Play as Liberation
Inner Child Recess
(for adults)
Release ‘The Way Things Are’
Access ‘The Way Things Could Be’
This workshop is for any adult who felt deeply betrayed when the other kids stopped playing pretend and believing in magic. Your imagination is a superpower, and you deserve to stand proudly in all your unconventional glory. I believe that those of us who think and experience differently have the power to change the world. The first step is reclaiming that inner child who had their uniqueness trained out of them by a standardized world.
That’s what this workshop is all about. Using embodied and vocal play, we will learn how to call on the wisdom of the children we once were to face the obstacles of the adults we are now.
But isn’t ‘inner child work’ heavy and scary?
After all, that’s where most of our deepest, darkest wounds are formed.
I prefer to start, as with most healing, with trust, play, and joy. This builds safety with your inner little one and coaxes them out to play, to spark that connection around the common reference point of the happiest parts of childhood. This is a much sturdier way to lay a foundation of trust for deeper work later on and recruit your inner child as an extraordinary ally.
That’s why we work with play.
Children use play to make sense of the world around them. From mundane activities to traumatic events, they use play as a full-body canvas to imagine and reimagine their lives. That’s part of what makes them so amazingly resilient.
As adults, we are taught to approach our problems rationally, prioritizing logic over intuition. But play has a spontaneous, subconscious logic all its own, revealing possibilities and solutions we may never have considered.
What gives us the right to indulge in play when the world is burning?
Honestly, the state of the world is the BEST reason to dive into work like this! Think about it: these days it can be tough to imagine things differently - a better life, a better society, a better tomorrow. It’s exhausting trying to build anything new through the heaviness.
Now, think back to your childhood. How many times did you complete a chore or attempt a creative project in a completely unexpected way? Do you have memories of adults in your life saying ‘I never would have thought to do it that way?’ This unique perspective is just as much of your birthright as any natural talent or trained profession. What could you do with that fresh, curious invention as part of your toolkit? How could that transform the way you look at obstacles both individual and collective?
Two of the most fundamental ingredients to any kind of change - personal, social, or political - are hope and imagination. What if you could approach your problems with the optimism and creativity of a child? The world needs its misfits, dreamers, and rebels at full power now more than ever. Start by recruiting the part of you that never lost that spark: the inner child.
What exactly does this workshop look like?
We’ll start by building a common language of movement and sound, using simple and accessible games and exercises. These will get everyone comfortable with each other, and used to physical and vocal expression. Then we’ll apply that language to draw out our inner children. There will even be a show and tell portion! Finally, we’ll collaborate with our children to create a story formed from the clay of our own life stories. This is playing pretend with a purpose.
The Deets
Saturday, May 2nd
2 - 4 PM
The Hut
1285 Clark Rd, Units 1 and 2
Santa Fe, NM 87507
Sliding Scale: $40 - 60
Use code NoQuestionsAsked for $20 off
Intrigued, but nervous?
First, I don’t blame you. It can be scary and vulnerable to dive into spontaneous expression when that’s not your norm. Rest assured: I get it. I used to be the most reclusive of the socially anxious introverts. I spent years working from freezing in front of groups to learning to lead them. Because of this, I tailor each workshop to the needs of the participants, adjusting wherever is needed to suit everyone’s comfort level.
I also don’t expect you to dive right in or perform any kind of ‘skill’ in improvising. The entire workshop is designed to help tease out your natural expression, and there is no way to do it wrong. If you feel a longing for expressive freedom, but are worried about being overshadowed by more extroverted members of the group, then you’re in the right place. Of course, extroverts are welcome, too!
So who is leading this thing anyway?
Hi, my name is Kaatje Jones (she/they)
I’m a certified Voice Movement Therapy (VMT) Practitioner and a lifelong artistic weirdo. VMT is a somatic expressive arts therapy based in the embodied voice. It’s an endlessly adaptable modality that allows access to the subconscious and somatic wisdom through the core tools of movement, vocal sound, and imagination. Basically, I get to play pretend and make weird noises all day to help my clients rewrite their body's stories. It is my absolute joy to help people find freedom and empowerment through authentic expression. And it always amazes me to witness a room full of nervous adults transform into joyous, silly eight-year-olds.
"I have worked with Kaatje both one on one and in group settings and I can say she is one of the most caring, intuitive, humble, authentic, and creative people I have ever met. Through her one on one sessions we built safety for me to discover through my own voice and movement a path of discovery and healing. I was able to let go of self inhibitions and gain confidence in my ability to find my inner voice and my inner dance."
-Tony
“I cannot recommend Kaatje enough! I had no idea I could use my voice to heal and feel my body until working with her. ”
-Doménica
"Kaatje is such a comforting, opening, wilding, freeing essence for me to work alongside. She relaxed my nerves with her own freedom."
-Capri
