An in-depth training & research program for experienced practitioners.
Mentored by Kirstie Simson

3-Module program 2026:

• April 27–29 + optional Integration & Lab April 30 - 2nd May
• August 11–15
• December 2–6

Kirstie Simson is a leading light in dance improvisation, performance, and contact improvisation. This programme offers a rare and generous opportunity to work in depth with her at an extraordinary moment in her life, within a small, committed group, over a continuous training journey.

WHAT TO EXPECT:
In-depth study with Kirstie & with a smaller, dedicated group over time.

Opportunities to bring your own work, questions, and creative processes into dialogue

Opportunities for sharings along the way in the studio and in public

DESCRIPTION:
This material centres on Kirstie’s core teachings and an embodied philosophy of 'Being'. The central theme is 'Creating Improvised Performance', offering participants the opportunity to work closely with Kirstie as she shares over 45 years of experience creating solo and collaborative improvisational performances.

The work integrates somatic awareness, touch, score practice and creation, solo exploration, and group work of varying sizes. Through these practices, participants are invited to access the body’s innate wisdom and healing capacity. The project includes studio sharings, public sharings of work, time for dialogue and process experience, and opportunities for one-on-one exchange. Kirstie will also present a talk, screen films of her work, and offer a public performance.

This is a journey of body and heart. We learn to find strength in softness and resilience in vulnerability. Between action and stillness, we reconnect with ourselves and our bond with life through the exploration of creating and sharing improvised performance.

KEY ELEMENTS
>TUNING: Arriving is not just about reaching a place but about inviting consciousness into the body. Through simple awareness and guided practices, we slow down from the pace of travel, feeling the Earth beneath our feet, the air, and our collective presence.
>CLASSES: Kirstie will share her embodied practices through the way she teaches the work. She will explain how her teaching and performance co-exist and support each other.
>DIALOGUE & POSSIBILITIES FOR INDIVIDUAL FEEDBACK
>SCORE PRACTICES: Guided by Kirstie, we enter Score Practice—a physical language that flows between structure and freedom. Participants practice listening to the origin of movement, allowing the body to respond to inner impulses, and cultivating trust in being with oneself and with others.
>SOLO/DUET/GROUP CREATIONS & SHARING
>FILM SCREENINGS: Documentaries exploring Kirstie’s unique artistic practice.
>STILLNESS, SILENCE & CONTEMPLATION: We will settle into reflection and contemplation, both alone and together – a time for resting, processing and honouring our experiences.
>THE BODY AS LANDSCAPE: We delve deeply into the body's flow and relationships. Through contact, separation, approach, and departure, we observe "how the body thinks". Each movement becomes a response to life.
>PERFORMANCE BY KIRSTIE & DIALOGUE

WHAT DO WE MEAN BY PERFORMANCE?
This is not performance in the conventional sense, but a practice of being seen. We explore how to express authentically while remaining open, present, and connected. We will address performance as 'transformation' rather than presenting a fixed idea, and where performers are changed by the act. We will try telling the truth of that moment.

WHO IS THIS FOR?
Urgency is at the core of this work. We are calling all those interested in rigorous and dedicated practices, rather than casual improvisation. We value engagement over professional or formal training. The number of places are very restricted to enable more in-depth work and feedback.

WHERE?
We will take residency in the Stadtufer, a wonderful old factory renovated into an arts and theatre space in the village of Lichtensteig (east Switzerland). The studio is right by a gorgeous river for swimming and a 15 minute walk to waterfalls. Accommodation is in shared flats and dorm spaces 5-10 minutes' walk.https://www.stadtufer.ch/

MODULES & COURSE FEES
The programme is designed to build depth and continuity over time, and ideally participants attend all modules, and complete the full training. However, we understand this is not always realistic, so it is possible to register for one or two modules.

*Participants applying for all modules will be given priority for a place, as well as priority access to one-to-one feedback with Kirstie. They can also receive a 10% discount on the final module course fee.

Module 1 - April 27–29
+ Optional Integration & Lab, April 30 – May 2 (no additional cost)* CHF Supported 210 | Regular 300 | Supporter 450

Module 2 - August 11–15
CHF Supported 300 | Regular 400 | Supporter 550

Module 3 - December 2–6
CHF Supported 300 | Regular 400 | Supporter 550

*Integration & Lab Space:
Directly after the first module we offer additional days (at no extra cost) for independent integration. Kirstie will not be present — it’s just us. You are welcome to bring works in progress or simply yourself, and use the space as you wish: to rest, reflect, rehearse, experiment, share, or simply jam. This time will be self-organised, with participants collectively shaping how the space and time are used.

ACCOMMODATION (Shared)
Approx. CHF 100 per module (slight changes may occur depending on group size)

Are you ready?!

Apply here: https://forms.gle/ SzK5WPnRkYk5dbBD6

Any questions email darshana.rosenthal@gmail.com

Your host,
Darshana

KIRSTIE BIOGRAPHY:
Kirstie Simson (UK) has been a continuous explosion in the contemporary dance scene, bringing audiences into contact with the vitality of pure creation in moment after moment of virtuoso improvisation. Called “a force of nature” by The New York Times, she is an award-winning performer and teacher who has “immeasurably enriched and expanded the boundaries of New Dance” according to Time Out Magazine, London.

Kirstie is internationally renowned today as an excellent teacher, a captivating performer, and a leading light in the field of Dance Improvisation, with a dance practice that spans over four decades. From 2008–2020, Kirstie held a position as a tenured professor in the Department of Dance at the University of Illinois.

In August 2020, Kirstie returned to her home base in Wales, from where she continues to deepen the investigation of her work, sharing her findings with others around the globe. Kirstie is framing her work now, in the light of our uncertain future, as practices that can help us develop resilience in the face of challenge. She uses her own experience of facing a life-threatening health issue as a foundation for ongoing research into the wisdom and healing powers we discover through listening deeply into our embodied intelligence.

www.kirstiesimson.com

IMAGE: KEN BUSLAY, 2023