Once again the celebrated Valyermo Dancers pair their sacred art with the mission of Holy Spirit Retreat Center to offer two concert presentations of their Dancing Festival of Lessons and Carols, choreographed by John West
Spend an afternoon at Holy Spirit Retreat Center in Encino and celebrate the joyous expectation of Christmas through dance, music, poetry, and
Scripture-based prayer. Open to all, this is an interfaith, multi-cultural and multi-lingual celebration of the season of light. If this is a return visit,
you will likely find new works added to your previous favorites.
Sidestep the commercial hurry and wander to Holy Spirit Retreat Center to celebrate Advent and Christmas.
"When you dance, your purpose is not to get to a certain place on the floor. It’s to enjoy each step along the way."
-Wayne Dye
January 15th-18th 2016
Valyermo Mid-Winter Dance Workshop
Led by John West, Obl. OSB, B.A., M.Ed., M.A., and Fr. Philip Edwards, OSB.
With contributing artists ValLimar & Frank Jansen
St. Andrew's Abbey, Valyermo, CA
$350 single room; $287.50 shared room.
Price includes meals.
The work and prayer of sacred dance becomes the vehicle for this weekend of celebration and praise of the unifying breath of the living God who created
our diverse, multi-formed, humanity. Dancers, musicians, and poets of good faith are called together this weekend to translate religious, biblical, and liturgical themes into moving art reflective of God’s creative presence in all of humankind. The days are full of scripture, dance, prayer, and fellowship; the evenings are open to silence and reflection. Sunday night provides the participants the opportunity to offer, in the company of the monks, the work of previous days in a worshipful setting. (Bring, along with your imagination and creativity, a Bible, a moleskin or journal, your musical instruments, dance work clothes, and clothing suitable for liturgical celebrations.)
John West is an oblate of Valyermo and founder of the Valyermo Dancers. A gifted dancer, choreographer, and liturgist, he has been conducting workshops at St. Andrew’s,
as well as at the international and national collegiate and university levels. His professional associations include membership in the prestigious North American Academy of Liturg
JUNE
Aware of Being Moved
We are called on a journey of faith that leads us to
recognize landmark experiences along the way.
These landmarks help reinforce our belief and hope that we are
where we need to be at the right time. We often do not
arrive by our own conscious design, but by the silent yet
powerful winds of the Spirit. We arrive because we have
been moved, emotionally, physically, spiritually.
Come surrender to the movement through the beauty
and power of sacred dance.
Sacred Dance Workshop at St. Andrew's Abbey, Valyermo Ca.
Led by John West, Obl. OSB, B.A., M.Ed., M.A.
June 18th , 2016
9:00 am -4:30 pm
To register, please contact St. Andrew’s Abbey: email to retreats@valyermo.com or call (661) 944-2178
Workshop tuition: $40.00, includes continental breakfast, coffee, tea, and water.
These beverages are available throughout the day. Lunch is served following the noon Mass.
John West is an educational consultant for Independent schools and schools for the gifted. He is an oblate of St. Andrew's Abbey in Valyermo, Calif.
and founder of the Valyermo Dancers. As a lecturer in medieval and sacred dance, a gifted choreographer, dancer, and liturgist, he has been conducting
workshops at St. Andrew's Abbey, Holy Spirit Retreat Center, as well as international and national collegiate and university venues. He and his company are regular participants in the Religious Education Congress; John also serves on the Congress Liturgy Committee. His professional associations include membership in the prestigious North American Academy of Liturgy.
Discovering the Living Desert and Creator Spirit
July 21th -23rd 2017
Valyermo Summer Sacred Dance Workshop
Led by John West, Obl. OSB, B.A., M.Ed., M.A., and Fr. Philip Edwards, OSB
Creation and our shared role in it usually display themselves in the lush of spring and summer; the green of forest and blue, teaming shores and depths of water.
Come rediscover the “seamless beauty” of Mother Earth, God’s original gift of “all that is” in the midst of the mysterious desert and the warmth of the California summer. Participants will revisit the dance of creation as called by the psalms, the dance of Miriam at the Exodus, and the spirituality of the Desert Mothers. We will come to sing and dance together “Laudato, Si.”
