THE KAIROS at the

EURYTHMY Centre for Creative TRAINING Education PROGRAMME

November 2014 Our Dear Friends,

Once again we can look back on a rich and full year with manifold activities in our Kairos Training. We are very grateful for the support you give in thoughts, in being with us, and in your financial assistance, without you, we could not do our work and build this seed for a ‘humanity education’ which this training truly endeavours to provide.

This year the Centre for Creative Education celebrated its 21 st birthday! How wonderful that this organisation has been training teachers for 21 years, who have gone out into the world and are now bringing this inspiring artistically based anthroposophical education into both Waldorf and State schools in classrooms here in South Africa and abroad.

We at the Kairos Eurythmy Training are 16 years old and are delighted to soon see our 7 th graduating class spreading their Eurythmy wings on their chosen paths – the artistic healing forces will accompany all of them as far as the Philippines!

Being a birthday year, we see our highlights as special gives and blessings!

We were invited to participate in Cape Town’s annual Baxter Dance Festival, a major event in South Africa’s dance world. Many streams and genres of contemporary dance were presented. We brought a programme filled with music and speech Eurythmy entitled Come Hope with Me. This was a great opportunity for Eurythmy to meet the world and judging by the enthusiastic, warm response and comments like “what an amazing, unique, universal dance!” and … “we should see more of it.” We hope and trust that the Eurythmy touched many souls in the auditorium. We were very fortunate and grateful to have a wonderful violinist from Dornach, Switzerland, Rainhard Roux, and the muli-talented Luke Townsend on percussion and saxophone, as well as our dear pianist, Tim Hyslop to accompany us at this prestigious event.

Another highlight was our performance at the ’s fundraising concert at Novalis College where we were able to work with Celeste Roux, dear friend and colleague who now works as a Eurythmist and costume- creator at the .

And it was a great honour for the Kairos Eurythmy Ensemble to be invited to the Goetheanum in August to give meditative Eurythmy presentations and workshops within the conference for the High School of Spiritual Science. We were extremely touched at how deeply our work was appreciated. Thank you to Silke for her beautiful, inspiring choreography for this event.

The visit of Helga Daniel, who is the leading figure in the Pedagogical Eurythmy Teacher Training in Europe, was a major highlight in our year. Helga gave two of her precious holiday weeks to our training and inspired the students in their budding teacher capacities. This then was followed by the student’s practicals in the schools from which they returned more mature and with a broader sense of the responsibility they carry as Eurythmy students and as teachers in the becoming. A very warm and most grateful thank you to Helga! And also a big thank you to all the schools who hosted our students.

Unexpectedly, at the beginning of the year, a group of keen students assembled to start the Eurythmy training. We were delighted to welcome them and are now challenged as we juggle two hall spaces for movement with all our 4 courses.

We are most grateful for all the input which our whole collegium gives to the development of the students in all the varieties of subjects: our musicians without whom we could not exist: Ingrid Salzmann, Anthea Haupt, Tessa de Groot and Tim Hyslop; Charlene Shaw took the students on exciting art explorations and Michael Grimley continued to foster the clear thinking in his study work, and Briar Grimley engaged them in fascinating experiences in geometry. Marion Penfold so kindly helped some of our second-language students with English and for this we are truly grateful.

The second year students were part of the rich modules within the B.Ed Teacher Training department exploring the constitution of the human being in its manifold appearance; this interlinking work is most beneficial for our students and the lecturers Beulah Reeler, Peter van Alphen and Willem van der Velden inspire the students to become excellent teachers.

In the middle of the year the 3 rd and 4 th year students brought the performance of Snow White and Rose Red to many delighted children in schools in the Western Cape including Zenzeleni Waldorf in Khayelitsha.

As always, just before the year ends, the practices for the end of the year presentations are in full swing. The combined 4 th and 3 rd year group are working on their group graduation pieces and the two 4 th year students: Geralyn Laset and Laura Engelke are also working on their individual Solo presentations. We are looking forward to the graduation performance which will take place in early March and to their graduation in the next term. We then hope that once again we will be able to take the big leap across the ocean to travel to Europe and join in with the 4 th year graduation conference in Dornach in June 2015 … but many fundraising activities still need to happen in order that this dream may become true!

With all our hearts we THANK YOU for all your support and help that you give to us. We wish you a peace-filled Christmas time and may the spirit of the Christmas Light shine onto your new Year.

