CI ARCHIVE followed by TALK WITH LISA NELSON, led by Emma Bige 

Film repertoire: 

PERIPHERAL VISION
1975. B&W. Duration: 21:05
©Videoda

Selections from a Contact Improvisation concert at Firehouse Theater in San Francisco, CA in 1973: “You Come, We’ll Show You What We Do.” Commentary analyzes what is visible and memorable in the dancing from the point of view of 1975.

Performers: Steve Christiansen, Steve Paxton, Nita Little, Nancy Stark Smith, Karen Radler

Commentary: Steve Paxton, Nancy Stark Smith, Steve Christiansen
Camera: Steve Christiansen   Editing: Steve Christiansen, Steve Paxton, Nancy Stark Smith

FALL AFTER NEWTON
1987. Color and B&W. Duration: 22:45
©Videoda

A sweeping look at 11 years of practice of Contact Improvisation by Nancy Stark Smith and initiator, Steve Paxton. The progression – from its beginnings in 1972 through successive years of performances up to 1983 – shows one strand of the development of this multifaceted duet dance form.

Featured performers: Steve Paxton, Nancy Stark Smith
Script/Narration: Steve Paxton
Editing: Steve Christiansen, Lisa Nelson, Steve Paxton, Nancy Stark Smith

“VIDEODA, a project of Contact Collaborations, Inc., archives performance documents of Contact Improvisation from its inception in 1972.

Alternately called an art-sport, a social dance, animal play, a physical dialogue, Contact Improvisation has evolved into a world-wide practice with a profound influence on the dance of our times. These videos give a rare look at this vital dance form. They are not training tapes. Rather, they track a key period of exploration and discovery through narrated documentaries and documents of performances by its initiator, Steve Paxton, and founding practitioners.”

-source: https://contactquarterly.com/contact-editions/index.php#title=videoda-contact-improvisation-archive-(dvd)

Photo: Steve Paxton and Nancy Stark Smith, with Freelance Dance (L to R behind: Lisa Nelson, Daniel Lepkoff, Christina Svane) in Raft, 1980. Thorne’s Market, Northampton, MA. Photo © Stephen Petegorsky. https://contactquarterly.com/nancy-stark-smith/index.php