Feldenkrais Retreat

Back to home

The Feldenkrais® Method at the Medomak Retreat Center!

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER!

August 19 – 25, 2024

Registration Fees:
$1,790.00 double occupancy cabin, all-inclusive lodging and meals.
$2,250.00 single occupancy cabin, all-inclusive lodging and meals.

IMAGINE…

No demands on your time. A good night’s sleep in a comfortable cabin in the quiet pines, chef-prepared meals, leisurely strolls, hikes, swims in a pristine lake, companionship when you want it, solitude when you need it.

And to top it all off . . .

Feldenkrais Awareness through Movement® lessons available every morning and afternoon…

At Feldenkrais Camp, we re-calibrate the balance of study, rest, work, and play to welcome you back to the delight of being in your body.

Whether you are new to the Feldenkrais Method, a practitioner with years of experience, or someone who has always wanted to study but never had the time, join us for this unique experience—a Feldenkrais Retreat at the beautiful Medomak Retreat Center. This retreat will focus on reconnecting with one’s natural abilities to think, move, and feel. Awareness Through Movement (R) (ATM) classes, which were developed by Moshe Feldenkrais, are slow, quiet, deep explorations of our inner experience of moving. Come and discover that you still have that brilliant childhood capacity for learning to move more easily, efficiently, and comfortably.

Picture leaving your ATM lesson and walking down a quiet path instead of a paved street, letting the uneven terrain stimulate your balance and enliven your senses. Our Maine Retreat keeps distractions to a minimum so that we stay in touch with the self-discoveries we’ve made in class. New sensations, patterns of movement, thoughts, and feelings are allowed to become integrated into our daily lives. Maine, with its pristine resources of light, water, air and the rustic charm of Medomak Retreat Center combine with our ATM study to enhance how you see, hear, smell, taste, touch, and move.

. . . I’m interested in flexible minds. What I’m interested in is restoring each person to their human dignity. . . .Moshe Feldenkrais

Feldenkrais instructors, Suzanne Avery Thompson and Anna J. Wolf (Johnson-Chase), combine their talents and love of teaching for this unique getaway. They bring a special sensibility into the communication of a lesson and together create a profoundly welcoming and accepting atmosphere in every aspect of this retreat so that we can explore and grow and become who we truly are.

Meet the Instructors

Suzanne Thompson was trained by Gaby Yaron in the first Chicago training in the early 1990s. She initiated the Feldenkrais program in the Theater/Music Department at Columbia College in Chicago, where she has been teaching for over 25 years. She also has been the Feldenkrais Instructor for the School at Steppenwolf Theater since its inception 22 years ago. Her major interests are working with musicians, actors, dancers, singers, and sports enthusiasts.

Anna J. Wolf (Johnson-Chase) studied with Dr. Feldenkrais in the first North American Training and graduated in 1977. As an Assistant Trainer, she has taught in professional training programs in many countries and throughout the U.S. for over thirty-five years. In her private practice, she has worked with people with a wide range of abilities and disabilities. Anna has a great curiosity for how we learn and live.

Medomak Camp

Holly and George Stone are the owners of Medomak Camp, a picturesque retreat center built in 1904 on Washington Pond in the mid-coast of Maine. They are committed to keeping the land pollution-free. The wild blueberries in the field (which you are encouraged to pick) are never sprayed, and the meals served are organic, whenever possible. Even light pollution is intentionally kept to a minimum, so bring a flashlight at night for walks from the campfire back to your cabin!

 

Tuition For Our Leisurely Week-Long Immersion Includes:

Private Cabin- $2,250.00

Shared Cabin- $1,790.00

• Rooms: Pine wood cabins are simple and clean. Pillows, blankets, linen and towels are provided. The showers are hot and clean.

• Meals: All our plentiful meals and snacks are chef-prepared in our kitchen, locally sourced and predominantly organic. Meals are well-balanced and varied. With notice, we can accommodate vegetarian/vegan diets. All meals have essential components that are gluten-free, but folks with celiac disease may be concerned that our kitchens cannot account for cross-contamination. Folks that prefer to eat gluten-free may wish to bring along personal items to supplement their preferences. Coffee and Tea are available all day.

• Classes: 2-3 ATM lessons daily are chosen for their ability to intrigue the professional Feldenkrais practitioner as well as the beginner in The Method.

• Feldencruise: A guided group tour on a pontoon boat that explores beautiful Lake Washington, just a short walk from the dining hall.

• Campfires in the evenings–heartfelt sing-a-longs, some guitar or banjo pickin’, and always “s’mores”!

Check out the daily schedule

Every day there are 3-4 hours of free time to:

Be as active as you want… swim, canoe or kayak in the cold clean waters of Washington Pond…pick wild blueberries from the camp’s fields… hike a wooded trail…visit the 100-year-old Outdoor Stone Chapel on campus and contemplate the passage of time…Nap in the stillness of the afternoon… Chat with fellow Felden-campers from all over the country….Or just sit and rock on the porch with an open book on your lap and listen to the whispering pines…

We have fine cell phone reception and internet accessibility in the main lodge, open for access 24/ 7; however, you may not want to be that accessible…:)

There is a magic to this retreat in the way it combines the natural setting and the Feldenkrais Method. It unfolds like a slow ride on a Ferris wheel at night. As we leave the ground of the familiar and the habitual, the shift in our senses develops almost imperceptibly. At some point during the ride you begin to notice how small the lights are below you, and how much bigger the lights seem above you, closer, close enough for you to reach. By the end of the week when your feet once more touch ground, the sensations of floating and ease as you walk away from the ride linger for a long, long while.

Cancellation policy

Cancellations within 14 days of your arrival will result in a full credit applied toward a future stay at Medomak.  In the event Medomak must cancel a program, a full refund will be given.

Sorry but Medomak cannot be responsible for nonrefundable airline tickets or other travel or indirect expenses associated with cancellations.

Cancellations must be made by speaking with a Medomak Director.

A $25 canceled check fee will be charged for returned checks.

Register