Nita Little to Philly June 12-14, 2026 for IS Somatic Communication

[Loren Groenendaal]

Hello Philadelphia Contact Improvisation community,

I hope this finds you well this spring. I am working to bring Nita Little to Philly this summer to lead her Institute for the Study of Somatic Communication (ISSC) June 12-14, 2026. 

Nita Little is the one of the last practicing members of the founding cohort of Contact Improvisation. Her research and teaching goes beyond CI to somatics, compositional improvisation, emergence, relational intelligence, performance studies, and more. You may remember that I helped bring Nita here in November 2022 for a fabulous weekend long workshop in Somatic Communication as applied to Contact Improvisation and Relational Intelligence applied to Duet and Ensemble dancing. Now, I want to bring her to Philadelphia (Philly) to lead her Institute for the Study of Somatic Communication (ISSC) workshop to start this active research in Philly. This weekend-long training workshop in the Somatic Research methodology of the Institute for the Study of Somatic Communication. The workshop format will involve theoretical and practical work, including training that involves listening, moving, reading, and practicing research interview techniques with one another.

I'm self-producing this workshop and I'm not financially backed by a studio, grant, or even a grassroots organization, so the way in which I can afford to bring her here is through tuition commitment in advance. I'm looking for at least 14 people to commit to this workshop by May 7th at an early bird price and then I'll open up 10 more slots at a higher price after that. There are just 17 early bird/discount spots available in the campaign. Around April 15, it will get publicized to Nita's international mailing list, so if you want to secure one of the limited early bird spots for yourself, do it soon! This is a rare treat as she is based near Seattle, Washington and rarely leads ISSC on the east coast of the USA.

I hope you are excited and available to join. There's more detail about the workshop and place to pledge here: fundrazr.com/NitaISSCPhilly0626

If you have a friend or colleague that is interested in somatics, communication outside of dance, or ensemble and compositional improvisation outside of contact, feel free to share with them. One does not need to be a dancer or bear weight to do this workshop. The therapists, architects, neurologists, etc. are welcome!

Be in touch if you have questions.

-Loren

Loren Groenendaal
MFA in Choreography, BA in Dance and Visual Arts, Certified Movement Analyst
Accepting tax deductible donations via Fractured Atlas

[Loren Groenendaal]

Hello Philadelphia Contact Improvisation community,

I hope this finds you well this spring. I am working to bring Nita Little to Philly this summer to lead her Institute for the Study of Somatic Communication (ISSC) June 12-14, 2026. There is just ONE MORE WEEK to sign up!

I'm self-producing this workshop and I'm not financially backed by a studio, grant, or even a grassroots organization, so the way in which I can afford to bring her here is through tuition commitment in advance. I'm looking for at least 14 people (or $3500) committed to this workshop by May 7th at an early bird price and then I'll open up 10 more slots at a higher price after that. There are just 17 early bird/discount spots available in the campaign. To study with Nita is a rare treat because she is based near Seattle, Washington and rarely leads ISSC on the east coast of the USA.

Nita Little is the one of the last practicing members of the founding cohort of Contact Improvisation. Her research and teaching goes beyond CI to somatics, compositional improvisation, emergence, relational intelligence, performance studies, and more. You may remember that I helped bring Nita here in November 2022 for a fabulous weekend long workshop in Somatic Communication as applied to Contact Improvisation and Relational Intelligence applied to Duet and Ensemble dancing. Now, I want to bring her to Philadelphia (Philly) to lead her Institute for the Study of Somatic Communication (ISSC) workshop to start this active research in Philly. This weekend-long training workshop in the Somatic Research methodology of the Institute for the Study of Somatic Communication. The workshop format will involve theoretical and practical work, including training that involves listening, moving, reading, and practicing research interview techniques with one another.

I am really excited about this work because most of my somatic studies are about one person feeling into their own bodies and this work brings somatics into relationship, communication, and ensemble!

I hope you are excited and available to join. There's more detail about the workshop and place to pledge here: fundrazr.com/NitaISSCPhilly0626

If you have a friend or colleague that is interested in somatics, communication outside of dance, or ensemble and compositional improvisation outside of contact, feel free to share with them. One does not need to be a dancer or bear weight to do this workshop. The therapists, architects, neurologists, etc. are welcome!

Be in touch if you have questions.

-Loren