Two CI class opportunities this week!
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Jenny Sawyer
Jan 28, 2026, 2:29:59 PMJan 28
to ContactImprovPhilly, Contact Improv
Hey CI Philly,
Hope everyone is digging out from snowmageddon and finding coziness during these freezing cold temps.
Come dance with us to generate some heat!
Unfortunately Leah Stein got snowed-in in Vermont so we have had to reschedule her classes for March instead.
Thank you to Nicole and Miryam for stepping in to teach. Please see their class descriptions below.
This Week:
Tomorrow night!
Thursday 1/29: Contact Improvisation Research Lab with Nicole Bindler, 6:30-8:30pm Headlong/Mascher Space (mask required)
- $10-25 sliding scale ($15 suggested), cash or Venmo. Pre-registration not required.
- Studio is located at 1170 S. Broad St. Please ring the "Rear Studio" buzzer to be let into the building!
In this class Nicole will spontaneously develop material based on questions that participants bring. We'll use Body-Mind Centering practices, improvisation scores, and classic CI exercises to support our research. Bring whatever you're chewing on and we'll work it out!
Nicole Bindler–dance-maker, Body-Mind Centering® practitioner, writer, and activist–has practiced contact improvisation since 1997. She is a registered Master Somatic Movement Therapist through The International Somatic Movement Education and Therapy Association. Her work has been supported by numerous grants and fellowships, and presented on four continents. Recent projects include curating an evening of Palestinian dance films; somatic research on the embryology of the genitalia from a non-binary perspective; a workshop on neuroqueering embodiment; co-producing the Consent Culture in Contact Improvisation Symposium at Earthdance; and a solo dance, The Case for Invagination, in which her scars speak candidly about trauma and desire. Notable performance projects have included touring as a choreographer with the Bethlehem-Based Palestinian company, Diyar Theatre; a Pew-funded performance residency in Japan including Butoh training with Yoshito Ohno; and performing Deborah Hay's I Think Not at Unidad De Vinculación Artística in Mexico City. She is co-editing a book, Gathering Sparks: Jewish Arts and Somatics that will be published by punctum books. nicolebindler.com
Photo: Anna Maynard at Dreaming Stone, NC
Sunday 2/1: CI Class & Jam Combo 3-5pm at Headlong/Mascher Space (mask optional)
- Class 3-4pm taught by Miryam Coppersmith
- Jam 4-5pm facilitated by Jenny Sawyer
- $10-25 sliding scale ($15 suggested), cash or Venmo. Pre-registration not required.
- Studio is located at 1170 S. Broad St. Please ring the "Rear Studio" buzzer to be let into the building!
Arcs of momentum. This class will prepare us to jam by focusing on the organization of our bodies while in motion. We will warm up our three dimensional bodies, connecting to arcs of support and movement within them. Then, we will experiment with momentum in partnership, feeling the different possibilities when movement is generated by a moving partner and a stable partner, two partners moving in opposition to each other and two partners arcing with the same momentum.
Miryam Coppersmith (she/they) is a Philadelphia-based performance-maker, writer, dancer, and educator. She encountered Contact Improvisation at Oberlin College in 2012 and has been playing and learning within the form ever since. She also loves to explore the intersections between CI and other forms she has studied including Blues dance, Lindy Hop, House dance, Contemporary dance, and Six Viewpoints. You can learn more about Miryam's work here: miryamcoppersmith.com
Current Masking Policy: We are currently in communication with some covid cautious groups to offer an Intro to CI or CI Basics class once a month for those who require masking. Masked classes will require all participants to wear a mask that is KN94 grade or higher (KN95) while dancing, including the teacher. Everyone is welcome to join those classes. We will have KN94 masks available at the studio for those who need to borrow. Let us know if you want more information about these classes.
Other Upcoming CI Events:
- The Underscore will be hosted by Loren Groenendaal on February 28th, 2-4pm at Headlong/Mascher Space. This is a very fun and rewarding focused jam which has a bit more structure than a regular jam. If you have not participated in an Underscore before it usually requires a talk through to understand the structure ahead of time. For more information and to register please contact lorengro...@gmail.com
Hope to see you soon!
The CI Philly team (Jenny, Derek, Jamie, Miryam, & Liam)
Jenny Sawyer
Jan 28, 2026, 3:31:59 PMJan 28
to ContactImprovPhilly, Contact Improv
CORRECTION: Nicole Bindler's class tomorrow/Thursday evening is MASK OPTIONAL (not mask required).
