Course Calendar

Explore Your Potential and Meet Like-Minded People in Stunning Locations

width, depth and excellence

• Greece - Atsitsa Bay AT1

  SAT 15 - SAT 22 JUL 2017

  £725.00

  Book

• Mindfulness

  Michael Eales

  Mosaics

  Roz Wates

  Vinyasa Yoga

  Andreas Vetsch

  Windsurfing

  Mark Gunston

  Joyful Choir, Wild Swimming

  Susie Self

  5-Rhythms, Meditation

  Jo Hardy

  The Power of Laughter

  Ailon Freedman

  Life, Dreams & Fiction

  Steve Attridge

Mindfulness Mindfulness is an exploration of the practice of present-moment awareness, kindness and whole-hearted living. It is a simple path to our core self, the place of inner wisdom, wellbeing and happiness. It also provides tools for recognizing and reducing unhealthy stress and for becoming aware of our habits of thought and action, which keep us stuck. This awareness is the first step toward self-transformation. Putting these skills into practice takes focus, will, intent and discipline. Paying attention to our bodies, thoughts, feelings, and how we express ourselves, in a kind hearted friendly way, is the key to release us from our attachments and blocks. The course combines western psychology with the wisdom of the East.

Michael Eales Michael Eales, psychologist, writer, and leadership coach for 30 years, is one of the leading figures in Humanistic Psychology. He is co-author of The Personal Management Handbook,Implausible Professions and The Coaching Cube and is a management consultant with major organizations. He was part of the staff team of the Human Potential Research Project at Surrey University and has trained many practitioners in the field. He has written for film and television. He co-wrote and acted in the film Inertia (Dir. Anna Campion), which opened at the London Raindance Film Festival, and Bipolar‚ which premiered in 2006 at the Edinburgh Film Festival. He is currently working with Anna Campion on a film adaptation of a novel. In 2013 he published Sketches of Skyros, a collection of poems illustrated by paintings of the late Manos Faltaits, and Dreams Like Enigmatic Paintings, a translation of the work of Henri Michaux.

Mosaics In this course you'll learn how to make a mosaic that you can take home with you. It's fun, creative, absorbing, and very sociable: an ideal activity for those hot summer days! We'll cover classic mosaic styles, and students will gain a thorough grounding in skills and techniques, although the emphasis of the course is on individual creativity. Both beginners and experienced mosaicists are welcome on the course.

Roz Wates Rosalind Wates is an experienced mosaicist, renowned for her public art projects up and down the UK. She works in a variety of styles and materials, mainly by commission: her clients range from film stars and billionaires to public bodies and local communities. Although versed in traditional mosaic techniques, Roz constantly explores the creative possibilities of the medium to produce new work. As well as producing mosaics, Rosalind also teaches and has carried out TV and radio work. Her book, The Mosaic Sourcebook, has been translated into several languages and is sold worldwide.

Vinyasa Yoga Andreas teaches Vinyasa yoga, a dynamic form of Hatha yoga with the emphasis on synchronisation of breath and movement. The emphasis in Andreas' Vinyasa Yoga classes lies on a challenging, flowing and precise Asana practice interwoven with spiritual insights, selected music, and meditation and chanting. This teaching is mostly inspired by Jivamukti Yoga and Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga. Participants will experience Yoga as a spiritual path and will feel the innate healing power of the practice. They will find out what sort of practice is most beneficial for them. Through Andreas' classes a lot of former Skyros participants were inspired to take up a regular Yoga practice.

Andreas Vetsch Andreas is a practising Yogi. He trained with masters in India and the US. He runs his own Yoga Centre on the shores of Lake Konstanz in Switzerland and leads workshops and retreats all over Europe.  A former film and TV director he combines worldly and spiritual experiences in his very unique way of teaching.

Windsurfing Beginners: This course is aimed at complete beginners and covers the basic skills required to learn this exciting sport. The majority of the time is spent on the water. Windsurfing will help improve your coordination, flexibility and strength. The course will challenge you but the emphasis is on enjoyment. You will be encouraged to take intelligent risks and develop an awareness of your environment. During most of the summer you will only need to wear swimwear, though we recommend that you bring your own wet shoes. At the beginning and end of the season it may be necessary to wear a shortie wetsuit, which will be provided. It is not necessary to be a strong swimmer or athletic to learn windsurfing. However, a basic level of mobility and some confidence in the water is required. Students may continue onto the Improvers class in the 2nd half of the session of a 2 week session. Improvers: This is a series of drop in classes suitable for those with previous experience. An ability to sail away from the beach, turn around and sail back is the only minimum requirement. It is also open to those who took part in the Learn to Windsurf course during the first half of a 2 week session. Each class will take the form of a short clinic followed by on water practice. Continued coaching and feedback will be available or you can just practice without instruction.

Mark Gunston Mark has been teaching Windsurfing for 30 years and is a qualified RYA Windsurfing Trainer. He managed a watersports centre in Cornwall for 6 years and during the late 1980s worked at a Windsurfing Club on the Sea of Galilee. He has taught at a variety of centres in England, Greece, Sardinia and San Francisco and is one of the UK’s most experienced Windsurfing teachers. In 1998 he established and managed a Fitness Centre in New Delhi. Mark qualified as an internationally licensed Ski Instructor in 2001 and has worked in Austria, France, Italy, Spain and Vermont as a Ski Instructor, Ski Guide and Resort Manager. He is also a certified  Life Coach. Mark has been teaching in Atsitsa since 1996. Mark is now realising a life times ambition and is studying 'Film' full time at University.

Joyful Choir, Wild Swimming Joyful Choir A chance to sing heartily in an upbeat choir. Music ranges from Susie’s own joyful music with “beat” backing tracks to Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah to Mozart. This is a great activity for freeing your soul’s voice, connecting with others and filling you with wellbeing. No pervious singing experience is needed. The choir regularly sings in the sea and creates exciting flash mob events. Wild Swimming A stunning active daily meditation, swimming in a group at a steady pace. The sea at Atsitsa is warm and especially buoyant. Every day we will set out on a new adventure to magical destinations such as an island or under the cliffs. Susie incorporates her Subtle Sound Immersions to heighten the experience.

Susie Self Susie Self ARCM MPhil Cantab is an International singer/composer. She has composed 4 symphonies 3 operas and 6 albums. She has just won a STEAM scholarship to read for a PhD in composition at Birmingham University. Susie has sung solo in the West End and for the opera houses of Lyon, Luxembourg, Salzburg, Strasbourg, Antwerp and The Royal Opera, Covent Garden.

5-Rhythms, Meditation 5-Rhythms Dance We are all born with the freedom to dance, but for many of us this freedom is buried under the demands of everyday life. 5 Rhythms dance is both a simple and profound medicine that gets us out of our heads and into our body and feet, offering a pathway to deeper self-awareness, acceptance, healing, creativity, sensuality, playfulness, openness and reconnection to our self and to each other. During this course we will learn to listen to trust and love our body more fully, surrendering bit by bit to its unique dance. We will discover our body loves to dance and most probably find ourselves making moves we never knew we could make. Through the dance we release patterns and learn to transform undigested emotions into creative lighter energy. There will be space for sharing experiences, massage, writing, meditations, visualization, and laughter. A great sense of support and connection opens as we witness, and are touched by each other. What you bring will also weave with our journey and there may be time for some individual attention. No previous dance experience is required. Drop-In Courses and Activities 5 Rhythms Community Dance: a drop-in 5 Rhythms session has more of a focus on fun and play. It is a very community-building event and can have any number of themes depending on the needs at the time. e.g. it can be high energy and full on fun, or relaxing gentle and integrating. DJing that can get everyone boogying together.  Morning Movement and Meditation: We will greet the day by welcoming our body, breath and feelings with a period of dance movement followed by a guided mindfulness meditation. We will emerge refreshed and ready for the day! Mindfulness meditation is increasingly popular and especially good for stress reduction and helping you to relax more deeply into your body.

Jo Hardy Jo is an accredited 5 Rhythms teacher offering classes, workshops and intensives in UK Internationally. As a staff member of the School of Movement Medicine she provides in-depth embodied Life Coaching to students. For 25 years she was a psychotherapist, supervisor, group facilitator and trainer in a process oriented, mindfulness based approach. Jo is known to teach with a grounded gentle clarity, good down to earth humour, heart inspiring music and an ability to invite a fine balance of safety and permissive freedom.

The Power of Laughter The Power of Laughter This is a comedy course with a twist. On the one hand a comedy workshop that allows us to explore comedy improvisation, clowning, sketch-comedy and stand-up; on the other hand a journey of personal development. Not only will we play, laugh and have plenty of fun and games as we explore the comedian's craft - we will also use our experiences to strengthen our inner sense of humour and deepen our emotional intelligence.

Ailon Freedman Ailon Freedman is a multifaceted creative arts facilitator who runs workshops in comedy, drumming, yoga and public speaking in both the corporate and personal-development worlds. As a character comedian he has performed around the country as his alter egos Trev the Yogic Builder and Reiki Ron and also produced his own comedy films. Ailon is interested in the therapeutic value of comedy, seeing laughter and play as a wonderful way to help us take ourselves a little less seriously. Visit Ailon's website here: http://www.ailonfree.co.uk

Life, Dreams & Fiction Imaginative ways to tap into the events and experiences, memories and people in your life. Discover new ways of writing about your life and strategies, tips and techniques for turning these into powerful fiction. This course teaches you ways of finding routes through your life and writing about them convincingly and entertainingly. It also encourages practical ways of looking at dreams that will provide ideas for writing.  Very useful for writers of prose, drama and poetry.   Sessions will include: life as story and story as life; the comic and the tragic; creating potent images; selecting the right material; yourself as character and characterising yourself; using dreams; becoming a dream figure; asking the right questions of your raw life material; finding the tone; varying the point of view. By the end of the course you will be a more accomplished writer and teller of your own stories. You may also think of your life differently.

Steve Attridge Steve Attridge has 20 books published, including adult fiction, psychological thrillers, children’s, history, comedy, and two new books ready to go. His novel, The Natural Law, went straight to number one in the Amazon Kindle Singles Bestsellers. He has written a dozen TV Dramas, numerous one offs, TV documentaries, and Feature Films. He has had over 100 TV scripts produced. Twice a BAFTA nominee, he has also won RTS Awards (Best Drama), Best Film Award (GUY X), 2 Writer’s Guild Awards (Billy Webb and The Bill) and TV film awards (Hawkins). He won an Eric Gregory Award for Poetry and a slam poetry award. Nine of his stage plays have been produced and last year his theatre show, Chaos, Carnage and Kulture,(sic) had a successful run at the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.   He has worked as a Writer and Lecturer all over the world, running Masterclasses, short courses and University Courses, including Oxford, Warwick and Sheffield. He ran writing workshops at the New York Public library.

• Greece - Skyros Centre SC1

  SAT 15 - SAT 22 JUL 2017

  £725.00

  Book

• The Alchemy of Transformation

  Malcolm Stern

  Life is a Cabaret

  Kate Daniels

  Morning Yoga & Treatments

  Katrina Love Senn

  ** SOLD OUT! ** Adventures in Comedy Writing

  Logan Murray

The Alchemy of Transformation Are you looking for liberation and more joy in your life? Are there areas that could do with fresh focus, particularly around your relationships and sense of purpose? Then this course with renowned psychotherapist and group facilitator Malcolm Stern may uplift and inspire you to initiate the process of alchemy on your life's journey  in the company of like minded others. On the first day we will establish trust, using a number of exercises in groups and pairs. Malcolm will be engaging with each participant to find their particular need. He will use dance as a way of breaking down barriers and connecting to ourselves and each other. On days two to four we will be playing out individual psychodramas and examining the skill set needed to transform the way we communicate and finding the wisdom of the heart in order to  create new neural pathways to create a template for living our lives in a fresh and potent way.  These skills can be adapted to our everyday lives.  On the final day we will be working together to create an action plan for the future and gain support from each other to carry through actions that will have the potential to transform our lives at home and create healthier relationships.

Malcolm Stern Malcolm Stern has worked as a group and individual psychotherapist for more than 20 years. He was a co-founder and is Executive Director of Alternatives at St James’s Church in London and runs groups internationally. He is the author of Falling in Love / Staying in Love (Piatkus 2004) and was co-presenter of Channel 4's relationship series 'Made for Each Other' in 2003 and 2004 and sailed on the 'Rainbow Warrior' with Greenpeace in the 1980s. Visit his website here: malcolmstern.com

Life is a Cabaret Whether you only ever sing in the bath or sing regularly in choirs, this is the place for you to have a wonderful time learning glorious harmonies to some well-known and less well-known songs and tunes. We will cover songs that hail from the Great American Songbook to Africa. You don’t need to be able to read music or have any experience of singing in choirs – just come along to enjoy yourself!  What people say about Kate and her courses: Excellent exercises and fun singing. A playful week of good singing together. Did several songs, plenty of harmony and everyone involved equally.

Kate Daniels Singer and songwriter, Kate was also for many years the director of Systemic Psychotherapy training at the Tavistock Centre in London, Kate continues to teach there and in addition has run courses and directed in Skyros for 14 years. Pursuing a creative life is her passion. She studied in Birmingham with playwright David Edgar, has acted and written for theatre and radio and this year she will be launching her third CD as a jazz singer. A recent performance of hers at the Vortex in London was hailed by The Guardian jazz critic as “A classy concert of song-cherishing internationalism”.

Morning Yoga & Treatments Skyros Centre course participants are welcome to attend a gentle pre-breakfast yoga class in the mornings. This class is a great way to start the day. Wear loose comfortable clothing.  Katrina Love Senn teaches Healing Hatha Yoga which is her own signature blend of yoga, breathing, stretching, visualisation, intention and personal enquiry. It helps students to strengthen their body-mind connection, activating richer levels of creativity and spirituality. Katrina's classes draw on her extensive experience teaching at international healing retreat centres around the world. She infuses her yoga classes with kindness, compassion and a sense of play. Her classes are suitable for students of all levels including beginners. For Katrina, yoga is a powerful tool for total transformation. Through the practice of yoga, you give yourself a gift; a safe space to look within, gaining new insights and using these as a chance to see all the answers that reside inside of you. Being on the mat, is a way that you can heal, build strength and find the courage to take a powerful step forward in your life. Yoga can help to transform and shift any area of your life including your health, your career, and even your relationship to self and others. It can help you to get clear on your old stories, default habits, limitations and fears so that you can move beyond them if you choose to.  Yoga gives you a platform to find your edge and play with it, so that you can go beyond that which you thought was even possible, and create a body and life that you dream of!

Katrina Love Senn Katrina Love Senn is an international yoga teacher, healer and author of the ground breaking book 'Losing Weight is a Healing Journey: A Woman’s Guide to Losing Weight Naturally'. On her healing journey, she lost over 60 pounds for good as well as healed a number of chronic health conditions, including asthma, eczema and adrenal exhaustion, with no diets, drugs or deprivation. She is a natural intuitive and has a fun, warm and heart-centred approach to living and life. She infuses her gentle yoga classes with inspiration, love, kindness and encouragement. Based at The Skyros Centre Katrina is excited to offer massage treatments, along with her signature Break-through Healing Sessions. Her massage treatments and healing sessions are based upon how she healed and transformed her own life using a range of gentle healing tools

** SOLD OUT! ** Adventures in Comedy Writing 'Adventures in Comedy Writing' is now SOLD OUT! Comedy, like any other art, is a craft. There are tips and techniques to be learnt. Simply put, if you can understand comedy grammar then unlocking the funny ideas becomes easier. From finding your creative inspiration to learning the building blocks of humour, this workshop will help you discover your unique comic voice. Although a writing course, there would be some non-writing exercises designed to encourage the participant’s creativity. There would also be writing games with group feedback and tutor led suggestions to help you hone your comedy writing skills. By the end of the course you will know how to write comedy and will have the confidence to stand up on your own and make a group of total strangers laugh. Not only will you learn some tricks of the trade, you will also gain a greater awareness of the multitude of differing comic styles that the group manifest. These comedy skills aren’t only for the professional; they are also a fantastic way to think outside of the box, hone your communication skills and increase your confidence in everyday life. More importantly, you will laugh loads over the entire course.

Logan Murray Logan Murray is a working comic and award winning director, author of ‘Teach Yourself Stand Up Comedy’, and script consultant for the BBC. He has recently run a series of writing workshops for the Radio Four Comedy Department. He teaches all over the World the Art and Craft of Comedy as far West as Colorado and as far East as Shanghai. Logan has taught many of the comedians, comedy actors and script writers who have appeared on TV and Radio over the past fifteen years, but is far too modest to boast about it here. There is, however, a list of past alumni on his website… His courses offer a unique opportunity to find out what a comedian’s mindset is like and explore his belief that Comedy really is a life skill!

• Greece - Atsitsa Bay AT2

  SAT 22 - FRI 4 AUG 2017

  £1,345.00

  Book

• The Stories of Your Life

  Alison Habens

  Vinyasa Yoga

  Andreas Vetsch

  Windsurfing

  Mark Gunston

  5-Rhythms, Meditation

  Jo Hardy

  Joyful Choir, Wild Swimming

  Susie Self

  Passionate Living

  Malcolm Stern

  Bodywork

  Silke Ziehl

  Digital Photography

  David Babsky

The Stories of Your Life Always wanted to write your life story but didn’t know where to start? This course will lead you in a series of fun and interesting life-writing tasks. From your earliest memories, those tales of your school days and siblings, pets and pursuits, through the rites of passage, work and marriage: you will be able to tell about the triumphs and the tragedies on your personal timeline, and see the whole story laid out as a screenwriter might plot the film or a novelist plan the book.  All the sights, sounds and smells of your childhood will be conjured up, while you play with the characters of your real-life friends or foes, and practise technical skills around writing in past and present tense, first or third person. Working in prose, poetry or script, whichever you prefer, we’ll even explore where you got your name from, and experiment with ideas that may have come from dreams. As well as meeting the muse of ancient Greece, our discussions will include possible avenues of publication and routes to readership, and Alison will be able to offer individual advice on your writing during the course. This creative writing class is likely to touch on memories which may be painful: you won’t have to read aloud unless you are happy to. The activities are designed to be comfortable and enjoyable, and will allow you to produce first drafts of short stories, articles, poems or scripts; with the potential to develop a full-length memoir or semi-autobiographical novel based on the story of your life (so far).

