DanceAction Summer Workshop 2026:
Collective Radical Imagination
August 10th to August 14th, 2026, from 10 AM to 2 PM
New York Live Arts - Jerome Robbins Studio
219 W 19th St, New York, NY 10011
Workshop Performance:
Friday, August 14th at 8 pm @DA Garden Series
FREE!!! Suggested Donation: $25/Workshop Day - $100/Full Workshop*
*You may also register by completing THIS FORM and making a contribution through
Venmo: @mcarmencaceres | Paypal: paypal.me/carmencaceresdance
DanceAction’s Summer workshop for dancers, performers, or movers of any kind offers an integrated experience that includes dance training, improvisation, and spontaneous composition. This comprehensive dance experience will enable participants to access a unique combination of dance techniques, discovering DanceAction’s “Pathways & Architecture” style, playful improvisation approaches, and collective choreographic strategies rooted in the practice of spontaneous composition. This experience will ignite participants’ creativity, deepen their listening skills, and broaden their versatility as movement artists.
DanceAction’s Summer Workshop “Collective Radical Imagination” will explore key components of a comprehensive dance experience: technical training, improvisation, and spontaneous composition.
The Workshop
Dance Training
"Pathways & Architecture"
& Repertory
Monday to Friday,
from 10 to 11 am
Dance
Improvisation
Monday to Friday,
from 11 am to 12 pm
Collective Spontaneous Composition
Monday to Friday,
from 12:30 to 2:00 pm
Culminating Performance at DanceAction
Garden Series
Friday, August 14th
at 8 pm
The Contemporary dance training segment offers a unique blend of dance techniques and styles (Flying Low, Cunningham, Release, Argentinian Tango & Folk Dance, Cuban-style Salsa, and Partnering Techniques), designed to build strength, flexibility, endurance, coordination, and movement mechanics. Through a series of exercises that study the shape and pathways of energy in space, dancers will discover innovative strategies for exploring the swift changes in levels and navigating the space between vertical and horizontal planes. Each training segment concludes with an exploration of DanceAction’s repertory through accessible phrase work, providing an opportunity to implement these training strategies. This practice will enable participants to explore a diverse range of movement languages and styles, thereby expanding their overall physical abilities and enhancing their performative interpretation.
An Improvisation segment will follow, inviting participants to immerse themselves in a playful experience. This will include theater and movement games, movement explorations, structured dance improvisations, score-building exercises, partnering approaches, and open dance. By navigating these activities progressively, participants will gain awareness of the people they are moving with; they will experience clarity and ease in decision-making scenarios and will develop a sense of alertness and strong presence in spontaneous situations. They will also integrate the concept of “Yes and!” within the group practice of dance improvisation and enhance their listening skills in dance.
This year’s workshop will delve into a range of strategies for navigating Collective spontaneous composition. This portion of the session will serve as a laboratory for exploring through a durational movement practice, heightened presence, and radical imagination within the group setting. These explorations will contribute to DanceAction’s latest project in development, El Péndulo. Participants will be able to discover multiple instant composition tools and their practicality by exploring DA’s inventory of choreographic approaches. Ultimately, these tools will be used to create short improvisational scores that participants will perform at the workshop's culminating Performance on Friday, August 14th.
The Workshop will conclude with an informal presentation of short improvisational scores created by the participants at the DanceAction Garden Series on Friday, August 14th, at 8 pm*. The event will also feature excerpts from DanceAction’s repertory, including its current project, "El Péndulo." All workshop participants who attend at least 3 workshop classes, including Friday, August 14th, will be eligible to perform in the culminating performance event.
*In the event of inclement weather, the showing will be rescheduled to take place on Saturday, August 15th, or Sunday, August 16th, 2026.
The Audition
We are seeking dancers, performers, or movers residing in New York City to join the company this fall in our new immersive experience, “El Péndulo.” Selected dancers will be instrumental collaborators in developing this new project to be performed on October 4th, 2026, and other tentative performance events throughout the fall. BIPOC and Immigrant Artists of any gender identity are encouraged to apply!
Applicants should have broad experience in contemporary dance forms, including movement improvisation, floor work, and partnering. A passion for working in a collaborative environment is a must, along with excellent communication skills. DanceAction’s choreography blends an array of movement languages and styles (Flying Low, Cunningham Technique, Improvisation, Release, Argentine Tango, Salsa), connecting body architecture, spirals, and pathways of energy in space. DanceAction’s collaborators are creative, problem-solving individuals with a genuine interest in building meaningful connections with others while using dance as a catalyst for social change.
Once again, DanceAction is integrating auditions into its week-long summer workshop. This would be an exciting opportunity to get to know prospective candidates and for them to become familiar with DA’s work. The workshop is FREE, with a suggested donation that is totally optional for participants.
To Audition, interested applicants should attend at least one session of DanceAction’s Summer Workshop at New York Live Arts (219 W 19th St, New York, NY 10011) from Monday, August 10th to Friday, August 14th, from 10 am to 2 pm. Participation in the entire workshop is not required, but is highly recommended to be considered for this opportunity, as it will familiarize you with DanceAction’s movement language and improvisational approaches. To register for the workshop, complete this form https://forms.gle/HDBvmWUx9BhwDhac6 or SIGN UP through Eventbrite HERE.
Following your registration, please email Carmen Caceres at danceactionnyc@gmail.com and submit your resume, Headshot (or a picture of yourself), samples of your dance and performance work (reels/videos/website/links), and a few words describing yourself and why you would like to join this new project. In the subject line, include the following message: “DA El Pendulo AUDITION 2026 - Your Name.”
DanceAction’s collaborators will receive hourly rehearsal compensation and a performance stipend.
This is a temporary Part-time position through the month of September and early October, for 8 to 16 hours per week, with some week-long residencies. In-person Rehearsals will start in the late summer/early fall and take place 2 to 4 times a week, Monday to Friday, between 4 and 8 pm, at different studios in Lower Manhattan. The complete rehearsal calendar will be posted by the time of the workshop. If you have scheduling conflicts but would like to participate, send a message, and we will discuss whether accommodations can be made.
“El Péndulo” (2026) (The Pendulum) transports the audience through an immersive experience featuring improvisational dance that reflects cultural perspectives, from collectivism to individualism. This piece combines segments featuring solos, duets, and trios, with improvised and choreographed group sections. Dancers explore an array of movement ideas, shifting between actions inspired by profound human emotions and instances of connection and disconnection.
Meet The Artists
