Ecstatic Dance Events in Boston, February 2024
Welcome to another month of conscious movement! In this bleak season, I have plenty of time to ponder why I publish this list. I've found so much joy through ecstatic dance, so of course, I want to share that joy with the world! But it runs deeper than just joy. We find ourselves in an Era of Disconnection. We're disconnected from nature, from our bodies, from our selves, from our community. And all that disconnection takes a toll, in sunless days and sleepless nights, spent obsessively scrolling on social media to fill that void within us. If I could share anything with the world, it'd be a chance to come together for an hour or two, and finally fill that void, finding connection however you find it.
…anyways, on to the ecstatic/conscious dance events for February!
Short List
Detailed List
Saturday, Feb 1st: Blindfold Contact Jam in Cambridge
7:00 - 10:00 pm. When we blindfold ourselves and let our sight go, we are able to develop and heighten our other senses. This is essential to training our bodies to expand beyond our patterns and open to a broader range of movement and sensation. Being blind in a dance is a whole new experience that helps to let go of our prejudgments, agendas, and movement habits. By being disoriented in blindness we can reorient ourselves without all those judgments and stories that our minds create from engrained patterns and assumptions. By listening with all our other senses we can forge new pathways. For safety, EVERYONE must attend the introduction, starting at 7:30 PM sharp.
Sunday, Feb 2nd: Heart Hive in Cambridge
10:30 am - 12:30 pm. Regularly one Sunday a month. A long running ecstatic dance near Porter Square, with a different warmup and closing ceremony each month, as well as community art projects.
Sunday, Feb 2nd: Contact Improv Fundamentals Workshop in Cambridge
1:15 - 6:30 pm. Dive into the core foundations of Contact Improvisation in this full-day of technique and insight with seasoned CI teacher, Moti Zemelman.
Whether you are exploring CI for the first time or looking to deepen your practice, this workshop will offer valuable insights and practices to enhance your dance and perhaps, your life.
Sunday, Feb 2nd: JourneyDance in Natick
3:00 - 5:00 pm. Join us for Turn Angst Into Art, a monthly JourneyDance™ event designed to support you to transform your emotions through creative expression and embodied movement. This self-empowered, supportive space invites you to explore dance as a tool for deep healing and connection. Through breath, somatic grounding, guided dance, and connection exercises, this two-hour journey offers a pathway to embody your authentic self, releasing stress, and uncovering the clarity within each emotion.
Tuesday, Feb 4th: Contact Improv Jam in Cambridge
7:30 - 10:00 pm. Regularly every Tuesday. Contact Improvisation is an open-ended exploration of the kinaesthetic possibilities of bodies moving through contact. Each week has a different facilitator and theme. Sometimes silent, sometime with live music.
Thursday, Feb 6th: Contact Improv Jam in Jamaica Plain
7:00 - 9:00 pm. Regularly every Thursday. Contact Improvisation is an open-ended exploration of the kinaesthetic possibilities of bodies moving through contact. Each week has a different facilitator and theme. Sometimes silent, sometime with live music.
Thursday, Feb 6th: FlowState 5Rhythms with Joel Stanley in Somerville
7:30 - 9:30 pm. Now once every week, in Somerville or Jamaica Plain! Joel is an accredited teacher of 5Rhythms, a form of movement therapy that brings us on a wave through a wave of five different rhythms: flowing, staccato, chaos, lyrical, and stillness.
Friday, Feb 7th: Vortex Ecstatic Dance in Cambridge
7:00 - 10:00 pm. Regularly on the first Friday of every month, near Harvard Square. Each Vortex dance begins with a cacao ceremony, before flowing into the main dance (with light show), and ending with a guided meditation.
Tuesday, Feb 11th: Contact Improv Jam in Cambridge
7:30 - 10:00 pm. Regularly every Tuesday. Contact Improvisation is an open-ended exploration of the kinaesthetic possibilities of bodies moving through contact. Each week has a different facilitator and theme. Sometimes silent, sometime with live music.
Thursday, Feb 13th: Contact Improv Jam in Jamaica Plain
7:00 - 9:00 pm. Regularly every Thursday. Contact Improvisation is an open-ended exploration of the kinaesthetic possibilities of bodies moving through contact. Each week has a different facilitator and theme. Sometimes silent, sometime with live music.
Thursday, Feb 13th: FlowState 5Rhythms with Joel Stanley in Somerville (MOTA)
7:30 - 9:30 pm. Now once every week, in Somerville or Jamaica Plain! Joel is an accredited teacher of 5Rhythms, a form of movement therapy that brings us on a wave through a wave of five different rhythms: flowing, staccato, chaos, lyrical, and stillness. NOTE: This dance will be held in the replacement venue of MOTA near Union Square, rather then SomArt at the Hive.
Friday, Feb 14th: Divine Design Ecstatic Dance & Sound Bath in Natick
6:30 - 10:00 pm. At the Natick Common Street Spiritual Center. Starting with an intention setting meditation, and ending with a soothing sound bath.