Alison Habens Alison Habens is the author of Dreamhouse, a 1990s cult novel based on Alice in Wonderland, which had its ‘coming of age’, a 21st birthday, with Lewis Carroll’s 150th anniversary in 2015. But Alison has written pretty much every day since it was first published, with two further novels, Lifestory and Family Outing in print, and lots of short stories, articles, poems and plays to see on www.alisonhabens.com. Her new novels are a quirky retelling of the St Veronica myth, The True Picture; and a postmodern rom-com, Pencilwood. (Visit www.thetruepicture.co.uk and www.pencilwood.com to find out where she got the ideas from…) Alison is course leader for Creative Writing at the University of Portsmouth, and has a PhD on the subject of ‘divine inspiration’ in literature. She runs a research project called ‘Ink:Well’ – Life-writing for Wellbeing. She lives in an old church on the Isle of Wight, with husband and three children/young adults, and commutes to work by hovercraft.

Vinyasa Yoga Andreas teaches Vinyasa yoga, a dynamic form of Hatha yoga with the emphasis on synchronisation of breath and movement. The emphasis in Andreas' Vinyasa Yoga classes lies on a challenging, flowing and precise Asana practice interwoven with spiritual insights, selected music, and meditation and chanting. This teaching is mostly inspired by Jivamukti Yoga and Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga. Participants will experience Yoga as a spiritual path and will feel the innate healing power of the practice. They will find out what sort of practice is most beneficial for them. Through Andreas' classes a lot of former Skyros participants were inspired to take up a regular Yoga practice.

Andreas Vetsch Andreas is a practising Yogi. He trained with masters in India and the US. He runs his own Yoga Centre on the shores of Lake Konstanz in Switzerland and leads workshops and retreats all over Europe.  A former film and TV director he combines worldly and spiritual experiences in his very unique way of teaching.

Windsurfing Beginners: This course is aimed at complete beginners and covers the basic skills required to learn this exciting sport. The majority of the time is spent on the water. Windsurfing will help improve your coordination, flexibility and strength. The course will challenge you but the emphasis is on enjoyment. You will be encouraged to take intelligent risks and develop an awareness of your environment. During most of the summer you will only need to wear swimwear, though we recommend that you bring your own wet shoes. At the beginning and end of the season it may be necessary to wear a shortie wetsuit, which will be provided. It is not necessary to be a strong swimmer or athletic to learn windsurfing. However, a basic level of mobility and some confidence in the water is required. Students may continue onto the Improvers class in the 2nd half of the session of a 2 week session. Improvers: This is a series of drop in classes suitable for those with previous experience. An ability to sail away from the beach, turn around and sail back is the only minimum requirement. It is also open to those who took part in the Learn to Windsurf course during the first half of a 2 week session. Each class will take the form of a short clinic followed by on water practice. Continued coaching and feedback will be available or you can just practice without instruction.

Mark Gunston Mark has been teaching Windsurfing for 30 years and is a qualified RYA Windsurfing Trainer. He managed a watersports centre in Cornwall for 6 years and during the late 1980s worked at a Windsurfing Club on the Sea of Galilee. He has taught at a variety of centres in England, Greece, Sardinia and San Francisco and is one of the UK’s most experienced Windsurfing teachers. In 1998 he established and managed a Fitness Centre in New Delhi. Mark qualified as an internationally licensed Ski Instructor in 2001 and has worked in Austria, France, Italy, Spain and Vermont as a Ski Instructor, Ski Guide and Resort Manager. He is also a certified  Life Coach. Mark has been teaching in Atsitsa since 1996. Mark is now realising a life times ambition and is studying 'Film' full time at University.

5-Rhythms, Meditation 5-Rhythms Dance We are all born with the freedom to dance, but for many of us this freedom is buried under the demands of everyday life. 5 Rhythms dance is both a simple and profound medicine that gets us out of our heads and into our body and feet, offering a pathway to deeper self-awareness, acceptance, healing, creativity, sensuality, playfulness, openness and reconnection to our self and to each other. During this course we will learn to listen to trust and love our body more fully, surrendering bit by bit to its unique dance. We will discover our body loves to dance and most probably find ourselves making moves we never knew we could make. Through the dance we release patterns and learn to transform undigested emotions into creative lighter energy. There will be space for sharing experiences, massage, writing, meditations, visualization, and laughter. A great sense of support and connection opens as we witness, and are touched by each other. What you bring will also weave with our journey and there may be time for some individual attention. No previous dance experience is required. Drop-In Courses and Activities 5 Rhythms Community Dance: a drop-in 5 Rhythms session has more of a focus on fun and play. It is a very community-building event and can have any number of themes depending on the needs at the time. e.g. it can be high energy and full on fun, or relaxing gentle and integrating. DJing that can get everyone boogying together.  Morning Movement and Meditation: We will greet the day by welcoming our body, breath and feelings with a period of dance movement followed by a guided mindfulness meditation. We will emerge refreshed and ready for the day! Mindfulness meditation is increasingly popular and especially good for stress reduction and helping you to relax more deeply into your body.

Jo Hardy Jo is an accredited 5 Rhythms teacher offering classes, workshops and intensives in UK Internationally. As a staff member of the School of Movement Medicine she provides in-depth embodied Life Coaching to students. For 25 years she was a psychotherapist, supervisor, group facilitator and trainer in a process oriented, mindfulness based approach. Jo is known to teach with a grounded gentle clarity, good down to earth humour, heart inspiring music and an ability to invite a fine balance of safety and permissive freedom.

Joyful Choir, Wild Swimming Joyful Choir A chance to sing heartily in an upbeat choir. Music ranges from Susie’s own joyful music with “beat” backing tracks to Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah to Mozart. This is a great activity for freeing your soul’s voice, connecting with others and filling you with wellbeing. No pervious singing experience is needed. The choir regularly sings in the sea and creates exciting flash mob events. Wild Swimming A stunning active daily meditation, swimming in a group at a steady pace. The sea at Atsitsa is warm and especially buoyant. Every day we will set out on a new adventure to magical destinations such as an island or under the cliffs. Susie incorporates her Subtle Sound Immersions to heighten the experience.

Susie Self Susie Self ARCM MPhil Cantab is an International singer/composer. She has composed 4 symphonies 3 operas and 6 albums. She has just won a STEAM scholarship to read for a PhD in composition at Birmingham University. Susie has sung solo in the West End and for the opera houses of Lyon, Luxembourg, Salzburg, Strasbourg, Antwerp and The Royal Opera, Covent Garden.

Passionate Living As children we marvel at the world around us, longing to be grown up and able to taste many gifts in life. Somehow as adults we have learned to shut down and avoid our pain and struggle. Unfortunately and unknowingly, we also close down our passion and joy. This workshop is designed to reawaken our appetite for the richness of life. Using a blend of psychotherapy, sensual techniques, dance, small group exercises, laughter and communication, we will explore and embrace our passionate selves.

Malcolm Stern Malcolm Stern has worked as a group and individual psychotherapist for more than 20 years. He was a co-founder and is Executive Director of Alternatives at St James’s Church in London and runs groups internationally. He is the author of Falling in Love / Staying in Love (Piatkus 2004) and was co-presenter of Channel 4's relationship series 'Made for Each Other' in 2003 and 2004 and sailed on the 'Rainbow Warrior' with Greenpeace in the 1980s. Visit his website here: malcolmstern.com

Bodywork With playfulness we will explore, in a lighthearted manner, with pieces of string, with massage, with a partner, our love for - or hate of - boundaries, our desire for connection with others, our thoughts about relationships, and above all our deep need to be respectful to ourselves. We will discover that we know a lot - if only we listen to our body - and we will rediscover the joyous part of ourselves, hopeful, passionate and very much alive!

Silke Ziehl Silke Ziehl is a body psychotherapist working with the Entelia Institute in Munich and London, and the Open Centre (London) who sees her work as exploring how to achieve a more balanced and joyful way of living. Silke runs groups in self-development and body-awareness, and trains people to become bodyworkers and body psychotherapists with heart and soul. She sees her work as exploring with people how to reconnect to their bodys deep knowing and to a non-judgmental and joyous way of being.

Digital Photography David Babsky will show you how your photographs could be twenty times better! "Why do photos in magazines and online look better than mine?" is a common question, and the answer is "Because people who took those photos knew a few more tips about how to use a camera". He will guide you through all the buttons on your camera. In a friendly atmosphere you can take pictures and discuss them afterwards. Everyone can take great pictures every time after this fun and informative course. What people say about David and his course: Great course - a pleasure to take time to learn and practise in such an inspiring setting. Great teacher - David gave us a valuable set of techniques and insights and the practical tasks where fun and memorable. Thank you!  David was informative, friendly, approachable.  The photographic workshop was extremely helpful. I now have enough information to experiment and enjoy my camera. Excellent. Very helpful. It’s given me more confidence to try different techniques/settings.

David Babsky David, formerly Technical Editor of best-selling Practical Photography magazine, will show you how to get the best from any camera. He knows the How? and What? of every camera, and the When? and How? about taking perfect photos. David will show you how to get the best from any camera, whether it is a pocket point-&-shoot or a professional SLR. He believes that it is not what you use, but how you use it which gives you great photos.

• Greece - Skyros Centre SC2

  SAT 22 - FRI 4 AUG 2017

  £1,345.00

  Book

• Life into Fiction (Week 1)

  Mez Packer

  Write Your Novel (Week 2)

  Mez Packer

  Laughter is the Best Medicine (Week 1)

  Ailon Freedman

  The Tree of Creativity (Week 2)

  Ailon Freedman

  Find Your Voice (Week 1)

  Kate Daniels

  Life is a Cabaret (Week 2)

  Kate Daniels

  Morning Yoga & Treatments

  Katrina Love Senn

Life into Fiction (Week 1) Week One: Life Into Fiction This course is designed to kickstart your creativity  whether you are just beginning or in the middle of your project. We will use various workshop exercises drawing on experience, memory, imagination and place for inspiration. Through the week we will look at story and style and there will be opportunities to share pieces of your writing in a relaxed and supportive setting. You will also receive plenty of constructive feedback on the work you produce in the sessions and by the end of the week you will have material and ideas for your novel or short story.

Mez Packer Mez Packer studied Philosophy and Literature at Warwick University and afterwards spent time in Europe singing jazz in bars and nightclubs. She travelled widely in Asia, the Far East and the Caribbean before working for the BBC. Mez is currently a visiting lecturer in Creative Writing at Coventry University and she has published short stories, articles, scripts, songs and two novels: Among Thieves, which was nominated for the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize, and The Game is Altered. She is currently completing her PhD and working on a new novel, set in India and Portugal.

Write Your Novel (Week 2) Week Two: Write Your Novel It's easy to make excuses and let life get in the way of your writing. This week we will concentrate on practice and the anatomy of a novel and explore ways to take your ideas forward with a focus on character, voice, setting and structure. At the end of the week you will have a clear understanding of the technical aspects of novel writing as well as solid strategies to fuel your creative momentum well into the future.

Mez Packer Mez Packer studied Philosophy and Literature at Warwick University and afterwards spent time in Europe singing jazz in bars and nightclubs. She travelled widely in Asia, the Far East and the Caribbean before working for the BBC. Mez is currently a visiting lecturer in Creative Writing at Coventry University and she has published short stories, articles, scripts, songs and two novels: Among Thieves, which was nominated for the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize, and The Game is Altered. She is currently completing her PhD and working on a new novel, set in India and Portugal.

Laughter is the Best Medicine (Week 1) Week One: Laughter is the Best Medicine Sometimes life can be a serious business. One of the best ways to deal with this is to develop a strong sense of humour – a key factor in emotional resilience. In this course we will develop our laughter muscles by diving deep into the well of playfulness. We will use improvisation exercises, fun games, dance and movement, costumes, creative writing and anything else that feels appropriate. This is not a course focussed on performance- it is about enriching the “inner you” using humour as the path. “The arrival of a good clown into a village does more for its health than 20 donkeys laden with medicines” – Thomas Sydenham 17th century physician Possible outcomes from the course include:- Release of stress Dissolving of anxiety and anger Greater connection with other people Happiness and a tendency to smile or laugh more A sense of creative freedom and confidence Improved communication skills The ability to take yourself less seriously

Ailon Freedman Ailon Freedman is a multifaceted creative arts facilitator who runs workshops in comedy, drumming, yoga and public speaking in both the corporate and personal-development worlds. As a character comedian he has performed around the country as his alter egos Trev the Yogic Builder and Reiki Ron and also produced his own comedy films. Ailon is interested in the therapeutic value of comedy, seeing laughter and play as a wonderful way to help us take ourselves a little less seriously. Visit Ailon's website here: http://www.ailonfree.co.uk

The Tree of Creativity (Week 2) Week Two: The Tree of Creativity Within each of us there are untapped resources of “self” which often stay dormant for most of our lives. However, practising creativity -irrespective of any level of skill- is a way to locate these hidden parts. It’s like drilling for oil- the oil of your deeper self. Indeed, think how happy you are when you sing, dance, drum, paint, laugh, write- when you express yourself Beginning from a place of presence and mindfulness, we will explore a range of creative and healing practices that are rooted in our primary senses. By exploring the basic human art forms, we will have the chance to meet our inner Artist, Dancer, Poet, Clown, Storyteller, Performer, Healer and more. This course can be likened to a treasure hunt where we discover that being creative is a key factor in maintaining wellness, sanity and emotional balance Benefits include:- Freedom of expression Increased sense of self-worth Greater imagination and creativity Discovering new aspects of yourself Confidence Improved communication skills Greater ease with other people Feeling enriched on the inside Less anxiety and worry. Connection to Inner Child

Ailon Freedman Ailon Freedman is a multifaceted creative arts facilitator who runs workshops in comedy, drumming, yoga and public speaking in both the corporate and personal-development worlds. As a character comedian he has performed around the country as his alter egos Trev the Yogic Builder and Reiki Ron and also produced his own comedy films. Ailon is interested in the therapeutic value of comedy, seeing laughter and play as a wonderful way to help us take ourselves a little less seriously. Visit Ailon's website here: http://www.ailonfree.co.uk

Find Your Voice (Week 1) Week One: Find Your Voice In this workshop I create a context in which people can explore their voice, gain confidence and have fun developing their singing. For many people singing is seen as a talent or a skill.  They believe you have it or you don’t have it. You can either sing or you can’t.  And those who feel they can’t sing, are anxious not to inflict their voice on others. Beliefs like these can come from early experiences of school and family and can destroy confidence. My view is that these are unhelpful inaccurate beliefs and should always be challenged. People have different kinds of voices and if they are given the opportunity to listen to themselves in particular ways, if they are helped to gain confidence to play with their voice, and if they are encouraged to enjoy their experience of singing, then they can find their own unique singing voice. In this workshop we will take a playful approach to singing and will use a wide variety of songs including well-known jazz standards to explore our voices looking at both rhythm and harmony. By the end of the week everyone will be singing like a linnet or a lark! This is a course for all abilities. It is designed to be fun and relaxed. You don’t need to be able to read music or have any experience of singing in choirs – just come along to enjoy yourself!    What people say about Kate and her courses: Some excellent exercises and fun singing. Did several songs, plenty of harmony and everyone involved equally. Workshop excellent - thoroughly enjoyed Kate's style and personality. Content was good, and covered a variety of styles and genres. A playful week of good singing together. Full and interesting content. Always something new to look forward to each day. I loved it. Thanks Kate. Wonderful, warm, inclusive, inspirational.

Kate Daniels Singer and songwriter, Kate was also for many years the director of Systemic Psychotherapy training at the Tavistock Centre in London, Kate continues to teach there and in addition has run courses and directed in Skyros for 14 years. Pursuing a creative life is her passion. She studied in Birmingham with playwright David Edgar, has acted and written for theatre and radio and this year she will be launching her third CD as a jazz singer. A recent performance of hers at the Vortex in London was hailed by The Guardian jazz critic as “A classy concert of song-cherishing internationalism”.

Life is a Cabaret (Week 2) Week Two: Life is a Cabaret Using well-known songs from the Great American Songbook , some harmony singing of world music, and some more contemporary songs, participants will be introduced to different rhythms, phrasing and techniques and given an opportunity to explore and experiment with their vocal range. We will pay attention to breathing and play a bit with improvisation. Those who are interested will be able to explore singing as a performance and a way of communicating with and engaging an audience This week is a course for all abilities and will be fun and unpressured. Participants are invited to let Kate know in advance if they are working on a particular song or want to develop a specific aspect of their singing/performance. What people say about Kate and her courses: For a group with very differing singing abilities we gelled quickly (not least thanks to Kate's integrative approach and abilities) and learned a great selection of jazz/swing/blues songs, including holding the beat and warm up exercises - exactly what I had hoped for. Relaxed, informal, encouraging. Kate is a sheer delight and inspires, instilling confidence. Easy-going, cooperative, fun, very inclusive, integration and motivating, gives you the feeling that you can do it, lots of humour, happy to help in break with questions - much appreciated.  Superb, relaxed, inclusive, fun, warming & well structured without being pressured in any way.

Kate Daniels Singer and songwriter, Kate was also for many years the director of Systemic Psychotherapy training at the Tavistock Centre in London, Kate continues to teach there and in addition has run courses and directed in Skyros for 14 years. Pursuing a creative life is her passion. She studied in Birmingham with playwright David Edgar, has acted and written for theatre and radio and this year she will be launching her third CD as a jazz singer. A recent performance of hers at the Vortex in London was hailed by The Guardian jazz critic as “A classy concert of song-cherishing internationalism”.

