Guidelines, Boundaries, Consent and Contact Improvisation

Contact Improvisation is a terrific opportunity to explore and deepen your ability to coordinate with others, and with yourself, in an exceptionally open structure. In the spirit of the form, contact improv jams are, as a whole, also improvisational, with little official regulation.  This generally works well, because the essence of the practice is pursuit of cooperation rather than control.

Communication is never perfect, however, and sometimes people miss recognizing or honoring the boundaries of others.  In improvisation, you can’t regulate communication without sacrificing key opportunities for individual discovery and growth. However, clear guidelines can help everyone understand what to do to keep such mistakes from spoiling a good situation. — Myradicity

CI is a place to learn to say yes, and to learn a hundred and one ways to say no. If you are uncomfortable you can leave a dance at any point, even if you are not uncomfortable. If you are concerned about yourself or anyone else, you can and should speak up and let the organizers know. A community lives through communication.
Starting points for guidelines and discussions are available here. This is an ongoing conversation in the wider CI community. What guidelines should we post?

 

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