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Sat 30th September AFRICAN DRUMMING WORKSHOP ( Day) with Chris Hurn
Tues 10th October FACES OF MOTHERHOOD an Evening for Women with Roselle Angwin
Fri 20th - Sun 22nd October TOUCHING BASE - men's Weekend with Ron Pyatt & William Ayot
Fri 20th - Sun 22nd October MOTHERS & DAUGHTERS - Creative Weekend with Debora Collister, Victoria Gater & Gislaine Picchio
Fri 27th - Sun 29th October FATHERS & SONS - A Weekend Adventure with Michael Boyle and the ThunderRoad team
Sat 11th - Sat 18th November LIBERATING THE LEADER WITHIN Richard Olivier - Mythodrama Week at Findhorn
Wed 15th November AFRICAN DRUMMING WORKSHOP (Evening)
Sat 18th & Sun 19th November ACTS OF CREATION - Movement & Maskwork with William Ayot & Viktor Bischoff
Sat 25th November AFRICAN DRUMMING WORKSHOP (Day)
Tues 5th December FACING THE FIRE - with John Lee a Day for Practitioners at Guy's Hospital.
Wed 6th December IN SEARCH OF THE DIVINE FEMININE an Evening with Martin Prechtel & John Lee
Thurs 7th - Sun 10th December THE WILD DANCE WINTER MEN'S GATHERING with John Lee & Martin Prechtel
Sun 10th - Sat 16th December MOVING TOWARDS SACRED RELATIONSHIP A Mixed Retreat in Israel with Mary Aver, Nicholas Janni & Richard Olivier
with Chris Hurn assisted by Debora Collister & Victoria Gater
Saturday 30th September 10.00am - 4.30 pm - full day
Wednesday 15th November 7.30 - 9.30 pm - evening
Saturday 25th November 10.00am - 4.30 pm -
To meet increased demand, we will be running three drumming workshops this autumn, continuing to celebrate the heart and soul of African and Afro-Cuban rhythms on the djembe, the traditional drum of West Africa. There will be further opportunities to incorporate chant and dance into each session, creating a lively and dynamic atmosphere. The emphasis will be on expressing ourselves in a fun and powerful way. All levels of ability welcome.
Please bring food to share on the daytime workshops as well as your own drums and percussion. Some djembes will be available to borrow. Please let us know when you book if you will need one.
Venue: St Alban's Parish Hall, Margravine Rd., London, W6; Nearest tube: Baron's Court or Hammersmith; Price: Day Sessions £35 (£30 concs); Evening Session £10 (£5 concs); Full Course (three sessions) £70 (£60 concs)
A Residential Weekend Retreat for Men with Ron Pyatt and William Ayot
Friday 20th October, 7pm - Sunday 22nd October, 3pm
"A shared space of welcome, personal discovery and friendship" - M.V. Bristol
Touching Base has evolved as a small-scale ritual retreat for men who want to get back in touch with themselves, their bodies and their souls. Spending time in nature, using bodywork, poetry and ritual, we will peel away the everyday armour we wrap ourselves in to meet each other at a deeper, more satisfying level.
This weekend was originally created for men who wanted to touch base with, or experience a taster of, the Rites of Passage programme. However, since its inception, we have found that it provides an ideal opportunity for those who want a first experience of ritual men's work. Lastly, perhaps most importantly, it can also serve as a haven for those men who simply need to spend some time getting in touch with their true selves again.
Food will be provided but please bring treats. Also bring, sleeping bags, comfortable clothing, footwear (indoor and out) a towel and some candles.
Price: £125 (£95 concs)
Venue: Beech Hill Community, Crediton, Devon.
(Details sent on receipt of a booking and S.A.E.)
Places for this weekend are limited so please book early to avoid disappointment
The Rites of Passage programme, a five-day intensive retreat for men, is held in spring and summer at the Roundhouse Encampment in Snowdonia. Next year's dates for this "fruitful and life-changing" retreat will be announced in our January brochure.
Myths, Mysteries and Monsters: An Evening for Women with Roselle Angwin
Tuesday 10th October 7.30pm-9.30pm
To be a mother is to engage in one of the most potent and creative acts known to humankind. It is also, not surprisingly, seen as sacred. The archetype of the earth mother - the fertility goddess: Ceres, Demeter, Cybele, Ceridwen - is the best known, or at least most widely accepted, face of motherhood. But what about the other aspects of motherhood? What about the lost maiden, the latent crone, the wild girl, the priestess, the inspirer, the initiator into mystery, even the vengeful dark goddess? What place do these have in our lives as mothers and what place can we give them as we offer role models to our children? Do we have to be ever-loving, ever giving, ever-forgiving in order to be a "good enough" mother? Or can we allow ourselves to model for our children a human being working towards wholeness?
