WILDNESS LAB
​Experimental Perimeter: Continuous Vocalization
​-Max Capacity: 20
-Price: $10-20
-Advance Registration is Required (If this is your first wildness lab, a brief check-in with the facilitator is required after registration)
-Participants must arrive no later than 7:10 (doors will be locked after this time)

The intention of WILDNESS LABS is to explore wildness, spontaneity and full uninhibited expression of all of our parts. What this means is to allow energies and expressions to pour out of you without pushing them down or restricting them. It is to allow expressions that typically aren’t allowed in social space, or at all. Whatever emerges, we will let it out. Whatever comes, we will express it. For this container expression includes: sound, movement, gestures and words.

Why? Because something incredible is afforded when EVERYTHING is allowed. Our psyches are able to let out and express what they always already contain. We are able to be with all the fluid content of our depths. We are able to let it all out. We are able to be radically authentic (beyond what we even thought possible).​

This kind of radical authenticity can be extremely cathartic and healing, but this container is after something more than just catharsis. To express fully and radically can be thought of as plumbing or mining our depths. While in these strange caverns of the soul, typically we find something there that is surprising, lovely, beautiful, strange and worth bringing home with us. Gold? Some other earthen rock? Some strange creature? Whatever we find (even nothingness can be interesting) can be carried back with us and explored and developed a bit further.

There are 3 intentions for these labs, listed in order of importance. It is crucial that everyone who comes is aligned with these intentions. The primary intention is for individuals to explore their own uninhibited emotional states. The secondary intention is for individuals to explore characters that emerge when in this uninhibited state. The tertiary intention is for individuals to explore how these characters interact with others. Each intention leads to the next. One can only explore with others if one is able to truly tap into one’s own authentic emotions and then let characters emerge; otherwise, the play will be surface, theatrical or akin to comedy improv. This is not a space where we intend to have constant engagement or play with others (although that may occur). This is a space where we aim to let what is already there emerge - connecting inside of us to see what is there, needing to burst forth. It is recommended that we pause and continually return to our individual authentic energetic movements and upwellings to help connect with the primary intention and our own unique beautiful wildness.

Each Wildness Lab starting in 2025 will have a different "experimental parameter" that we will add in. They will change for each lab, and will be listed in the tagline of the event. The lab for 01/13/25 will have the experimental parameter of continuous vocalization. Everyone will be encouraged to continuously vocalize for the entire session (after the warmup). This can include: free association, mumbling, sighing, moaning, crying, laughing, groaning, etc. 

STRUCTURE
 
1) Arrivals and check-ins [it's very important to arrive on time - doors will close at 7:10pm]
2) Explaining grounding rules and agreements
3) Embodied / energetic warmup
4) A 50 minute playlist begins! The first 20 minutes are for individual explorations, and then after 20 minutes relational engagement is allowed.
5) The playlist ends and we’ll continue without music
6) Wildness Lab Ends - Signaling rest, silence, breath
7) Sharing Circle

SAFETY NOTES

Wildness Labs are meant for individuals who are comfortable knowing their boundaries, and feel confident expressing a “no” even when within dynamic and intense relational contexts, and/or they are for individuals who consent to the possibility of extending their boundaries and consent to the potential fallout of that overextension

The facilitator agrees to hold the container by making sure people follow the rules. The facilitator does not agree to provide care for possible emotional fallout that occurs if one isn’t able to know one’s limits, or if someone gets triggered by something someone does within the space that is within the rules.

There will be an “out-of-bounds” zone where one can always go to disengage. While in this area nobody can engage you with you while “in bounds”. Nobody can even look at you. I.e. you are out of the game.

We will be using safe words used to tell another person to stop engaging you within your field of engagement (a 2 foot radius around you). “Green Light” indicates to others to continue. “Yellow Light” indicates to someone to slow down. “Red Light” indicates to someone to stop whatever actions they are doing in your field of engagement.

You may want to bring earplugs (this is not a space for those who have a hard time w/ loud and intense sounds)

ENGAGING OTHERS (HOW TO?)

Given that one of the intentions of wildness labs is engagement and exploration with others, and given that we may be exploring rather volatile states and emotions, there needs to be guidelines in place for interaction with others. How to engage with others? The guiding ethos of engagement with others will be attunement. This may be hard, because we will likely be within parts/energies that are weird, violent or myopic. So then how would we attune? 

When engaging others we are asking that you have the ability to inwardly step outside of whatever energy you are holding (at least 5%) so that you can maintain a bit of awareness and attunement. To attune to the other is to read whether they are engaging and responsive. If so, this can be taken as a cautious yes.

Engagement is read typically as a "yes." This may be counterintuitive because screaming NO! is actually a sign of engagement. Slobbering, hitting, running around wildly are also signs of engagement. Externalized expression (no matter what it is) can be typically read as a YES.

Disengagement is read typically as a no. Silence, muteness, backing away, inertness. When you observe these signs that is typically a cue to be more tentative or distanced with your behavior towards the other. If someone says “Red Light” to you, this is always read as a "no" and you should back away from their field of engagement.

Extremely fast movements towards others with violent or sexual energies are not allowed, as these do not give the other the chance to disengage or yell “red light.”

Aaron Finbloom is a philosopher, artist and pedagogue. He is the co-founder of The School of Making Thinking (SMT) and the founder & director of The Deep Play Institute (DPI). His practice involves expanding transformative inquiry through games, performance art and structured play. With training in Circling, Authentic Relating, and Psychodrama, he also facilitates experimental individual and group sessions inspired by these practices. Finbloom has presented works internationally at venues which include: The Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, Gallery 151 (New York), Maschinenhaus Kulturbrauerei (Berlin), UNAM (Mexico City), and MainLine Theatre (Montreal). He holds a PhD in Interdisciplinary Humanities & Fine Arts from Concordia University in Montreal, and is currently teaching Philosophy at the City College of New York and The University of Portland. finblooming.com