Name: Invocation Festival
Start: 2025-08-28T16:00:00+01:00
End: 2025-08-31T16:00:00+01:00

Invocation
Festival of Movement, Sound & Song
~ May we sing and dance our dreams into being ~

Thursday August 28th – Sunday 31st August 2025

Invocation is a festival to nourish you through exploration of movement, dance, sound, voice, and embodiment.

Our unique voice and dance is a gift to be explored and shared, when we come together to dance and sing, community arises.

Pick and choose from the beautiful offerings from our experienced facilitators to explore your uniqueness. Lose yourself in music, movement, sound and sensation. Find yourself in the groundedness of your feet.

In this age of technology, digital stimulation, fast pace information and disconnection with nature, our nature – let’s come together and be present to the gift of these moments of creation, sharing all it is to be human through these rich modes of exploration.

This is an alcohol and drug free festival. We can get high on being alive right now, honouring all our emotions, similarities and differences through movement, sound and song.

During this festival we will experience:

Collaborative Vocal Improvisation
involves spontaneously co-creating vocal music with others, in the moment. Sing your heart out, listen for the song of now. Presencing, connecting, sensitising, thrilling, scary, this art form has changed many peoples lives – including mine.

Voice Authentic
Voice Authentic is an invitation to liberate and empower the individual to express the full range and resonance of the voice, cultivating inner peace and self-connection through a dynamic blend of ancient and modern practices.

Dance Connection
A restorative movement practice for connection, expression and balance. Each dance pathway is carefully crafted to guide you through a myriad of movement explorations, progressively paced to eclectic music.

Indian Ragas
Incorporating this ancient practice helps reveal the voice as a powerful instrument allowing for the expression of deep emotions, creativity, and spiritual resonance.

Resonance Body
Go into your body and get your voice out of it. A 60 min practice lying on the floor, exploring the somatics of your unique voice, one body area at a time. It can be deeply relaxing, support trauma healing, and help you get to your full voice and experience sounds you never heard yourself make before!

Sound Baths
Relax and receive a shower of percussive sound. Sound vibration penetrates the body. Bring your mat, blanket and cushion to be comfortable.

Movement Medicine
Movement Medicine is a practice of self-awareness based on free dance, blending ancient traditions with modern science. It invites you to be present in the here and now, re-discover who you are and manifest yourself in the world.

Who is this for?

This festival welcomes everyone, regardless of dance or singing ability.

It is equally suited for experienced dancers and singers seeking connection, expression, and nourishment of body, mind, and soul.

We are the ones we have been waiting for.

Our Unique Voice And Dance Is A Gift To Be Explored

What are the benefits of spending 4 days together in this intimate festival?

Singing and dancing are beneficial for body, mind and soul.

The many benefits of Singing include:

Relieving stress and tension; boosting confidence; improving breathing; participating in a mindful activity; and so much more.

Dancing has some crossover benefits, it also:

Improves balance and coordination; enhances social connections; increase levels of the feel-good hormone serotonin; builds stronger bones and muscles, and so much more….look it up and you’ll see lots of supportive research. What often isn’t mentioned though, is how deeply both dancing and singing connect you to your essence self, and open gateways to soul expression and connection.

Since time immemorial people have dance and sung, as Beethoven knew “Music has the power to revolutionise our world”.

As we journey together through movement and voice – the naturalness of expression, uniqueness of each other, and sense of community, are gifts bestowed on us all – deepening day by day – as Aristotle said “the whole is greater than the sum of the parts”.

Meet your Facilitators

Julia Hope Brightwell (aka Jewell)

Julia, Creative Director and Teacher of Dance Connection. I’ve always loved to dance 5 Rhythms, Ceroc, Movement Medicine, and Biodanza (in which I trained as a Didactic teacher then became Co-Director of The Dorset School of Biodanza). Though I learned a lot through Biodanza, it was never a full fit for my creativity, love of music and dance. In April 2020, during lockdown, divine inspiration flooded through me, even giving me the name Dance Connection…. and the rest has been a labour of love bringing this restorative practice into the world, training others to do the same, and continuing to expand the music, dances and inspirations that come continuously. It feels very alive. The Dance Connection Community in Dorset is strong, and my vision is to have more teachers to spread it further through the UK. Before this I was a Colourist, Montessori Directress and I have a Psychology Degree.

