Sarsha Hope is the visionary and co-founder of the Somatic Dance International Teacher Training, a groundbreaking program recognized as a powerful, transformative experience that trains leading-edge facilitators and DJs. It seamlessly integrates somatic facilitation, DJ skills, ritual, energetics, and ecosomatics, all viewed through a trauma-informed lens. This unique methodology creates potent, finely tuned dance containers. Additionally, Sarsha is the creative force behind "Remembrance," an online course tailored for women seeking to embody the feminine current, fostering freedom, liberation, and empowerment through practices like embodiment, ritual, journaling, and meditation.

Drawing from a vast reservoir of experience spanning over 25 years, Sarsha holds certifications as an Embodied Flow Teacher, Theta Healing practitioner, Massage Therapist, and Reiki Practitioner. She is also a Tantrika, DJ, Dance Performer, Mother, and Yoga/Meditation teacher. She also holds certificates in somatic trauma therapy and somatic parts work. Despite her diverse qualifications, her unwavering passion lies in dance, embodiment, and movement—an expedition that has unfolded over 40 years. Skillfully leveraging her extensive experience in various movement practices, she artfully incorporates a lifetime of wisdom into her offerings, encompassing international teacher training, online courses, retreats, and personalized embodiment coaching.

The capacity of Somatic Dance to harmonize and balance the mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual aspects of self consistently astonishes and inspires Sarsha. She remains struck with awe at the profound wisdom inherently present within the body.

IT IS A TRUE HONOUR TO WITNESS THIS GROWING GLOBAL PHENOMENON.

Blase is a touring music artist, DJ and mentor with dynamic range and specialises in cultivating conscious dance spaces. He combines practical knowledge of music theory and Djing with embodied awareness of energy and somatics to create soundscapes that assist dancers to drop out of the mind and into the inherent wisdom of the body.

Blase finds joy in bringing the freedom and expansion of the Somatic Dance space into his performances as a solo Artist and has been touring New Zealand for the summer festival season, playing at festivals such as NZ Spirit Festival, Splore, Earthbeat and Dimension festival. He has also made appearances around the globe playing traditional Ecstatic Dances in the UK and Portugal and is set to continue touring this summer in Europe.

He believes the power of dance has the ability to heal the world and break individuals out of their conditioning and limiting beliefs and his mission is to liberate souls into their highest calling, one dance at a time.

Blase has a wide variety of knowledge that helps to deepen the potency of this dance training including his multiple years of music knowledge, 200 hour Embodied flow yoga training, a certificate in Integrated somatic trauma therapy and over 500+ hours in formal Somatic Dance space.

In this training Blase translates the artistry of his craft into practical lessons of music theory, understanding DJ software and fundamentals and the curation of an Ecstatic dance playlist.

Laurie Silver is the visionary and co-founder of Soma & Soul, New Zealand’s only weekly Somatic Dance journey solely for women. She is also the creatrix of Dance Lab, an opportunity for recent Somatic Dance Teacher Training graduates in New Plymouth to practice their skills and develop their unique style.

As a California Licenced Acupuncturist, Herbalist, certified Iyengar Yoga teacher, Reiki practitioner, Level 2 Somatic Dance graduate, poet, mother and lifelong student of Vedic/Tantric wisdom traditions, Laurie has recently been invited into private practice, using Somatic Dance alongside other modalities.

Through personal experience, observation, and clinical practice, Laurie has seen Somatic Dance repattern limiting thought loops and self-sabotaging behaviour, transform victim consciousness, elevate depressed emotional states, move someone from a habitual fear/frozen state into a pure presence,flow state, release somatically stored trauma (without having to analyse or mentally revisit the traumatic event) and embody states of expansive awareness.

The therapeutic benefits of Somatic Dance continue to inspire and amaze Laurie. After decades of education, qualifications, and degrees, she remains in awe of the simple yet profound wisdom available within the body. Watching other women remember this truth is one of her greatest pleasures and a profound privilege.

Lea is a yoga teacher, somatic dance facilitator, DJ and enthusiastic dancer.

Through her experiences in somatic dance, ecstatic dance, contact impro, yoga and other embodiment spaces, she has created more freedom and a more loving and understanding space to herself.

With her love to free movement/ dancing and the DJ side of it, she will accompany and support you, especially behind the decks.

She holds dance spaces with love, compassion and openness - inviting you to let craziness, wildness, sensuality, silence, laughter, crying, screaming, loudness, childishness and everything that may arise, to be there. To find your own unique and authentic expression in this abundant dance journey.

Marissa offers spaces to dive deeper into oneself through movement such as yoga and dance. Connecting the mind, body and soul.

She brings humans together in somatic dance, where freedom, connection and transformation are embodied on the dance floor.

Marissa is a 500hr yoga teacher and has done somatic dance levels 1 & 2 with Sarsha Hope. She has held down the community dances in Queenstown since 2023 as a DJ and facilitator.

She holds the belief that magic happens when we give permission to be full expression of ourselves, wild and free without any restrictions.

Her mission is to create safe spaces to explore these parts of ourselves. Supporting other souls on their journey through embodiment practices that have helped change her own life.