Morning Yoga & Treatments Skyros Centre course participants are welcome to attend a gentle pre-breakfast yoga class in the mornings. This class is a great way to start the day. Wear loose comfortable clothing.  Katrina Love Senn teaches Healing Hatha Yoga which is her own signature blend of yoga, breathing, stretching, visualisation, intention and personal enquiry. It helps students to strengthen their body-mind connection, activating richer levels of creativity and spirituality. Katrina's classes draw on her extensive experience teaching at international healing retreat centres around the world. She infuses her yoga classes with kindness, compassion and a sense of play. Her classes are suitable for students of all levels including beginners. For Katrina, yoga is a powerful tool for total transformation. Through the practice of yoga, you give yourself a gift; a safe space to look within, gaining new insights and using these as a chance to see all the answers that reside inside of you. Being on the mat, is a way that you can heal, build strength and find the courage to take a powerful step forward in your life. Yoga can help to transform and shift any area of your life including your health, your career, and even your relationship to self and others. It can help you to get clear on your old stories, default habits, limitations and fears so that you can move beyond them if you choose to.  Yoga gives you a platform to find your edge and play with it, so that you can go beyond that which you thought was even possible, and create a body and life that you dream of!

Katrina Love Senn Katrina Love Senn is an international yoga teacher, healer and author of the ground breaking book 'Losing Weight is a Healing Journey: A Woman’s Guide to Losing Weight Naturally'. On her healing journey, she lost over 60 pounds for good as well as healed a number of chronic health conditions, including asthma, eczema and adrenal exhaustion, with no diets, drugs or deprivation. She is a natural intuitive and has a fun, warm and heart-centred approach to living and life. She infuses her gentle yoga classes with inspiration, love, kindness and encouragement. Based at The Skyros Centre Katrina is excited to offer massage treatments, along with her signature Break-through Healing Sessions. Her massage treatments and healing sessions are based upon how she healed and transformed her own life using a range of gentle healing tools

• Greece - Atsitsa Bay AT3

  SAT 5 - FRI 18 AUG 2017

  £1,385.00

  Book

• Windsurfing

  Mark Gunston

  T'ai Chi Chuan

  Jae Willis

  Screenwriting

  Tiana Harper

  Cuban Salsa

  John Harris

  Music & Singing

  Tom Morley

  Yoga for Every Body

  Marina Sossi

  Watercolour Reimagined

  Cate Whittemore

  Storytelling

  Dawn Ellis

Windsurfing Beginners: This course is aimed at complete beginners and covers the basic skills required to learn this exciting sport. The majority of the time is spent on the water. Windsurfing will help improve your coordination, flexibility and strength. The course will challenge you but the emphasis is on enjoyment. You will be encouraged to take intelligent risks and develop an awareness of your environment. During most of the summer you will only need to wear swimwear, though we recommend that you bring your own wet shoes. At the beginning and end of the season it may be necessary to wear a shortie wetsuit, which will be provided. It is not necessary to be a strong swimmer or athletic to learn windsurfing. However, a basic level of mobility and some confidence in the water is required. Students may continue onto the Improvers class in the 2nd half of the session of a 2 week session. Improvers: This is a series of drop in classes suitable for those with previous experience. An ability to sail away from the beach, turn around and sail back is the only minimum requirement. It is also open to those who took part in the Learn to Windsurf course during the first half of a 2 week session. Each class will take the form of a short clinic followed by on water practice. Continued coaching and feedback will be available or you can just practice without instruction.

Mark Gunston Mark has been teaching Windsurfing for 30 years and is a qualified RYA Windsurfing Trainer. He managed a watersports centre in Cornwall for 6 years and during the late 1980s worked at a Windsurfing Club on the Sea of Galilee. He has taught at a variety of centres in England, Greece, Sardinia and San Francisco and is one of the UK’s most experienced Windsurfing teachers. In 1998 he established and managed a Fitness Centre in New Delhi. Mark qualified as an internationally licensed Ski Instructor in 2001 and has worked in Austria, France, Italy, Spain and Vermont as a Ski Instructor, Ski Guide and Resort Manager. He is also a certified  Life Coach. Mark has been teaching in Atsitsa since 1996. Mark is now realising a life times ambition and is studying 'Film' full time at University.

T'ai Chi Chuan Tai Chi Chuan - Traditional Wu Style 'The Form' is a sequence of physical patterns strung together into a flowing set. This is essentially what the most commonly known aspect of Tai Chi is. We will explore a short form sequence, but we'll also look at other aspects of Tai Chi such as the partner work practice of Tuishao, which incorporates the shapes learned in the Form and introduces a whole world of fun as we explore working with a partner and applying Tai Chi principles. Morning drop ins: Fundamentals of Tai Chi  - Excerpts from the Wu Tai Chi System A wonderful way to wake up in the morning. Incorporating postural alignment; stretching and loosening exercises; breath-work and mental practices connecting movement with breath.

Jae Willis Jae Willis has been practicing Tai Chi for over twenty years, he is a long term student of Grandmaster Wu Kwong Yu and is the founder of the Somerset Training Centre for Traditional Wu Style Tai Chi Chuan. He has taught Tai Chi for over fifteen years to both adults and children, and is passionate about the hugely transferable benefits that Tai Chi has to offer, both in everyday life, but also as a companion to other disciplines. Jae also practices Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Western Fencing.

Screenwriting 'If it’s not on the page, it’s not on the screen’ is an adage often used to illustrate that great movies are the result of great scripts. This workshop aims to provide you with the basic but crucial tools you’ll want in your creative toolbox in order to embark on a journey in screenwriting.  Together we’ll look at how to create the framework necessary for a strong screenplay so that you can develop and practice the craft of screenwriting by writing a first draft of a short film script.  Along the way we’ll consider what makes a good premise for a short film, how to create a strong protagonist (or ‘hero,’) visual storytelling techniques, developing narrative structure, and writing authentic dialogue. We’ll also ‘workshop’ each other’s ideas scripts in the group, which will provide that most cherished gift for creative work – feedback in a fun and non-judgmental environment.

Tiana Harper Tiana‘s expertise spans live performance and film and TV writing, directing and producing.  Starting out at 15 as a singer and musician in pop bands, she then juggled careers in TV/Film making and performance, studying along the way to train actors at Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and to write screenplays under the tuition of a former Hollywood development executive at Royal Holloway, University of London. She has worked on every size of storytelling project, from making films with local residents for various UK county councils, to winning an EMMY citation for the feature film The Life and Death of Peter Sellers.  Despite the advice never to do so, she has also worked with lots of animals and quite a few children. She currently uses her actor training skills to coach actors and non-actors for performance and public speaking, and is also a senior lecturer in filmmaking at the Northern Film School which is currently rated as one of the top 25 film schools in the world by the Hollywood Reporter.

Cuban Salsa In this course you will master the basics of Cuban Rueda Salsa - the Cuban social dance. Students can expect to cover the basic steps and turns of Cuban style which transfer to Columbian, LA and Cross Body styles. The course is designed for beginners but refreshers and the more experienced are still welcome to join this fun and invigorating course.  The course weekend begins with arrival from 4pm on the Friday evening and optional dinner at 7.30pm. After dinner there is a welcoming get-together and an introduction to the course.  Courses run for two hours from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Saturday, 5pm to 7pm on Saturday afternoon and from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Sunday. The course price is £90.00 and a 10% discount applies to Friends of Skyros. As you proceed through the booking system you will be asked for your accommodation requirements.

John Harris John Harris teaches Cuban Salsa and Argentine Tango and is also a Yoga instructor and Life Coach. He has led over 15 Skyros Holidays to Cuba and has taught Yoga and Life Coaching in a variety of settings worldwide. He first began working for Skyros in 1999, is originally from New Zealand and currently resides in the UK with his wife Zoe and son Felix.

Music & Singing As a kit drummer with Scritti Politti and later a session drummer for the New York/London music scene, Tom learned all he needed to know about popular song structure before immersing himself in World Harmony songs. A session with Tom tends to be an inspiring mix of upbeat get-it-right 3-part harmony songs, ranging from African to Gospel to Polynesian, to looser improvisational exercises where everyone can make mistakes and collectively feel proud of being so darned brave. In public. Basically Tom is a community builder and music is his main tool. Humour always helps, so expect a fair amount of warm-up laughter in all the sessions. Beginners are more than welcome, and musicians will be happy with the raw sophistication of the material. Think of it as joining a band where you can be the front person or one of the backing singers, depending what you feel like on that particular day. Yes, developing any new skill takes courage, vulnerability and discipline but you will not find many safer, or amusing, places to learn about rhythm and singing than in one of these sessions.

Tom Morley Scuba-diver, roller-skater, drummer and facilitator, Tom learned his skills on the road. Singing backing vocals in the Art School band Scritti Politti, while playing drums and driving a battered van around Europe, he got in touch with his multi-tasking side in the late 70s. Graphic designer, flashmob songwriter, Tom now wears a number of hats, all at a slight angle. From Shanghai to Salford, Chicago to Chester and Istanbul to Ipswich you will find rather bemused groups of strangers still singing in 3-part harmony long after he has left. Tom started facilitating both community and corporate music groups 20 years ago and shows no sign of stopping. He is a laid-back evangelist, extolling the power of group singing and its ability to connect people in quite simple but profound ways. And, like all good teachers, he wakes up every morning thinking he is just getting started.

Yoga for Every Body Whatever shape you are in. Wherever you are in your life right now... Yoga will accept you exactly as you are. Marinas yoga course welcomes everyone; whether you are a total beginner or experienced yogi. The focus will be on finding simple ways to incorporate physical practise and yoga philosophy into everyday life and feel supported happy and healthy. This experienced and sensitive teacher will guide you to greater clarity in asana, pranayama and meditation and a more intimate relationship with your body and a more unified self.

Marina Sossi Marina Sossi is a qualified Yoga teacher, artist & international gypsy. She is dedicated to the creative, spiritual life of service; performing and teaching all over the world and generating transformative artworks and experiences for everyone. An established teacher with a unique style Marina communicates the ancient teachings of Yoga with her own creative flair; bodywork, breath, meditation & movement become an integrated weave of practices accessible to everyBODY. Marina is a holistic coach, socially engaged artist and creative facilitator, who has worked with health professionals, creatives & athletes as well as people coping with learning difficulties, mental illness, addictions & imprisonment. Marina trained for 3 years with the British Wheel of Yoga under the guidance of Derek Thorne, founder of Yoga Living following the teachings of Ramana Maharshi. Her studies include Theravada Buddhism, Relational Gestalt, Thai yoga massage and butoh dance. Yoga with Marina will help you become stronger and more flexible; creating a greater sense of harmony: physically, mentally and emotionally. Marina is keen to share practical tools and advice on how to easily incorporate Yoga into busy lifestyles.  “I believe Yoga is a discipline of awareness, leading to integration. Engaging in a more intimate relationship with the Self, we become empowered and are able to embrace positive change; breaking free from aspects that no longer serve us.”

Watercolour Reimagined Painting Can Be a Solace A fun and supportive approach to a new kind of landscape painting experience, which will free you in unexpected and productive ways:  you will experience a positive creative self,  develop your ability to tune in to your inner currents, have enhanced color competency and observational skills, and feel a sense of connection to the natural world.  Catherine Whittemore is an experienced painting teacher and creativity guide,  with a uniquely freeing approach to watercolor. She has developed a playful series  of color ‘bloom’ explorations which delight, support, and inspire participants. What people say about Cate and her course: The painting course with Cate was amazing! She is very encouraging , interested and manages to open up peoples creative side. Inspiring, engaging and made the art of watercolours super accessible and fun. Cate was an excellent teacher, she inspired confidence and was very supportive - everyone in the class developed really well and I did both weeks as she was such a good teacher. Lovely. Did Cate’s watercolour both weeks. Thoroughly enjoyed her energy, knowledge and generosity. Cate is warm and wonderfully experimental. She made it fun and safe and was endlessly positive and encouraging. Cate is magical. Fantastic art course, relaxed and playful and creative. Painting was very good with lots of ideas and feedback from Cate.

Cate Whittemore A professional set painter, realizing backdrops for myriad Broadway productions,  movies, and TV, Catherine has a familiarity with many materials and styles, which fluency informs and inspires her work and her teaching.  Her works embody both classical and contemporary technique, figurative and non-objective imagery.  She loves to find metaphysical meaning in viewing and making visual art. She facilitates creative watercolor courses privately and @ skyros.com. 2014  Botanical Illustration Certificate  Margaret Mee Foundation 2000  Master’s Degree in Drawing & Painting/ U of MN 1982  International Alliance of Stage Employees Membership  1977-79 Apprentice & Teaching Assistant @ The Studio and Forum of Stage Design / NYC 1975  Studio Arts Bachelors Degree / Connecticut College Her work has been collected and exhibited internationally. She has been honored by the support of  numerous artist residencies, including @ La Scuola Di Grafica in Venice, Italy, and The Athens School of Fine Arts in Hydra, Greece. In 2011, she was honored to design a poster for the World PeaceKalachakra of the Dalai Lama in Washington DC.  She is a registered Golden Art Company Artist Educator.   In 2017 she is curating an unusual exhibit at The Anderson Center for Interdisciplinary Studies, of the sometimes unlikely processes which important inventions and works of art come into being, entitled “THERE IS A LADDER”.

Storytelling We know that human beings have used Storytelling to talk about the important things since we lived in caves. Certain stories put down deep roots into our psyches, providing vivid images and rich metaphors that endure. The course is based on this ancient tradition - our starting point is often a myth, folk tale or fairy tale. We move through a potent combination of magic, mystery, depth and lightness, framed with some very practical techniques. Whether we want to learn how to tell the narrative of our own triumphs and struggles, or simply feel more confident creating and telling stories, the course gives practical steps and on the ground experience. People are asked to bring a favourite traditional story to Atsitsa and a photograph that means something to them.

Dawn Ellis As an actor and performance storyteller, writer and broadcaster Dawn has told stories all her life.  During her acting career, ranging from the West End to Fringe to Television, she played roles from classical to comedy, as well as exploring the bounds of physical theatre. Dawn sees stories as the spice in our daily life and the bedrock of culture, literally stories are the lens through which we experience our lives. They are gold dust in the hands of anyone who can use them well. As a facilitator she has a mission to put storytelling skills into the hands of people who can make a difference. She is a compelling storyteller and likes to get under the skin of stories, finding deeper meanings in the familiar archetypes. Dawn inhabits her characters, as she performs traditional Myths and Fairy tales in organisations of all shapes and sizes.  As an After Dinner Storyteller (London)‚ she spends the winters infiltrating homes, inviting participants to curl up in front of the fire, and sip hot toddies, while she treats them to traditional folk, ghost and seasonal fairy stories. She is inspired by nature and the elements, and likes to spend her summers spinning tales with friends under a star-strewn Mediterranean sky. Dawn is a warm and intuitive facilitator; she finds innovative ways to enable people to harness their creativity and energy. Her courses explore stories and storytelling, while building confidence, and investigating what it takes for us to be the Author of our own stories and lives.

• Greece - Skyros Centre SC3

  SAT 5 - FRI 18 AUG 2017

  £1,385.00

  Book

• Choose Life at Any Risk (Week 1)

  Ari Badaines

  Free at Last (Week 2)

  Ari Badaines

  Your Writer's Voice (Week 1)

  Crysse Morrison

  From Experience to Imagination (Week 2)

  Crysse Morrison

  Your Life's Purpose Through Colour (Week 1)

  Theresa Sundt

  Relationships through Colour (Week 2)

  Theresa Sundt

  Morning Yoga & Treatments

  Katrina Love Senn

Choose Life at Any Risk (Week 1) Week One - Choose Life at Any Risk: a group experience facilitated by Ari Badaines Ph.D., Clinical Psychologist STUCK!  Overcoming stuckness, whether in intimate relationships, friendships, career choices etc. which contributes to low self-esteem and a stagnating life, eventually requires entering your ‘Danger Zones’ – the areas you normally avoid because they are perceived as too risky and experienced with anxiety. This workshop focuses on what fears/anxieties, avoidances, procrastinations, painful memories, past failures etc. that hold you in your comfort zone – where life is safe, but unchallenging and boring, without deep satisfaction. In the group, you may choose to risk taking a small step or a giant leap into your danger zones – with probable outcome that life becomes more exciting and you feel more alive. After building trust and safety in the group, Ari provides structures and techniques that serve to heighten awareness and challenge your stuckness. Specifically, using a range of techniques, some centered on action and doing, you may learn to: Become more aware of how you prevent your own success and contentment.  Do what you normally will not do, so that you experience a better outcome. (‘If you always do what you always do, you’ll always get what you always get’.) Be a more honest and integrated self and thereby enjoy the benefit of a deeper connection to yourself and others in the group, and ultimately those who matter most to you. Feel and express emotions (from grief to joy) that have been shut away so as to live fully in the moment, and know the joy of being fully alive and in touch with your own humanity. How does attending this kind of group help? ​You will have the opportunity to challenge these beliefs; it might come in the form of expressing those fears and discovering that other group members don’t perceive you in the same way that you have imagined You may challenge yourself to do what you normally won’t do such as risking being more open to and with others, and experiencing the positive outcomes of such a change.   You may decide to do some work on these issues where you examine the roots of your thoughts and self-perceptions, and with the support of others, discover a more refreshed and refreshing you and experiment with more effective and satisfying ways of being who you really are.  You may find solutions through identifying with other people’s issues and their resolutions.  In truth, though, it is very hard to put words ​to what for many is a powerful experience which leads to significant change (internal and external). You have to be there to experience it to get the full flavor. People are very practiced at imagining how others perceive us, but these conclusions are too often based on our fears and self-image rather than a more realistic appraisal.  An important element in this group is getting clearer feedback on how we actually are experienced by different people (each, of course may see different facets of you), and for you to give useful feedback to others.  A powerful healing aspect happens when we see that our own negating, self-doubting anxieties are not shared by others and they, in contrast, often have a more enhanced view of us.​ What does Ari do? Ari knows that no group will progress very far if there is not a core level of trust and safety, both in the therapist and other group members, and so in the beginning this is the early focus.  As the group progresses, he listens and watches very carefully for ways to intervene that will help you to free yourself from some of the above-mentioned beliefs and distortions that hold you back. His interventions may come in the form of feedback, suggestions, and empowering you to face and challenge your vulnerable spots – to help to free you from that which holds and drags you back.  The essence of the work, though, is to help you to first discover and then integrate through being and doing, a truer, more acceptable and loved self.  Can you believe that someone will love you so much that they will never leave you? Will you value yourself that much and risk loving a friend/family member/ intimate to the same level? About Ari Ari is a very experienced (probably has by now led over 1,000 groups in over 30 countries) group therapist who is encouraging, supportive, and caring, and also challenging when therapeutically beneficial.  He draws on a range of methods and tools to deepen emotional power and increase the effectiveness of your participation. It is also always your choice as to your level of participation and you are never pressured into anything that you clearly do not want to do. His core philosophy is that we can be different when we begin to perceive ourselves differently and integrate that new view into our way of being and living.

