Seattle Contact Festival

Join us for a full weekend of Contact Improvisation workshops, jams, and shared practice, bringing dancers from Seattle, the West Coast, and beyond together for a deep dive into movement, listening, and connection. We’re excited to gather the richness of our local community alongside world-class teachers for a weekend of skill-building, play, and embodied learning. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ✨ What to Expect • A thoughtfully curated 3-day CI immersion • Clear, accessible instruction for all levels • Deep practice, fresh inspiration, and lots of dancing • Plenty of jams, including an evening Underscore (and possibly a blindfold jam) • Time to integrate, rest, and connect with others • A welcoming, consent-forward environment All held on OmCulture’s beautiful sprung wood floor (your knees will thank you). ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 🤸‍♀️ Who This Is For Newer to Contact Improvisation? You’re welcome here. This weekend is designed to help you build confidence with: • weight sharing & support • falling and landing safely • tracking sensation and momentum • trusting your body and your partners Been dancing CI for a while? This is a chance to: • refine your skills and perception • break out of familiar movement patterns • get out of your head and back into curiosity • learn from teachers who bring nuance, clarity, and depth No matter where you’re starting from, you’ll find space to grow. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 🧑‍🏫 Teachers We’re thrilled to welcome an incredible teaching team: Karen Nelson An OG Contact Improviser and longtime teacher, Karen brings decades of embodied experience, clarity, and care to tuning, falling, and relational practice. Carmen Serber A steady force in the Pacific Northwest CI scene, Carmen continually organizes jams and dance events in Bellingham and brings that lived, communal sensibility into her teaching. Michal Lahav A longtime Contact Improviser and pillar of the Seattle CI community, Michal has been hosting the monthly Underscore for years, offering deep continuity and spacious inquiry. Christian Swenson Teaching improvisation for decades and a longtime friend of the Seattle CI community, Christian blends technical insight with generosity, humor, and ease. Noé Khalfa Drawing on 15+ years of dance, yoga, hand-balancing, and meditation, Noé weaves awareness, quality of movement, and joyful exploration into accessible CI practice. Serge Gubelman An intuitive musician and dancer, Serge creates rich, responsive soundscapes that deeply support listening, timing, and collective flow. (Read more about them in their bios on the website.) Each brings a distinct voice, deep experience, and love for CI as both a practice and a community form. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 🗓️ Schedule Snapshot Friday evening: arrival, guided warm-up, opening circle & opening jam Saturday: warm-ups, workshops, long lunch/open jam, afternoon jam, dinner break, evening underscore Sunday: warm-ups, workshops, lunch, final jam & closing circle (Full schedule with times available on the website.) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 🎟️ Tickets • Full weekend passes: $225–$275 (early bird pricing available) • Friday & Saturday evening jams only: $30 each Volunteer / Financial Aid Spots We’re offering 8 volunteer spots at 50% off the regular ticket price. Volunteers work 2 shifts (2–2.5 hrs each) supporting setup, cleanup, space care, or check-in. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 🥗 Food We’ll provide snacks each day. No full meals are provided — there will be long lunch and dinner breaks for bringing food or exploring nearby spots. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ❤️ Consent & Care We’re committed to a clear, supportive, consent-forward space. • Trained Heart Tenders (Consent Ambassadors) will be present during dances • They’ll be wearing pink bracelets and are available for support around consent or safety concerns • A consent resource table and incident reporting options will be available You can also review our full consent guidelines here: 👉 https://www.seattleecstatica.com/contact-improv-guidelines ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 🏠 Visiting from out of town? We’ll do our best to help connect visiting dancers with local hosts. An accommodations request form will be shared after registration - just ask! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 📍 Location OmCulture Seattle, WA ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This weekend is about movement, curiosity, trust, and community, qualities that are ever-present whether you’re stepping into CI for the first time or returning to deepen a long-held practice. We’d love to dance with you 💜