Saturday, Feb 15th: Biodanza in Somerville
3:00 - 5:00 pm. Biodanza is: movement, music, connection, restorative play, rest, revolution. Join for an afternoon practicing your own good medicine in community, and our collective good medicine together! In English and Spanish. This month, it will be held inside at MOTA in Union Square. The event is not yet posted, but save the date!
Tuesday, Feb 18th: Contact Improv Jam in Cambridge
7:30 - 10:00 pm. Regularly every Tuesday. Contact Improvisation is an open-ended exploration of the kinaesthetic possibilities of bodies moving through contact. Each week has a different facilitator and theme. Sometimes silent, sometime with live music.
Thursday, Feb 20th: Contact Improv Jam in Jamaica Plain
7:00 - 9:00 pm. Regularly every Thursday. Contact Improvisation is an open-ended exploration of the kinaesthetic possibilities of bodies moving through contact. Each week has a different facilitator and theme. Sometimes silent, sometime with live music.
Thursday, Feb 20th: FlowState 5Rhythms with Joel Stanley in Somerville
7:30 - 9:30 pm. Now once every week, in Somerville or Jamaica Plain! Joel is an accredited teacher of 5Rhythms, a form of movement therapy that brings us on a wave through a wave of five different rhythms: flowing, staccato, chaos, lyrical, and stillness.
Saturday, Feb 22nd: Movement, Rhythm, and Voice in Somerville
6:00 - 8:00 pm. Come as you are, and let the rhythm move you! With live drumming, we’ll tap into the healing energy of rhythm and allow our bodies and voices to flow freely, releasing tension and building resilience. This workshop is a space for you to connect with yourself and others in a supportive, creative environment. Everyone is welcome. Let’s build resilience together, one beat at a time. This night will be offered free as part part of the Foundry’s week of “Foundry Festival” programming.
Sunday, Feb 23rd: Common Street Art Fest and Ecstatic Dance in Natick
2:00 - 8:00 pm. Come connect with other community members and explore everything this event has to offer: beautiful art exhibition spaces, live music, live demonstrations, and more! Closing the day, we will have an ecstatic dance and sound bath from our musical director.
Sunday, Feb 23rd: Ecstatic LOVE Dance & Sound Healing in Cambridge
3:00 - 5:00 pm. Join us for this month’s Ecstatic LOVE Dance, where we celebrate connection, self-expression, and the universal power of love. Begin with a welcome circle and a short heart-opening, love-themed warmup. Dance freely to a versatile sound journey of throwbacks and several genres curated by the incredible DJ Bl0ckh34d.
Tuesday, Feb 25th: Movement, Rhythm, and Voice in Somerville
6:00 - 8:00 pm. Come as you are, and let the rhythm move you! With live drumming, we’ll tap into the healing energy of rhythm and allow our bodies and voices to flow freely, releasing tension and building resilience. This workshop is a space for you to connect with yourself and others in a supportive, creative environment. Everyone is welcome. Let’s build resilience together, one beat at a time.
Tuesday, Feb 25th: Contact Improv Jam in Cambridge
7:30 - 10:00 pm. Regularly every Tuesday. Contact Improvisation is an open-ended exploration of the kinaesthetic possibilities of bodies moving through contact. Each week has a different facilitator and theme. Sometimes silent, sometime with live music.
Wednesday, Feb 26th: JourneyDance in Arlington
7:00 pm. Find a new piece of yourself to love with the "Feeding Your Demons" ritual at this free community event at the main Arlington Library!
Thursday, Feb 27th: Contact Improv Jam in Jamaica Plain
7:00 - 9:00 pm. Regularly every Thursday. Contact Improvisation is an open-ended exploration of the kinaesthetic possibilities of bodies moving through contact. Each week has a different facilitator and theme. Sometimes silent, sometime with live music.
Thursday, Feb 27th: FlowState 5Rhythms with Joel Stanley in Somerville
7:30 - 9:30 pm. Now once every week, in Somerville or Jamaica Plain! Joel is an accredited teacher of 5Rhythms, a form of movement therapy that brings us on a wave through a wave of five different rhythms: flowing, staccato, chaos, lyrical, and stillness.
Friday, Feb 28th: Live Music Ecstatic Dance & Song Journey in Natick
6:30 - 10:00 pm. This will be an evening of composed and improvised music in a variety of styles. We go from mellow to metallic, from light to heavy, from serene to intense... like a movie through music, all different moods and scenes!
Sit and listen, lie down and meditate, or warm yourself up as winter nears its end... get up and dance! There will be space to accommodate all of those options! This event is part concert, part sound journey, part flow arts ecstatic dance space! We want to take you on a unique musical, spiritual, and emotional journey!
Friday, Feb 28th: Dance Alive in Cambridge
7:45 - 10:30 pm. Regularly once a month on a Friday, at the Masonic Hall in Porter Square. Begins with a warm up before the main dance journey, ending with a guided meditation.
Friday, Feb 28th: Dance Ecstatically Friday in Cambridge
8:00 - 10:00 pm. Join us for an evening of inner exploration and connection, bring friends meet new ones. Ecstatic dance at Dance Friday/Freedom. Experience a transformational evening filled with social dancing, energy healing, and a sense of community like no other.