Ari Badaines Ari is a powerful group therapist who is encouraging, supportive, caring and, when necessary, challenging. He strongly believes that it is always your choice as to your level of participation and you can choose to stop your involvement at any time, though it is rare in his groups that anyone takes that option, probably because of the sense of safety, care and support from the group and Ari. Ari has led groups and trainings in over 30 countries, thirty-three years at Skyros and Atsitsa, and has been on the faculty of group training centres in London, Melbourne, and Sydney. He also facilitates training workshops in group therapy for professionals. What people say about Ari and his courses: Ari’s course pushed me further than I’ve been in years of individual psychotherapy. The power of the group was transformational. Ari is a gifted therapist. He takes his work very seriously and has a wonderful ability to bring out the best in people. Ari’s course was superb - extremely competent teacher and full of charm. I found the course extremely effective. Ari is a caring, creative and fun teacher. the group was small and really dynamic and supportive.

Free at Last (Week 2) Week Two - Free at Last: a group experience facilitated by Ari Badaines Ph.D., Clinical Psychologist Ari was considering the nature of his work with groups and Martin Luther King’s famous ‘Free at Last' speech came to his mind.  Ari endeavours to help people free themselves from those thoughts, feelings, and behaviours that plague them throughout their lives and hold them back from living a life truer in meaning, satisfaction, and becoming more open to joyous experiences than what they normally allow. You may be familiar with out-dated voices that tell you, ‘No, you can’t do that!’  ‘Who would want you?’ ‘That is too hard for you to do … you won’t succeed.’  The outcome is that they are ‘stoppers’ and we end up not risking doing what would bring deeper​ life satisfactions.​ How does attending this kind of group help? ​You will have the opportunity to challenge these beliefs; it might come in the form of expressing those fears and discovering that other group members don’t perceive you in the same way that you have imagined You may challenge yourself to do what you normally won’t do such as risking being more open to and with others, and experiencing the positive outcomes of such a change.   You may decide to do some work on these issues where you examine the roots of your thoughts and self-perceptions, and with the support of others, discover a more refreshed and refreshing you and experiment with more effective and satisfying ways of being who you really are.  You may find solutions through identifying with other people’s issues and their resolutions.  In truth, though, it is very hard to put words ​to what for many is a powerful experience which leads to significant change (internal and external). You have to be there to experience it to get the full flavor. People are very practiced at imagining how others perceive us, but these conclusions are too often based on our fears and self-image rather than a more realistic appraisal.  An important element in this group is getting clearer feedback on how we actually are experienced by different people (each, of course may see different facets of you), and for you to give useful feedback to others.  A powerful healing aspect happens when we see that our own negating, self-doubting anxieties are not shared by others and they, in contrast, often have a more enhanced view of us.​ What does Ari do? Ari knows that no group will progress very far if there is not a core level of trust and safety, both in the therapist and other group members, and so in the beginning this is the early focus.  As the group progresses, he listens and watches very carefully for ways to intervene that will help you to free yourself from some of the above-mentioned beliefs and distortions that hold you back. His interventions may come in the form of feedback, suggestions, and empowering you to face and challenge your vulnerable spots – to help to free you from that which holds and drags you back.  The essence of the work, though, is to help you to first discover and then integrate through being and doing, a truer, more acceptable and loved self.  Can you believe that someone will love you so much that they will never leave you? Will you value yourself that much and risk loving a friend/family member/ intimate to the same level? About Ari Ari is a very experienced (probably has by now led over 1,000 groups in over 30 countries) group therapist who is encouraging, supportive, and caring, and also challenging when therapeutically beneficial.  He draws on a range of methods and tools to deepen emotional power and increase the effectiveness of your participation. It is also always your choice as to your level of participation and you are never pressured into anything that you clearly do not want to do. His core philosophy is that we can be different when we begin to perceive ourselves differently and integrate that new view into our way of being and living.

Ari Badaines Ari is a powerful group therapist who is encouraging, supportive, caring and, when necessary, challenging. He strongly believes that it is always your choice as to your level of participation and you can choose to stop your involvement at any time, though it is rare in his groups that anyone takes that option, probably because of the sense of safety, care and support from the group and Ari. Ari has led groups and trainings in over 30 countries, thirty-three years at Skyros and Atsitsa, and has been on the faculty of group training centres in London, Melbourne, and Sydney. He also facilitates training workshops in group therapy for professionals. What people say about Ari and his courses: Ari’s course pushed me further than I’ve been in years of individual psychotherapy. The power of the group was transformational. Ari is a gifted therapist. He takes his work very seriously and has a wonderful ability to bring out the best in people. Ari’s course was superb - extremely competent teacher and full of charm. I found the course extremely effective. Ari is a caring, creative and fun teacher. the group was small and really dynamic and supportive.

Your Writer's Voice (Week 1) Week One: Your Writers' Voice This course is for any writer, beginner or more experienced, wanting to develop their authentic personal ‘voice’. We’ll look at finding ideas through memory and imagination and use a range of shared exercises to explore techniques such as characterisation, dialogue, description, style and pace which can be adapted for any genre. The focus will be on enjoyment – and finding ways to overcome the writer’s inevitable internal critic too.

Crysse Morrison Crysse was inspired by a Skyros Writers' Lab session to make a career change and is now a full-time freelance writer. Her two novels were published by Hodder & Stoughton and her short fiction has been widely published and broadcast.  Also very interested in performance poetry and stage drama, she writes and co-produces for Nevertheless Fringe Theatre in her home town of Frome. Crysse is an experienced creative writing tutor and has led creative writing courses and workshops throughout the world.

From Experience to Imagination (Week 2) Week Two: From Experience to Imagination Everything we ever write has been inspired by experience and touched by imagination. This course will focus on using this fact creatively in writing. If you have wanted to write personal material but felt daunted, or suspected that you can’t ‘invent’ stories, this course will affirm your ‘writer’s voice’: if you are already writing but feel stuck or blocked, it will enhance and support your projects - and give you ideas for more.  What people say about Crysse and her courses: Crysse is much like a midwife, she helps you deliver whatever pain or sorrow you wished to turn into beauty. (Marie) Crysse Morrison’s course has inspired, expanded and raised my horizons - thank you. (Susan) Informative, fun, entertaining, interesting and very enjoyable - thank you Crysse! (Jacqueline) Very much enjoyed the course - Crysse Morrison is an inspirational tutor. (Diane) The course was superb. Crysse was warm, friendly, thorough and encouraging - the perfect tutor. (Cherry) The writing course was more than I ever expected - we were extremely apprehensive and nervous but we were made to feel at ease. The facilitator was excellent with all her tips and exercises. She was so attentive and gave such useful feedback. I have learnt so, so much. Thank you. (Kate) A very interesting and thought provoking course that has given me different ways of creating a story. (Howard)

Crysse Morrison Crysse was inspired by a Skyros Writers' Lab session to make a career change and is now a full-time freelance writer. Her two novels were published by Hodder & Stoughton and her short fiction has been widely published and broadcast.  Also very interested in performance poetry and stage drama, she writes and co-produces for Nevertheless Fringe Theatre in her home town of Frome. Crysse is an experienced creative writing tutor and has led creative writing courses and workshops throughout the world.

Your Life's Purpose Through Colour (Week 1) Week One: Define Your Life's Purpose Through Colour Our personality is affected by the qualities of the three specific colours we are born with: Theresa Sundt will guide you to start exploring the qualities of your karmic colour in a creative, rewarding way. Sketching writing, colouring will support your awareness of the qualities you will learn about. This course is offering the ‘aha’ experience; giving you a whole new meaning of your life’s journey.

Theresa Sundt Theresa Sundt is a professional artist and a certified colour therapist. Painting, weaving and collage record Theresa’s journey through this colourful world.   Theresa is an authority on Colour Light Therapy, is a consultant for Bioptron Colour Light Therapy devices and the author of three books The Art of Colour Therapy, Know you Colour Personality and 20 Tried and Trusted Colour Light Treatments.

Relationships through Colour (Week 2) Week Two: Understand Yourself and Your Relationships through Colour We are all born with four specific, permanent colours that define our personality. We cannot change our colours but we can get full awareness of their qualities and use them as a guide in order to become the best we can be! When we have an understanding of our colours and those of others, we can support our relationships in loving and harmonious ways. This course is life changing; it will enable you to see the world in a new, positive way with compassion, acceptance and love. Some writing and art are involved. No experience necessary.

Theresa Sundt Theresa Sundt is a professional artist and a certified colour therapist. Painting, weaving and collage record Theresa’s journey through this colourful world.   Theresa is an authority on Colour Light Therapy, is a consultant for Bioptron Colour Light Therapy devices and the author of three books The Art of Colour Therapy, Know you Colour Personality and 20 Tried and Trusted Colour Light Treatments.

Morning Yoga & Treatments Skyros Centre course participants are welcome to attend a gentle pre-breakfast yoga class in the mornings. This class is a great way to start the day. Wear loose comfortable clothing.  Katrina Love Senn teaches Healing Hatha Yoga which is her own signature blend of yoga, breathing, stretching, visualisation, intention and personal enquiry. It helps students to strengthen their body-mind connection, activating richer levels of creativity and spirituality. Katrina's classes draw on her extensive experience teaching at international healing retreat centres around the world. She infuses her yoga classes with kindness, compassion and a sense of play. Her classes are suitable for students of all levels including beginners. For Katrina, yoga is a powerful tool for total transformation. Through the practice of yoga, you give yourself a gift; a safe space to look within, gaining new insights and using these as a chance to see all the answers that reside inside of you. Being on the mat, is a way that you can heal, build strength and find the courage to take a powerful step forward in your life. Yoga can help to transform and shift any area of your life including your health, your career, and even your relationship to self and others. It can help you to get clear on your old stories, default habits, limitations and fears so that you can move beyond them if you choose to.  Yoga gives you a platform to find your edge and play with it, so that you can go beyond that which you thought was even possible, and create a body and life that you dream of!

Katrina Love Senn Katrina Love Senn is an international yoga teacher, healer and author of the ground breaking book 'Losing Weight is a Healing Journey: A Woman’s Guide to Losing Weight Naturally'. On her healing journey, she lost over 60 pounds for good as well as healed a number of chronic health conditions, including asthma, eczema and adrenal exhaustion, with no diets, drugs or deprivation. She is a natural intuitive and has a fun, warm and heart-centred approach to living and life. She infuses her gentle yoga classes with inspiration, love, kindness and encouragement. Based at The Skyros Centre Katrina is excited to offer massage treatments, along with her signature Break-through Healing Sessions. Her massage treatments and healing sessions are based upon how she healed and transformed her own life using a range of gentle healing tools

• Greece - Atsitsa Bay AT4

  SAT 19 - FRI 1 SEP 2017

  £1,385.00

  Book

• Landscape Adventure, T'ai Chi

  Richard Layzell

  Yoga with Awareness

  Ken Eyerman

  Windsurfing

  Mark Gunston

  The Joy of Singing

  Sarah Warwick

  Watercolour Reimagined

  Cate Whittemore

  The Core of Good Fiction Writing

  Lisa O'Donnell

  Alexander Technique, Movement

  Judy Hammond

  Your Best Year Ever, Comedy

  Andrew Risner

Landscape Adventure, T'ai Chi Landscape Adventure An invitation to discover and explore your creativity in a new way. Something happens to us when we are in nature. We become less constrained and our senses are reawakened. In the unique, visually explosive environment of Skyros Island, we will use observation, building, drawing, writing and spontaneity to connect to our creative selves. There will be several exciting projects on offer: unusual approaches to drawing, experimenting with photography, creating a visual journal, exploring the miniature and the monumental, assembling sculptures in nature, and interactive experiences to heighten our senses. In his work as an artist, Richard has developed a unique "experiential" approach to the landscape. His love of Skyros Island, with its distinctive light, colours, wildlife and flora, along with his wide experience of teaching, facilitating and mentoring artists, makes him ideally suited to uncovering your creative potential in an amazingly rich environment. He's also well known for his celebration of play and humour. T'ai Chi An introduction to T'ai Chi and Mindfulness in the spectacular landscape of Atsitsa.

Richard Layzell Richard is an award-winning artist who exhibits and performs worldwide. His expertise includes performance art, photography, sculpture, film-making, design, drawing and creative writing. With over 20 years experience in group facilitation, Richard regularly runs workshops in creativity in the UK and internationally. He loves working with groups of all kinds – recent highlights include dancers in Taipei, taxi drivers in Shanghai, students in Prague, learning disabled people in Glasgow and nursery school children in Essex.  He has shown his work at Tate Britain and the South Bank Centre in London. In 2014 he co-directed and designed GLORY, a major commission for the Commonwealth Games at the Tramway in Glasgow. He lectures nationwide, leads a degree course at the University of the Arts in London and regularly works as a mentor to other artists. He has also worked as an artist in business, with the mission to bring more lightheartedness and community spirit to the workplace. He is known for his playful and irreverent sense of humour and for inspiring creative risk taking. He delights in supporting other people to (re)discover and develop their spontaneity and creativity.

Yoga with Awareness In a focused and yet playful way, experience how Ken integrates Yoga with Feldenkrais. These yoga classes and moving meditation sessions are suitable for all levels, including complete beginners and those who have injuries or are restricted in their movement. The intuitive and spontaneous hands-on approach emphasizes the benefits of using your breath and developing an awareness of your inner process. Holiday participants will learn to use their bodies with intelligence, awareness and efficiency. The Eyerman Technique will ease you into new postures while encouraging you to explore movement in a way that is both developmental and restorative. Ken seeks to work with you, by developing core movement, and helping you tune into the constant flow of life energy essential to maintaining health and clarity of mind. Ken's yoga courses in Atsitsa are included as 'One of the 5 Best Yoga Holidays' on the Healthista website and listed as the 'Best holiday for those with injuries', describing the yoga as 'great for people who want a slower pace, including complete beginners and those who have injuries or are restricted in their movement.'

Ken Eyerman With over thirty five years experience, Ken is an American who has worked as a movement therapist, having studied dance and psychology. Previously he worked at the London Contemporary Dance School as bodyworker in residence. Ken is trained in The Feldenkrais Method, Awareness Through Movement and has a busy private practice at Natureworks/ Danceworks in London. As well as regular yoga workshops, Ken offers his Yoga with Awareness holidays internationally and returns to Skyros for his 25th season! He is the author of an inspirational book, Massage and was named as one of the Londons top three masseurs by the Evening Standard. The Ken Eyerman School of Bodywork and Movement is affiliated to the Institute of Complementary Medicine.

Windsurfing Beginners: This course is aimed at complete beginners and covers the basic skills required to learn this exciting sport. The majority of the time is spent on the water. Windsurfing will help improve your coordination, flexibility and strength. The course will challenge you but the emphasis is on enjoyment. You will be encouraged to take intelligent risks and develop an awareness of your environment. During most of the summer you will only need to wear swimwear, though we recommend that you bring your own wet shoes. At the beginning and end of the season it may be necessary to wear a shortie wetsuit, which will be provided. It is not necessary to be a strong swimmer or athletic to learn windsurfing. However, a basic level of mobility and some confidence in the water is required. Students may continue onto the Improvers class in the 2nd half of the session of a 2 week session. Improvers: This is a series of drop in classes suitable for those with previous experience. An ability to sail away from the beach, turn around and sail back is the only minimum requirement. It is also open to those who took part in the Learn to Windsurf course during the first half of a 2 week session. Each class will take the form of a short clinic followed by on water practice. Continued coaching and feedback will be available or you can just practice without instruction.

Mark Gunston Mark has been teaching Windsurfing for 30 years and is a qualified RYA Windsurfing Trainer. He managed a watersports centre in Cornwall for 6 years and during the late 1980s worked at a Windsurfing Club on the Sea of Galilee. He has taught at a variety of centres in England, Greece, Sardinia and San Francisco and is one of the UK’s most experienced Windsurfing teachers. In 1998 he established and managed a Fitness Centre in New Delhi. Mark qualified as an internationally licensed Ski Instructor in 2001 and has worked in Austria, France, Italy, Spain and Vermont as a Ski Instructor, Ski Guide and Resort Manager. He is also a certified  Life Coach. Mark has been teaching in Atsitsa since 1996. Mark is now realising a life times ambition and is studying 'Film' full time at University.

The Joy of Singing If you can talk, you can sing! Join this course, run by an exceptional singer with three number one dance hits in the UK, and experience the power of sound and song. Whether you are new to singing, or have some experience, this course will be an exciting journey of vocal discoveries. Using breath, movement, dance, song, improvisation, harmony, toning and more, you will be given the opportunity to sing and create. Free your voice, increase your confidence, enjoy self-expression, ignite your creativity and stimulate healing on all levels. No solo singing required unless desired!