Roselle Angwin is an author, poet and workshop facilitator whose courses have been featured in the Guardian. She is also a mother, and has co-led wilderness vision quests with young people. Her first book Riding the Dragon - Myth and Inner Journey, grew out of her training in transpersonal psychology, and, like her workshops, addresses the issue of creativity and wholeness via the vehicle of myth. Tonight's discussions and explorations will dip into these varied wells and sources.
Price: £8 (£5 concs) pay at the door; Venue: Maria Assumpta Pastoral and Education Centre, 23, Kensington Square, London W8; Nearest tube: Kensington High Street
...reconnecting the female line. A Creative Residential Weekend With Debora Collister, Victoria Gater & Ghislaine Picchio
Friday 20th October, 8pm - Sunday 22nd October, 3pm
With the development and growing interest in women's work in recent seasons, Wild Dance is pleased to offer a unique opportunity for mothers and daughters to participate in a creative community weekend.
We will provide a space for fun, creativity and relaxation through singing, drumming, campfires, movement, play and quiet time for reflection in nature. We invite those who feel inspired to bring a creative offering to share, such as a story, poem or song.
Similar events have proved very popular in the past and places are limited to nine pairs, so please book early to avoid disappointment.
recommended age for daughters: 8 upwards. Price: £120 per pair (£80 concs). Venue: Paddington Farm, Wick, Glastonbury. (Details and map sent on receipt of a booking and S.A.E.)
A residential weekend adventure with Michael Boyle and the Thunder Road Team
Friday 27th October, 6pm - Sunday 29th October, 3pm
These experiential, fun weekends provide fathers and sons with a safe environment in which to explore challenge, friendship and nature, together with peers. Activities are drawn from ropes training, canoeing, archery, shelter and fire building, nature walks, football and craftwork. The event takes place at Avon Tyrell, a New Forest activity centre set in 50 acres of woodland
We use myth and story round campfires and encourage imaginative feedback. Time and space are made available to fathers to meet as a facilitated group and share issues of interest and meaning.
This has proved to be a very popular event and numbers are limited to twelve pairs, so please book early to avoid disappointment.
Recommended age 6-15 yrs. Price: £180 per pair. Venue: Avon Tyrell Activity Centre, Bransgore, Hants (Details and map sent on receipt of a booking and S.A.E )
a two-day exploration of creativity through movement, mask-work and words with William Ayot & Viktor Bischoff
Sat 19th November & Sun 20th November, 10am-6pm
In our humdrum world with its rapid thinking and frantic activity we often ignore our bodies and get stuck in our heads. When we do this we become disconnected from our primary source of expression and creativity. We say that we "have no imagination" and fail to notice that the body might be trying to tell us something.
In this experiential workshop we will use mask-work, movement, poetry and myth to explore our own "creation story". Over two days we will get back in touch with our bodies and with the innate creativity that each body holds.
Please dress comfortably and bring: writing materials, scissors, a towel and an object that has significance for you around the subject of creativity.
Price: £90 (£75 concs). Venue: Shakespeare's Globe, Bankside, London SE1. Nearest tube: Mansion House or London Bridge
... experiencing and expressing anger appropriately. A Day for Therapists and Practitioners With John Lee
Tuesday 5th December 9.30am- 5pm
The central theme of this day for practitioners is that we all have the right to be angry. Anger is an emotion, no more negative than any other. If not expressed regularly it can have damaging consequences, turning into rage and chronic emotional tension. This experiential day will change how you feel about anger and its expression both as a practitioner and as a person.
John Lee has spent over a decade developing and mastering a programme of skills in the rarely explored area of anger. He is the co-founder of PEER training which teaches emotional release techniques to therapists.
This workshop is open to all who work in helping professions where intense emotions are expressed, particularly counsellors, psychotherapists, psychologists, psychiatrists, CPNs and those working with addictions.
Price: £95 (includes coffee, buffet lunch & tea). Earlybird £85 - for bookings made before 1st November. Venue: New Hunts House, Guy's Hospital, London SE1. Nearest tube or rail: London Bridge. N.B. Please book through Guys Hospital
To receive an application form please contact the Dept of Academic Psychiatry and Psychology at Guys Hospital on: 020 7955 2903, leaving your name and address, quoting "Facing the Fire".
an evening with Martín Prechtel and John Lee
Wednesday 6th December, 7.30pm-9.30pm
Like healing rain after a long drought the Divine Feminine is returning to our lives. Out in the world and deep within we can feel a change that is both welcome and daunting.
