Bodies and Souls

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Simple forms like 'Hand Dances'--in which pairs of players move their hands, shake hands, or take hold of each other's wrists--help new (or shy) InterPlayers build confidence. 'Everyone is responsible for doing only what feels right for them,' says Twin Cities InterPlay teacher Celia Swanson.

'Babbling' brings in an element of storytelling by inviting people to talk for 30 seconds. 'I might suggest: Babble about what you see out your kitchen window,' says Swanson. 'Or I might make up a nonsense word and have people babble about what they think it means.' At a more advanced level, 'Big Body Stories' combine movement with storytelling, letting the body elicit a personal story that inspires movement.

The spiritual dimension of InterPlay is fourfold--'moving your body, telling your stories, honoring your personal voices, and claiming your stillness'--says Winton-Henry. 'If you're not doing these things in your own way and being witnessed by others as you do so, chances are you're not feeling the vitality and wholeness that comes from possessing your own soul.' In a world where work, relationships, anxiety about the future, and a host of other things claim pieces of our souls, Winton-Henry sees this act of soul-repossessing as vital for spiritual and psychic health.

In some places InterPlayers have explored both spiritual and social change. In Oakland, California, where Porter and Winton-Henry are based, and in Nashville, Tennessee, InterPlay leaders have deliberately brought together people of all colors to experience one another in more direct and personal ways. 'InterPlay turns out to be a healthy, easy way to move through the tensions between us,' says Winton-Henry. Similarly, Oakland-based InterPlay teacher Masankho Banda has led groups in juvenile detention centers and prisons.

However it may be elaborated, though, InterPlay's idea of community always begins with individual bodies. Swanson, a self-confessed 'former couch potato,' says InterPlay taught her that 'my body is beautiful and full of wisdom,' and that self-knowledge helps her connect with others. 'There are people in InterPlay whom I only know by their first names,' she says, 'but I would give them the keys to my house.'

Jon Spayde is a writer and performance artist based in St. Paul, Minnesota. His book How to Believe: Teachers and Seekers Show the Way to a Modern, Life-Changing Faith will be published by Random House in 2008.

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