Two people in a contact improvisation embrace on a wooden floor
© Andrey Dronski

amongst

A gathering for people in process.

3 nights 18-30 people near Ōtautahi November 2026

amongst is an event in the making. This page is part of the process.

The concept: An intimate residential gathering in nature. It's somewhere between a camp and a retreat, but not quite either. amongst is designed for people who want to feel, move, think, rest, play, and be in shared presence.

The proposal: Three nights in November, around twenty-ish people, somewhere with enough space to breathe. There'll be facilitated sessions, open time, movement & rest. We'll open as a group and close together at the end.

The ethos: Embodied and somatic, participatory and collectively held, with room for emergence. We're cultivating curiosity, playfulness and an attunement to ourselves and one another.

Group of people lying in a circle on grass, aerial view © Harsha P

The shape

ThursdayAfternoon arrival The opening
  • Settle in
  • Welcome circle
  • Set intentions together
Fri & Sat2 full days The body
  • Morning pages
  • Movement
  • Facilitated sessions
  • Open time
  • Evening gathering
SundayAfternoon departure The closing
  • Slower pace
  • Space for what emerged
  • Integration
  • Closing circle
  • Farewell

The texture

things we might get into

Contact improvisation, relating games, community-building, improv theatre, music jams, life drawing, crafting, show & tell, lightning talks, contemplative practices, cuddles, shared meals, tea ceremony, nature time, eco-somatics, meaning-making.

Hand-drawn Venn diagram: three overlapping circles labelled relational, playful, and introspective, meeting at the centre

Who's behind this

Dawn seated among dancers during a movement session © Veronica Olariu

Dawn Evenden

Producer

I've spent the last couple of years in Europe working in and around spaces designed for people to come back to themselves. My experience spans group facilitation, hospitality, community operations, contact improv, somatic and creative arts practices. Since returning to Aotearoa, I've found myself searching for a particular kind of gathering and not quite finding it.

amongst is an attempt to build the thing that I want. It's my first time producing something like this from scratch. For me, the process is just as, if not more, important than the product. This is an active exploration of holding myself through the discomfort (& joy) of doing something raw and vulnerable and tangible.

If you're curious about my process I'm publishing it on my Substack.

This is still in early stages. The exact venue, pricing, programme outline, and facilitators are still being workshopped, in part by who shows up to the form below.

If this resonates with, or intrigues you, I'd love to hear from you. The expression of interest form, which also helps me get a sense for you, takes ~5 minutes. This is an intimate gathering, so spaces are limited and the group will be curated with care. If you know someone who may also be into this, please share it with them too.

Express interest