Yoga for Dancer's

Taught by our professional dancer and yoga teacher Indira; this program gives dancers an opportunity to discover and incorporate holistic conditioning to their practice through the practice of various styles of yoga.

Included in this Retreat is a traditional Indian Dance workshop.

The perfect complimentary practice; yoga for dancers is designed to keep the body and mind in peak condition and to incorporate yoga postures into their future work.

Our retreats offer a break from dancer’s usual intensive training practices whilst introducing you to new styles of stretching, breathing and meditation techniques. Included in our retreat are anatomy workshops designed to strengthen your knowledge and connection with your physical self and deep meditation practice intended to enhance our professional dancers focus. This retreat is designed to strengthen the mind body connection amongst professional dancers.

Experiences and thoughts from our “Yoga for Dancers” instructor, Indira

After my many years of experience as a Contemporary Dancer and after participating in many workshops and working for various dance companies I found the perfect partner for my dance- Yoga.

I started practicing yoga alongside dance training after I graduated from dance school (from 1995-2002), during this time I also learned Graham technique. I realized practicing yoga was the perfect complimentary practice for contemporary dancers as the physical postures were so similar.

Starting with yoga opened my mind completely. It was not only because of the physical aspect of training the body, such as balance, extensions, flexibility, the connection with the earth and with the external world, but also in a meditative way of finding the relationship and answers about this immense world that we swim in when we dance.

After being in India and completing the Himalaya Yoga Valley Teacher Training Course and through the practice of Ashtanga yoga I started to make the connection between Yoga and dance. During my practice I noticed how my body and mind were changing for the better. I started to feel in my Ashtanga yoga practice that I was dancing. When I dance I touch all the same points. I was opening all of these new channels, passing and moving energy through the chakras, and I just felt fantastic.

The main purpose of this retreat for dancers is to unlock the awareness of the deeply magical and interesting world of yoga and for other professional dancers to create the connection between yoga and dance. Another important aspect of these retreats is the chance for dancers explore how meditation can take us to a new world within, opening our creative and emotional channels, helping us to create and dance more successfully and passionately.

The Ashtanga classes will focus on the abilities and vices that dancers normally carry with them. Through a dynamic Vinyasa flow style especially designed for dancers bodies and minds, ensuring we reach our peak in practice and balance.

Another important point of course is heath. In yoga we learn not only acrobatic postures that will improve our dance skills but also the philosophy of life and living well. This includes our relationship with the external world (ethics etc) and our internal world.
As dancers we should have balanced bodies and minds, to connect with the outside world with which we want to communicate!

This yoga practice will focus on opening our awareness to important points that will increase our potential as dancers and performers whilst focusing on the aspect of health, balanced minds, and the discovery of our deepest self.

Indira.