The Retreat Benefits Prereqs Facilitators Location/Accomodations Investment Registration
Mindful Play, Playful Mind
an improvisational retreat to inspire courage, creativity, and connection
Mere Point, ME • June 8 – 13, 2016
Petaluma, CA • September 2 – 5, 2016
The practice of improvisation teaches something that we are hungry to understand:
how to be in harmony with each other and how to have fun.
–Patricia Ryan Madson, author of Improv Wisdom
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The Retreat
Mindful play and improvisation offers far more than comedy, encouraging an embodied presence that breeds courage, connection, and creativity. We learn to pay acute attention and to delight in the discovery of each moment. We take joyful care of those around us. In short: improv makes life–and us–better.
As playful improvisors ourselves, we know this truth in our bones and we’ve had it reaffirmed again and again with our students and clients. Artists and athletes build resilience in the face of setbacks. Leaders learn to innovate with nimble acuity and authentic relationship. Educators find powerful paths for true development. And seekers of all sorts discover previously hidden wellsprings of insight and joy.
This active and contemplative retreat explores the wisdom of improvisational play from the inside out. Together as a small group, we create a safe and experiential learning lab that sharpens self-awareness and revitalizes relationship with the wider world. You’ll have time to learn, to breathe, and to integrate your experience. Yes, you’ll laugh a lot. And you’ll almost certainly come to see your world with new eyes and a refreshed sense of possibility and vitality.∧
Benefits
More specifically, we’ll help you:
- Find and express greater spontaneity
- Transform your approach to failure
- Increase your sensory acuity and in-the-moment awareness
- Trust your creative leanings
- Reach new levels of generosity
- Improve your communication: better listening, clearer speaking, deeper understanding
- Collaborate with greater ease
- Get resourceful in the face of chaos
- Tell better stories∧
Steeping myself in these principles for peaceful, playful living has been a true gift. –Kathy R.
I had expected to learn, to reconnect, to be delighted. I had not necessarily expected to be transformed. Thank you for that. –Sarah
Click below to hear more reflections from retreat participants:
Prerequisites
Do you have little or no prior experience with improvisational theater? Are you a bit nervous about the whole idea of improv and think “That sounds interesting, but I could never be good at that.” Great! This workshop’s for you. Do you have more substantial improv chops and want to tap its deeper levels? Perfect! You’re most welcome too! No particular religious or spiritual path is required, but those with an inquiring heart and open mind will gain the most from–and contribute the most to–the experience.∧
This workshop was everything I hoped for and much more. You created a safe environment for us to play and did so many things to foster our creativity. –Eric H.
About the Facilitators
Ted DesMaisons has been synthesizing innovative approaches to learning for over 25 years. Combining humor with gravitas and intention with inspiration, Ted helps create safe spaces for exploring what really matters. Since completing his graduate work at Stanford (MBA) and Harvard (Masters of Theology), Ted has studied improvisation with Patricia Ryan Madson, Bay Area Theater Sports (BATS) and Loose Moose Theater in Calgary, Alberta. He is the founder and principal of ANIMA Learning and a trained Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) instructor. He writes regularly about improv, contemplation, and positive reinforcement on his ANIMA blog (www.AnimaLearning.com/blog).
One of the most recognizable and most beloved teachers of improvisation in the world, Lisa Rowland has performed, coached, and conducted corporate trainings with San Francisco’s BATS mainstage company for more than eight years. Students from Palo Alto and the Presidio to Amsterdam and Arabia rave about the way she combines power and generosity in the service of their learning. A graduate of and current faculty member at Stanford University and an uncannily astute observer of what’s needed next, Lisa was named the 2012 San Francisco Actor of the Year.
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Location and Accommodations
Mere Point Cottage, Brunswick, ME. Our June retreat will convene in a warmly welcoming summer cottage on the stunning coast of Maine, about 45 minutes north of Portland and 15 minutes outside of Freeport, the home of LL Bean. We’ll enjoy wide open vistas of Casco Bay and the islands, the inspiration of tides coming and going, and the restorative quiet at the end of peninsula. We’ll also allow time for swimming, kayaking, and boat rides if folks want it.∧
For both retreats, we will share three delicious, mostly vegetarian meals each day that include local organic fruits and vegetables, free-range poultry, hormone-free meat and dairy products, and extraordinary cheeses. The chefs at each location draw upon flavors and techniques from around the world to create a diverse cuisine with alluring flavors. Trust us–you’ll carry lasting positive memories of the food with you.
Participants can expect to stay in simple, clean rooms, two to a room (we may need a triple or two at Mere Point). Single rooms may be available for an extra cost, space permitting.∧
Earthrise, Petaluma, CA. Our January retreat will convene at the soul-nourishing Earthrise Center, run by the Institute of Noetic Sciences, about 26 minutes north of San Francisco and just a few minutes off highway 101 in Petaluma. The Center’s rolling hills and numerous meditative spaces make an idyllic setting for our time together. We’ll make sure to allow time for hiking, walking the labyrinth, or sitting in the Earthrise gardens. For more information about the setting, please visit the Center’s web site: http://noetic.org/earthrise/about/overview.∧
Investment
June Maine retreat (5 nights): $500 program fee/$750 food and facilities. Early bird payment of $1250 due upon registration before April 30. After April 30, regular payment of $1395 due upon registration. Single rooms may be available for an added charge. However, given our limited number of bedspaces in the cottage, that charge might need to be significant. Feel free to inquire!
September Petaluma retreat (3 nights): $345 program fee/$450 food and facilities. Early bird payment of $795 due upon registration before June 1. After June 1, regular payment of $895 due upon registration. Single rooms may be available for an additional $200.
Early bird payment will be refundable (minus $25 processing charge) before the early bird cutoff date. After that date, payment will be refundable (again minus a $25 processing charge) only if the workshop is full and you or we are able to find a replacement. Please note: you can earn a $50 credit for yourself for each person you refer who attends the workshop.∧
I already find myself craving more. You have opened the door to adventure. –Cathy Z.
Beautiful. Life-Changing. Thank you. –Jen D.
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Registration/Contact Us
To register, click on one of the buttons above or follow this link for the Mere Point retreat, or this link for the Petaluma retreat. If you have any questions about the workshop, please contact either facilitator. We’d be delighted to talk with you!∧
Ted DesMaisons: Ted@AnimaLearning.com Lisa Rowland: lcrowland@gmail.com
A misty morning on the Earthrise lands.
Who am I here in this moment? What choice is needed now?
How can I help those around me?
How does this story connect me to something larger or deeper?
