Embodiment, Fun, Release, Community
InterPlay For Men (drop-in)
Jonathan Leavy,
Amos Alan Lans,
John Diller,
Edward Joy, and
Connors John McConville
Oakland, CA
on-going drop-in class Thursdays • 7-8:25 pm PT
No class on Halloween or Thanksgiving in 2024.
All of the weekly drop-in classes offered are rooted in the basics of InterPlay but vary slightly based on the gifts of the teacher. Find just the right class for you! You can join a class at any point in the season, and take different classes as you choose.
One day I danced,
my people all around me--
was I lonely once?
-- improvised haiku from Thursday Men's InterPlay
Join us as we play, express, create, connect, and have fun with each other. Invite your whole self to join in with stories, movement, song, and more. Amos, Connors, Edward, John, and Jonathan rotate leadership.
Drop in on any Thursday! We have a core group regular attendees and a wide community of people who come periodically. On a Thursday near each Solstice & Equinox we invite people of all genders to join us (see separate postings).
COVID Protocol: We require that folks either take a same-day COVID test and test negative or wear an N95 or KN95 mask during class. Our goal is to provide a safe and welcoming environment for people with a wide variety of health situations. If you have questions, please reach out to Amos via the link below.
This is one of many ongoing drop-in classes offered in-person and online each week. Now you can do InterPlay whenever you choose from leaders around the country!
Engage mind, body, heart, and spirit in an affirming, fun-loving practice with great teachers. Get yourself running on “all cylinders!"
- It’s easy to learn the simple forms of InterPlay. If you are new you can catch on as you go. Anyone can do it!
- Make new friends! InterPlay classes create instant community.
- Learn body wisdom tricks and tools to make life easier.
- No experience necessary! InterPlay is accessible to people of all ages and abilities.
All of the weekly drop-in classes offered are rooted in the basics of InterPlay but vary slightly based on the gifts of the teacher. Find just the right class for you! You can join a class at any point in the season, and take different classes as you choose.
One day I danced,
my people all around me--
was I lonely once?
-- improvised haiku from Thursday Men's InterPlay
Cost: $15 per class • $48 for 4 classes (save $12!) • $90 for 10 classes (save $60!) No one turned away for lack of funds.
Registration/Information: Just show up! Questions? Email Amos by clicking the link below.
Venue
InterPlayce
2273 Telegraph Avenue (at 23rd St.)
Oakland, CA 94612
InterPlayce is the center of the InterPlay universe. The offices for Body Wisdom, Inc. are also located here. The building is at the corner of 23rd and Telegraph, one block north of West Grand. It is just a few blocks from the 19th Street Downtown Oakland BART station, and on several convenient bus lines. On-street parking is always available at night and metered during the day. It is also easily accessible by several of the major freeways.
Click here for a map.
Leaders
Jonathan Leavy
Jonathan Leavy brings a rich and varied bundle of experience to his InterPlay leading. Originally from Colorado, Jonathan used his music major from Colorado State University and performed in and around Florida and New York City for 12 years. From off-broadway to cruise ships, and from dinner theaters to theme parks, Jonathan has found joy through diverse musical theater opportunities. A call to ministry brought Jonathan to Pacific School of Religion in 1998 where he focused on spirituality and the arts. Jonathan has completed the InterPlay Leadership Program and is a long-time member of WING IT! Performance Ensemble and a leader in the InterPlay community, teaching classes and retreats with a focus on the voice and performing.
Amos Alan Lans
Amos Alan Lans likes to tell folks, “I became a dancer in my 50’s, thanks to InterPlay!” Amos is one of the three co-leaders of the Thursday evening men’s drop-in class. He loves introducing InterPlay to groups of men, especially gay men, especially older gay men who are learning new ways of enjoying being in their ageing bodies as well as playful ways of connecting with other guys. Letting stories emerge from movement is one of Amos’ favorite InterPlay activities. For 20+ years, Amos set up and taught in public school gardening programs. He now teaches the joys of composting, gardening, and healthy eating to at-risk urban youth in North Oakland’s Dover Street Edible Park, near his home on 61st Street.
John Diller
John Diller, MA in Education, is a certified InterPlay leader and has been leading InterPlay workshops and retreats for more than 10 years. He found his way to InterPlay via a winding road that includes poetry, improv, Permaculture, storytelling, the great outdoors, Buddhist philosophy, bicycling, and eight years of teaching high school theater. He has co-led the Thursday evening men’s InterPlay class in Oakland for years and works by day at a management consulting company. John thanks InterPlay for an increasingly embodied and nourishing life and for the opportunity to help others use InterPlay to have more fun, connect, dive deep, and so much more.
Edward Joy
Connors John McConville
MDiv, MA, LMFT, Certified InterPlay Leader, Connors is a long time Interplayer and WING IT! member and co-teaches with John Diller the Interplay Men's Class that meets every Thursday evening at Interplayce. He has worked as a dance teacher, dance-maker and performer internationally and taught at the International School Bangkok and at Chulalongkorn University. He is a somatic psychotherapist (MFC 47398), and a spiritual director and is currently in a PhD program in East West Psychology at CIIS. As a young Jesuit missionary in Thailand 1974 – 1978 he formally studied Buddhism and Vipassana (meditation) at Wat Suan Dok in Chiangmai and Wat Bowonniwet Vihara in Bangkok and was certified in Thai Massage Therapy (Nuat Boran) with over 500 hours of training.