Interfusion Festival X (IFX)

In today’s modern world, it’s odd that the average life expectancy has gone up, but the number of people suffering from chronic conditions are on the rise. While all of us have learned to look younger, but we’re feeling older. Our bodies are going through rapid combustion with modern lifestyle, productivity, foods that we eat, and more. 

The truth is that we’ve misunderstood ageing. Ageing at its normal pace is preservation with the appreciation for the depreciation that happens with time. This unique masterclass is all about some life-changing practices from Ayurvedic texts to support this preservation so we can all age, but gracefully and not prematurely. 

🌶️ Mild: The workshop does not invite sensuality or sexuality. There will be no facilitator invitations to cuddle or share moving touch, plus no welcoming or invoking of sexual energy. Any partner dancing that occurs will default to or center open position

Join Eleanor, the founder of BodyWise Somatic Trauma Institute  to explore the fundamentals of trauma, the nervous system, and Polyvagal Theory. Together we will take a dive into the transformative power of Somatic Therapies for healing and cultivating resilience. You will leave empowered with practical body based tools that will make a difference in your life.

🌶️ Mild: The workshop does not invite sensuality or sexuality. There will be no facilitator invitations to cuddle or share moving touch, plus no welcoming or invoking of sexual energy. Any partner dancing that occurs will default to or center open positio

Based on the core insights of liberation philosophy and sex-positivity, this workshop introduces a  basic framework for viewing sexual, intimate, and social interactions through a power-informed lens. It covers the ever-shifting and context-based nature of power, the way power can impact consent, and the responsibilities of being in both up-power and down-power roles.
Through scenario analysis, real-world examples, and dyad exercises, students learn the core skills for navigating power dynamics in sexual scenarios: noticing and naming where power lies, somatically sensing when power has been conferred on them or they’ve projected power onto others, and using pauses, invitations, and simple phrases to mitigate possible harm. Students walk away with a fresh new lens for understanding and engaging in intimacy!

🌶️ 🌶️ Medium: The workshop invites sensuality, moving touch, cuddles, or extended close physical contact with others, but does NOT invite sexuality or nudity.

In this groundbreaking workshop, Rubaba blends his deep musical passion with traditional Kirtan to create a transformative genre called Ecstatic Kirtan. The session involves call-and-response Kirtan style of chanting designed to harmonize the heart and throat chakras, invoking the Rajo and Sato Gunas to deepen meditative states. Throughout the ceremony, participants will engage in slow to mid-tempo chanting rooted in Indian Classical fusion with a multi-instrumental electronica sound seamlessly alongside traditional folk instruments such as the Rabab and Oud.
Rubaba offers chants from a wide array of musical traditions including Middle Eastern Makam, Indian classical raga, and Sanskrit (Ohm Namaha Shivayaha, Satchitananda etc.), alongside original creations such as "I am love" which resonate profoundly with audiences tapping into universal human emotions. Rubaba guides participants through the meaning and pronunciation of each chant, incorporating Raags such as Desh, Hansadhwani, Yaman, Bhairo, Kafi, and Bhoopali to enhance the immersive experience. Singing (of all abilities) is welcome, dancing is welcome, meditating is welcome, and silent observation is welcome. Jai Ho.

🌶️ Mild: The workshop does not invite sensuality or sexuality. There will be no facilitator invitations to cuddle or share moving touch, plus no welcoming or invoking of sexual energy. Any partner dancing that occurs will default to or center open position.

Guided decompression and integration led by a facilitator. 

Starting with an opening circle and group activation each night will take its unique course as a group improvisational space to the closing circle. The group activation may touch on technique, partner work, consent or creative improvisation practice. There is opportunity to build on the energy of the previous nights and days.

During the jam there may be periods of silence and periods of live improvised musical accompaniment from invited musicians.  In these moments we invite you to also treat music as a dance partner that touches everyone in conversation.  Participants with musical instruments and interest may have an opportunity to join the conversation with permission of the invited musicians. Kindly you may bring your instruments.

While the primary focus of the space is contact improvisation, solo and partnered improvisational movement of other forms is welcome when it fits in the ground rules.

Ground Rules:

• Practice Nonverbal & Verbal Consent
• Activate Deep Listening: Practice attunement to self, partner(s), and others in the space
• Observation is Welcome
• Solo Movement is Welcome
• Keep conversations and other interpersonal interactions to the peripheries
• Please be mindful of sound especially after 11:30pm as the sound here travels through the entire hotel.

“Contact Improvisation is a dance form based on the communication between two or more moving bodies that are in physical contact and their combined relationship to the physical laws that govern their motion—gravity, momentum, inertia.” - Nancy Stark Smith