So You Think You Can Trance - tonight! Wednesday 23 September - tix $20 at the door only
Essence Dance - Thursday 24 September - tix $30 at the door or presale $30 +bf

Workshops this weekend 26th & 27th
Free Closing Event Sunday 27th @ Temple Byron - see Freebees page

Wild Honey is very excited to present special guest tutor MARIA HAMER of Zafira Dance Co (USA).  Zafira were voted 'Troupe of the Year 2007' by Zaghereet magazine and taught 2 sold out workshops at this year's Tribalfest in San Fransisco. Please go to the Maria Hamer page for details of her workshops!

Scroll down this page for a tasty menu selection of dance that will get your feet itching, set your spirit soaring & leave you buzzing! To see an easy to read table of all workshops click on the link above - "Download Program at a Glance".

Workshops on offer include Tribal Fusion Belly, Flamenco, Trance, Body Popping, Contemporary World Fusion, Arabic Drumming, Indian Fusion, Shamanic Trance Dance, Contact Improvisation, Hat & Cane Cabaret and Serpentine Dance Ritual.

Workshops no longer available to purchase online -workshops may be paid for at the door  - please arrive 15 minutes before class starts to register.  The price is the same as the online price,note there is a booking fee.
Program subject to change please check website for updates or join our mailing list.
All enquiries: wildhoney.festival@yahoo.com.au
PH: 0420 398590

Special Event!
**Note: new venue**

So You Think You Can Trance
Ljudan Michaelis & Nick Taylor (Byron)

Wednesday 23 September
The Shed, Yagers Lane, Byron Bay7:30 - 10pm
$15 + bf  presale or $20 at the door

 
Click here to view venue map 

Warm up for Wild Honey at this trance dance intensive facilitated by Ljudan, with music by international DJ Nick Taylor! You don't need a background in dance journey work but if you have some experience it does give you more tools to go deeper with. But don't let this stop you! The group energy and the eclectic soulful grooves can always carry you into journey naturally. You may even discover your own personal map.

This is not a workshop or doof - it is a dance journey and is a drug and alcohol free event.
Open to men and women aged 18+.

Mia has facilitated this work on a weekly basis for over 4 years, mostly in Melbourne. She has drawn on rich life experiences and studies to create this work, including studies in trance dance facilitation (Hawai'i), Kundalini Dance training, Hawaiian cultural studies in Hawai'i and Australia and personal shamanic studies and journeys. Find out more about Mia here.

Open to men and women. No experience necessary. 

Serpentine Ritual Dance
Maria Sangiorgi (Melb)

Saturday 26 September
Dojo @ Temple Byron
9-11am
$40/20 teens + booking fee presale & now available at the door.  Please arrive 15 mins before class starts to register.

Deep in our bellies lies the memory of sacred serpentine power. In this dance ritual you will be guided on a journey that embraces the power of the belly and the serpentine movements of the spine.

You will be invited to dance your physical, astral, mental and spiritual bodies.  Like the serpent that finds the crack between the rocks and disappears into the darkness, you will be invited to slide throught the layers from one energy field to the next. 

Dancing your breath, belly and spine, accessing the full potential of the fluid undulating movements of the spine, the physical powerhouse of snake energy.  As the snaking spine ripples and flows a river of energy through all of your joints and muscles, spiralling out from your core centre you will emerge out of the darkness of our inner journey, you will be invited to find your feet and dance in the new light of you.

This Serpentine Ritual Dance experience is for those who want to move beyond drills and technique to find the authenticity of self in their dance.

Open to women and girls 15+ only. No experience necessary.

Contemporary World Fusion
Hilary Cinis (Syd)

Saturday 26 September
Yurt @ Temple Byron
9:30-11am
$40/20 teens + booking fee presale & now available at the door.  Please arrive 15 mins early to register.

In this workshop you will learn a short choreography and improvisation basics of the newest sub-genre of belly dance that fuses tribal belly, cabaret and modern dances. You will also learn moves from Hilary's own fusion repertoire with influences from Urbantribal Dance Company (USA), who are renowned for pushing the boundaries of tribal fusion belly dance. This style is lyrical, innovative and hypnotic and suitable for non-belly dancers.

Hilary has mesmerized audiences at some of Sydney's top venues and is a regular performer at major festivals. She fuses ballet, martial arts and contemporary dance with tribal to create a very lyrical and fluid style. Find out more about Hilary here. 

Click here to read an article about Hilary in Omigoddess, a vibrant daily online magazine for sassy women.

Open to men, women and children over 15 interested in movement, not just belly dancers.

*This class is no longer available*

Arabic Drumming
Karen Wray (Coffs)

Sunday 27 September
Vision Dance Studio
Time to be confirmed
$40/20 + bf presale

The drums of the Middle East play an important role in the Belly dance world. Although percussion is part of Arabic music as a whole, it acts as the backbone of the rhythm for both the dancer and the musicians. It is exciting and mesmerizing whether played solo or as an accompaniment to other instruments.

In this workshop drummers will learn to play two basic Arabic rhythms 4/4 & 2/4 we will then structure drum solo patterns to overlay these basics - by the end of the workshop drummers will leave with an idea of how to play a drum solo at your own level. And those who wish to have a go at a DRUM "SOLO" will be encouaged do so. There will be something for everyone!!

Karen has been studying, teaching and performing Middle Eastern drumming for over 17 years and has travelled to Egypt, Lebanon and Turkey to further enhance her knowledge of the culture and their music. She now lives in Coffs Harbour and is teaching classes & workshops along the mid north coast and beyond. Find out more about Karen's classes here.

Open to men and women. Beginners-advanced levels welcome. Bring your own drum - Karen has a couple of spares she can also lend you if necessary.

A Taste of Wild Honey
Ljudan Michaelis (Byron)

Saturday 26 September
Dojo @ Temple Byron
11:30am-1:30pm
$30/15 teens + booking fee presale & now available at the door.  Please arrive 15 mins before class starts to register.

This workshop encapsulates the synergistic philosophy of the Wild Honey Dance Festival, inspired by the ecstatic dance of the Bee. Bees spend their lives being of service to the hive, buzzing with joy and doing a 'waggle dance' that literally puts them into a state of ecstasy. Workshop faciliator, Ljudan, combines her work with Kundalini Ecstatic Dance and Dance of the Goddess to connect you to this Bee essence. Though ancient practices of the Bee Priestesses and connecting with the Bee Goddess archetype using sound, movement, trance & dance, this workshop will bring you to your Wild Honey ecstatic self. 

Find out more about Ljudan here.

Make sure you eat before this class - but lightly!
No experience necessary. Open to women, men & kids over 12.

*This workshop is no longer available*

Body Pop Lock 'n Hip Hop - with a touch of Raggaeton
Dani Finkenauer

Saturday 26 September
Yurt @ Temple Byron
11:30-1:00pm
$30/15 + bf presale

Come learn the fundamentals of body popping with Dani, Australia's only "Old School" female body popper. Using body isolations learn to wave, pop and flow to enhance your moves and create a surreal effect. Then rock your body and shake your booty to the new Latin Hip Hop mania called Raggaeton. This workshop is perfect for dedicated hip hoppers or those wanting to fuse several styles to create their own modern look. Find out more about Dani here.

No experience necessary. Open to women and girls 15+ only.

Liquid Layers
Maria Hamer
See Maria's page for workshop details.

Saturday 26 September
Living Arts
11:30-1:30pm
Please arrive 15 mins before class starts if you wish to register for this class.

Indian Spices
Melusina (Melb)

Saturday 26 September
Living Arts
2-4pm
$40/20 teens + booking fee presale &  now available at the door.  Please arrive 15 mins early to register.

Learn Orissi classical gestures, funky Bollywood combos and exotic Asian-style movements to add spice and flair to your dance vocabulary with Melusina, who wowed the audience at last year's Wild Honey Dance Festival. With sequences such as the 'Indian Fling' and 'Kissing the Peacocks', the movements in this workshop are fun and dramatic and easily adapted for any style of dance particularly bollywood, tribal and traditional forms of bellydance.

Find out more about Melusina here.

This workshop has a more classical Indian focus than Bollywood. Some dance experience is recommended as this is quite a fast paced workshop.

Open to women, girls over 15 and men (although there is a lot of hip action! ; ).

Level: beyond beginners/intermediate

Combo-NATION!
Maria Hamer
See Maria's page for workshop details.

Sunday 27 September
Living Arts
9:00-11:00am

Contact Improvisation
Joe Jurd (Byron)

Sunday 27 September
Dojo @ Temple Byron
9-11am
$30/15 teens + booking fee presale.  Pelase arrive 15 mins before class starts to register.

Contact Improvisation is the underground social dance of the 21st century - a contemporay game based on the communication between two or more moving bodies.  Practice includes rolling, falling, flying, being upside down, supporting and giving weight to a partner. Participants learn to move freely, release excess muscular tension and abandon a certain quality of willfulness to experience the exchange and natural flow of movement when dancing with a partner.

Through physical interaction and dancing with others this class opens us up to a range of exciting movement opportunities and will explore terms such as trust, weight, sharing, protection, leaders and followers.  Starting with a gentle warm up the class moves into more physical exercises and freestyle partnering work that enhance instinct awareness and lead to all out expressive dancing.

Open to all levels from beginner up. Some movement experience beneficial but not a requirement. Comfortable clothing recommended.

Joe works in a range of forms including Capoeira, Bboying, Chinese Martial arts, contact improvisation and contemporary dance technique. His style is a mix of street smart aesthetics, raw physicality and dynamic movement. He has performed in two award winning dance films, CARGO and MOMENT and is a graduate of the University of Western Sydney dance program.

Sassy Cabaret Hat & Cane
Daniella Finkenauer (Byron)

Sunday 27 September
Yurt @ Temple Byron
9:30-11:00am
$30/15 teens + booking fee presale & now available at the door.  Please arrive 15 mins before class starts to register.

Learn sassy and suave basic moves with your hat and cane with Dani, who has had over 20 years of showbiz experience (quite a few of those years on the Parisian dance scene). Dani will teach cabaret and jazz basics that can be combined to make your own sassy routines. Lots of fun!

No experience necessary. Open to women only.

Red Hot Flamenco
Kelly Houghton (Byron)

Sunday 27 September
Yurt @ Temple Byron
11:30-1:00pm
$30/15 teens + booking fee presale & now available at the door.  Please arrive 15 mins before class starts to register.

Experience the creative fusion of Spanish and Arabic dance forms under the nurturing tuition of Kelly Houghton who recently moved to Byron Bay from Sydney where she was an integral member of the renowned Diana Reyes flamenco studio. In this workshop learn basic footwork, hand techniques such as floreos (hand flowers) and Palmas (clapping). You will also gain an insight into the different styles and rhythms within flamenco.

See Kelly's passionate footwork and technical prowess in action as she sets the stage on fire at the Rhapsody performance event on Saturday night.

Bring a colourful skirt and/or scarf to get you in the mood and wear shoes with a heel.
Suitable for first time flamencas! Ole!

Level: Beginners/Beyond Beginners

The Divine Dance
Maria Sangiorgi (Melb)

Sunday 27 September
Dojo @ Temple Byron
11:30-1:30pm
$40/20 teens  + booking fee  presale & now available to purchase at the door.  Please arrive 15 mins early to register.

"Women of dance and drum, join me in the sanctuary of dance and rhythm. Abandon yourself to an ecstatic trance state to bring harmony to your inner life. Listen to your breath; hear the pulse of your heart as it pumps billions of blood cells through your veins. Follow the beat of the drum. Be guided towards whirling as a Dervish woman; be taken as deeply into the Zaar trance state as you wish to journey."

In this workshop Maria will incorporate a range of trance techniques drawing on the traditions of the Middle Eastern Zaar and Persian Sufi dances. Please wear comfortable loose clothing, perhaps something special and flowing. Bring plenty of water and eat lightly before the workshop.

Find out more about Maria here.

No Zaar/Sufi dance experience necessary. Open to women and girls over 12. 

Gypsy Spins & Stylings
Maria Hamer
See Maria's page for workshop details.

Sunday 27 September
Living Arts
12-2pm

 We can learn much from the bees...

"Bees offer us the most beautiful example of community that we shall ever find,
they have much to teach us in this regard.
When nature has work to be done, she creates a genius to do it:
the humble honeybee, our most ancient ally."
(Shamanic Way of the Bee By Simon Buxton)

"This is what's going on with the bees. Honeybees and all bees are
caught up in our land use and our stewardship of the land,
and what's going on with them is a reflection of our land use.
And in fact what's going on with the honeybees is what's going on with us."
Marla Spivak, University of Minnesota Entomologist

JOIN OUR HIVE OF ACTIVITY and be a part of the Festival!
Volunteers are needed for a range of activities.
Call 6685 1316 to register your interest!