The Weight of our Unfolding
New buds in spring are tender, full of potential yet vulnerable, to the elements and to the weight of their own unfolding. They emerge from the stillness of winter, delicate yet determined, stretching toward warmth.
Like these buds, we will attune to the delicate rhythm of our own emergence. How can we create enough spaciousness and cultivate enough sensitivity to make this process visible? By slowing down, shedding what is not needed, and attending to each other, we will cultivate a space ripe for easeful creativity. Through the lens of dance as ritual, we will invite an expansion and deepening of possibility within our Contact Improvisation practices.
Spring Jam Curatorial Update
Earthdance is excited to introduce a new addition to this year’s Spring Jam— a CI Intensive! Brandon will be leading classes on Friday and Saturday, offering a chance to deepen our dancing throughout the weekend. No additional sign-up or commitment is needed—come as you are and dive in.
We are also delighted to welcome Ana Harmon on Saturday, who will be offering a Gaga movement class.
About Gaga:
Gaga is the ever-evolving movement language created by choreographer Ohad Naharin. Classes are predicated on a deep activation of the body and attunement to physical sensations. Information is layered, building into a multisensory, physically invigorating experience. While many instructions are imbued with rich imagery, the research of Gaga is fundamentally physical, connecting to a specific process of embodiment. Inside Gaga’s guided structure, the improvisational nature of exploration enables each participant to connect to their own research and range.
Jam Details
- Attendance: An average of 40-80 people will attend this jam and is open to all movement levels & backgrounds.
- Jam Options: Full Jam and Saturday Drop-In Day.
- Saturday Drop-In: Ana Harmon will be offering a Gaga movement class. (Drop-In Day is available only to folks who have been to Earthdance before or attending the Full Jam).
- Newcomers: If you have never been to Earthdance, we ask that you only sign up for the Full Jam. This will allow us to better welcome and orient you to Earthdance.
Arrival, Onsite Check-In, Opening Circle, and Departures
- Full Jam: Arrival/Check-In on Thursday, April 3rd from 4:00pm-7:00pm front of the Farmhouse. Dinner is at 6-7pm.
- Opening Circle: Friday, April 4th at 10am. We request that ALL Newcomers attend the Opening Circle.
- Saturday Drop-In (Only for folks who’ve been to Earthdance before): Arrive Saturday, April 5th at 8am. Breakfast is from 8-9am. Check-In from 1-2pm during lunch with Olive. Departure at 10pm day of.
- Closing Circle/Final Clean: Sunday, April 6th Closing Circle at 12:30pm, Lunch 1-2pm
- Final Group Clean at 2-3pm.
- Full Jam Departure: After the final group clean by 3pm on Sunday, April 6th.
Our Fees Explained
Earthdance offers a sliding scale payment for participation in this event, please take a moment to reflect as you decide on where you best fit.
Your level of contribution is self selected and does not need to be advocated for. However, we invite you to remember this contribution is currency and we ask that you stretch where you are able so that those who cannot stretch as far of a financial distance may also have potential access to community events. As you choose your rate please consider the following factors:
- Your access to income and wealth, as connected to family and partnership, both currently and anticipated in the future.
- The historical, systemic impacts of wealth accrual based on culture, race and other intersection marginalizations for you and your family.
- The regional ease of your attendance, while some community members can drive to Earthdance, others will need to consider tuition based on their ability to travel longer distances.
- Earthdance is a community and rental funded organization which recently, historically and uniquely through the Covid-19 pandemic has struggled to have viable income.
PRICING: Sliding Scale
FULL JAM
GRATITUDE LODGE
Financially Strained $375.00 to Financially Abundant $800.00
CAMPING
Financially Strained $350.00 to Financially Abundant $775.00
COMMUTER
Financially Strained $325.00 to Financially Abundant $750.00
SATURDAY DROP-IN DAY
Financially Strained $85.00 to Financially Abundant $450.00
Equity & Access Tickets
Although we’re not able to offer any full scholarships this year, we’re excited to offer up to 4 FULL JAM Equity & Access Discounts to individuals who feel part of an underrepresented and/or marginalized group in CI and have a relationship with CI. We know that for those who come from marginalized populations showing up to spaces filled with primarily privileged groups can be a challenge, and can feel vulnerable.
Apply Here! Deadline is March 27th!
Earthdance makes efforts to support Equity & Access at all its events. At our four Seasonal jams we do this through:
- Reduced price Equity & Access tickets for folks who find our normal tickets to be a barrier. Participants self-identifying as being underrepresented and/or marginalized in CI are prioritized when allocating these tickets.
- An Accountability, Safety and Care (ASC) team that supports the processing of difficult situations that might come up in relation to consent, identity and other relational issues.
- Support from a BIPOC Team at our seasonal jams that hosts meals and supports offerings and affinity spaces based on BIPOC participants’ desires
Housing Options
Gratitude Lodge
Includes a bed in the Gratitude Lodge, jam offerings, sauna & quarry access, and food during the jam.
The Gratitude Lodge (a.k.a. the Earthdance dorm) is the main lodging facility, connected to the Farmhouse by a short wooded trail. The lodge includes large and small rooms featuring dormitory-style bunks and beds (twin & queen size) and is included in the base jam cost. Beds are available on a first come basis.
Camping
Includes a spot to camp at Earthdance, jam offerings, sauna & quarry access, and food during the jam.
Commuter
You will have access to the jam offerings, sauna & quarry access, and food during the jam.
Commuter Health Care: We ask that you please use caution when commuting and limit, if possible, to just commuting to and from your home and Earthdance, staying away from large crowds to maintain the health and well being of the other jam participants.
