Choreographic Research Combining Contact Improvisation and the Alexander Technique: Somatic, Practice-Based-Research, and Ethnographic Inquiry

Somatic practices, practice-based-research (PBR) and ethnography contextualize this choreographic research that moves from the studio/stage to the desk. My project investigates how integrating the Alexander Technique (AT) and Contact Improvisation (CI) principles, combined with theoretical studies in PBR and ethnography expand psychophysical coordination for dancers, teachers, researchers and choreographers. I primarily ask: What theoretical and methodological principles guide my dance research in order to move beyond teaching dance technique or choreographing a piece? To address my inquiries, I choreographed, danced and taught with dance artists from Canada, Japan, Europe, and the USA. The culmination of my research offers a new dance methodology to facilitate the multiple internal/external awareness necessary for an embodied choreographic process.