Encountering Self, Encountering Matter, Authentic Movement and Guided Improvisation Workshop

Authentic Movement and Guided Improvisation

31st October – 1st November 2026 – Gießen, Germany

With Georgia Aroni & Maria Tsitroudi

In this experiential workshop, we will explore the connection between Authentic Movement, improvisation and diverse materials, as a pathway into creativity and imagination.

We will move between inner and outer worlds, between movement and stillness, witnessing and participating, structure and spontaneity, allowing the connection to materials to guide us into unexpected encounters with ourselves and our imagination. The materiality of the world can sometimes become companions, extensions of the body, landscapes or thresholds.

The Practice of Authentic Movement

Authentic Movement is a contemplative movement practice, based in the relationship between a mover and a witness. This workshop offers an introduction to inner witnessing, a key element at the heart of this transformative practice. It encourages bodily awareness, self-reflection and active imagination in movement, giving participants the opportunity to cultivate attention and presence in a non-judgmental environment.

The practice was originated by Mary Starks Whitehouse and further developed within the Discipline of Authentic Movement by Janet Adler. Drawing its principles from expressive dance and Jungian Depth Psychology, it is now practiced in a wide range of contexts – therapy, supervision, the expressive and performing arts, contemplative practice and personal growth.

With eyes gently closed, the mover focuses inward, bringing attention to sensations, images, feelings, impulses as they emerge into awareness in the present moment. The witness stays with eyes open, offering a quality of attention and presence, while also observing his/her thoughts, emotions, images or sensations that may unfold, by being with the mover.

A phase of transition follows, allowing the experience of movement and witnessing to take shape through various modes of expression such as writing, drawing, and verbal sharing.
This process deepens through the dialogue between mover and witness, gradually unfolding within the collective group setting.

Georgia Aroni: Clinical Dance-Movement Therapist BTD®, GDTR Sr, BTD Supervisor

Georgia has studied Education, Modern Dance, Greek Civilization, Authentic Movement, and Dance-Movement Therapy. She has been living and working in Germany for the past 16 years, where she works in a clinic specializing in psychiatry, psychotherapy and psychosomatic medicine, supporting both inpatient and outpatient clients.

 Her practice is informed by trauma-sensitive and body-oriented approaches, self-awareness, and self-care.

She also teaches as an adjunct teacher at the University of Luxembourg, within the Department of Humanities, Education and Social Sciences. Since 1997, she has been facilitating Dance-Movement Therapy groups and leading workshops for mental health professionals, artists, and education professionals in a variety of settings across Europe.

Alongside her clinical work, she facilitates Authentic Movement practice groups and offers creative supervision, incorporating self-care-oriented approaches into her work. 

georgia-aroni.com

The practice: Encounter matter

The dance practice „Encounter Matter„ has been developed through the choreographic trilogy of Maria Tsitroudi: Apricot trees exist, Cotton flowers exist and Willow trees exist. Noticing how entangled is our body memory to matter and how deep biographic experience is embedded into the materiality of the world was the beginning of this dance and choreographic practice. Developing this into a dance invitation she poses the question: how can materiality be re-experienced through novelty and creativity and imagination, what can the body sense through this encounter and what narratives emerge through this encounter?

Maria Tsitroudi: Performance, Fine art artist, Dance, Theater and Art Educator

Maria Tsitroudi is a performance and fine artist based in Gießen. She studied Applied Theatre at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (Diplom), dance at the Rallou Manou Professional Dance School in Athens (Bachelor), and holds an MA in Choreography and Performance from Justus Liebig University (JLU) Gießen as well as a postgraduate degree from HfG Offenbach.

Her solo and collective work has been presented in Frankfurt, Darmstadt, Marburg, Mannheim, Berlin, Leipzig, Athens, and Cyprus. In addition, she brings over 25 years of experience as a theatre and dance educator. For more information about her work, please visit her homepage.  

mariatsitroudi.wordpress.com/

Who can attend?

The workshop welcomes participants with and without prior movement experience, who wish to connect with themselves and their body. It can also be of special interest to professionals working in somatic practices, psychotherapy, the arts, education, or expressive arts therapies.

Dates:

Saturday and Sunday

31st October – 1st November 2026

Hour:
Saturday: 10:30 am – 15:30 pm
Sunday: 10:00 am – 15:00 pm

We invite each participant to bring materials that hold some personal resonance, something ordinary or precious, familiar or unexpected. Together, we will create a shared altar and discover new ways of encountering our materials through the body.

∞ The cost of the workshop is €150 Euros.

∞ To secure your place, we kindly ask you to complete your registration and submit a €50 deposit by 15 October. In the event that the workshop is cancelled by the facilitators, the deposit will be refunded in full.

The Venue

Bückingstraße 5-35394 Gießen

Information & Registration:

Maria Tsitroudi: mtsitroudi@yahoo.gr

Georgia Aroni: aronig@t-online.de