Dancers, musicians, artists, liturgists, and poets of faith are called together this weekend to translate our care for the Earth into movement reflective of God’s creative energy in all of humankind. The days are full of scripture, dance, prayer, and fellowship; evenings are open to silence and reflection. Participants will have the opportunity to offer the work of previous days in a worshipful setting. Bring comfortable clothes to move with ease.
Please Contact St. Andrew’s Abbey: retreats@valyermo.com or call (661)944-2178 http://www.saintandrew
MAY
Finding Moments of Gratitude, Healing, and Joy
Holy Spirit Retreat Center
Sacred Dance Workshop
May 20, 2017 9:30 am-3:30 pm
Let your life’s dance include steps, great and small, that give thanks for what you have, preparing you for the joys and gifts to come. The more actions of gratitude we seek and do, the more joy and balance we will find. Come celebrate and practice these steps of life in the dance! This Sacred Dance Workshop provides an opportunity for dance prayer to be experienced by the dancer and non-dancer alike. Come and experience this new dimension of pray
The Valyermo Dancers will participate in the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress in Anaheim.
The dance company will serve as ministers of liturgical movement for the Opening Event, the Friday
Spanish Liturgy; Saturday English and Spanish Liturgies; Sunday closing liturgies.
Friday, February 24, 2017
8:30-9:30 am Opening Event & Welcome (Arena)
5:15- 6:45 pm Joy of Love In Marriage Liturgy
Spanish Liturgy - Archbishop José Gomez (Hall B)
Saturday , February 25, 2017
10:00-11::30 am Moving With Trusting Hearts and Minds for Grace to Enter from Unlikely Places Workshop Period 4 #4 23 session
5:15-6:45 pm Inmigrantes, Exiliados y Refugiados Hall B
- Immigrants, Exiles & Refugees in the Arena
Sunday, February 26, 2017
8:00-9:30 am Eucharistic Liturgy
3:30-5:00 pm Closing Eucharistic Liturgy, Archbishop José Gomez
JANUARY-MARCH 2017
It's A Way of Life
Keep healthy in body and spirit by
integrating physical and spiritual exercises
through modern dance in a sacred mode
John West, Director of the Valyermo Dancers and workshop facilitator at both St. Andrew’s Abbey and HSRC, offers
two series of modern dance classes that integrate both physical and spiritual exercises. Using his rich background in
Graham, Humphrey-Weidman, Horton, and Dunham techniques, John will lead students from teens and young adults
to seniors to improve their physical condition and ward off the intimidations and restrictions of stress and limited
physical abilities. With attention to the physical core and the spiritual core, movers and dancers will develop a sense of
community and joy in the celebration of Life and the gifts of the Creator. The classes will offer a unique opportunity
for friends and those in relationship to speak and communicate in & through dance,
“the hidden language of the soul" [Martha Graham].
"I will transform the valley of trouble into a gateway of hope.”
-Hosea 2:15
January 13th-16th 2017
Valyermo Mid-Winter Dance Workshop
Led by John West, Obl. OSB, B.A., M.Ed., M.A., and Fr. Philip Edwards, OSB.
St. Andrew's Abbey, Valyermo, CA
$350 single room; $287.50 shared room.
Price includes meals.
Hope is the dream of the soul awake; hope has no boundaries. Though we believe hope is a perennial flower of the human spirit, its seeds must be discovered, watered, and tended in each of our lives. That calls for time apart, time to reflect and tend to the spirit. This workshop is an invitation to come to the Abbey as a gateway and to use this retreat to sow those seeds of hope deep within; to look forward to a full healing and harvest of our soulful selves. Dancers, musicians, artists, liturgists, and poets of faith are called together this weekend to translate hope into movement reflective of God’s creative presence in all of humankind. The days are full of scripture, dance, prayer, and fellowship; evenings are open to silence and reflection. Sunday night provides the participants the opportunity to offer the work of previous days in a worshipful setting and in the company of the monks. Bring comfortable clothes to move with ease.
This workshop is an invitation to step into the sacred space of the Abbey and use it as a portal into
the sacred space of our humanity. Overcoming the division and fraction between one another
calls for the "application of Trust"--prayer.
Dancers, musicians, artists, liturgists, and poets of faith are called together this weekend to move beyond words into heartfelt and embodied prayers for and about the dignity, mutual respect, and faith love we share in the ongoing work of Creation.The days are full of scripture, dance, prayer, and fellowship; evenings are open to silence and reflection. Sunday night provides the participants the opportunity to offer the work of previous days in a worshipful setting in the company of the monks. Bring comfortable clothes to move with ease..
