WORKSHOPS

GATHER UP hosts a day long workshop four times a year, inviting celebrated artists from across the UK to share their dance and choreographic practice and current research interests in a spirit of reciprocal enquiry.

These workshops are open to the curiosity of people aged 18+ who work with contemporary dance, movement improvisation, choreography or other movement practices.

ID: Image of several dancers from behind, in a studio, 3 white women and one white man, all in different stages of a jump, with one foot in front and the other behind. One of the women on the left side, with ginger hair, has turned her face to see Jennifer-Lynn in the middle. She has both feet off the floor, wearing a pink tshirt and blue adidas track suit bottoms and bare feet and her right arm is extended upwards and her right leg back with the sole of her right foot visible. Photo Credit: David Lindsay ‘jumping’.

Feeling, fascia and form(s)

This workshop invites movers with an interest in exploring the shape-shifting tensegral world of fascia. We will be feeling in to fascia as our magical internal body fabric of support, with images, self-touch, optional partner-touch, props like squishy balls/sticks/bands and guided embodiment opening in to movement, making and reflective time - writing, drawing, day-dreaming...

There will be opportunities to move in proposed patterns and shapes - different locomotor patterns and rhythms give different information and help us slip outside our habits, or reframe them in useful ways. Emphasis is on movement as nourishing and enjoyable, personally interesting and physically satisfying.

There will also be opportunities to track and move with the internal sensing languages of physiological regulation (yawning, belly gurgles, swallows and wiggles) and the languages of being a body in space (weight sensing, tensioning and orienting responses).

Artists who work with and through movement, or are interested in body as process, are welcome - professional/dance training optional - the onus will be on you to engage safely with physical and somatic information in your own way, in a group context.

Please bring notebooks, drawing materials if that is your reflective channel of choice, and other supports you need to be comfortable in both stillness and movement.

Parts of the workshop will be led by audio-suggestion, parts by visual demonstration. Where there is demonstration or predominantly visual information, audio/tactile cueing is also possible.

ID: Image of several dancers from behind, in a studio, 3 white women and one white man, all in different stages of a jump, with one foot in front and the other behind. One of the women on the left side, with ginger hair, has turned her face to see Jennifer-Lynn in the middle. She has both feet off the floor, wearing a pink tshirt and blue adidas track suit bottoms and bare feet and her right arm is extended upwards and her right leg back with the sole of her right foot visible. Photo Credit: David Lindsay ‘jumping’.

Who is this workshop for?

Artists and practitioners (18yrs+) working with contemporary dance, improvisation, choreography or other movement practices.

What are the timings of the day?

The studio will be open from 11am. The workshop will begin at 11.30am with an hour break for lunch, small breaks in-between and will end at 5pm with 30mins until 5.30pm to connect, cool down, stretch and leave the venue.

Access:

If you need access support during the workshop or have a question contact us at: info.gatherup@gmail.com

If you are a dancer with a visual impairment and would like to come to this workshop and access our free creative audio description 1-1 support please get in touch to find out more and how to book: info.gatherup@gmail.com

We have a Care Pot available offering cash support towards childcare, parking, travel, access or other extra costs that may surround being able to attend this workshop. Take a read and please be in touch with how we could cover some of your extra costs so that you can come along and participate: info.gatherup@gmail.com

Read our sharing spaces commitment here.

Booking:

Ticket price is pay-what-you-decide with a min. cost of £25.00 + booking fee (which is donated to a Bristol-based charity via Headfirst).

Realise you can’t make it?:

We no longer offer refunds. However, you can put your ticket up for resale or transfer it to a friend using the Headfirst booking system if the workshop is fully booked. If you put your original ticket for resale or transfer via headfirst it will become void and a new, valid ticket will be emailed to the transfer recipient. Transfers can be made up to 24 hours before the event.

Waiting List:

If the workshop places sell out you can add yourself to a waiting list via the headfirst booking link and you will be informed when a ticket is available to purchase.

PREVIOUS WORKSHOPS & CREATIVE RESPONSES:

Below is an archive of the workshops we have hosted.

We have invited a participating dancer to capture an essence of some of the ideas/provocations/explorations shared in some of the workshop through the lens of their own dance practice. All of these responses can be found here, or are linked below.