4th CI Essentials
What: an affordable, beginners-friendly contact improvisation workshop focusing on core practices of classic, physics-based CI
When: 30/31 May 2026, 10-17h
Where: Fudoshin Aikido Dojo, Leipzig
With Whom:
Olha Bershadska (Kyiv/Leipzig),
Nils Dittmar (Chemnitz)
Karl Frost (San Francisco/Leipzig)
Welcome to the 4th CI Essentials, a fundamentals focused, beginner-friendly Contact Improvisation Workshop!
Contact Improvisation is a playful and creative dance form centered on moving with others, physical connection, bio-mechanical exploration, and following curiosity. CI Essentials is a series of weekend workshops looking at core practices and fundamental techniques of classic, physics-based contact improvisation. There are many routes into contact practice and at the same time some core fundamentals. The workshops will mix novel exercises and perspectives on explorations of physical sensitivity, adaptability, weight sharing and shared creativity with useful-to-repeat mechanical CI fundamentals to deepen into core practices. They are beginner-friendly, but also of interest to experienced dancers wanting to concentrate on core practices … aimed to be useful for repeat attendance, but also open for new participants each time.
CI invites movers to engage with their and their partners’ bodies through sharing weight and structure and through physical listening. It is sometimes gentle and meditative, sometimes wild and acrobatic, following the curiosities and initiatives of those exploring.
The weekend is intended as a very beginner friendly workshop focusing on basics and core practices of CI. We’ll dive into physical listening, offering and accepting support, and navigating shared balance through space and into and out of the floor. We’ll also practice some basic lifts and supports and practice working them into a flow, following a moving point of contact.
The primary aim of the workshop is to help those newer to the dance to feel comfortable in the more open exploration space of a “contact jam” or in using contact-based practices in other dance contexts. For those already introduced to CI, it is an opportunity to spend some time working on the fundamentals.
No prior experience is necessary—just bring curiosity, openness, and an active excitement to move and explore in physical contact!
For more information on contact improvisation, what it is and its history, go to https://www.bodyresearch.org/contact-improvisation/
Logistics
Space is limited. The last workshop filled with waiting list, so early registration is recommended.
Space to sleep available for those visiting from out of town
Workshop in English
Fees
130-200e sliding scale.
Pay what you can in the range, no one turned away for lack of funds
Early registration: 90-200e if paid by 11 October
Registration
Please complete BOTH steps:
1️⃣ Fill out this registration form.
2️⃣ Pay the fee to IBAN DE81860555921633763931, Olha Bershadska
Bios
Olha Bershadska is a CI dancer and co-organizer of the Leipzig CI Festival “Pelvis and Momentum” and the Leipzig Wednesday Focus Jam. She began practicing Contact Improvisation in Ukraine in 2021 while exploring movement as a way to help people feel more comfortable in their bodies—a natural extension of her work in adult education. Olha believes that CI is a unique blend of practical techniques, self-discovery, and joyful movement, and that the key to developing in CI lies in playfulness, curiosity, and the willingness to challenge oneself through small risks. With years of experience preparing people for teaching and group facilitation in invited workshops around Europe, Olha is an expert in creating “learning-by-doing” environments. She studies how skills are developed, has a wide variety of tools to help participants master new movement patterns more easily, and creates an engaging and supportive space where individuals can experiment freely and build confidence in their movement.
Nils Dittmar is a dancer and CI facilitator from Chemnitz.
Karl Frost has been practicing CI since the 1980s in California. He is known internationally for the articulateness of his teaching and the edge-pushing nature of his work in both teaching and performance. He has a passion for teaching and sharing the fundamental practices of class, physics-based explorations that are the historical roots of contact improvisation.
Daniela Ciccolini as movement explorer, and psychologist has a deep passion for embodied learning and human connection. With a background in psychology, she integrates body awareness, trust, and intuitive movement into her teaching. Her workshops offer a safe and engaging space for beginners to explore contact improvisation through playful connection and somatic awareness. She is currently based in Leipzig where she continues to develop her practice, blending movement exploration with psychological insight to guide participants in discovering new ways of communication, support, and self-expression through movement.
