The Wisewarrior Training workshop this Saturday May the 26th was the first time that Tim San and Richard San ran their ‘Art of Kata’ lesson as a workshop, normally it is run only on weekend courses, so it was quite a treat for all who made it along on that wonderfully hot day!
It was apparent that the students were expecting a kind of Kata clinic but very quickly things went in an entirely new direction.
Many performance enhancing concepts were considered, including ‘direct & indirect focusing’ which had them experimenting with both tempo and opponent orientation. The whole nature of what ‘Kata’ means to a student was discussed and taught in depth.
The main thrust of the workshop was on ‘letting go’. Wisewarrior Training believes a Kata to be more than a string of techniques and that the performer has more to learn and offer than a mere physical display.
For the following hour the students went through a series of transformations, aided by the ambience of the Yoga & Pilates Centre, the music and not least the guiding instruction of Richard san and Tim san, assisted wonderfully by Tor San. Here their Kata took on more meaning than mere opponents and literally became a metaphor for their own personal development.
Finally the students realised the beauty of the Kata was in fact a reflection of themselves and this, along with a meditation exercise focusing on the power of the ocean, allowed the students to give some spectacular performances. This workshop really showed just how powerful the mind is and its influence over expression and movement.
Both Richard san and Tim San were very pleased with the results and might be persuaded to teach and developing these advanced ‘letting go’ concepts on a weekend course sometime later this year.
Stay tuned to the Wisewarrior channel!
Full photos of this great session can be found in the ‘Whats On’ Blog as well as on the Wisewarrior Training Events Page.