Sarah Warwick Sarah Warwick is a singer, songwriter, teacher, conference energizer & corporate team-builder. She has had ten years of international success, mostly under the stage name Sarah Washington. She has had three top thirty hits in the UK charts and three number 1 dance hits. A highly experienced teacher, she trained with Chris James in the Art of Healing Sound. Sarah is passionate about helping others find their natural voice, and bring joy and healing through song. She facilitates courses in singing and songwriting, and the power of healing sound, and regularly teaches for Skyros. She also regularly runs singing and sound healing courses in China. She has been running her choir, The Singing Hearts, for the last eight years. She has recorded two CDs, one of her own songs Pure Love, and the second CD is of The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran, in which Sarah has created a haunting and beautiful musical interpretation of the Gibran timeless masterpiece.

Watercolour Reimagined Painting Can Be a Solace A fun and supportive approach to a new kind of landscape painting experience, which will free you in unexpected and productive ways:  you will experience a positive creative self,  develop your ability to tune in to your inner currents, have enhanced color competency and observational skills, and feel a sense of connection to the natural world.  Catherine Whittemore is an experienced painting teacher and creativity guide,  with a uniquely freeing approach to watercolor. She has developed a playful series  of color ‘bloom’ explorations which delight, support, and inspire participants. What people say about Cate and her course: The painting course with Cate was amazing! She is very encouraging , interested and manages to open up peoples creative side. Inspiring, engaging and made the art of watercolours super accessible and fun. Cate was an excellent teacher, she inspired confidence and was very supportive - everyone in the class developed really well and I did both weeks as she was such a good teacher. Lovely. Did Cate’s watercolour both weeks. Thoroughly enjoyed her energy, knowledge and generosity. Cate is warm and wonderfully experimental. She made it fun and safe and was endlessly positive and encouraging. Cate is magical. Fantastic art course, relaxed and playful and creative. Painting was very good with lots of ideas and feedback from Cate.

Cate Whittemore A professional set painter, realizing backdrops for myriad Broadway productions,  movies, and TV, Catherine has a familiarity with many materials and styles, which fluency informs and inspires her work and her teaching.  Her works embody both classical and contemporary technique, figurative and non-objective imagery.  She loves to find metaphysical meaning in viewing and making visual art. She facilitates creative watercolor courses privately and @ skyros.com. 2014  Botanical Illustration Certificate  Margaret Mee Foundation 2000  Master’s Degree in Drawing & Painting/ U of MN 1982  International Alliance of Stage Employees Membership  1977-79 Apprentice & Teaching Assistant @ The Studio and Forum of Stage Design / NYC 1975  Studio Arts Bachelors Degree / Connecticut College Her work has been collected and exhibited internationally. She has been honored by the support of  numerous artist residencies, including @ La Scuola Di Grafica in Venice, Italy, and The Athens School of Fine Arts in Hydra, Greece. In 2011, she was honored to design a poster for the World PeaceKalachakra of the Dalai Lama in Washington DC.  She is a registered Golden Art Company Artist Educator.   In 2017 she is curating an unusual exhibit at The Anderson Center for Interdisciplinary Studies, of the sometimes unlikely processes which important inventions and works of art come into being, entitled “THERE IS A LADDER”.

The Core of Good Fiction Writing Taught by award winning writer Lisa O'Donnell The Core of Good Fiction is a writing course suitable for beginners and those who wish to develop an existing novel idea. Over the course we will look at the importance of Character and Voice. How dialogue moves your fiction. The importance of Storytelling. We will look at how to write an Opening that hooks your reader. There will be workshops on how experience can shape your work, focusing on the art of description. We will also consider the choices we make as a writer when embarking on our stories. People write for all kinds of reasons, this course isn't just about getting published, it's about finding your authentic voice and giving you the writer the tool to tell the stories deep inside yourself and in a supportive and encouraging community. What people say about Lisa and her course: Really enjoyed writing. Lisa’s one-to-ones were over and above. Really appreciated. Writing teacher very generous and supportive to everyone. Writing with Lisa was wonderful. I discovered my writers voice in the writing course.

Lisa O'Donnell Lisa O'Donnell is an award winning author from Glasgow. She has written two books Closed Doors and The Death of Bees, which won The Commonwealth Book Prize in 2013 and an ALEX Award presented by The American Library Association in 2014. Lisa also writes screenplays and won The Orange Prize for New Screenwriters in 2000. She was also shortlisted for The Dennis Potter Award in the same year. Lisa graduated with an MLitt in Creative Writing from the University of Glasgow and also teaches creative writing for Curtis Brown Creative and was a Visiting Lecturer at City London University. She is also a mentor on The Womentoring Project.

Alexander Technique, Movement Alexander Technique A highly experiential, user-friendly introduction to the concepts and practices of the world renowned Alexander Technique - the gentle, natural way to refine the way we use our bodies in everyday life and in the gym, movement and dance classes, sports, singing, playing an instrument, driving, riding a bicycle. Side effects are very positive - a great antidote for depression, anxiety, insomnia. And it's terrific fun learning in a group. Transformational Movement In just a few days we can benignly change our postural and movement patterns so that we feel and look better, and learn simple but highly effective movements to practise all through life to maintain muscle tone and good alignment. Course content will include movements inspired by Pilates, tai chi/chi qong, yoga and dance, always placing the Alexander principles of safe use of the spine and joints at the heart of the work. In addition, Judy will be pleased to offer Greek dance and/or Egyptian dance as evening activities.

Judy Hammond Judy Hammond, B.Ed., ANATD, MSTAT, has been teaching Alexander Technique for thirty years and for a similar time has been practising yoga, Pilates and tai chi/chi qong. She has teaching qualifications in classical ballet and folk and classical Egyptian dance, and has choreographed, directed and performed in many dance events. She loves to combine her skills and experience to offer very practical, enjoyable movement and alignment classes, where people can see and feel themselves and others making positive changes quickly and easily.

Your Best Year Ever, Comedy Your Best Year Ever With a warm heart and a twinkle in his eye, Andrew will guide you through multi sensory processes and games to help facilitate you to determine how and what your Best Year Ever will look and feel like. Then, layer upon layer, he will work together with you to literally transform you into the person who can confidently create, pursue, and maximize those dreams. You will leave with a clear picture of what your best year ever will look like together with tools and strategies of how to implement it once at home. A complimentary coaching session will be available after the course for anyone completing the workshop. Comedy Improvisation Anyone can improvise if they allow themselves to play. Improvisation IS NOT about being the smartest, being the funniest or being right. It is about accessing the creativity that already exists within us. During this course we will learn how to have fun simply by following a few basic techniques that allow anybody to let go and have fun. Improvisation is an attitude, a way of behaving that allows one person, or a group of people, to innovate and create instantly by using their own sense of trust, truth, acceptance and creativity.  Anyone can improvise if they allow themselves to play. Improvisation IS NOT about being the smartest, being the funniest or being right. It is about accessing the creativity that already exists within all of us.

Andrew Risner Andrew Risner is a leading trainer, facilitator and coach who has been leading transformational workshops since 2001. He is an as empathic and sensitive facilitator who is able to create and maintain an atmosphere of trust and respect and brings a wealth of fun and insight to his workshops. His programmes help individuals fully realise the dormant resources within themselves, whilst helping them raise self-awareness and self-belief. As well as being an NLP Master Practitioner and certified hypnotherapist, Andrew spent time as a member of the magic circle and stand up comedian.

• Greece - Skyros Centre SC4

  SAT 19 - FRI 1 SEP 2017

  £1,385.00

  Book

• Writing Your Story (Week 1)

  Monique Roffey

  Writing from Life (Week 2)

  Monique Roffey

  Awaken the Soul: The Joy of Burnout (Week 1)

  Dina Glouberman

  Awaken the Soul: New Beginnings (Week 2)

  Dina Glouberman

  Pop Choir (Week 1)

  Richard Lewis

  Songwriting Workshop (Week 2)

  Richard Lewis

  Morning Yoga & Treatments

  Katrina Love Senn

Writing Your Story (Week 1) Week One: Writing Your Story If you have a strong true story to tell, and have been wondering how to start writing about it, this 5-day course is for you. I will introduce you to essential ideas and questions you must consider before starting to write a memoir. Through presentations, hand-outs, discussions and writing exercises, we will examine how to write about the truth, what decisions are necessary to make, issues around subjectivity and taboo material and the notion of bearing witness to true events. Subjects covered include what makes a good memoir and why write one, truth telling; when are you ready to write? Capturing the right tone; the reflective voice, resonance; getting started, fragments and sketches. You will need a photo of your younger self.

Monique Roffey Monique Roffey is an award-winning Trinidadian-born writer. Her forthcoming novel The Tryst, will be published in the summer of 2017. Her novel House of Ashes, 2014, was shortlisted for the COSTA Fiction Award, 2014, as well as the OCM BOCAS Award 2015. Archipelago won the OCM BOCAS Award for Caribbean Literature in 2013 and was shortlisted for the Orion Award 2014.  In 2010, her novel The White Woman on the Green Bicycle was shortlisted for the Orange Prize and the Encore Award. Her erotic memoir With the Kisses of his Mouth caused controversy and critical acclaim in 2011. She is a Lecturer in Creative Writing at Manchester Metropolitan University and also a writer in residence at a school in London for First Story.

Writing from Life (Week 2) Week Two: Writing from Life Using meditations, handouts and exercises, you will be prompted to reflect on aspects of your life and write about and share these insights. Please bring notebooks, sketchbooks, photos and ideas. This is a course designed to provoke the unconscious and to delve into long-term patterns. We will look at the different forms of life writing and how to play with and adapt true stories into fiction or poetry.

Monique Roffey Monique Roffey is an award-winning Trinidadian-born writer. Her forthcoming novel The Tryst, will be published in the summer of 2017. Her novel House of Ashes, 2014, was shortlisted for the COSTA Fiction Award, 2014, as well as the OCM BOCAS Award 2015. Archipelago won the OCM BOCAS Award for Caribbean Literature in 2013 and was shortlisted for the Orion Award 2014.  In 2010, her novel The White Woman on the Green Bicycle was shortlisted for the Orange Prize and the Encore Award. Her erotic memoir With the Kisses of his Mouth caused controversy and critical acclaim in 2011. She is a Lecturer in Creative Writing at Manchester Metropolitan University and also a writer in residence at a school in London for First Story.

Awaken the Soul: The Joy of Burnout (Week 1) There is a wonderful spiritual tradition that says that when we are living our everyday lives in an everyday way, the soul just rests or even sleeps.  But when we are in crisis, or looking for change, or wrestling with something that our ordinary  mind doesn’t know how to deal with, the soul wakes up. And then life begins to move to a whole new level. This course at the Skyros Centre, which is also available as two one-week courses, is about waking the soul, listening carefully to what your heart and soul are whispering, and then figuring out how to follow their call. They are also trainings in working with imagery so that you can be your own therapist and wise consultant every day of your life. While the first week is called The Joy of Burnout and the second week is called New Beginnings, you don’t need to be burnt out to do week one, or having a new beginning to do week two.  Do you want to make the most of your precious life right now? And to find a new way to navigate your life in future? Then these courses are for you.  Week One: Awaken the Soul: The Joy of Burnout Do you yearn for more joy and fulfilment?  Are you feeling burnt out, stressed, ill, exhausted, disconnected, or just surviving without thriving? Are your head and heart at war?  It’s all a sign that it is time for a turning point in your life. In this course, we will map out the path from where you are back to your authentic self and forward into a new set of choices.  This will include learning how to: Find a metaphor that gives you a map of where you are in your life right now Discover whatever may have been blocking your way and find a way through Forgive life and yourself for whatever hasn’t gone as you dreamed Learn to listen to the voices of heart and soul and integrate them with your mind Consider what are your choices at this moment and find your best way forward Set intentions that you can carry through effectively This is a crash course in using  your ‘genius imagination’ to guide yourself from where you are to a new joy and a new sense of what is possible. Since you are what you imagine, if where you are is not where you want to be, why not learn to imagine better? You will be able to emerge from these workshops with the clarity and confidence to take your next step in life. You will also have a magic box of tools, indeed a new way of thinking, that you can use to understand, protect, and guide yourself, not just during the workshop but for the rest of your life. These courses are suitable for complete beginners in imagery and visualisation as well as for those who are experienced in using this approach. Prepare to be surprised. Your images by their very nature don’t always tell you what you expect; rather they will show you what you know deep down inside but haven’t yet told yourself, and they always point the way to transformation. They are based on my books, Life Choices, Life Changes, The Joy of Burnout, and You are what you imagine Don’t forget you can always get free downloads of book chapters or MP3s of imagery exercises, or buy any of Dina's books or MP3s of imagery exercises at www.dinaglouberman.com

Dina Glouberman Dr Dina Glouberman is a world expert in the creative imagination. She is the visionary co-founder of Skyros Holidays, the author of the classic best-selling books Life Choices, Life Changes, The Joy of Burnout and You Are What You Imagine: Three Steps to a New Beginning Using Imagework and an international trainer, coach, speaker and psychotherapist. For over thirty years, she has been a pioneer in creating, teaching, and practicing the use of Imagework, the groundbreaking process that harnesses the imagination to guide our lives and create positive life choices and profound life changes. She is launching her unmissable memoir, Into the Woods and Out Again: Unconventional Wisdom for a Post-Truth World (Karnac Books) in early 2018. To find out more about Dina Glouberman's approach and her books and courses, and to get free downloads, visit her website, www.dinaglouberman.com What people say about Dina Glouberman:  Dina Glouberman is wise and witty and an inspirational teacher. Sue Townsend Dina Glouberman is a home-maker of the spirit. Margaret Drabble When I did your course in Skyros in 1994, I nicknamed you the Yehudi Menuhin of therapy, and your work reminded me of a fabulous painting with a lot of fine brushstrokes. Now I feel you are actually the art gallery itself. Vivienne

Awaken the Soul: New Beginnings (Week 2) An interesting spiritual tradition says that when we are living our everyday lives in an everyday way, the soul just rests or even sleeps. But when we are in crisis, or looking for change, or wrestling with something that our ordinary mind doesn't quite know how to deal with, the soul wakes up. And then life begins to move to a whole new level.  Both courses during these two weeks at the Skyros Centre are about listening to the soul's whispers. It may be time to wake your soul, listen carefully to what your heart and soul are whispering and then figure out how to follow their call. This is the thing that Dina most loves to help people to do. In addition, these two weeks are a crash course in working with imagery so that you can be your own therapist and wise consultant every day of your life.  This is a two week course but you can do each week separately if you wish. Call the office if so to book one week only. While the first week is called The Joy of Burnout and the second is called New Beginnings, you don't need to be burnt out do week one, or to be having a new beginning to do week two. Week Two: Awaken the Soul: New Beginnings Are you wanting to take your next step in life, but not sure what and how, not certain you can do it, or worried about what the price may be? It all starts with getting to a Yes. Saying Yes is a commitment to take whatever is brewing within you into a new behaviour, a new attitude, or a new way of life. An unqualified Yes sets the next stage into motion, opening you to the intuitions, research, actions, and persistence in the face of difficulties.  Next comes the plan, the how, the steps.  It also helps to acknowledge what could stop you and how to get past it. Most important, you need to have a clear and happy sense of the life you are working to create. In this course we will: Find out what your vision of your life is right now Learn how to create or heal relationships See what a healthy life would look like Take a trip into two possible futures and find out which you want Map out the steps to your new future, and take a leap of faith into a new reality. Another crash course in your ‘genius imagination’ that will leave you surprised and delighted. Since you are what you imagine, if where you are is not where you want to be, why not learn to imagine better? You will be able to emerge from these workshops with the clarity and confidence to take your next step in life. You will also have a magic box of tools, indeed a new way of thinking, that you can use to understand, protect, and guide yourself, not just during the workshop but for the rest of your life. These courses are suitable for complete beginners in imagery and visualisation as well as for those who are experienced in using this approach. Prepare to be surprised. Your images by their very nature don’t always tell you what you expect; rather they will show you what you know deep down inside but haven’t yet told yourself, and they always point the way to transformation. They are based on my books, Life Choices, Life Changes, The Joy of Burnout, and You are what you imagine Don’t forget you can always get free downloads of book chapters or MP3s of imagery exercises, or buy any of Dina's books or MP3s of imagery exercises at www.dinaglouberman.com

Dina Glouberman Dr Dina Glouberman is a world expert in the creative imagination. She is the visionary co-founder of Skyros Holidays, the author of the classic best-selling books Life Choices, Life Changes, The Joy of Burnout and You Are What You Imagine: Three Steps to a New Beginning Using Imagework and an international trainer, coach, speaker and psychotherapist. For over thirty years, she has been a pioneer in creating, teaching, and practicing the use of Imagework, the groundbreaking process that harnesses the imagination to guide our lives and create positive life choices and profound life changes. She is launching her unmissable memoir, Into the Woods and Out Again: Unconventional Wisdom for a Post-Truth World (Karnac Books) in early 2018. To find out more about Dina Glouberman's approach and her books and courses, and to get free downloads, visit her website, www.dinaglouberman.com What people say about Dina Glouberman:  Dina Glouberman is wise and witty and an inspirational teacher. Sue Townsend Dina Glouberman is a home-maker of the spirit. Margaret Drabble When I did your course in Skyros in 1994, I nicknamed you the Yehudi Menuhin of therapy, and your work reminded me of a fabulous painting with a lot of fine brushstrokes. Now I feel you are actually the art gallery itself. Vivienne

Pop Choir (Week 1) Week One: Pop Choir Every day we will make some music together before dinner. What happens depends on who comes! We will sing, play instruments, or maybe just resort to singing the whole of Mama Mia! Let's see. No previous experience or expertise is needed to join in, and anyone who can play please bring an instrument which will be put to good use.

Richard Lewis Richard has spent his professional life working in studios and on stages as a composer and producer creating songs, commercials, and TV soundtracks. Music is also his passion which he loves to share with everyone, whether they are experienced or tentative. There’s nothing more fun than playing, singing, or writing a tune together with others, especially when the pressure to perform well is taken away. He's also trained in Gestalt, and interested in the creative process, and how to overcome blocks which hold us back from fully expressing ourselves. He first came to Skyros 20 years ago, has run many courses, and is proud to be part of the team.

