Artistic residency “Unlocking the Source” by Robert Hayden | USA / Belgium
Leader: Robert Hayden
Idea and performance: Robert Hayden and participants of the artistic residency
Part I. Artistic residency “Unlocking the Source” - laboratory process
Date: August 24 - 28, 2026 | Monday - Friday
Time: 10 am - 4 pm
Place: Room C_101, Art Factory in Łódź, 3 Tymienieckiego Street
Duration: 5 days, 5 hours a day
Work plan:
- 10 am - 1 pm | laboratory process
- 1 pm - 2 pm | lunch break
- 2 pm - 4 pm | laboratory process
Age restrictions: 18+
Residency designed for: dancers, choreographers and people working with movement and movement improvisation
Please bring: comfortable clothes and shoes
Language: residency will be led in English
Cost: 350 PLN per person
How to apply:
- please send applications to the following address: chorea.warsztaty@gmail.com
- applications are accepted from June 15 until June 29, 2026
- applications are accepted from Monday to Friday, 10:00-18:00
- the application should include a short bio (in English) - including experience with improvisation, and a cover letter (in English) answering the question "Why would you like to take part in the residency?”
- applications involve participation in the entire residency: in laboratory process August 24 - 28, 2026 and in the work-in-progress performance on August 28, 2026
Important information:
- the number of participants is limited
- the list of people who will be invited to participate in the residency will be announced on July 17, 2026
- the organiser does not provide accommodation or meals
- it is possible to order lunch, on August 24-28, 2026 at the festival restaurant "NieWinni", for an additional fee / fee for the first course (vegetarian soup): 12 PLN, fee for the second course (vegetarian or meet): 25 PLN, fee for two course: 35 PLN
Part II. Artistic residency “Unlocking the Source” - work-in-progress performance
Date: August 28, 2026 | Friday
Time: 5 pm
Place: Room C_101, Art Factory in Łódź, 3 Tymienieckiego Street
Admission: Free
Duration: 40 minutes
Age restrictions: None
Language: Non-verbal
DESCRIPTION OF THE RESIDENCY
We are delighted to announce that Robert Hayden - an exceptional artist, closely associated with CHOREA Theatre - will lead the dance residency during Retroperspektywy 2026. His creative and pedagogical journey spans 30 years of exploration and experience in the fields of dance, theatre, music composition, martial arts, therapeutic massage, meditation, and most recently, dream work within Saphire® Imagery led by “The School of Images” in New York. Robert was also associated for many years with the Ultima Vez company, performing in numerous well-known and internationally acclaimed productions.
The “Unlocking the Source” residency is a 5-day laboratory work and immersive journey inward - to reach the source of creativity and inner guidance within ourselves through body activation, working with imagery and dreams. Inspired by this year’s festival theme, “SUBVERSIONS”, we will focus on ways to stimulate and develop imagination, curiosity, and sensitivity - both in creators (dancers) and audiences (viewers).
We will immerse ourselves in the vast ocean of images hidden in the subconscious - based on the premise that the more we turn our gaze inward, the more clearly we perceive the inseparable connection between our inner and outer experiences. Through an active, conscious, and body-centered process, we can tap into the source of our innate resources and our deep creative potential. We will draw upon what defines our sensitivity, truth, and authenticity, and then dynamically embody it. We will learn how to enter into a creative dialogue and draw from the boundless resources of our consciousness. By following hidden patterns and directions, we will discover our own key to unlocking an inner source, greater vitality, creative lightness, and a sense of harmony. Such a state and presence have a significant impact on both the creator/artist and the audience/participants in creative activities.
INFORMATION ABOUT THE LEADER
Robert Hayden - actor, dancer, composer, and teacher. Began his professional formation as a competitive gymnast in 1978, ending in 1994. In 1992 he enrolled in the BFA Programme of Theatre and Dance at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, USA. In 2002 he moved to Brussels to work with the dance company Ultima Vez. Since then, for the past years, he has continued to regularly give workshops and classes both in Belgium and abroad. His work and research have been enriched through a wide range of creative and collaborative encounters including the studies of physical theatre, aikido, contact improvisation, capoeira, massage therapy, traditional polyphonic singing, and imagery-based practices. Notable encounters include: Albuquerque - based theatre group q-Staff, Utopia Danza-Teatro, CHOREA Theatre, David Hykes, Gardzienice Center for Theatre Practices, Teatr Zar and the Grotowski Institute, the former Workcenter of Jerzy Grotowski and Thomas Richards, and the School of Images led by Dr. Catherine Shainberg.
Financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage of the Republic of Poland, as part of the “Dance” programme, realised by the National Institute of Music and Dance.
