CI Groundswell aims to support the individual and community practice of Contact Improvisation in the Southeastern United States by offering workshops, developing communities of practice, and supporting contact improvisation communities and facilitators through skill building and sharing and development of resources.
CI Groundswell is focused on areas in the southeast which are no more than six hours drive from Western North Carolina and Florida.
CI Groundswell was started and is currently organized by CJ O’Reilly.
CJ O’Reilly
CJ O’Reilly started their movement exploration in the world of martial arts and extreme sports, and discovered their love for dance when they unraveled the puzzle of self consciousness while traveling in Mongolia. Since then dance has been a part of life. CJ discovered Contact Improvisation as a dance major at University of Colorado, Boulder, but moved to Inner Mongolia China soon after; unable to find other CI practitioners, they studied TaiJi and danced in nightclubs for years until the lack of shared practice become unbearable. After translating for two workshops by Irene Sposetti & Johan Nilsson in Beijing, they moved to Asheville with a clear intention of learning to cultivate the culture and practice dance in community. Other than Contact Improvisation and commonly associated modalities, CJ’s movement background is influenced by experience with: Taiji, Aikido, Capoeira Conditioning, Acro Yoga and partner acrobatics, partner dance forms including Swing, Blues and Tango, and a passion for the physics of movement.
