I miss it.

Posted by Anita Bondi on January 31, 2012 under Anita Bondi | Be the First to Comment

lately i have been thinking about how much i miss creating performance art. most of my creative time has been spent making jewelry. while satisfying and money making (both very important to me as a self-employed artist), there is just something about being hunched over a dusty dirty bench that can never compare to a huge open studio space and bodies moving together.

this pic may have to be my inspirational jumping off place…

My letter is…

Posted by Susan Bradford on January 5, 2012 under Susan Bradford | 2 Comments to Read

I am always a bit sad to miss the monthly Trance Dance, and especially so in January when everyone sets their intention for the year and dances it deeply into their bodies. Still, for the past few years, I have been participating from afar and that has been good as well.

So when I read Anita’s post on Tuesday, I asked her to pick a letter for me from the ones that had not been claimed on Monday night.  In her email sent to me yesterday, I learned that my letter for the year is “B.”

Now don’t get me wrong.  ”B” is a perfectly good letter.  It is even the first letter of my last name.  But in my heart of hearts, it wasn’t the letter that I wanted.  I was sending out for a “C” (Creativity, Communication, Courage, Compassion - all things I want and need more of).  Or maybe even a “P” (Paint, Play, Pray/Meditate – which have been my standard resolutions for many years now).

But no, I got a “B” and had no choice except to embrace it.

New Year’s “Letter”

Posted by Anita Bondi on January 3, 2012 under Anita Bondi | 5 Comments to Read

This New Year I was not drawn to create resolutions, list goals, or make bold promises. This New Year I am called to live where my feet are at any given moment. Why my feet? One possibility is that they are not my head and in fact are no where near my head. My head, aka my mind, likes to wander, scatter itself all over the place, and muse about a lot of things (don’t get too excited…things like, dust bunnies, grocery shopping, dog pee).

I needed something to bring to my trance dance group last night. We were journal writing and dancing into the New Year. Usually we use a writing prompt brought to us years ago by Patti: Oh 2012, that was the year of ________, and then we write as if the year has already happened.

I was wanting something more (needing something stronger to pull me away from dog pee and firmly plant me in the present moment). But I also wanted something simple, as most people I talk to are feeling too complicated right now.

My InterPlay mentor and teacher, Cynthia Winton- Henry brought the perfect thing (click on her name for the whole blog post). Here is a line from her short, sweet, and seductive suggestion: ” That is why my letter for 2012 is Q for quiet, for quest, for question. may my heart be open. what is your letter for the year?”

Taking her lead, I made a bunch of cards with letters of the alphabet on them and let each participant choose one. I asked them to come up with three words that began with the letter to help guide them into the New Year. Our trance dance is broken into three 20 minutes sections and I invited them to hold one word at a time as an intention and then gave them a few minutes to journal or draw between each dance segment.

We also had some time at the beginning to write using our “old” writing prompt and our “new” alphabet letter invitation. Surprisingly or serendipitously (is that a word?) I also chose the letter “Q”. Here is the beginning of my journal entry:

Oh, 2012, that was the year of possibility, of Quivering into the Quiet Question and knowing, YES!

Here is a picture of the letters that did not get chosen last night. Pick one and let me know what your letter is for the year!

Here’s to living where our feet are planted in every moment of 2012!

connect

Posted by Anita Bondi on November 22, 2011 under Anita Bondi | 4 Comments to Read

Day 2 of interesting ways to use the InterPlay Inspiration Deck

Last week I brought the idea of connection to my InterPlay class.  Phil Porter introduced the idea of small circles of connection  a few years ago and I love to play with it often when leading groups.

Finish this sentence: I belong to a small circle of people who ________?  Some answers from last week’s class:

• wear hats all year long
• have my own website
• have red hair
• would not be caught dead without lipstick

From the ridiculous to the sublime these are the ways we connect with one another, find our intersections, or lack thereof.

Using the InterPlay Inspiration Deck, I asked the group to each pick a card. I invited them to hold loosely and lightly the question: Is there something that could help me feel more connected to myself and to others? Something that would aid and guide me when I am feeling stuck or scared in my relationship to myself or others?

Here are a few of the cards that were chosen:

• following and leading
• stillness
• improvise

I led the group through a variety of experiences using movement, noticing and contact.

Everyone had profound noticings about how to use their particular card to help them have more of what they want and desire in connection to themselves and those around them.

I will share some of my own. I used the closed eyes shuffle approach to choose my card. I got Following and Leading. The first exercise we did was a solo dance in our own small dance bubble. This was followed by a medium dance bubble solo dance and then a large bubble solo dance. The medium and large bubbles overlapped with other people’s bubbles which helped to begin the investigation of connecting with others. At first I was unsure about how to do following and leading with myself. Within minutes though I was filled with ideas: use my right side to lead and my left to follow, set up a pattern and follow it, take something in the room and follow that, use my feet to lead and my hands to follow. And when the dance bubbles overlapped I had even more fun following and leading with the bodies I came in contact with (whether they were actually aware of me or not!)

Some of my noticings about following and leading:

1. setting up something very simple and repetitive works best. (this is so helpful in marriage, child rearing, and most interactions)
2. it is impossible to follow and lead at the same time. (this is so helpful in marriage, child rearing, and most interactions)
3. when I am not clearly leading nor passionately following the dance falls apart. (this is so helpful in marriage, child rearing, and most interactions)

Now it is your turn. Get your own deck and explore the possibilities!

Poem 0177 of 1,000: jazz poem 1

Posted by Stan Stewart (Sawyer) on November 16, 2011 under Stan Stewart | Be the First to Comment

I will not tap my feet.
Though the rhythms and melodies you play
Conger up kicking off shoes and
Dancing barefoot in the grass,
I will not tap my feet.

Though my heart beats faster at the
Melodic buildup — as horn and keys
Latch together in the repetition of a theme,
Calling my heart and toes to a
Dance of thrill and amazement –
But no, I will not tap my feet.

I will not tap my feet, nor
Nod my head; though everything
In me is crying out for some kind of movement
To occur!
No, I will not tap my feet.

I will not tap my feet
When the guitar and sax drop out
To let bass and drums chase percussively
After each other in a playful, astoundingly
Structureless cadenza, filled with
Impulsive demands.
Even then, I will not tap my feet.

I will not tap my feet.
Though the pianist has spontaneously
Created a bit of magical funk
That was never previously inserted
In this “standard” of jazz stalwarts.
No, I will not tap my feet.

What’s this!
Did my head just nod a bit?
Unbidden, I can barely restrain myself
From rising straight to the dance floor,
For now, the whole ensemble is returning
To the original theme by some inaudible
Twist of jive and thrive.

Oh yes, I cannot just tap my feet:
I must move my head and spine and arms entwine,
Must move my torso, and more so
My feet.