With our love Silke and Michelle

“The greatest things in life are worth waiting for”. For me this speaks of a soul journey towards self assertion through the overcoming of life’s challenges. Therefore being part of great creativity every day is a priceless experience for which I am humbly grateful to be part of. We are born to be the best at what we are assigned to do and ‘movement’ for me is how I express myself. Thank you to Eurythmy that I have this opportunity. MOVEMENT IS LIFE!

The Baxter Dance Festival was a great experience to be part of. The show itself helped us to grow and also gave us the chance of show-casing Eurythmy on a large theatre stage – it was one of my biggest highlights! The support from family and friends helped and inspired me to do more than what was expected of me. The long hours of practice and sweating really paid off – we put Kairos Eurythmy on another level. Thank you all for the love, time and support. Sandise Ngxumsa , 3 rd year

In tone Eurythmy, we are working on a piece where the elements of Major, Minor and Discords have been introduced. These elements have brought up many different feelings within me – especially the Discord. Sometimes I have found it difficult to recognise and differentiate these elements, but they are interesting and keep one awake! I love music and tone Eurythmy with Silke is very inspiring. Nkosinathi Ndlovu , 1 st year

I greet you with the universal message - with Peace and Mercy (Asalamualaikom waraghmatullah he barakaatu)

Through my impulse of seeking it was as though Eurythmy found me. I was one of the first to join my 1 st year group and as time went by, we were 3 and eventually 6. We are currently a group of 5. The group steadily learned to work together as a unit. I believe that we all came into each others paths for a reason. I find the journey unique as we are only beginning to uncover what each of us holds within ourselves. I do believe that our lecturers Silke and Michelle’s purpose is to unveil our individuality so that we as budding Eurythmists begin to share our knowledge in communities and the world. I look forward and beyond to my training.

With Gratitude Nisreen Edross, 1 st year

After our pedagogical training with Helga Daniels, we all went to different schools - some to observe teaching in Waldorf schools and others, especially the 3rd and 4th years, to teach. It was all a wonderful experience and we gained knowledge of how teachers manage in their teaching careers. The most interesting part was how the Waldorf curriculum brings and supports rhythmic lifestyles in children which will later on, positively affect them in their adulthood.

We are also involved with other subjects like painting and music. With music, we learn how to play the recorder as well as the notes of a piano. Reading music is an important thing that we learn as a basis for tone eurythmy. Painting improves and stimulates our creativeness, because as eurythmists we need to be creative. Ponego Mosige , 2 nd year

Rudolf Steiner said “If we wish to enter into the true nature of eurythmy we must perforce enter into the true nature of the human being”. This year we were given the task to research and present the life and work of various artists; Turner, Van Gogh, Chagall and Picasso. We needed to connect their qualities to Eurythmy Principles. Through doing this we gained a deeper understanding of what they were presenting through their art. I was struck by how ‘strength’ and ‘dynamic’ play such an important role in our Eurythmy. Mandisa Ngwane , 2 nd year

How fascinating it is to learn about the Greek gods and their Egos and how each god lives in the human soul and how we need to apply their special qualities in our Eurythmic movement. How wonderful to see the masters of art expressing themselves through paintings and sculptures and into the smallest detail - striving for perfection. Observing each detail of their work brings out their personalities and also principles that we could apply to our Eurythmic training. Nokusa Jali , 1 st year

In the 3 rd term of this year, we had a special guest from the Den Haag Eurythmy Training in Holland. Helga Daniels, a specialist in Pedagogical Eurythmy came to share with us her work and experiences of being a teacher, and how we could work with our Eurythmy tools when teaching children. She covered from class 3 to 7 with us and I loved every moment of it! It was very inspiring and made me realise the importance of Eurythmy in the child’s development, how essential it is! She showed us how children differ from one another and how much you need to take this into consideration and at the same time how each and every child needs equal attention. We hope that she will come back and share once again her amazing work and expertise with us in the future. Thank you Helga. Gugu Mashinini , 2 nd year

In the beginning of 3rd term this year, all the Eurythmy students went on our first practical to different Waldorf schools. I was placed at Imhoff Waldorf school under the mentorship of Maike Cooper, a past graduate from our Eurythmy training.

I learnt how to interact with the children in and outside of the classroom. I was present in their main lessons and in the Eurythmy lessons which was very interesting and enjoyable. It made me love Eurythmy more by seeing it this pedagogical aspect. After watching how the Eurythmy lessons were structured it was my chance to teach a lesson. It was something very new and different for me and at first, I was very nervous but I grew into it and it became one with my soul. I loved every minute of it.

