NEW YEAR CONTEMPLATIVE CONTACT RETREAT
Skalka u Doks, Czech Republic
28th Decemeber 2024 – 2nd January 2025
*
What happens with our movement if we enter the dance from a place of Stillness?
What happens with our speech if we enter the words from a place of Silence?
Come and welcome the New Year with us at the Contemplative CI Retreat!
Set in a cosy retreat venue at the north-west of the Czech Republic, embraced by a gentle winter landscape, the retreat offers a nourishing space for CI dancers who wish to spend the end-of-year transition resting, wintering, playing, exploring… and dancing together!
Held within a simple container, the retreat will provide plenty of space for jamming, researching and contemplating, supported by periods in silence.
In that way, the retreat is intended as a continuum, where our main practice is the art of listening, softening, allowing, unknowing…
Together we will embark on a journey, arching the worlds of stillness and movement, being emptied, being filled…
Presence will be our compass.
Contact improvisation our vessel.
Silence will be our Teacher.
*
SILENCE
Silence is an empty container that holds and connects.
It is a shared ground we can rise from and return to.
It invites us to enter a raw and open mode of being, readying our receptivity and availability.
It encourages us to relax into the unknown, waking our playfulness and curiosity.
The themes we might want to explore during the jams and practice sessions may be for example:
What can I hear in Silence?
What happens when we enter the jam from this shared field of Silence?
How Silence shapes my attention, movement, interaction..?
We will observe silence every day until 12.30.
We will transition from silence into a spoken word during small group sharings after the morning jam.
It is up to each person how much they choose to engage in talking during the afternoons.
The New Year will be welcomed in all-day silence on the 31st (on and off the dance floor).
*
THE ART OF IMPROVISATION
Most of our practice time will be held within a simple format of jam.
It is a beautiful opportunity to dive deep into the very essence of improvisation, relax into the unfolding process and research the vast expanse of landscapes that jamming may encompass.
We are envisioning jam as a collectively held space, nourished by care and shared interest in what is taking place – inside ourselves and inside the whole room as we jam. Whether dancing in contact or solo, resting or witnessing the space, in stillness or motion, we invite all participants to become the active co-creators of the space.
We are envisioning a jam as a continuous journey, which we enter and exit together. A jam, where every movement, every gesture and every experience becomes part of the composition.
What if, whilst jamming as usual, we could be also creating an effortless piece of art? A field of magic? A mosaic of diverse shapes and colours that are all part of one whole?
SUGGESTED STRUCTURE
Mornings will be dedicated to a jam in silence, evening jam sessions will have live music.
Afternoons will host scores / labs / research on themes that may emerge for us during our time together. Everyone is welcome to propose a score or lab and we will use a simple voting system to arrange the sessions.
There will be a 14-hour long jam on the 31st December – yay, we will dance ourselves into the brand New Year!
*
28th December: ARRIVAL DAY
14.00 – 16.00 Arrival and Registration
17.00 Welcome Circle
18.00 Dinner
20.30 Welcome Jam
*
29th & 30th December
Suggested Time Line of the day (there may be changes according to group needs and situation):
7.30 – 8.15 Group Meditation
8.30 – 9.30 Breakfast
10.00 – 12.30 Silent Jam
12.30 – 12.45 Entering into speaking – Small group sharing
13.00 – 14.00 Lunch
14.00 – 16.00 Rest / Free time
16.00 – 16.15 Group sharing
16.15 – 18.15 Labs / scores / participant offerings
18.30 – 19.30 Dinner
20.30 – … Jam with Live Music
*
31st December: LONG JAM INTO THE NEW YEAR
7.30 – 8.15 Group Meditation
8.30 – 9.30 Breakfast
10.00 – 00.00 14-hour Jam
00.00 Welcoming the New Year
*
1st January: INTEGRATION DAY
7.30 – 8.15 Group Meditation
8.30 – 9.30 Breakfast
10.00 – 12.30 Time for group or personal practice / reflection / New Year walks in surrounding landscape
12.30 Small group sharing
13.00 – 14.00 Lunch
16.00 – 16.15 Group sharing
16.15 – 18.30 Lab / Participant Offerings
18.30 – 19.30 Dinner
20.30 – … Jam with Live Music
*
2nd January: DEPARTURE DAY
7.30 – 8.15 Group Meditation
8.30 – 9.30 Breakfast
10.00 – 12.00 Goodbye Jam
*
Silence:
00.00 – 12.30 Observing Silence
Small Meditation Room – Silent at all times (reserved for morning group meditation and personal meditative practice throughout the day)
30th December 00.00 – 1st January 12.30 – observing silence in all areas of the retreat
Cost:
8700 Kč / 350 € Registration and payment received by 11.10.
9700 Kč / 390 € Registration and payment received by 29.11.
10700 Kč / 430 € Registration and payment received by 27.12.
The cost includes accommodation and full vegan / vegetarian board
Cancellation Policy:
Deposit 4500 Kč / 180 € Non-refundable
After 13th December the whole payment is non-refundable
The whole payment will be returned to your account if you find another dancer to take your spot.
Registration:
The registration will open on the 14th September. You will see a registration form here.
The maximum capacity of the retreat is 35 participants.
Address: Skalka 22, Skalka u Doks, Czech Republic
The venue:
A former homestead re-purposed as a retreat venue, beautifully renovated with natural materials. The venue is set at the edge of a small village north of Prague, surrounded by fields, hills and forests. Enclosed by a large garden, it provides complete privacy and plenty of space. The dance hall is situated in a detached building and offers 130m2 for dancing.
Both houses and the dance hall have a central heating, plus there are three wood burning stoves in the dining hall, dance hall and meditation room to make us extra cosy.
Accommodation:
Sleeping arrangements: 2-4 people in each bedroom. There are 11 toilets and 11 showers available.
To view the pictures of the venue, click HERE
Organisers:
Lenka Sabolčáková – somatic facilitator, bodyworker, body-based coach, eco-therapist, CI and nature lover
Lada Kopřivová – body-oriented therapist, somatic movement educator and group facilitator, CI dancer, wilderness loving creature
Requirements:
- It is necessary to have at least some experience with Contact Improvisation and jams
- Ideally, you have interest in meditation / contemplative practice – if meditation is an unknown territory for you or you have questions – there will be a few people available to support you / have a chat with if you wish so.
- It is also important that you feel able to let go of spoken words during the Silent periods of the day
- We ask all participants to attend the whole event, from the beginning to the end
- To nurture safety, transparency and healthy CI culture within this event, we created a document with CI Principles. We ask all participants to familiarise themselves with these before registering.
