Letting the Body Stretch Itself and Other Joys

With Merian Soto

A workshop hosted by The Whole Shebang on Oct 3-4

Judson Dance Theater and somatic practices pioneer, Elaine Summers, with whom Soto apprenticed from 1978-1983. In the letting the body stretch itself one simultaneously allows and notices movement travel into extension sequentially throughout the body. Bone hugging involves applying three dimensional tension to each bone. We will also  explore the score of Dance for Carola, created by Summers for the second concert of the Judson Dance Theater. 

Letting The Body Stretch Itself and Other Joys will serve as an introduction to foundational movement practices created by

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  • Dancer, choreographer, and filmmaker Merián Soto is the creator of aesthetic-somatic dance practices and methodologies, Branch Dancing and Modal Practice. She is known for works that explore and reflect upon Puerto Rican diasporic heritage, history, culture and the legacy of colonialism, experiments with Salsa, and the Branch Dance Series, which includes dozens of performances on stage, in galleries, and in nature, as well as video installations, and year-long seasonal projects. Soto is codirector with Viveca Vázquez of the award winning documentary Fenomenal: Rompeforma 1989-1996  screened internationally since 2023. A  recipient of a New York Dance and Performance Award, BESSIE (2000), a Greater Philadelphia Dance and Physical Theater Award “ROCKY” (2008), a Pew Fellowship in the Arts (2015), United States Artists Doris Duke Fellowship in Dance (2019) and a 2025 Guggenheim Fellowship. She currently co-directs, with Vázquez,  La Escuelita Fenomenal de RompeForma, a cycle of dance and performance workshops in Puerto Rico. She also collaborates with choreographers Liz Lerman, Jawolle Zollar, Johanna Haigood and Eiko Otake on Legacy Unboxed, a project that re-imagines traditional notions of what constitutes an artistic legacy and how it is shared with the world.

  • Day 1: Friday, October 3, 10am-4pm (1 hr break)

    Day 2: Saturday, October 4, 10am-4pm (1 hr break)

    Location: The Whole Shebang, Back entrance, 1813 S 11th St, Philadelphia, PA 19148

    Price: Sliding scale $125-300

    Reserve your spot here!

Have questions? Please email us at art.at.shebang@gmail.com and we’ll get back to within 1-2 business days.