Songwriting Workshop (Week 2) Week Two: Songwriting Workshop Write a song, sing it and play it. A simple 4 day course to help you find the song in you, write it, accompany yourself, and maybe perform it to the group. No previous experience or expertise is needed to join in, and anyone who can play please bring an instrument which will be put to good use.

Richard Lewis Richard has spent his professional life working in studios and on stages as a composer and producer creating songs, commercials, and TV soundtracks. Music is also his passion which he loves to share with everyone, whether they are experienced or tentative. There’s nothing more fun than playing, singing, or writing a tune together with others, especially when the pressure to perform well is taken away. He's also trained in Gestalt, and interested in the creative process, and how to overcome blocks which hold us back from fully expressing ourselves. He first came to Skyros 20 years ago, has run many courses, and is proud to be part of the team.

Morning Yoga & Treatments Skyros Centre course participants are welcome to attend a gentle pre-breakfast yoga class in the mornings. This class is a great way to start the day. Wear loose comfortable clothing.  Katrina Love Senn teaches Healing Hatha Yoga which is her own signature blend of yoga, breathing, stretching, visualisation, intention and personal enquiry. It helps students to strengthen their body-mind connection, activating richer levels of creativity and spirituality. Katrina's classes draw on her extensive experience teaching at international healing retreat centres around the world. She infuses her yoga classes with kindness, compassion and a sense of play. Her classes are suitable for students of all levels including beginners. For Katrina, yoga is a powerful tool for total transformation. Through the practice of yoga, you give yourself a gift; a safe space to look within, gaining new insights and using these as a chance to see all the answers that reside inside of you. Being on the mat, is a way that you can heal, build strength and find the courage to take a powerful step forward in your life. Yoga can help to transform and shift any area of your life including your health, your career, and even your relationship to self and others. It can help you to get clear on your old stories, default habits, limitations and fears so that you can move beyond them if you choose to.  Yoga gives you a platform to find your edge and play with it, so that you can go beyond that which you thought was even possible, and create a body and life that you dream of!

Katrina Love Senn Katrina Love Senn is an international yoga teacher, healer and author of the ground breaking book 'Losing Weight is a Healing Journey: A Woman’s Guide to Losing Weight Naturally'. On her healing journey, she lost over 60 pounds for good as well as healed a number of chronic health conditions, including asthma, eczema and adrenal exhaustion, with no diets, drugs or deprivation. She is a natural intuitive and has a fun, warm and heart-centred approach to living and life. She infuses her gentle yoga classes with inspiration, love, kindness and encouragement. Based at The Skyros Centre Katrina is excited to offer massage treatments, along with her signature Break-through Healing Sessions. Her massage treatments and healing sessions are based upon how she healed and transformed her own life using a range of gentle healing tools

• Greece - Atsitsa Bay AT5

  SAT 2 - SAT 9 SEP 2017

  £745.00

  Book

• The Joy of Singing

  Sarah Warwick

  Art from the Heart

  Stoney Parsons

  Comedy Improvisation

  Alison Goldie

  Abseiling

  Berny Woodward

  Massage, Reflexology

  Johanna Simonetti

  Life Writing

  Nick Barlay

  Yoga with Awareness

  Ken Eyerman

  Windsurfing

  Mark Gunston

The Joy of Singing If you can talk, you can sing! Join this course, run by an exceptional singer with three number one dance hits in the UK, and experience the power of sound and song. Whether you are new to singing, or have some experience, this course will be an exciting journey of vocal discoveries. Using breath, movement, dance, song, improvisation, harmony, toning and more, you will be given the opportunity to sing and create. Free your voice, increase your confidence, enjoy self-expression, ignite your creativity and stimulate healing on all levels. No solo singing required unless desired!

Sarah Warwick Sarah Warwick is a singer, songwriter, teacher, conference energizer & corporate team-builder. She has had ten years of international success, mostly under the stage name Sarah Washington. She has had three top thirty hits in the UK charts and three number 1 dance hits. A highly experienced teacher, she trained with Chris James in the Art of Healing Sound. Sarah is passionate about helping others find their natural voice, and bring joy and healing through song. She facilitates courses in singing and songwriting, and the power of healing sound, and regularly teaches for Skyros. She also regularly runs singing and sound healing courses in China. She has been running her choir, The Singing Hearts, for the last eight years. She has recorded two CDs, one of her own songs Pure Love, and the second CD is of The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran, in which Sarah has created a haunting and beautiful musical interpretation of the Gibran timeless masterpiece.

Art from the Heart This course is for anyone who ever longed to get in touch with their creativity through art. Here is your chance to just do it, to try out new things, explore what you are capable of in a safe and happy atmosphere within a group. Participants will do different exercises designed to draw out their inner artist, getting into the right-side of the brain and connecting with your heart. It's about the doing and the daring to do and discovering what you are capable of. Course will include painting (water-colours and acrylics) drawing, collage, mixed media. Stoney is an experienced facilitator and teaches the Art from the Heart courses from her studio. She passionately believes that we are all creative.

Stoney Parsons Stoney is a professional stained glass artist and teacher. She works and teaches in her lovely studio on the Kent/Sussex border in a country park estate. Stoney has been working to commission for the last 30 years. Her work ranges from commissions in hospitals, schools, restaurants and private residences throughout the UK for, for example Raymond Blanc at his restaurant Le Manoir aux QuatSaisons, Martlets Hospice, Hove, to name but a few.

Comedy Improvisation This cheerful and informative course uses a wide range of games and exercises and covers: unblocking your imagination, storytelling, character-building, status-play, comedy-business, how to enjoy looking stupid and devising skills. Improvisation gives participants confidence and the ability to think on their feet (useful for all sorts of situations). It stimulates creativity and helps unlock the huge range of characters and stories within you that can be used to delight an audience, professionally or in everyday life. It aims to broaden comic and performance skills, motivate mind and body, and release lots of laughter in the process.  Facilitated by Alison Goldie, one of the most experienced improvisers in the U.K. and the author of The Improv Book: Improvisation for Theatre, Comedy, Education and Life (Oberon Books) this is one of the best improv courses you’ll ever do. And it’ll make you look younger, give you a six-pack and attract the person of your dreams.*   *Might be a fib.

Alison Goldie Alison Goldie is an actor, theatre director, writer and teacher. After graduating from Hull University with a degree in drama she performed in many rooms above pubs, did solo stand-up comedy, played all the female characters in Newman and Baddiel in Pieces (BBC2), then became a travel reporter on The Travel Show (BBC2). She toured the world with the award-winning The Weird Sisters Theatre Company and received huge acclaim for her solo show, Lady in Bed. She has directed plays for Vienna’s English Theatre, and in London’s West End, as well as many fringe and community shows. Alison’s book ‘The Improv Book: Improvisation for Theatre, Comedy, Education and Life’ was published in 2015 by Oberon Books and has received unanimously positive reviews. Alison is also a trained and practising life coach. See Alison's website here: www.alisongoldie.com and www.alisongoldiecoach.com.

Abseiling Take up the challenge and experience abseiling in the stunning scenery and nature of Atsitsa. Berny offers a Greek experience with a difference! From a basic, beginners abseil, to the amazing experiences of tackling sea cliffs, mineshafts and the possible ultimate experience of abseiling directly into the warm, blue sea! Whether with previous experience or a complete novice, here's the opportunity to challenge yourself and achieve the satisfaction of "safely" defying gravity, in a shared, group experience with a very experienced instructor who offers adventure, camaraderie and a diversity of ways to overcome your fears, both actual and analogous. Return back to the UK with spectacular photos and memories of the unique experience of an abseil in the sun!

Berny Woodward Berny holds the UK Mountain Instructors Certificate and has extensive experience having worked in the RAF as an Outdoor Adventure Instructor for over 20 years. He is also a self taught artist and poet.

Massage, Reflexology The massage and reflexology courses are aimed at introducing participants to these therapies in a very safe but relaxed manner. The massage course will include Indian Head Massage techniques and Ayurvedic Facial Massage.

Johanna Simonetti Johanna has enjoyed a long and fulfilling career in holistic health. She studied in Britain and the United States and qualified in a wide range of therapies, including massage, aromatherapy, reflexology, lymphatic drainage, cranio-sacral therapy, sports injuries and stress management. She is also a Reiki Master. Having trained as a teacher, Johanna set up a number of colleges in her native Ireland. She also worked as an examiner for ITEC (International Therapy Examination Council) which involved assessing students in The United States, South Africa, Malta, Great Britain and Ireland. She has facilitated a number of sessions in Atsitsa. For the last five years, Johanna has worked as a touch therapist in a cancer support centre.

Life Writing During the course, we will explore approaches to life writing through a combination of examples, discussions and practical exercises to discover forms most appropriate to unique and individual stories. Autobiography? Memoir? Reportage? Family history? Life writing can provide a singular perspective on dramatic events, as well as insight into history, society and the human relationships that underpin them. The writer's intimate connection to the material can add a new and resonant dimension to a reader's experience. Topics will include: finding the universal in the particular; the "I" of autobiographical writing and what it means to be true to someone's story; creating characters and places; descriptive techniques; using voices and dialogue to create scenes; developing acts, arcs and narrative potential through the dynamics of structure and plot; how to use contextual research to add depth and understanding. Life writing is often emotionally and psychologically demanding, occasionally cathartic but always challenging. The aim of the course is ultimately to bring out the stories lurking in all of us and to share them in an open, supportive and participatory environment.

Nick Barlay Nick Barlay is the author of four widely acclaimed novels, Curvy Lovebox, first published by the Black imprint X Press, and Crumple Zone and Hooky Gear. Together, these formed a loose trilogy set in the underbelly of contemporary London. Hooky Gear was mentioned in Granta’s ‘Best of Young British Novelists’ in 2003, and was highly praised by Hilary Mantel until it was realised he was too old to be young. His fourth novel, The Wife of a Man Who, rejected in the UK, became a success across the Channel and was praised as a masterpiece. It is currently available in French only. Barlay was born in London to Hungarian Jewish parents and his first non-fiction book, Scattered Ghosts, is the story of his family over two centuries. It was longlisted for the Wingate Prize 2015. He has also written short stories, award-winning radio plays and wide-ranging journalism, including a long-running series about London for the Times. More recently, he has contributed articles to the online Central and Eastern European News. He regularly teaches creative writing and journalism, as well as Guardian Masterclasses on writing family history. www.nickbarlay.com

Yoga with Awareness In a focused and yet playful way, experience how Ken integrates Yoga with Feldenkrais. These yoga classes and moving meditation sessions are suitable for all levels, including complete beginners and those who have injuries or are restricted in their movement. The intuitive and spontaneous hands-on approach emphasizes the benefits of using your breath and developing an awareness of your inner process. Holiday participants will learn to use their bodies with intelligence, awareness and efficiency. The Eyerman Technique will ease you into new postures while encouraging you to explore movement in a way that is both developmental and restorative. Ken seeks to work with you, by developing core movement, and helping you tune into the constant flow of life energy essential to maintaining health and clarity of mind. Ken's yoga courses in Atsitsa are included as 'One of the 5 Best Yoga Holidays' on the Healthista website and listed as the 'Best holiday for those with injuries', describing the yoga as 'great for people who want a slower pace, including complete beginners and those who have injuries or are restricted in their movement.'

Ken Eyerman With over thirty five years experience, Ken is an American who has worked as a movement therapist, having studied dance and psychology. Previously he worked at the London Contemporary Dance School as bodyworker in residence. Ken is trained in The Feldenkrais Method, Awareness Through Movement and has a busy private practice at Natureworks/ Danceworks in London. As well as regular yoga workshops, Ken offers his Yoga with Awareness holidays internationally and returns to Skyros for his 25th season! He is the author of an inspirational book, Massage and was named as one of the Londons top three masseurs by the Evening Standard. The Ken Eyerman School of Bodywork and Movement is affiliated to the Institute of Complementary Medicine.

Windsurfing Beginners: This course is aimed at complete beginners and covers the basic skills required to learn this exciting sport. The majority of the time is spent on the water. Windsurfing will help improve your coordination, flexibility and strength. The course will challenge you but the emphasis is on enjoyment. You will be encouraged to take intelligent risks and develop an awareness of your environment. During most of the summer you will only need to wear swimwear, though we recommend that you bring your own wet shoes. At the beginning and end of the season it may be necessary to wear a shortie wetsuit, which will be provided. It is not necessary to be a strong swimmer or athletic to learn windsurfing. However, a basic level of mobility and some confidence in the water is required. Students may continue onto the Improvers class in the 2nd half of the session of a 2 week session. Improvers: This is a series of drop in classes suitable for those with previous experience. An ability to sail away from the beach, turn around and sail back is the only minimum requirement. It is also open to those who took part in the Learn to Windsurf course during the first half of a 2 week session. Each class will take the form of a short clinic followed by on water practice. Continued coaching and feedback will be available or you can just practice without instruction.

Mark Gunston Mark has been teaching Windsurfing for 30 years and is a qualified RYA Windsurfing Trainer. He managed a watersports centre in Cornwall for 6 years and during the late 1980s worked at a Windsurfing Club on the Sea of Galilee. He has taught at a variety of centres in England, Greece, Sardinia and San Francisco and is one of the UK’s most experienced Windsurfing teachers. In 1998 he established and managed a Fitness Centre in New Delhi. Mark qualified as an internationally licensed Ski Instructor in 2001 and has worked in Austria, France, Italy, Spain and Vermont as a Ski Instructor, Ski Guide and Resort Manager. He is also a certified  Life Coach. Mark has been teaching in Atsitsa since 1996. Mark is now realising a life times ambition and is studying 'Film' full time at University.

• Greece - Skyros Centre SC5

  SAT 2 - SAT 9 SEP 2017

  £745.00

  Book

• Book Under the Bed

  Julia Bell

  New Ways to Calm Wellbeing

  Andry Anastasiou

  The Community of Song

  Luke Meredith

  Morning Yoga & Treatments

  Katrina Love Senn

Book Under the Bed Book Under the Bed Have you always harboured a desire to write, even written a book but never taken it any further? This is an opportunity to dust off your ambition and find some new motivation and inspiration through a mixture of exercises and group workshops. Designed for people at all stages of the process from beginners to professionals seeking new ideas. This course will inspire, challenge and offer useful tips on crafting irresistible, engaging prose.

Julia Bell Julia Bell is a novelist and Course Director of the successful MA in Creative Writing at Birkbeck in London. She is the editor of the bestselling Creative Writing Coursebook. Her latest novel, The Dark Light is published by Macmillan. She also writes poetry, short stories and is a keen street photographer. You can find out more at www.juliabell.net

New Ways to Calm Wellbeing New Ways to Calm Wellbeing Enhance  your sense of relaxation and calm by creating simple daily moments of centering, listening and stillness. That way you  can feel relaxed, however busy and demanding  life is. On this one week workshop you’ll learn new approaches and tools you can use to help you feel centred, and at ease in your daily life. You’ll experience a week of immersing yourself in meditation, relaxation, dialogue walks and journalling. With practice these new and established techniques will support you to listen more deeply to yourself and others, and to feel relaxed and calmer from the inside out.

Andry Anastasiou Andry Anastasiou is an insightful experienced, qualified coach, international  workshop facilitator and learning consultant. She has been leading personal and professional development workshops for over 20 years that have enabled her clients to experience wellbeing, change career direction, find new jobs, discover work-life balance and improve relationships. Andry has skills and knowledge in a range of coaching, mentoring, success and well-being and change techniques such as, Solutions Focused coaching dialogue, mindfulness, Qi Gong, MIT U Theory and possibility thinking.  Andry facilitates creative, supportive workshops with real passion, insight authenticity and playfulness.    What Andry’s clients say:   •     ‘The biggest  change I experienced as a result of coaching with Andry has to be my new job, with my new career.’  •     ‘Working with Andry is great because it’s like a journey of starting with someone stuck in a certain place and then by using skills and technique you enabled me to unravel it all to get to a different space. It’s all about understanding.’  Visit Andry's website here: http://thelearningmoment.org

The Community of Song We all love singing along to our favourite tunes, and research from various universities has indicated that singalong could be as good for you as yoga (University of Gothenburg), improves mental health (University of London) and actually makes you live longer (Harvard and Yale). This course explores singalong, what particular songs mean to people, and what happens when we share that song - as well as being a jolly old knees-up!

Luke Meredith Luke Meredith, or Mister Meredith, is a cabaret entertainer and compère, and is at the forefront of the revival in piano singalong nights. He performs regularly in London at cabaret and comedy venues, including Proud Cabaret, Royal Vauxhall Tavern, Cafe de Paris, Fontaine's and Leicester Square Theatre, and at high profile theatres around the UK from Newcastle Theatre Royal down to Kings Theatre in Portsmouth via Birmingham Old Rep. His last three solo shows at the Edinburgh Fringe in The Voodoo Rooms have gathered four and five star reviews, while he continues to pack houses with his variety show Magic Faraway Cabaret, now in its 6th year. Luke is also a visiting lecturer at City Lit, where he has taught singing on the accredited drama courses since 2009, as well as daytime courses on Singing for Actors, Cabaret and Musical Theatre. He has a BA Hons in Music Drama and Dance from Birmingham University and a PTLLS from City Lit, and continues to research and develop new vocal teaching techniques. Visit Luke's website here: http://mistermeredith.co.uk “One of the greatest cabaret performers of his generation” Scotsgay “A subversive compère who takes pride in getting the City boys a little hot under the collar“ The Telegraph

Morning Yoga & Treatments Skyros Centre course participants are welcome to attend a gentle pre-breakfast yoga class in the mornings. This class is a great way to start the day. Wear loose comfortable clothing.  Katrina Love Senn teaches Healing Hatha Yoga which is her own signature blend of yoga, breathing, stretching, visualisation, intention and personal enquiry. It helps students to strengthen their body-mind connection, activating richer levels of creativity and spirituality. Katrina's classes draw on her extensive experience teaching at international healing retreat centres around the world. She infuses her yoga classes with kindness, compassion and a sense of play. Her classes are suitable for students of all levels including beginners. For Katrina, yoga is a powerful tool for total transformation. Through the practice of yoga, you give yourself a gift; a safe space to look within, gaining new insights and using these as a chance to see all the answers that reside inside of you. Being on the mat, is a way that you can heal, build strength and find the courage to take a powerful step forward in your life. Yoga can help to transform and shift any area of your life including your health, your career, and even your relationship to self and others. It can help you to get clear on your old stories, default habits, limitations and fears so that you can move beyond them if you choose to.  Yoga gives you a platform to find your edge and play with it, so that you can go beyond that which you thought was even possible, and create a body and life that you dream of!