It has been corrected below. Sorry for the confusion.
On Wed, Jan 28, 2026 at 2:29 PM Jenny Sawyer <jroes...@gmail.com> wrote:
Hey CI Philly,
Hope everyone is digging out from snowmageddon and finding coziness during these freezing cold temps.Come dance with us to generate some heat!Unfortunately Leah Stein got snowed-in in Vermont so we have had to reschedule her classes for March instead.Thank you to Nicole and Miryam for stepping in to teach. Please see their class descriptions below.
This Week:Tomorrow night!Thursday 1/29: Contact Improvisation Research Lab with Nicole Bindler, 6:30-8:30pm Headlong/Mascher Space (mask optional)
- $10-25 sliding scale ($15 suggested), cash or Venmo. Pre-registration not required.
- Studio is located at 1170 S. Broad St. Please ring the "Rear Studio" buzzer to be let into the building!
In this class Nicole will spontaneously develop material based on questions that participants bring. We'll use Body-Mind Centering practices, improvisation scores, and classic CI exercises to support our research. Bring whatever you're chewing on and we'll work it out!Nicole Bindler–dance-maker, Body-Mind Centering® practitioner, writer, and activist–has practiced contact improvisation since 1997. She is a registered Master Somatic Movement Therapist through The International Somatic Movement Education and Therapy Association. Her work has been supported by numerous grants and fellowships, and presented on four continents. Recent projects include curating an evening of Palestinian dance films; somatic research on the embryology of the genitalia from a non-binary perspective; a workshop on neuroqueering embodiment; co-producing the Consent Culture in Contact Improvisation Symposium at Earthdance; and a solo dance, The Case for Invagination, in which her scars speak candidly about trauma and desire. Notable performance projects have included touring as a choreographer with the Bethlehem-Based Palestinian company, Diyar Theatre; a Pew-funded performance residency in Japan including Butoh training with Yoshito Ohno; and performing Deborah Hay's I Think Not at Unidad De Vinculación Artística in Mexico City. She is co-editing a book, Gathering Sparks: Jewish Arts and Somatics that will be published by punctum books. nicolebindler.comPhoto: Anna Maynard at Dreaming Stone, NCSunday 2/1: CI Class & Jam Combo 3-5pm at Headlong/Mascher Space (mask optional)
- Class 3-4pm taught by Miryam Coppersmith
- Jam 4-5pm facilitated by Jenny Sawyer
- $10-25 sliding scale ($15 suggested), cash or Venmo. Pre-registration not required.
- Studio is located at 1170 S. Broad St. Please ring the "Rear Studio" buzzer to be let into the building!
Arcs of momentum. This class will prepare us to jam by focusing on the organization of our bodies while in motion. We will warm up our three dimensional bodies, connecting to arcs of support and movement within them. Then, we will experiment with momentum in partnership, feeling the different possibilities when movement is generated by a moving partner and a stable partner, two partners moving in opposition to each other and two partners arcing with the same momentum.Miryam Coppersmith (she/they) is a Philadelphia-based performance-maker, writer, dancer, and educator. She encountered Contact Improvisation at Oberlin College in 2012 and has been playing and learning within the form ever since. She also loves to explore the intersections between CI and other forms she has studied including Blues dance, Lindy Hop, House dance, Contemporary dance, and Six Viewpoints. You can learn more about Miryam's work here: miryamcoppersmith.comCurrent Masking Policy: We are currently in communication with some covid cautious groups to offer an Intro to CI or CI Basics class once a month for those who require masking. Masked classes will require all participants to wear a mask that is KN94 grade or higher (KN95) while dancing, including the teacher. Everyone is welcome to join those classes. We will have KN94 masks available at the studio for those who need to borrow. Let us know if you want more information about these classes.Other Upcoming CI Events:
- The Underscore will be hosted by Loren Groenendaal on February 28th, 2-4pm at Headlong/Mascher Space. This is a very fun and rewarding focused jam which has a bit more structure than a regular jam. If you have not participated in an Underscore before it usually requires a talk through to understand the structure ahead of time. For more information and to register please contact lorengro...@gmail.com
Hope to see you soon!The CI Philly team (Jenny, Derek, Jamie, Miryam, & Liam)
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