Nine Mountain is NOT available.
Cancellation Policy
Refund available up to 14 days (March 20th) before the event less a $75 processing fee.
No refunds available less than 14 days (March 20th) from the start of the event.
Partial refunds might be given if a cancellation takes place under extenuating circumstances (e.g. a death of a 1st or 2nd degree family member, serious non-preventable illness or accident requiring hospitalization). Refunds in such cases remain at the discretion of the local organizers and will be decided on a case to case basis according to the timing of the cancellation and other factors. We do not offer refunds if you catch a cold, the flu or COVID after the cancellation date.
Health Precautions
No specific requirements on vaccination status are needed to attend this event. Please take adequate measures to limit your exposure in the days before arriving. If you are feeling sick, or have a known close exposure to someone with COVID in the past 5 days, please sit this one out to keep the community well.
COMMUTERS: We ask that you please use caution when commuting and limit, if possible, to just commuting to and from your home and Earthdance, staying away from large crowds to maintain the health and well being of the other jam participants.
Participant Community Support
Earthdance runs as a community, thus part of the participation is that all individuals contribute to 1-2 work shifts (typically meal cleans) throughout the event and participate in a final house clean on the last day of the event. These are great ways to connect more with your fellow participants and Earthdance staff, and to feel more at home in the Earthdance buildings & grounds. Your contributions to this collective caring of this space are invaluable!
Earthdance’s buildings are ADA accessible. More info here.
Guest Facilitator
Brandon Gonzalez
Brandon Gonzalez is an interdisciplinary dance artist, choreographer, and educator based in Austin, Texas. He’s moved by the transformational power of dance as a ritual practice, using it as an experimental ground for investigating embodied human experience. Focusing on the capacities of the body as a resource for artistic practice, he develops works across a variety of media and performance modalities. He teaches Contact Improvisation nationally and internationally, and for over 15 years has produced dance events in Austin. Working as a co-organizing member, he helped establish the annual Texas Dance Improvisation Festival (TDIF). He is also the Artistic Director and an established DJ/facilitator at Ekstasis, a vibrant community ritual-dance event in Austin. Brandon is an Associate Professor of Practice in the Department of Theatre and Dance at TXST University. He holds a BFA in Studio Art from TXST and an MFA in Dramatic Arts from UC Davis.
Brandon has only been to Earthdance a few times and is looking forward to dancing and getting to know the community there!
SATURDAY Drop-In Gaga Facilitator
Ana Harmon
Ana Harmon is a dance and movement advocate currently living in her home state of Massachusetts. She has been a Gaga teacher since 2019, completing her certification in Tel Aviv with the artistic guidance of Ohad Naharin. Now more than ever, she is committed to dancing every day and sharing the healing power of movement with a range of movers. Ana currently divides her time between Gaga teaching engagements and supporting the Gaga organization’s various artistic and educational programs across the globe. She is a faculty member at the Boston Conservatory and recently led an undergraduate Gaga course at Harvard University. Ana trained with Boston Ballet’s pre-professional program for 13 years and joined Ballet Austin II in 2008. In 2010, she joined Kamea Dance Company in Be’er Sheva, Israel where she danced for three years. Ana completed a BA in English Literature & Middle Eastern Studies from Tel Aviv University in 2016.
As a new resident of the Pioneer Valley, Ana is excited for her first visit to Earthdance!
CICo HOSTS
The CI Committee (CICo) is the Earthdance seasonal jam production team. Since 2001, this team has been supporting the Guest Facilitators and producing the jams from behind the scenes. For this Spring Jam, instead of having two guest facilitators, Anya and Meta will be joining Brandon in hosting the event.
Meta Bobbe
Meta Bobbe (she/her) is an integrative body therapist, embodiment and movement researcher, and a CI teacher and community organizer. Since first encountering CI in Israel in 2012, this practice has become central to her life. Meta has been part of the leadership team at Earthdance for years, serving on the CICo seasonal jam organization team since 2019, was an intensive teacher at Spiral & Roots CI Professional Training 2025, and is a former Earthdance Board Member (2020-2023). Curating CI spaces that foster creative expression, community connection, and a welcoming atmosphere is both a passion and a practice for her. She’s excited and honored to be part of this Spring Jam’s team!
Meta is a Certified Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapist, Ilan Lev Method Practitioner, and Licensed Massage Therapist. She holds a BBA in Management and Human Resources from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. A seasoned traveler and former expat, Meta now resides in Florence, Massachusetts.
Anya Smolnikova
Anya Smolnikova (b. Minsk, Belarus) is an artist and educator living and working in Vermont. Her art practice spans painting, drawing, performance, installation, dance and community actions. Smolnikova has exhibited internationally in Armenia at HAYP; in Los Angeles at LAST Projects; in Chicago at Mana Contemporary, Heaven Gallery, Links Halls, No Nation, and 6018 North; in Massachusetts at the Boston Boston Center for the Arts, Piano Craft Guild, MUSA Collective, Dorchester Art Projects and Four Eleven Gallery in Provincetown. Collaborations include projects with Anastasia Tinari, FAR x WIDE, Seeding Sovereignty among others. Teaching includes Northwestern University; Northwestern Prison Education Program; Chicago Art Partnerships in Education; Museum of Fine Arts Boston; Brookline, Cambridge and Boston Centers for Adult Education; The Field Center and The Putney School in Vermont among others. Smolnikova has been a resident artist at the Vermont Studio Center, Boston Center for the Arts, Groundworks Space in Hudson Valley, and holds an MFA from Northwestern University in Chicago. She lives at The Field Center in Vermont, where she is a founding member, Director of Operations, Curator and Faculty.
