Moving into Connection: Spring Retreat

Bookings: [email protected] We invite you to join us for a warming, heart-centred and nourishing weekend of movement, conscious connection and authentic expression in a beautiful, secluded location in the wilds of West Cork. This retreat will be a journey of opening and connection through Contact Improvisation, Kaleidoscope Community Yoga, Relaxing Massage, Open Dance, partner exercises and fun group games. Through the workshops, we will explore the energetic dynamics of giving and receiving, expressing and witnessing, consent and boundaries, and how to have more fulfilled experiences in relating with others. Held in a safe space, this is an opportunity to open up and drop deep into the self. WORKSHOPS: All sessions accommodate beginners as well as more advanced participants, so no previous experience is required. CONTACT IMPROVISATION with JULIEN PORZADNY- opening an experimental space for moving, learning and play. It’s truly accessible to anyone with a body. In these sessions we’ll begin with our solo dances, expanding our improvised movement vocabulary. Then, with a partner - the dialogue of touch and weight sharing - expanding opportunities through imagination and intuitive choice making. CONSCIOUS CONNECTION with DONAL GANNON- we will use our awareness, breath, eye-contact, touch and dialogue to explore and encourage authentic wholehearted connection to ourselves and to others; developing our ability to be present within ourselves and with others, creating space for individual and interpersonal healing, moving toward greater freedom and finding new ways of experiencing and enjoying each other, our world and ourselves. CUDDLE PARTY with GRAINNE CARR - a safe, respectful, honouring space where we can give and receive consensual, non-sexual, compassionate touch; allowing ourselves to trust and be nurtured, exploring barriers and boundaries to offering and receiving touch, and learning how to ask for what we want. HEAD, NECK AND SHOULDERS MASSAGE EXCHANGE with SINEAD O'CONNOR- learn to apply a series of calming techniques on the upper back, neck and shoulders, ending with acupressure points on the head and face. The workshop will be split into two parts so everyone will get a chance to give and receive. This is a space for deep relaxation while receiving, and intuitive practical learning while giving. KALEIDOSCOPE COMMUNITY YOGA with DONAL GANNON- the art of yoga for groups. Participants flow through geometrical shapes, patterns, and mandalas together. It is a distillation of the wisdom and roots of traditional yoga postures, choreographed into a hand-holding, body-folding, heart-connecting community flow that everyone can enjoy. We seek to explore, map, and extend the limits and possibilities of human flexibility as individuals and as groups. We seek to help one another connect. OPEN DANCE- a place where you can be your authentic self, be playful, move deeply, roll around, free your mind, unravel, be still... HOME GROUPS- Daily we will meet in smaller groups of 4 -5 people, in which each person has a few minutes to share how they are feeling or be supported however they wish. Whether being held in empathic presence or even physically, receiving reflections or offered expressions of appreciation... Either way, it gives the opportunity to connect with each other more deeply and so creates a more intimate, safe, secure and family-er feel - a place to come home to. ABOUT THE VENUE- An Sanctoir is West Cork’s very own Holistic Community Centre and is home to a variety of weekly classes, weekend workshops, performances, rituals and celebrations. It is a beautiful light filled octagonal practice space with wooden floors and underfloor heating , set within a 30 acre nature reserve, just outside the coastal village of Ballydehob. We will have a cosy yurt set up outside which will be used as a tea tent and chill out space. ACCOMMODATION- included in the ticket price, you are welcome to sleep communally in the warm octagonal workshop space or camp. For alternative accommodation arrangements available locally please contact us. FOOD- meals will be home cooked, hearty and vegetarian. Please let us know if you have any special dietary requirements in your booking. TICKETS- low / middle / high income: €140 / €200 / €260 We are suggesting this broad price range because we want this workshop to be accessible to all, but we also need to cover costs and care for the sustainability of those who facilitate and organize the event; we invite people to contribute as generously as they are able. For bookings and information please contact [email protected] or give us a call Mira 0863539626 Sherry 0851092832 This is an alcohol and drug free event. PROGRAMME OF EVENTS FRIDAY 5pm Arrival / Registration 6pm Dinner 7pm Opening Circle 8pm Kaleidoscope Community Yoga 9pm Open Dance SATURDAY 8am Yoga 8.30am Breakfast 10am Contact Improv workshop 1pm Lunch 2.30pm Home Groups 3pm The Wheel of Consent 4.30pm Conscious Connection 6pm Dinner 8pm Contact Improv Jam SUNDAY 8am Yoga 8.30am Breakfast 10am Kaleidoscope Community Yoga 11am Massage workshop 1.30pm Lunch 3pm Home Groups 4pm Conscious Connection 6pm Dinner 7.30pm Cuddle Party 9.30pm Music in Yurt MONDAY 8.30am Breakfast 10am Closing Circle and Goodbyes FACILITATORS DONAL GANNON A catalyst for personal, social and cultural transformation, Donal supports individuals and groups to create a foundation of authentic connection and trust by encouraging effective collaboration and self-connection, honest expression and empathic listening, passionate power and compassionate care. He has been facilitating groups of all shapes and sizes, in all corners of the world since 2003, and currently does so with the Cultural Catalyst Network, Arise to Succeed and as a Certified Trainer with the Centre for Nonviolent Communication (CNVC). JULIEN PORZADNY Since very little Julien has always enjoyed dancing, sharing his experience and improvising wherever possible. Needless to say, when he first encountered Contact Improvisation, he felt a natural connection with this form of movement. For him, however, CI is more than a dance: it is also a language and a way to let go of the strain we sometimes carry within us. He believes that through playfulness, spontaneity and gentleness, dancers will encounter a way to connect more deeply with their environment, with themselves and with one another. As a yoga and mindfulness teacher Julien enjoys carrying the quality of presence onto the dance floor. This allows dancers to feel guided and supported, while at the same time able to follow their intuition and creativity. For Julien, everyone is a dancer at heart and he finds great joy in helping them develop their own unique dance. GRAINNE CARR has trained with the creators of Cuddle Party and is one of only two qualified facilitators in Ireland. She is also a Life and Business Coach and facilitates a variety of workshops and trainings including those on Consent and Boundaries. SINEAD O'CONNOR is passionate about all things massage and all things health. She has been working as a massage therapist for 14 years and has qualifications in a wide range of massage modalities including Holistic Massage, Indian Head Massage, Lymphatic Drainage, Sports Massage, Aromatherapy, Lomi Lomi Hawaiian Massage, Ayurvedic Yoga Massage and Baby Massage. Sinead believes that continued education is essential and also recently completed a yoga teacher training to even further her knowledge of how the body works, moves and stores tension. Massage can bring immeasurable health benefits. Skin to skin contact and human touch can reduce stress and create an overall sense of well-being. In our modern world human touch is in danger of becoming rare. It is essential that we preserve the inherent healing of human touch in order for us all to truly thrive. HeartSpace Collective is a group of people with a passion for sharing and spreading the joy of intimacy, human contact and conscious connection; we are part of a global movement that aims to bring more nurturing touch into everyone’s lives to increase their sense of happiness and belonging, and by doing so making the world a better place. Bookings: [email protected]