Verbs, Contact Improvisation, generosity

To see, to watch, to observe.

To touch, to spiral around, to slide.

To support, to lean, to pivot, to displace, to move, to lift.

To grab, only when crucial.

Sometimes teaching only needs verbs to be prepared. Olga de Soto was the first one to teach me how to profoundly apply one, two or three verbs into movement.

When researching Contact Improvisation, verbs understand a lot about physically touching when moving. And vice versa. On the other hand: verbs don’t mean anything without listening or being generous. Nienke Reehorst might be one of the most generous teachers I ever met. So is Nancy Starck-Smith. Both of them are masters in the art of moving, touching and touching.

Nancy, Nienke and Olga, I would like to reserve a special place for you at my table. For anyone else reading: as a desert, here is another essential video to be watched: