explore presence, movement, and aliveness

Sofya is the most sensible Butoh dancer/ facilitator I’ve experienced. The way she guides dancers is so clear and intuitive-it really helped me connect with my emotions and sensibilities in a way I hadn’t been able to before. She created a space where everyone felt safe, seen, and free to be vulnerable. And at the same time, the workshop was fun-we had some laughs, which made it feel light even when we were exploring deep stuff. One of the most powerful moments for me was when she helped each one of us channel their inner “Butoh monster E.” It helped me access emotions from my subconscious and give form to them -writing them down, visualizing them, and then bringing them to life through Butoh. It was honestly the first time I felt I could reach those layers within myself. I’m really grateful for the experience.

Sofya held the space for a world in the shape of a shared dream, and called it forth, from myself — and I am sure from each of us that attended — with such an incredible delicacy, precision, and craft that, still, even in the weeks after the workshop, the resonance of this oneiric experience continues to vibrate within me. That this was my first ever workshop on dance, and that I felt such a fullness of inspiration, connection, and expression, speaks to Sofya’s masterful ability to design, facilitate, and inspire, through the intricacy of the practice, the flow of each day, and the progression of the workshop in its entirety. It was wonderful, deep, profoundly thoughtful, exhausting, and expanding, and I find that its effects as an experience, beyond the place in which we danced, have formed a space within me that I am excited and impassioned to explore.

Sofya created such a safe space in which I felt very comfortable to engage in the explorative process despite having little prior knowledge of Butoh. It was a gentle and exciting, profound and fun journey through space, time and form. Definitely a transformative experience that I am deeply grateful for. I can highly recommend it to anyone, whether they have a lot or little Butoh experience.

When Flora recommended me Sofya Shaikut’s butoh workshop, she said it was like walking on wet grass barefeet and i so agree. Now after this 2-day experience i’d also add – it was a misty mystic forest u enter to seek things u would never find but coming out feeling more alive. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!

Thank you for careful guidance toward unseen in our bones, for guarding concentration, for reminding how powerful imagination could be if we practice its embodiment, for letting us tune it with our life force and land on the ground spiraled in verticality of human experience

I love Sofya’s Butoh workshops, this was my third one and I am sure it won’t be the last. It’s a space to learn and improve listening to your own body. It’s also a space to be slow and find the beauty in sensing yourself. I really like the partner and group work which creates such a wholesome environment. I feel like everyone is welcomed just how they are. I like the playful, yet concentrated approach to finding the Butoh inside yourself. I am very thankful for these three days of movement in which I lost and found myself at the same time.

In this three days butoh workshop (every day 7 hours) in two beautiful dance studios led by Sofya, my imagination was often activated, my physical limit was tested (fortunately not all the time…). After the workshop, I understand further about butoh. Your guidance brought exercises to the point, so that dance appeared on soul level. I really like your tenderness, deepness, calmness, humour and clearness! Thank you