Katrina Love Senn Katrina Love Senn is an international yoga teacher, healer and author of the ground breaking book 'Losing Weight is a Healing Journey: A Woman’s Guide to Losing Weight Naturally'. On her healing journey, she lost over 60 pounds for good as well as healed a number of chronic health conditions, including asthma, eczema and adrenal exhaustion, with no diets, drugs or deprivation. She is a natural intuitive and has a fun, warm and heart-centred approach to living and life. She infuses her gentle yoga classes with inspiration, love, kindness and encouragement. Based at The Skyros Centre Katrina is excited to offer massage treatments, along with her signature Break-through Healing Sessions. Her massage treatments and healing sessions are based upon how she healed and transformed her own life using a range of gentle healing tools

• Greece - Atsitsa Bay AT6

  SAT 9 - SAT 16 SEP 2017

  £725.00

  Book

• Abseiling

  Berny Woodward

  Mindfulness

  Michael Eales

  Massage, Reflexology

  Johanna Simonetti

  Novel Writing

  Claire McGowan

  Yoga Beyond Yoga

  Kenneth Ryan

  Windsurfing

  Mark Gunston

  Delivering a Song

  Luke Meredith

  Art from the Heart

  Stoney Parsons

Abseiling Take up the challenge and experience abseiling in the stunning scenery and nature of Atsitsa. Berny offers a Greek experience with a difference! From a basic, beginners abseil, to the amazing experiences of tackling sea cliffs, mineshafts and the possible ultimate experience of abseiling directly into the warm, blue sea! Whether with previous experience or a complete novice, here's the opportunity to challenge yourself and achieve the satisfaction of "safely" defying gravity, in a shared, group experience with a very experienced instructor who offers adventure, camaraderie and a diversity of ways to overcome your fears, both actual and analogous. Return back to the UK with spectacular photos and memories of the unique experience of an abseil in the sun!

Berny Woodward Berny holds the UK Mountain Instructors Certificate and has extensive experience having worked in the RAF as an Outdoor Adventure Instructor for over 20 years. He is also a self taught artist and poet.

Mindfulness Mindfulness is an exploration of the practice of present-moment awareness, kindness and whole-hearted living. It is a simple path to our core self, the place of inner wisdom, wellbeing and happiness. It also provides tools for recognizing and reducing unhealthy stress and for becoming aware of our habits of thought and action, which keep us stuck. This awareness is the first step toward self-transformation. Putting these skills into practice takes focus, will, intent and discipline. Paying attention to our bodies, thoughts, feelings, and how we express ourselves, in a kind hearted friendly way, is the key to release us from our attachments and blocks. The course combines western psychology with the wisdom of the East.

Michael Eales Michael Eales, psychologist, writer, and leadership coach for 30 years, is one of the leading figures in Humanistic Psychology. He is co-author of The Personal Management Handbook,Implausible Professions and The Coaching Cube and is a management consultant with major organizations. He was part of the staff team of the Human Potential Research Project at Surrey University and has trained many practitioners in the field. He has written for film and television. He co-wrote and acted in the film Inertia (Dir. Anna Campion), which opened at the London Raindance Film Festival, and Bipolar‚ which premiered in 2006 at the Edinburgh Film Festival. He is currently working with Anna Campion on a film adaptation of a novel. In 2013 he published Sketches of Skyros, a collection of poems illustrated by paintings of the late Manos Faltaits, and Dreams Like Enigmatic Paintings, a translation of the work of Henri Michaux.

Massage, Reflexology The massage and reflexology courses are aimed at introducing participants to these therapies in a very safe but relaxed manner. The massage course will include Indian Head Massage techniques and Ayurvedic Facial Massage.

Johanna Simonetti Johanna has enjoyed a long and fulfilling career in holistic health. She studied in Britain and the United States and qualified in a wide range of therapies, including massage, aromatherapy, reflexology, lymphatic drainage, cranio-sacral therapy, sports injuries and stress management. She is also a Reiki Master. Having trained as a teacher, Johanna set up a number of colleges in her native Ireland. She also worked as an examiner for ITEC (International Therapy Examination Council) which involved assessing students in The United States, South Africa, Malta, Great Britain and Ireland. She has facilitated a number of sessions in Atsitsa. For the last five years, Johanna has worked as a touch therapist in a cancer support centre.

Novel Writing Many people dream of writing a novel, but few succeed in finishing one and then selling it for publication. This course will show you how to do exactly that. We'll start by looking at the key building blocks of a successful novel, including genre, story and concept, narrative techniques, plotting, suspense and characterisation. We'll also look at the creative process, and find ways to overcome blocks and doubts, as well as techniques for planning and outlining. Finally we will discuss ways into the industry, finding an agent, pitching your work, and working as a writer. You will leave with renewed motivation, a strong sense of the path ahead in your work, and the tools and techniques you need to succeed as a novelist. The course will also offer opportunities to share your work and receive feedback and guidance.

Claire McGowan Claire McGowan writes an acclaimed crime fiction series, and also writes women's fiction under the name Eva Woods. She has published seven novels to date with two more to come in 2017. She set up and currently runs the UK's first genre-based MA at City University London, and has taught for many organisations and festivals including Arvon, Guardian Masterclasses, The Literary Consultancy, the Cheltenham festival, and many others. Claire's enthusiastic and honest teaching style has motivated many of her students on to publication already.

Yoga Beyond Yoga That, “the essence is at ease, the essence is at ease!”, you will find to be a predominant theme and focus in enjoying the eastern arts with Kenneth. Sessions with Kenneth will include  Yoga (from Energetic through Restful ), Qi Gong, Tai Chi, traditional and contemporary moving meditations. These practices will be adapted, often softened to keep them approachable and to suit your experience and level of ability.  After Meditation, early morning classes will tend to be lively and energetic. Mid-day classes will be slower, having greater technical emphasis. Evening classes you will find to be restful restorative and deeply relaxing. Whether holding  steady, even strong  postures or if you wish and are ready to “jump along” to a more energetic practice,  you can expect to discover great Openness and Energy with ease. Anticipate also the Bliss of being cradled  into a deep relaxed  Awareness of Being... The sessions will include: Relaxing Restorative Yoga Dynamic Yoga Yoga Nidra;Yoga of sleep and dream fulfillment Tibetan Yoga; the fountain of Youth Traditional and Contemporary Meditations Restful Awareness; just that Spirit Circle; contemplating the Epitome philosophical teaching from the Eastern world Qi Gong/Tai Chi Above are just a number of suggested possibilities. Naturally, the programme will be tailored to suit personal requirements and the collective energy of the group. The Yoga Beyond Yoga programme will be offered as a means of recognition and as a reminder of the ease of being and natural harmonious state which is the natural essence of being.

Kenneth Ryan Kenneth Ryan is from Galway town in the west of Ireland, although in recent years has spent most of his time abroad; he has travelled extensively. It was during one of his extended trips, during the long warm winter of his first trip to India in 1994 that Kenneth spent much of his time living alone in the tropical forest, at Peace with nature. He has since been inspired to regularly return to the mystical sub-continent and further east for lengthy periods of study and practice at traditional and contemporary schools of Yoga, Tai Chi, Awareness, Massage and Meditation. On retreat Ken interprets these teachings in a form more appropriate to the western mind and lifestyle without compromising the essence of Truth that is Yoga. His style of teaching is often lively, balanced with gentleness of approach. Practical Tantric awareness has been one of the strongest influences along with a deep Love for the more subtle aspects of Hatha Yoga Vedanta philosophy. Kenneth has always placed great emphasis on restful Awareness and he loves to share the many epitome eastern teachings which are simple realisations of the natural state of being.

Windsurfing Beginners: This course is aimed at complete beginners and covers the basic skills required to learn this exciting sport. The majority of the time is spent on the water. Windsurfing will help improve your coordination, flexibility and strength. The course will challenge you but the emphasis is on enjoyment. You will be encouraged to take intelligent risks and develop an awareness of your environment. During most of the summer you will only need to wear swimwear, though we recommend that you bring your own wet shoes. At the beginning and end of the season it may be necessary to wear a shortie wetsuit, which will be provided. It is not necessary to be a strong swimmer or athletic to learn windsurfing. However, a basic level of mobility and some confidence in the water is required. Students may continue onto the Improvers class in the 2nd half of the session of a 2 week session. Improvers: This is a series of drop in classes suitable for those with previous experience. An ability to sail away from the beach, turn around and sail back is the only minimum requirement. It is also open to those who took part in the Learn to Windsurf course during the first half of a 2 week session. Each class will take the form of a short clinic followed by on water practice. Continued coaching and feedback will be available or you can just practice without instruction.

Mark Gunston Mark has been teaching Windsurfing for 30 years and is a qualified RYA Windsurfing Trainer. He managed a watersports centre in Cornwall for 6 years and during the late 1980s worked at a Windsurfing Club on the Sea of Galilee. He has taught at a variety of centres in England, Greece, Sardinia and San Francisco and is one of the UK’s most experienced Windsurfing teachers. In 1998 he established and managed a Fitness Centre in New Delhi. Mark qualified as an internationally licensed Ski Instructor in 2001 and has worked in Austria, France, Italy, Spain and Vermont as a Ski Instructor, Ski Guide and Resort Manager. He is also a certified  Life Coach. Mark has been teaching in Atsitsa since 1996. Mark is now realising a life times ambition and is studying 'Film' full time at University.

Delivering a Song Delivering A Song Performing a song is more than just remembering where to match the notes to the words. Sometimes it’s not even about that! Learn all the tricks of the trade, finding the sense of a song and the best way to deliver that to your audience. We’ll cover dramatic and vocal techniques and how to combine the two. We’ll be looking at comedy songs, ballads and uptempo numbers and how to bring out the best in them – and in you! Whether you want to wow them on stage or just be more confident when you do your turn at the party, this course will help you on your way. There will be solo singing within the group and plenty of tutor feedback, with a mini-showcase at the end hosted by yours truly.

Luke Meredith Luke Meredith, or Mister Meredith, is a cabaret entertainer and compère, and is at the forefront of the revival in piano singalong nights. He performs regularly in London at cabaret and comedy venues, including Proud Cabaret, Royal Vauxhall Tavern, Cafe de Paris, Fontaine's and Leicester Square Theatre, and at high profile theatres around the UK from Newcastle Theatre Royal down to Kings Theatre in Portsmouth via Birmingham Old Rep. His last three solo shows at the Edinburgh Fringe in The Voodoo Rooms have gathered four and five star reviews, while he continues to pack houses with his variety show Magic Faraway Cabaret, now in its 6th year. Luke is also a visiting lecturer at City Lit, where he has taught singing on the accredited drama courses since 2009, as well as daytime courses on Singing for Actors, Cabaret and Musical Theatre. He has a BA Hons in Music Drama and Dance from Birmingham University and a PTLLS from City Lit, and continues to research and develop new vocal teaching techniques. Visit Luke's website here: http://mistermeredith.co.uk “One of the greatest cabaret performers of his generation” Scotsgay “A subversive compère who takes pride in getting the City boys a little hot under the collar“ The Telegraph

Art from the Heart This course is for anyone who ever longed to get in touch with their creativity through art. Here is your chance to just do it, to try out new things, explore what you are capable of in a safe and happy atmosphere within a group. Participants will do different exercises designed to draw out their inner artist, getting into the right-side of the brain and connecting with your heart. It's about the doing and the daring to do and discovering what you are capable of. Course will include painting (water-colours and acrylics) drawing, collage, mixed media. Stoney is an experienced facilitator and teaches the Art from the Heart courses from her studio. She passionately believes that we are all creative.

Stoney Parsons Stoney is a professional stained glass artist and teacher. She works and teaches in her lovely studio on the Kent/Sussex border in a country park estate. Stoney has been working to commission for the last 30 years. Her work ranges from commissions in hospitals, schools, restaurants and private residences throughout the UK for, for example Raymond Blanc at his restaurant Le Manoir aux QuatSaisons, Martlets Hospice, Hove, to name but a few.

• Greece - Skyros Centre SC6

  SAT 9 - SAT 16 SEP 2017

  £725.00

  Book

• How to Build a Novel

  DJ Connell

  Discover Your Life-Calling

  Julian Russell

  Playtime for Grownups

  Alison Goldie

  Morning Yoga & Treatments

  Katrina Love Senn

How to Build a Novel We will examine the novel from a structural perspective, breaking it down into the elements of a good story. You will learn how to plan your novel and how to build its chapters along the bones of a narrative arc. This course is about demystifying the process and about giving you practical skills to construct a compelling book with vivid characters. You will be guided and encouraged within a positive and supportive group environment. There will be daily exercises to stimulate creativity and to provide you with the confidence to power ahead with your novel.  Key benefits: You will come away with an outline and timeframe for proceeding with your novel. You will leave the course feeling confident about your ability to write your book. You will feel enlivened and encouraged by the group dynamic.

DJ Connell DJ Connell was born in New Zealand and has lived and worked in various countries including Australia, Japan, France and the UK. She began her writing career as a newspaper journalist and also wrote for the international non-profit field and advertising before becoming a novelist. Her first novel 'Julian Corkle is a Filthy Liar' was published in the UK by Blue Door HarperCollins and was shortlisted for the Polari First Book Prize. Optioned by Sarah Radclyffe Productions and Macgowan Films, the novel was adapted for screen by Mark Herman and Jonathan Entwistle. The feature film is currently in pre-production. DJ Connell’s second novel 'Sherry Cracker Gets Normal' was also published by Blue Door with editions published in France and German by Editions Belfond and Rowohlt Verlag, respectively. DJ Connell lives in London and is a regular contributor on BBC London 94.9. In 2014, she received a grant from Arts Council England to complete her third book 'The Absurdist'. She is currently working on the second draft of her fourth novel which is set in Camden, London. To find out more about DJ Connell visit her website, djconnell.com and blog, djconnell.wordpress.com

Discover Your Life-Calling Find the difference you make in the world “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life…have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” - Steve Jobs, Stanford Commencement Speech Do you long to wake up with a sense of purpose and passion, a clear idea of your strengths and talents and the knowledge of how to put them to the best use? When you ‘Discover Your Life-Calling’, this is precisely what happens. Suddenly, you can begin every day with a clear vision and sense of inner-knowing of who you are and what has deepest meaning for you. You can engage more often with the fun, creative, playful aspects of you which ignite your passion and inspire your soul. Everyone has a Life-Calling and everyone can discover theirs. It will most likely be the thing you are doing already without even thinking about it – the part of you that is so instinctual, so ‘you’ that you barely notice it is there. But when you discover it, when you have clarity about what it is, it can change your life. Discovering your Life-Calling allows you to see yourself in a positive light. Allows the potential of what you can use your strengths and talents for to open out, feel closer, more possible. It helps bring the you that is great to life.

Julian Russell Julian’s passion is helping people make the most of their lives. He has been on his own path of personal exploration for 40 years and leading others on theirs since the 1980s with the Life Talent integrative approach to human development. Today he offers open workshops, on-going groups, and he is an executive coach to leaders in global organizations in Europe, the USA and China. He helped to introduce NLP into the UK and is co-author, with Robert Dilts and Anne Deering, of the book Alpha Leadership – Tools for Business Leaders Who Want More Out of Life (Wiley and Co, 2002). He is a regular speaker at the annual NLP Conference and at Alternatives, Piccadilly. He has run coaching master classes for the Academy of Executive Coaching and the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD). He is also a former trustee of Re-Vision, a Psychosynthesis training charity; has been a UKCP registered psychotherapist; and is a former board member of the UK Association for NLP (ANLP). He holds a 2nd dan black-belt in Aikido, regularly dances 5 Rhythms and has been a close disciple of a great Buddhist master for over 20 years. Visit his personal development website at  www.LifeTalent.com  and his executive coaching website at www.ppdconsulting.com

Playtime for Grownups An opportunity to have some proper fun in a series of drop-in 90 minute sessions. Alison Goldie facilitates games and activities for all Skyros participants that will stimulate your creativity, reacquaint you with your silly side and generate lots of enjoyment.   Expect a mix of improvisation, singing, party games, themed chats, fig-picking while nattering – Alison likes finding the right activity for the people playing, and giving them a space to loosen up and bond with others after working hard on their full courses.

Alison Goldie Alison Goldie is an actor, theatre director, writer and teacher. After graduating from Hull University with a degree in drama she performed in many rooms above pubs, did solo stand-up comedy, played all the female characters in Newman and Baddiel in Pieces (BBC2), then became a travel reporter on The Travel Show (BBC2). She toured the world with the award-winning The Weird Sisters Theatre Company and received huge acclaim for her solo show, Lady in Bed. She has directed plays for Vienna’s English Theatre, and in London’s West End, as well as many fringe and community shows. Alison’s book ‘The Improv Book: Improvisation for Theatre, Comedy, Education and Life’ was published in 2015 by Oberon Books and has received unanimously positive reviews. Alison is also a trained and practising life coach. See Alison's website here: www.alisongoldie.com and www.alisongoldiecoach.com.

