Come dance to the music of New Orleans and celebrate Mardi Gras. Costume up if you want or just come in and get on down!

Dance is at the regular time of (Fat) Tuesday, 6:00-7:30, but if you want to come earlier and warm up longer, doors will open at 5:30.

Laissez les bons temps rouler...

Come, join us for a Journey into the world of the unseen.

This Saturday, February 11, from 6-11pm at the WOW Hall, you are invited to spend an evening under the blindfold, dancing to a variety of tribal beats and ambient music.

An exploration of the reflective inner dance and as a gathering of community, this is an opportunity to participate in the sacred experience of the body in motion and in stillness, in breath, the mother of rhythm, and in the ancient dance spanning generations.

Doors open 6:00 pm. Please arrive early as the doors close at 7:10. Cost in $10-20 sliding scale at the door
Space is limited, so please reply if you are planning to attend.

Details
Blindfolds will be provided but if you have a favorite feel free to bring it.
The best is something thin and stretchy that lightly touches your eyelids to keep your eyes from opening.

There will be a circle at the beginning for introducing the form and to answer questions.

Spotters are sighted dancers that circulate to help facilitate the dance,
providing a buffer between dancers of greatly varying energy levels
and occasionally guiding stray dancers back towards the middle of the room.

Suggestions for preparation
Bring layers of easy-to-move-in clothing that can easily be tied around the waist as folks often warm up and cool down over the course of the dance and having what you need with you means being self sufficient under the blindfold.

Drink water throughout the day but avoid eating within a couple of hours before the dance.
Spotters can offer assistance on or off the floor but do what you can to make your experience as uninterrupted as possible.

Play the day as quietly as you can, experimenting with non verbal forms if you must communicate with people. Solicit the consideration and creativity of those around you to support you in this.

We hope to see you there.

Blessings,

Paul

OCCUPY YOUR BODY: Awaken Your Heart A Global Dance Wave
January 22, 2012 12 NOON

The idea was inspired from Marianne Williamson’s visit to Maui
and her asking us how we can contribute….
Being dancers and spiritual seekers this what we came up with…

WE as Conscious Dancers would like to add our wisdom to the collective vision emerging from the OCCUPY Movement.

OCCUPY has a message of transformation, a message of a need for change.

WE as dancers and spiritual seekers know the pathway of personal transformation and it is time for us to apply our wisdom to assist in the state, national and global transformations needed.

We as dancers know the power of Embodiment. We know that when we are connected to our bodies, embodied, true transformation is possible. We know that when we connect the mind and the body and awaken the heart, we will be able to make the changes necessary.

We offer OCCUPY YOUR BODY as a prayer for this awakening and our global transformation. On Sunday, January 22, 2012 at 12 noon, Conscious Dancers will dance a wave of movement that will circle the globe. Together, we are
ONE WAVE. ONE BODY. ONE HEART.

On January 22 (as close to 12 noon as possible), dancing communities whether they are 5Rhythms, Ecstatic, Conscious Dance, Soul Motion, Nia or any other kind of conscious movement, will gather and dance, holding this prayer of EMBODIMENT, each with our own particular flavor all with the same intention to allow the power of embodiment to be part of the global conversation in whatever way it can serve.

Movement is needed. LETS MOVE.

For more information and to post your participation, go to the FACEBOOK PAGE OCCUPY YOUR BODY: A Global Dance Wave or you can contact Amara directly at amara@amarapagano.com

There is a film being edited now by Jeff Wayman that will be available next week introducing OCCUPY YOUR BODY and inviting people to participate. There will also be a video made with footage submitted from the various communities that participate. Please post on Facebook your partipation and make sure to send a photo or any film you can take of your OCCUPY YOUR BODY prayer.

let our lives be incense
burning
like a hymn to the sacred
body of the universe
~ Drew Dellinger

Join Coalessence facilitator Grace Llewellyn for a Soul Motion movement workshop Saturday evening, December 17, 6-10:30 pm at the WOW Hall. Below is her invitation to you.

*     *     *     *     *

Fire!

We’ll dance in the fire of passion, transformation, and healing~

spiraling deep inside our own hearts and bellies to rekindle and fan the flame that burns within,

radiating heat outward as we partner and trio and commune,

opening as wide as we’re willing to channel spirit’s fire that burns away all we are not and perhaps leaves only  “a tendency to shine.” (That’s from a poem by Zen teacher Adyashanti.)

Deep into Soul Motion
This workshop is based on the practice of Soul Motion — I’m in the final stages of a teaching apprenticeship with my beloved and inspiring teachers, Vinn Marti (of Portland) and Zuza Engler (California). I’m excited about sharing this transformative practice with our tribe.  If you’ve attended my classes, you should know that in this longer workshop we’ll take advantage of the opportunity to go deeper both in our dance intimate (alone together) and in soulful, embodied, and prolonged adventures with each other.

Cost
For Coalessence folks, $15 in advance (registered and paid December 16 or earlier), $20 at the door. ($5 more for the general public, unless you personally bring guests, in which case the Coalessence discount applies.) Several full or partial worktrades available. (I need people to take a turn with a videocamera — not for public display, just to send to my teachers so they can give me feedback — and will need help with a few other tasks also. Let me know if you’re interested and can solidly commit.)

Adults
This workshop is for adults (or teenagers able and willing to conduct themselves as adults and take care of their own emotional and physical boundaries). Sorry, no childcare provided.

To sign up, find out more, or just show up
For more info, email me directly, GraceLlewellyn@gmail.com, or if you already know you’re meant to come  just let me know via email or in person at Coalessence, and send payment by PayPal to nbtsc@aol.com — make sure it’s obvious who it’s from — or pay me in person at Coalessence. I may also post more information at BloomingMostRecklessly.com.

If you decide to just show up at the door:

• please arrive on time,
• bring an easily digested snack (we’ll take a couple short breaks and you may want nourishment), and
• be uninfluenced by substances such as alcohol or marijuana.

I do hope you will come burn, dance, and celebrate with me.

Thank you for reading.

With love and gratitude,
grace