Human Animal

Workshop open to anyone interested in starting, refining, or expanding their acrobatics practice.

Workshop Content

1. Acrobatics:

Pattern Learning: Progressive patterns for developing a broad vocabulary and understanding the fundamentals of acrobatics.

 Sequence Learning: Learning how to transition and combine acrobatic movements.

Task Exploration: Expanding previously specific given patterns and sequences toward exploration of potential variations. Understanding our current affordances in relation to different acrobatic movements and how we can enhance learning through exploratory behavior.

2. Improvisation:

What happens between two acrobatic movements? What makes acrobatics authentic, more than just a series of physically demanding movements performed one after another? How does stable performance arise from playful exploration of clear tasks? How can we learn through improvisation and become creative and adaptable movers? These questions are addressed in this area of the practice.

3. Forms & Conditioning:

Somatic Practice: Developing better awareness and learning how to regulate our internal state through mindful movement.

Efficient Configurations: Learning how to align our joints to the same scale for harmonic movement to emerge, aiming for better structural organization.

 Conditioning: How can we develop the physical capacities required to make acrobatic movements accessible through whole-body, multi-joint, multi-plane movement? This includes work with ourselves, tools, and others.

4. Movement Scenarios & Games:

Acrobatics is not just for individual display of fitness and vitality. Acrobatics can be used to engage with our environment, solving various self-imposed or spontaneously emerging problems. Through games, using tools, and engaging in body-to-body practice, we learn how to become adaptable and creative movers.

Additional Material: 

Recorded material from the workshop and practical maps for understanding and structuring the practice will be accessible to all participants for an additional two months after the intensive, allowing for further study.

If you’re interested in attending both of our 2025 intensives—Human Animal (June 23-27) and Soft Acrobatics & Improvisation (August 11-15)—contact [email protected] for a special offer.

The workshop will be taught by Stefan Crainic, a movement instructor and former capoeira practitioner and teacher, alongside Josephine Haas, a professional dancer with extensive experience in various dance companies and the creation of her own works.