Gavin Frank

Gavin is a singer, voice facilitator, Kirtan leader and musician. He has more than 25 years experience of empowering people to find their voice. He runs chanting groups, voice workshops, retreats and one to one sessions in the UK and Europe. Gavin records and performs in the duo Madrum and they have created 3 albums. He is currently working on some new material including some mantras and original songs.
Gavin is passionate about nature, travel, good food, yoga,the gym, 5 rhythms and of course music.

Briony Greenhill

Briony is a folk/soul improvisational artist and a renowned teacher of Collaborative Vocal Improvisation. She lives in Devon with her family, loves dancing, nature and pleasure, and wants to help usher in a Thriving Life Paradigm.

Ilaria Franchi

Ilaria is a Movement Medicine Teacher and a Focusing Practitioner, living in northern Italy.
Based on her personal family story of loss and disconnection from the body, her main focus is on strengthening the connection with the life force that is inherent in every human being.
She discovered the transformative power of free dance 18 years ago and that led to a lifelong journey of self-discovery and growth.

She leads group workshops and individual sessions online and in person, as well as outdoor projects. She has offered seminars to students at the University of Verona, Department of Educational Science, and in other social contexts.

She is also trained in offering Movement Medicine to people who have experienced grief and loss.

Bart

Bart is passionate about creating positive change, shamanic healing, music, and community.
Bart has a big and generous heart and loves to support people in finding their way back to their hearts and inspire them to live a meaningful and nourishing life. Bart will be offering a sacred sound journey at the Invocation Festival. He is a director here at Leela & was the founder of the Brightsky community.

Darpan

Introducing Darpan who will be sharing with you the profound effects of a Gong Bath. This powerful session envelops you in deep sound waves, bathing every cell of your body, promoting healing on all levels. Attendees often leave feeling deeply rejuvenated, refreshed, and restored, making it essential for those seeking rest, reconnection to self, and inner peace. Join Darpan and let the magic of sound healing transform your festival experience. Darpan has over 25 years of experience in sound healing and is a certified member of the College of Sound Healing.

Briony Greenhill is “one of the world’s leading proponents of collaborative vocal improvisation (CVI)” The Guardian

“Gavin brings a fresh talent and an inspiring presence to the world of voice and sound. The key to his genius is a simplicity of being that is too often missing in the everyday arts marketplace”.

Chloe Goodchild-Pioneer of The Naked Voice

“I have been participating in Dance Connection workshops for 3 years. The Dance Connection pathways have been portals into a deep sense of aliveness, joy, harmony and community. I feel a sense of wholeness that I rarely feel in everyday life. I work as a GP and I find that the dances facilitated by Jewell are the perfect antidote to my often overly stimulated, information processing mind. I can immediately drop attention into my body and feel in tune with its needs, inclinations and living wisdom. The harmony that occurs during some of the group dances is awe inspiring and very moving. If you want to discover a new outlet that will promote health and happiness more than you can ever imagine, I would thoroughly recommend trying Dance Connection.”

Bryan, Doctor, Ireland

May We Sing And Dance Our Dreams Into Being

CLICK HERE FOR BOOKING AND PAYMENT

Want to Volunteer? Click here for more info

Details:

Arrival: Thursday August 28th 2024 @ 4:00pm

End: Sunday August 31st 2024 @ 4:00 pm

Ticket price includes festival, food & camping with your own tent gear:

Full Price: £320

Early Bird till 31 March: £290

Payment Plans are available for all tickets to spread out the cost with no additional charge.

Accommodation options:
Camping £0
Own campervan £0 (plus £20 hook up if needed) 
Dorm £80 
Deluxe Dorm Bunk FEMALE £120
Deluxe Dorm Bunk MALE £120
Regular room in house £200 
Large room in house £240
Premium room £260
Premium Ensuite room £280
Single Pod £180
Double Pod £220
Bell tent (Glamping – double bed): £160
Shepherd’s Hut – £220

Information about our accommodation here!

APPLY HERE TO BE A VOLUNTEER

Invocation Festival

August 28 @ 4:00 pm - August 31 @ 4:00 pm

Our Unique Voice And Dance Is A Gift To Be Explored

May We Sing And Dance Our Dreams Into Being

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Invocation Festival

August 28 @ 4:00 pm - August 31 @ 4:00 pm

Our Unique Voice And Dance Is A Gift To Be Explored

May We Sing And Dance Our Dreams Into Being

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