Prepared by: Magda Stojowska, Jana Landsingerová, Barbora Kleinhamplová, Eva Koťátková
"Trees and people used to be good friends" (Totoro, 1988)
The Children’s Forest Group invites its members to join us on a journey to find the spirits of the forest!
The forest is clearly in danger. The spirits are restless, a suspicious cloud has moved near to their home. There is a feeling of nervousness, rapid breathing, and trembling in the forest. How can we contact the spirits of the forest and offer them our help? Can the animals, plants, mushrooms, rocks, and other creatures that live in the forest help us? Or do we connect through our own dreams and dreaming as a space where we can be together despite what separates us? In what ways will we communicate with the spirits? What should we learn to understand their language? What extra-human abilities might help us to do this? And can this process also help us to transform ourselves? Into fantasy creatures, animals, or simply into those we don’t have to be but want to be?
We would like to find a place in the forest where we feel comfortable and that allows us to create, think, imagine, and become part of the story of the forest. We will walk, run, dance, tune our bodies to different sensations, learn from the non-human world, make masks, tell stories, and much, much more. We will try to get in tune with the forest guardians, connect with them, put away the masks that bind us and create new ones and with them new temporary identities.
Eating, reading, playing, and relaxing together will be an important part of our time together. Besides the tutors, an important part of the group will also be two older children who will take care of the younger children together with us, creating a bridge between the two groups. We will have a tent and materials for making costumes and masks. Many of these will be made from things we find on our walks together. Books will be an important prop for us, and we will choose stories from them to tell together. Musical instruments will also be important to help activate our senses and strengthen our connection with ourselves and our surroundings.
The only things you need to become part of the group are openness, curiosity, and sensitivity to what is happening around us. Daydreaming is not forbidden; it is encouraged and developed, it is just attempted collectively within the group:)
We look forward to seeing you!
PROGRAMME
Friday 28 July
16:45 – 18:00 Introduction for parents and children. Exploring the meadow and collecting objects.
18:00 – 18:30 Afternoon snack
18:30 – 20:00 First exploration of the Forest
Saturday 29 July
9:30 – 10:30 Movement Workshop
10:30 – 13:00 Message from the Forest
11:30 Morning snack
(Lunch)
14:30 – 16:30 Working with clay, making masks
16:30 – 17:00 Afternoon snack
17:00 – 19:00 Collective storytelling of forest ghost dreams. Shared ritual.
Sunday 30 July
9:30 – 13:00 Chronicle: we draw, we paint, we write, we glue…
11:30 Morning snack
(Lunch)
14:00 – 15:00 Final journey through the forest with an adult group
Earthworm Tralala: Children’s forest group for children from 1.5 to 4 years old
Saturday 29 July
9:30 – 11:30 Sound rhythm and movement time
Sunday 30 July
9:30 – 11:30 Sound rhythm and movement time