them up? If we can't, can we store
them there perhaps rolled up in a corner?
NADIA
will acquire paper for the Paper Bodies.
EVERYONE
will acquire nicknames by the end of this session. It has already been
unanimously determined that Lisa is a "Starfish Fruit."
RETREAT
We
have $700 in the lab fund. Woohoo!
Alex
and Sheila volunteered to compile a list of possible retreat areas by the
next lab luck (june 23). This list should include dance space
dimensions and lodging options. Please send any locations you know of to Alex
and Sheila for the list!
BECAUSE
THIS EMAIL WILL GET LOST IN YOUR INBOX I WILL ALSO POST ALL THIS INFORMATION ON
THE LAB BLOG
over
and out.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
1/6/2014
(Alex)
Attendance: Nadia, Alex, Liz, Mike, Connie, Louis, Lisa, Kaitlin,
Christian, Scott
Review of last session:
Topics: Trios, Gap, Translation
Kaitlin- enjoyed open dance time. Great trios
Nadia- the full room helped with energy. she liked the consistency
of the larger group. and liked re-visiting material and noticed people's
attachments to the way the material was previously taught.
Christian- the question of how this material will work being
taught kept arising as a result of the upcoming IMP classes. It was interesting
to wonder about how to share.
Lisa- wondered about the spectrum of people we'll be working with
in IMP classes
Scott- re-visiting material was nice. Maybe we regularly wonder
about how to share rather than forging ahead. Healthy and exciting to shift how
we do this.
Alex- Satisfying building towards something, a goal to teach and
share.
Connie- was taking it all in. Whatever came. Great energy, perfect
amount of people in the room, loved the topics. Gap, leaves me in the gap-like
to explore more because I can't figure out what it is, or if I want to. I'd
like to explore longer.
Liz- Want to avoid the gap. I anticipate it not being enjoyable, like
I'm not supposed to enjoy it. Good dancing is not the gap.
Louis- Nancy Stark Smith describes it as a place you fall into.
You cannot make a lab about getting into the gap. You cannot choose
to go there, it is a different thing.
Kaitlin- You cannot frame it.
Is the gap and appropriate topic for the IMP classes?
Scott- Can't set up. Intro as an option. All willing to rest in
that.
Lisa- Observe it. Didn't have to go anywhere. The goal is the
other side of it.
Mike- Gap is mindfulness practice. we can create a structure to
get you there. When I first started contact, we did long finger dances. I was
self conscious as a beginning dancer, but it was important to stick with it and
practice non judgement. To be present and aware of not knowing.
Connie-beginners want to get out quickly when it's
uncomfortable.
Liz- It's good to explain what Mike said at the beginning for
beginners. Instead of trying to make something happen, stick with what is.
Christian- sometimes both people experience awkwardness at the
same time. Sometimes one person is in the gap and the other is not.
Louis- Can't lab the gap, but we can lab non-attachment.
Kaitlin- Embrace the space allowing awkwardness. Rather than do
something funny when I feel awkward, I can commit to the awkwardness, staying
with it.
Lisa- This is essential to dancing, well....stripped down.
Authentic.
Mike- Opens to new dances. Trying to figure out. Mindfulness
practice. Listen, hear space. Being ok with uncertainty is an important contact
practice.
Kaitlin- This is a good metaphor for life.
Connie- Some beginners don't come back because of this. They
cannot just enter, it's too much, so they don't return.
IMP Classes:
Advertising:
Each teacher or pair of teachers is responsible to write up a
summary of your class and post on FB Contact page several days before the night
of your class.
Personally remind folks to check out the classes. Personal reminders might be more effective than online invites.
Kaitlin will write article for Seattle Dances to advertise for our classes.
Someone could post something on Seattle Barefoot Dancers.
Continue to make announcements at the Sunday Jam and other events.
Processing and Debriefing classes from week to week:
Each week we'll spend a few minutes at the beginning of lab to
discuss the previous week's class.
Facilitators can try to bring in a labbish mentality to their
classes, allowing for the group to decide collectively on several different
options after doing an exercise.
Next session:
When/Where/Who
1/13/14-2/24/14
7 weeks at Grassroots
Next Labluck: March 3rd
Members for the session: Michal, Sheila, Cyrus, Alex, Scott,
Kathryn, Christian, Kaitlin, Lisa, Louis, Connie, Mike, Liz
*Lisa will Facilitate the 1st Lab this session. Connie
will bring snacks!
Theme for this session:
Personal Fundamentals
We're going to explore each of our own ideas of what the
fundaments of contact are. We'll explore fundamentals from different angles
like physical technique along with emotional, spiritual, choreographic
fundaments. We'll also examine and share HOW we each try to LISTEN in our
dancing and what unique definitions of the contact fundamentals we've gathered
for ourselves over our years of dancing.
Other Focus':
The group would love for Michal and Kathryn to share material from
the Nancy Stark Smith workshop.
Also, people expressed interest in incorporating personal
writing/reflection time into each session if possible
Potential Products generated from this session:
A running list of Personal Fundamentals
Material towards a workshop in Fundaments to teach to the larger
community
Knee pads with fundaments printed on them :)
Action figures and bobble heads :)
Potential themes for future sessions:
The group had a lot of interest in working more with the idea of
"seeds'" or source material for our dancing. Using outer material or
information to fuel our dancing and vice versa. People were also interested in
combining physical fundamentals and "seeds" and creating structures
or scores to work with. We have interest in not limiting what a
"seed" is or could be. Combining psychological depth in our dancing
with physical fundamentals such as rolling point of contact, sluffing,
perching, etc.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)