Contact improvisation is a form of improvised partner dancing that has been developing internationally since 1972. It involves the exploration of one’s body in relationship to others by using the fundamentals of sharing weight, touch, and movement awareness. It has evolved into a broad global community of social dancing around “jams” characterized by their welcoming attitude towards newcomers to dance, as well as seasoned practitioners.

American dancer and choreographer Steve Paxton originated contact improvisation, drawing from his past training in Aikido, a martial art form, to explore and push boundaries with his colleagues and students to develop this new practice. Contact improvisation plays with the artistry of falling off balance, counterbalance, finding the shelves of the body, learning the mechanics of the body in order to handle someone else’s weight or be lifted, breathing techniques, and can involve the art of getting to know your partner past the physical point through the physicality.

Steve Paxton, along with other pioneers Nancy Stark Smith, Danny Lepkoff, Lisa Nelson, Karen Nelson, Nita Little, Andrew Harwood, Peter Bingham, and Ray Chung, thus participated in creating an “art-sport,” oscillating between different emphases depending on the moments and personalities.

Body-Mind Centering® (BMC) is based on the embodiment and application of anatomical, physiological, psychophysical and developmental principles.
BMC® is an approach that explores movement, touch, voice and mind and supports people to recognise themselve better and interact with others through focusing attention and intention.
Developed by dancer and occupational therapist Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen,  BMC® fosters a dynamic body mind awareness for processes of learning and repatterning. The approach takes place in dance and movement training, bodywork, physiotherapy and occupational therapy and is constantly evolving.