Join us for an evening of eloquence and passionate thinking as two rare and gifted speakers take us on a rich and surprising journey to honour the Divine feminine in Her many guises.
John will bring us the humour, candour and insight that has made him famous in the United States while Martín, with his unique mix of village sagacity and flamboyance, will bring the wisdom of a culture that still knows how to court the Great Female.
Price: £15 (£10 concs) Pay at the Door. Venue: Maria Assumpta Pastoral and Education Centre. 23, Kensington Square, London W8. Nearest tube: Kensington High Street .
...what it means to be a man in the new millennium
A Winter Gathering for Men With JOHN LEE & MARTIN PRECHTEL
Thursday 7th December, 7pm - Sunday 10th December, 2pm
Are men in crisis? What do men want? More importantly, what does it feel like to be a man, facing the demands and challenges of a rapidly changing world? We will be addressing these and other questions close to the hearts of men when we meet for our annual winter men's gathering.
John Lee says: "I want to encourage men to go deeper inside themselves, to discover the peace, freedom and healing that comes with the attainment of their individual definitions of true manhood."
Martin Prechtel believes that men heal best in community. "When we lose a sense of belonging to something greater than the individual we are left with ghosts of hatred that possess generation after generation." Exploring our ghosts through story, poetry and the power of ritual, we will come together, forming a healing community of men.
Join us in the heart of the countryside for what promises to be a stimulating and powerful weekend.
Martin Prechtel is an initiated shaman in the Tzutujil Mayan tradition.
As Nabey Mam, Young Man's Chief, he was responsible for the initiation of youth in his village. He is a man of exceptional talents, being a healer, painter, musician and lecturer. He is the author of two books about his life: "Secrets of the Talking Jaguar" and "Long Life, Honey in the Heart."
John Lee is an internationally acclaimed teacher, workshop leader and founder of The Austin Men's Centre. He is best known as the author of "The Flying Boy", "At My Father's Wedding" and other ground-breaking books on men's issues, recovery and relationships. He is currently writing a book on emotional regression which is due to be published in January.
Price: £355 (£275 concs). Earlybird £315 - for bookings made before 1st November. Venue: Gaunts House, Wimborne, Dorset. Shared accommodation - Vegetarian food. (Details and map sent on receipt of a booking and S.A.E.)
NB This is the first time John and Martin have led an event together in this country. We expect a big turn-out. Please book early to avoid disappointment.
A Week Of Mythodrama At Findhorn With Richard Olivier supported by Geoff Mead & Lesley Quilty
Saturday 11th - Saturday 18th November
Through Mythodrama - which Richard developed at Shakespeare's Globe in London - we will explore the principle themes within the story of Shakespeare's inspirational leader, Henry V, and relate them to our lives: deepening our exploration of the leader within us to unfold our own true leadership potential.
We will follow the archetypal pattern of a leader's journey: the call to service, assessing past accomplishments, visioning the future, making the commitment, dealing with those old friends within who impede us, putting vision into action, overcoming hurdles, facing the dark night of the soul, inspiring others to victory and, finally, turning the battlefield into a garden.
No acting experience and no previous knowledge of the play is required.
Price: £415 (£355 concs). Venue: The Findhorn Foundation, Forres, Scotland. NB Please book for this event through Findhorn. To make a booking call Findhorn Accommodations on: 01309 673655. or fax: 01309 673113 or book on-line on the Findhorn website at: www.findhorn.org/
An International Mixed Retreat In Israel with Mary Aver, Nicholas Janni and Richard Olivier
10th-16th December
What would it be like to live as conscious men and women, able to acknowledge and honour each other while embracing the differences?
Together we will explore the very essence of our relationships - with ourselves, with our own and with the opposite gender. We will use movement, meditation, poetry, mythology, shred discussion and the power of intensive ritual process in our journey towards connectedness - with our spirit, with each other, and with the world.
This event is led by a team uniquely experienced in men's development, women's development and mixed initiatory ritual. through their different trainings they consciously with all four bodies - physical, emotional, mental and spiritual - allowing each person to find their own point of entry to the work.
Working in the biblical landscape of the Judean Hills overlooking the Dad Sea, this event aims to bring together people from many different nations who seek conscious reconciliation and authentic meeting.
Price: Approx £450 ( does not include travel ). Please book for this event through Nicholas Janni. To register: send £100 deposit (cheques payable to N Janni) to: N Janni, Southside Cottage, Southside, Steeple Aston, Oxon OX6 3RY. For more information contact Nicholas Janni on: 01869 347276
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