Led by John West, Obl. OSB, B.A., M.Ed., M.A., and Fr. Philip Edwards, OSB.
St. Andrew's Abbey, Valyermo, CA
$350 single room; $287.50 shared room.
Price includes meals.
Please Contact St. Andrew’s Abbey: retreats@valyermo.com or call
John West is an oblate of St. Andrew’s Abbey and founder of the Valyermo Dancers. A gifted dancer, choreographer and liturgist, he has been conducting dance workshops at St. Andrew’s and Holy Spirit Retreat Center; a member of the Religious
Education Congress Liturgy Committee. A lecturer and educator at the international and national collegiate
and university levels, his professional associations include membership in the prestigious North American Academy of Liturgy and the Sacred Dance Guild Board of Directors
Moving in Wisdom, Dignity, and Homage to the God in US
Sacred Dance Workshop at St. Andrew's Abbey, Valyermo, Ca.
Led by John West, Obl. OSB, B.A., M.Ed., M.A.
November 14, 2015
9:00 am - 4:30 pm
A day of gathering to proclaim and manifest through dance a transformative healing drawn f the human family. What can you bring as a sign of your personal light?
To register, please contact St. Andrew’s Abbey: email retreats@valyermo.com or call (661) 944-2178
http://www.saintandrewsabbey.com/
Workshop tuition: $40.00, includes continental breakfast, coffee, tea, and water.
These beverages are available throughout the day. Lunch is served following the noon Mass.
John West is an oblate of Valyermo and founder of the Valyermo Dancers.
A gifted dancer, choreographer, and liturgist, he has been conducting workshops at St. Andrew’s, Abbey.
His professional associations include membership in the prestigious North American Academy of Liturgy.
OCTOBER
Remembering To Tell The Story
Sacred Dance Workshop at Holy Spirit Retreat Center, Encino, Ca.
Led by John West, Obl. OSB, B.A., M.Ed, M.A.,
9:30 am- 3:00 pm
Dance is a “tongue,” a language of its own:“…why should not mankind speak again in its most ancient
language of the mystery of movement and counter movement: the one movement which proceeds from this
world to God, and the other movement which proceeds from God to this world?
[Gerardus van der Leeuw]
This Sacred Dance Workshop provides an opportunity for dance prayer to be experienced by the dancer
and non-dancer alike. Each of us holds onto family stories that we share from one generation to another.
Join us to celebrate and dance those stories and memories together. The workshop will include reflection
on the multicultural experience of the triduum of Hallowtide – Oct, 31st through November 2nd –and the
dance of remembrance.
Fee: $45.00 with lunch; $35.00 without lunch $10.00 non-refundable deposit with registration.
John West is an oblate of Valyermo and founder of the Valyermo Dancers.
A gifted dancer, choreographer, and liturgist, he has been conducting workshops at St. Andrew’s Abbey.
His professional associations include membership in the prestigious North American Academy of Liturgy.
Register at Holy Spirit Retreat Center
818-784-4515 Fax: 818-784-0409
hsrcenter@earthlink.net
www.hsrcenter.co
St. Lawerence Martyr in Redondo Beach
Dec. 16th
2 pm & 7 pm
“We belong, from the cells
of our bodies
to the finest
creations of our
minds,
to the intricate
constantly
changing
cosmos."
[Sallie McFague]
Valyermo Sacred Dance Workshop
July 20-22
Moving with the Elements of Life in Cosmic Kinship
Led by John West, Obl. OSB, B.A., M.Ed., M.A., and Fr. Philip Edwards, OSB
Workshop participants will come to rediscover the "seamless" biblical and scientific relationship we share with the elements that compose and surround Mother Earth, God's original gift of "all that is." Set in the beauty of St. Andrew's Abbey and in the spirit of "LaudatoSi," songs and dance will be offered in thanksgiving and praise for God's Sacred Creation and our kinship with it.
Dancers, musicians, artists, liturgists, and poets of faith are called together this weekend to translate our care for the Earth into movement reflective of
God's creative energy and Spirit. The days are full of scripture, dance, prayer, and fellowship. Participants will have the opportunity to offer the work of their
days in a worshipful outdoor setting. Bring comfortable clothes to explore nature and to move with ease.