Morning Yoga & Treatments Skyros Centre course participants are welcome to attend a gentle pre-breakfast yoga class in the mornings. This class is a great way to start the day. Wear loose comfortable clothing.  Katrina Love Senn teaches Healing Hatha Yoga which is her own signature blend of yoga, breathing, stretching, visualisation, intention and personal enquiry. It helps students to strengthen their body-mind connection, activating richer levels of creativity and spirituality. Katrina's classes draw on her extensive experience teaching at international healing retreat centres around the world. She infuses her yoga classes with kindness, compassion and a sense of play. Her classes are suitable for students of all levels including beginners. For Katrina, yoga is a powerful tool for total transformation. Through the practice of yoga, you give yourself a gift; a safe space to look within, gaining new insights and using these as a chance to see all the answers that reside inside of you. Being on the mat, is a way that you can heal, build strength and find the courage to take a powerful step forward in your life. Yoga can help to transform and shift any area of your life including your health, your career, and even your relationship to self and others. It can help you to get clear on your old stories, default habits, limitations and fears so that you can move beyond them if you choose to.  Yoga gives you a platform to find your edge and play with it, so that you can go beyond that which you thought was even possible, and create a body and life that you dream of!

Katrina Love Senn Katrina Love Senn is an international yoga teacher, healer and author of the ground breaking book 'Losing Weight is a Healing Journey: A Woman’s Guide to Losing Weight Naturally'. On her healing journey, she lost over 60 pounds for good as well as healed a number of chronic health conditions, including asthma, eczema and adrenal exhaustion, with no diets, drugs or deprivation. She is a natural intuitive and has a fun, warm and heart-centred approach to living and life. She infuses her gentle yoga classes with inspiration, love, kindness and encouragement. Based at The Skyros Centre Katrina is excited to offer massage treatments, along with her signature Break-through Healing Sessions. Her massage treatments and healing sessions are based upon how she healed and transformed her own life using a range of gentle healing tools

• Isle of Wight IOW

  FRI 6 - SUN 8 OCT 2017

  £90.00

  Book

• Screenwriting

  Phil Gladwin

Screenwriting An Introduction to Screenwriting is an exciting glimpse into the world of the professional storyteller. During the course of the weekend you will learn how to create the kind of story that grips an audience, how to guide that audience through ever bigger emotional highs and lows, how to build to a dramatic climax, and how to leave them desperate for more. You should come with a blank piece of paper and no preconceptions, and expect to leave with a vivid insight into how TV drama is actually written. Using a mix of practical workshops, more formal discussions, and private writing time, Philip will introduce you to dramatic screenwriting. He will show you how it differs from other forms of writing, and he will explain what elements you absolutely need for a dramatic story. He will explain his professional methods for creating engaging characters, get you writing great scene and dialogue, and help each of you with your dramatic writing, whether you are just starting out, or whether you have been writing professionally for years. If you have ever looked at the TV and thought, I can do better than that‚ then this is your chance to begin. PLEASE NOTE that this course is best suited to people who want to write drama for the screen, the stage, or for radio. The course weekend begins with arrival from 4pm on the Friday evening and optional dinner at 7.30pm. After dinner there is a welcoming get-together and an introduction to the course.  Courses run for two hours from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Saturday, 5pm to 7pm on Saturday afternoon and from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Sunday. The course price is £90.00 and a 10% discount applies to Friends of Skyros. As you proceed through the booking system you will be asked for your accommodation requirements.

Phil Gladwin Owner of Screenwriting Goldmine, and most recently Head of Development for Bentley Productions (famous for making Midsomer Murders), Philip Gladwin has worked as a television script editor and screenwriter since 1995. He has been hired by (and sometimes been fired by) the BBC, ITV, and many different independent production companies, to write or edit TV shows such as New Tricks, The Dumping Ground, The Sarah Jane Adventures, Grange Hill, Holby, Trial & Retribution, The Bill, Casualty, Bugs, Crossroads, and Berkeley Square, plus a good few others that never made it to broadcast. Two of his stage plays went on national tour in 2011 and 2012, he has been nominated for a Sony award and a Medical Journalists Award for his radio plays, and nominated twice for the Dennis Potter Award for his TV work. While learning to write he worked as a cycle courier in central London, a researcher in Artificial Intelligence at Cambridge University, a waiter in London, Brighton and the East Village, and a technical writer for an IBM software house. He loved being a cycle courier, but possibly his least favourite job was being the man who sat outside a massive freezer keeping tally of the movements of tons of frozen fish. He now lives by the sea in Brighton.

• Isle of Wight IOW

  FRI 13 - SUN 15 OCT 2017

  £90.00

  Book

• How to Build a Novel - Weekend

  DJ Connell

How to Build a Novel - Weekend We will examine the novel from a structural perspective, breaking it down into the elements of a good story. You will learn how to plan your novel and how to build its chapters along the bones of a narrative arc. This course is about demystifying the process and about giving you practical skills to construct a compelling book with vivid characters. You will be guided and encouraged within a positive and supportive group environment. There will be daily exercises to stimulate creativity and to provide you with the confidence to power ahead with your novel.  Key benefits: You will come away with an outline and timeframe for proceeding with your novel You will leave the course feeling confident about your ability to write your book You will feel enlivened and encouraged by the group dynamic The course weekend begins with arrival from 4pm on the Friday evening and optional dinner at 7.30pm. After dinner there is a welcoming get-together and an introduction to the course.  Courses run for two hours from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Saturday, 5pm to 7pm on Saturday afternoon and from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Sunday. The course price is £90.00 and a 10% discount applies to Friends of Skyros. As you proceed through the booking system you will be asked for your accommodation requirements.

DJ Connell DJ Connell was born in New Zealand and has lived and worked in various countries including Australia, Japan, France and the UK. She began her writing career as a newspaper journalist and also wrote for the international non-profit field and advertising before becoming a novelist. Her first novel 'Julian Corkle is a Filthy Liar' was published in the UK by Blue Door HarperCollins and was shortlisted for the Polari First Book Prize. Optioned by Sarah Radclyffe Productions and Macgowan Films, the novel was adapted for screen by Mark Herman and Jonathan Entwistle. The feature film is currently in pre-production. DJ Connell’s second novel 'Sherry Cracker Gets Normal' was also published by Blue Door with editions published in France and German by Editions Belfond and Rowohlt Verlag, respectively. DJ Connell lives in London and is a regular contributor on BBC London 94.9. In 2014, she received a grant from Arts Council England to complete her third book 'The Absurdist'. She is currently working on the second draft of her fourth novel which is set in Camden, London. To find out more about DJ Connell visit her website, djconnell.com and blog, djconnell.wordpress.com

• Isle of Wight IOW

  FRI 20 - SUN 22 OCT 2017

  £90.00

  Book

• Wellbeing Moments

  Andry Anastasiou

Wellbeing Moments Wellbeing means being happy, healthy and fulfilled in life. Our sense of wellbeing can change moment to moment, with our emotions, thinking and physical health. It's proven that we can increase our own wellbeing over time. When we listen carefully to ourselves and others, our inner wisdom can guide us to how to enhance our wellbeing in life.  On this supportive experiential weekend workshop, we will draw on deep listening techniques from journalling, to peer coaching and neutral compassionate observation. Using these approaches, you will discover the inner spark of wellbeing wisdom that exists in you and that guides you to understand clearly how to improve your wellbeing in life.  The course weekend begins with arrival from 4pm on the Friday evening and optional dinner at 7.30pm. After dinner there is a welcoming get-together and an introduction to the course.  Courses run for two hours from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Saturday, 5pm to 7pm on Saturday afternoon and from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Sunday. The course price is £90.00 and a 10% discount applies to Friends of Skyros. As you proceed through the booking system you will be asked for your accommodation requirements.

Andry Anastasiou Andry Anastasiou is an insightful experienced, qualified coach, international  workshop facilitator and learning consultant. She has been leading personal and professional development workshops for over 20 years that have enabled her clients to experience wellbeing, change career direction, find new jobs, discover work-life balance and improve relationships. Andry has skills and knowledge in a range of coaching, mentoring, success and well-being and change techniques such as, Solutions Focused coaching dialogue, mindfulness, Qi Gong, MIT U Theory and possibility thinking.  Andry facilitates creative, supportive workshops with real passion, insight authenticity and playfulness.    What Andry’s clients say:   •     ‘The biggest  change I experienced as a result of coaching with Andry has to be my new job, with my new career.’  •     ‘Working with Andry is great because it’s like a journey of starting with someone stuck in a certain place and then by using skills and technique you enabled me to unravel it all to get to a different space. It’s all about understanding.’  Visit Andry's website here: http://thelearningmoment.org

• Isle of Wight IOW

  FRI 27 - SUN 29 OCT 2017

  £90.00

  Book

• Adventures in Comedy Writing Weekend

  Logan Murray

Adventures in Comedy Writing Weekend Comedy, like any other art, is a craft. There are tips and techniques to be learnt. Simply put, if you can understand comedy grammar then unlocking the funny ideas becomes easier. From finding your creative inspiration to learning the building blocks of humour, this workshop will help you discover your unique comic voice. Although a writing course, there would be some non-writing exercises designed to encourage the participant’s creativity. There would also be writing games with group feedback and tutor led suggestions to help you hone your comedy writing skills. By the end of the course you will know how to write comedy and will have the confidence to stand up on your own and make a group of total strangers laugh. Not only will you learn some tricks of the trade, you will also gain a greater awareness of the multitude of differing comic styles that the group manifest. These comedy skills aren’t only for the professional; they are also a fantastic way to think outside of the box, hone your communication skills and increase your confidence in everyday life. More importantly, you will laugh loads over the entire course. The course weekend begins with arrival from 4pm on the Friday evening and optional dinner at 7.30pm. After dinner there is a welcoming get-together and an introduction to the course.  Courses run for two hours from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Saturday, 5pm to 7pm on Saturday afternoon and from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Sunday. The course price is £90.00 and a 10% discount applies to Friends of Skyros. As you proceed through the booking system you will be asked for your accommodation requirements.

Logan Murray Logan Murray is a working comic and award winning director, author of ‘Teach Yourself Stand Up Comedy’, and script consultant for the BBC. He has recently run a series of writing workshops for the Radio Four Comedy Department. He teaches all over the World the Art and Craft of Comedy as far West as Colorado and as far East as Shanghai. Logan has taught many of the comedians, comedy actors and script writers who have appeared on TV and Radio over the past fifteen years, but is far too modest to boast about it here. There is, however, a list of past alumni on his website… His courses offer a unique opportunity to find out what a comedian’s mindset is like and explore his belief that Comedy really is a life skill!

• Isle of Wight IOW

  FRI 3 - SUN 5 NOV 2017

  £90.00

  Book

• Passionate Living Weekend

  Malcolm Stern

Passionate Living Weekend As children we marvel at the world around us, longing to be grown up and able to taste many gifts in life. Somehow as adults we have learned to shut down and avoid our pain and struggle. Unfortunately and unknowingly, we also close down our passion and joy. This workshop is designed to reawaken our appetite for the richness of life. Using a blend of psychotherapy, sensual techniques, dance, small group exercises, laughter and communication, we will explore and embrace our passionate selves. The course weekend begins with arrival from 4pm on the Friday evening and optional dinner at 7.30pm. After dinner there is a welcoming get-together and an introduction to the course.  Courses run for two hours from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Saturday, 5pm to 7pm on Saturday afternoon and from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Sunday. The course price is £90.00 and a 10% discount applies to Friends of Skyros. As you proceed through the booking system you will be asked for your accommodation requirements.

Malcolm Stern Malcolm Stern has worked as a group and individual psychotherapist for more than 20 years. He was a co-founder and is Executive Director of Alternatives at St James’s Church in London and runs groups internationally. He is the author of Falling in Love / Staying in Love (Piatkus 2004) and was co-presenter of Channel 4's relationship series 'Made for Each Other' in 2003 and 2004 and sailed on the 'Rainbow Warrior' with Greenpeace in the 1980s. Visit his website here: malcolmstern.com

• Isle of Wight IOW

  FRI 10 - SUN 12 NOV 2017

  £90.00

  Book

• Yoga with Awareness Weekend

  Ken Eyerman

Yoga with Awareness Weekend In a focused and yet playful way, experience how Ken integrates Yoga with Feldenkrais. These yoga classes and moving meditation sessions are suitable for all levels, including complete beginners and those who have injuries or are restricted in their movement. The intuitive and spontaneous hands-on approach emphasizes the benefits of using your breath and developing an awareness of your inner process. Participants will learn to use their bodies with intelligence, awareness and efficiency. The Eyerman Technique will ease you into new postures while encouraging you to explore movement in a way that is both developmental and restorative. Ken seeks to work with you, by developing core movement, and helping you tune into the constant flow of life energy essential to maintaining health and clarity of mind. Ken's yoga courses in Greece with Skyros.com are included as 'One of the 5 Best Yoga Holidays' on the Healthista website and listed as the 'Best holiday for those with injuries', describing the yoga as 'great for people who want a slower pace, including complete beginners and those who have injuries or are restricted in their movement.' The course weekend begins with arrival from 4pm on the Friday evening and optional dinner at 7.30pm. After dinner there is a welcoming get-together and an introduction to the course.  Courses run for two hours from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Saturday, 5pm to 7pm on Saturday afternoon and from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Sunday. The course price is £90.00 with a 10% Friends of Skyros discount. As you proceed through the booking system you will be asked for your accommodation requirements.

Ken Eyerman With over thirty five years experience, Ken is an American who has worked as a movement therapist, having studied dance and psychology. Previously he worked at the London Contemporary Dance School as bodyworker in residence. Ken is trained in The Feldenkrais Method, Awareness Through Movement and has a busy private practice at Natureworks/ Danceworks in London. As well as regular yoga workshops, Ken offers his Yoga with Awareness holidays internationally and returns to Skyros for his 25th season! He is the author of an inspirational book, Massage and was named as one of the Londons top three masseurs by the Evening Standard. The Ken Eyerman School of Bodywork and Movement is affiliated to the Institute of Complementary Medicine.

• Isle of Wight IOW

  FRI 17 - SUN 19 NOV 2017

  £90.00

  Book

• Cuban Salsa

  John Harris

Cuban Salsa In this course you will master the basics of Cuban Rueda Salsa - the Cuban social dance. Students can expect to cover the basic steps and turns of Cuban style which transfer to Columbian, LA and Cross Body styles. The course is designed for beginners but refreshers and the more experienced are still welcome to join this fun and invigorating course.  The course weekend begins with arrival from 4pm on the Friday evening and optional dinner at 7.30pm. After dinner there is a welcoming get-together and an introduction to the course.  Courses run for two hours from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Saturday, 5pm to 7pm on Saturday afternoon and from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Sunday. The course price is £90.00 and a 10% discount applies to Friends of Skyros. As you proceed through the booking system you will be asked for your accommodation requirements.

John Harris John Harris teaches Cuban Salsa and Argentine Tango and is also a Yoga instructor and Life Coach. He has led over 15 Skyros Holidays to Cuba and has taught Yoga and Life Coaching in a variety of settings worldwide. He first began working for Skyros in 1999, is originally from New Zealand and currently resides in the UK with his wife Zoe and son Felix.

• Isle of Wight IOW

  SUN 24 - WED 27 DEC 2017

  £425.00

  Book

• Christmas Celebration 2017

  Michael Eales

  Christmas Celebration 2017

  Susie Self

Christmas Celebration 2017 [To follow]

Michael Eales Michael Eales, psychologist, writer, and leadership coach for 30 years, is one of the leading figures in Humanistic Psychology. He is co-author of The Personal Management Handbook,Implausible Professions and The Coaching Cube and is a management consultant with major organizations. He was part of the staff team of the Human Potential Research Project at Surrey University and has trained many practitioners in the field. He has written for film and television. He co-wrote and acted in the film Inertia (Dir. Anna Campion), which opened at the London Raindance Film Festival, and Bipolar‚ which premiered in 2006 at the Edinburgh Film Festival. He is currently working with Anna Campion on a film adaptation of a novel. In 2013 he published Sketches of Skyros, a collection of poems illustrated by paintings of the late Manos Faltaits, and Dreams Like Enigmatic Paintings, a translation of the work of Henri Michaux.

Christmas Celebration 2017 [To follow]

Susie Self Susie Self ARCM MPhil Cantab is an International singer/composer. She has composed 4 symphonies 3 operas and 6 albums. She has just won a STEAM scholarship to read for a PhD in composition at Birmingham University. Susie has sung solo in the West End and for the opera houses of Lyon, Luxembourg, Salzburg, Strasbourg, Antwerp and The Royal Opera, Covent Garden.

• Isle of Wight IOW

  SAT 30 - TUE 2 JAN 2018

  £425.00

  Book

• New Year Celebration 2017/8

  Kate Daniels

  New Year Celebration 2017/8

  Alison Goldie

New Year Celebration 2017/8 [To follow]

Kate Daniels Singer and songwriter, Kate was also for many years the director of Systemic Psychotherapy training at the Tavistock Centre in London, Kate continues to teach there and in addition has run courses and directed in Skyros for 14 years. Pursuing a creative life is her passion. She studied in Birmingham with playwright David Edgar, has acted and written for theatre and radio and this year she will be launching her third CD as a jazz singer. A recent performance of hers at the Vortex in London was hailed by The Guardian jazz critic as “A classy concert of song-cherishing internationalism”.

New Year Celebration 2017/8 [To follow]

Alison Goldie Alison Goldie is an actor, theatre director, writer and teacher. After graduating from Hull University with a degree in drama she performed in many rooms above pubs, did solo stand-up comedy, played all the female characters in Newman and Baddiel in Pieces (BBC2), then became a travel reporter on The Travel Show (BBC2). She toured the world with the award-winning The Weird Sisters Theatre Company and received huge acclaim for her solo show, Lady in Bed. She has directed plays for Vienna’s English Theatre, and in London’s West End, as well as many fringe and community shows. Alison’s book ‘The Improv Book: Improvisation for Theatre, Comedy, Education and Life’ was published in 2015 by Oberon Books and has received unanimously positive reviews. Alison is also a trained and practising life coach. See Alison's website here: www.alisongoldie.com and www.alisongoldiecoach.com.