This helped me grow as a Eurythmy student and it also answered a few questions I kept asking myself, but now I know where I see myself in 2 years time. This opened up my eyes to bigger and better things for my future. Simone Bedien , 3 rd year

In our first year, we laid the foundations of Speech Eurythmy with the care and guidance of our caring and vibrant teacher, Michelle Kaplan. Step by step, through improvisation, we explored the evolutionary sequence- gaining so much insight into our own lives. We learned our tuning in and basic exercises and vowel gestures and have recently discovered and moved forms for the Personal Pronouns. I have found speech Eurythmy a remarkable training. To learn the art of conscious speech and to learn to move sounds and poetry has vastly enriched my appreciation for language with its sacred connection to the Logos. Now simple letters and sounds, and words like “I’ or ‘You’ have so much more meaning. Karen de Voss , 1 st year

In second year, my group was given the task to present two talks on artists. For the first, we looked at the great masters Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael and Rembrandt. We discovered how these artists lived and worked in their time, how they related to world and how they expressed themselves through their art. By looking at the qualities of their characters and their work, we tried to see what we, as eurythmists, could learn from these masters.

From Leonardo I learnt how knowledge and inventiveness can be enlivened and explored through art, bringing together the structure and objectivity of science with the creativity and expression of art. He brings inspirations of light-filled thinking qualities to the Eurythmy. In the sculptures and paintings of Michelangelo I saw the might and majesty that can be achieved through the strength of our will forces and determination. Raphael invited us into his work to experience his gentleness and openness and refined Feeling. And finally, I saw how Rembrandt reawakened our individuality by bringing character, drama and activity into the people and stories that he painted, unafraid to stray away from the traditional expectations of his time. A master of light and dark – the two principle fundamentals to our Eurythmy work.

We then moved towards 20 th century art with our second talks, looking at Turner and the Impressionists, Van Gogh, Chagall and Picasso. These artists lived in a time when our world began to change very rapidly as it moved towards our modern era. Each of these artists opened themselves to the world through their art and with courage, faced the scrutiny of their soul. Turner brought us inspirations for Eurythmy via the mysteries of light; Van Gogh via the painful drama of colour; Chagall via the world of imagination; and Picasso, via the beauty of modern line and perspective.

As a eurythmist in training, I learnt a lot from the style and qualities from the work of these artists, but also from their lives. As a would-be artist, expressing this new art through the medium of movement, I am aware that I shall eventually take this art form into a world of materialism and criticism. But I hope to have the courage that these artists have displayed, to persevere in sending eurythmy into the world. Alison Kane , 2nd year

I found that the art sessions with Charlene Jefferies gave me a real sense of strength this year. There is something dynamic and very mystical in her approach to life. I found that ‘things opened up’ for me more this year. There was many a time when I left her class and went onto work with my Speech solo on the Four Elements and I would then usually be aware of larger energies flowing around me, guiding and inspiring.

I know Charlene from Michael Oak school where she taught my youngest daughter for three years. She was loved there for her vital energy. Now it seems that she is loved here for the very same qualities. She is extremely good at what she does. In the course of the year, we worked with water-colour painting, wax and block crayon, oil and chalk pastels and combinations thereof. We began with ‘simple’ conversations in colour (different colours brought together in combinations demonstrating how their various attributes were necessary to create relationships within a composition.) Imaginary scenes that evolved out of themselves; scenes that were consciously sought; still-lives where the negative space was all important, still lives where the interplay of positive shapes was primary; different media combined to create interesting textural and depth perceptions; three-dimensional lanterns; form drawings of borders, running motifs and woven patterns; copying a Michelangelo sketch to feel out perspective and musculature and more. There was always an underlying pattern and plan to the lesson. Respect and humour flowing in the room. There was a genuine concern for how one’s studies were progressing. No-one needed to be ‘accomplished’ as an artist and every contribution was afforded critical analysis. This ‘consolidation’ at the end of the lesson gave valuable feed-back on technique, guidance for future ventures and a chance to acknowledge individual emotional connections to the work done. It was like a meditation on what the individual had brought. I found this to be very satisfying. It also for me, quietly underlined what needs to happen in the eurthymy studio: when everyone ‘steps up’, we can create something truly unique, powerful and beautiful because we, as images of the Spirit, have the capacity to be a true work of art. Laura Engelke , 4 th year

It was a momentous event for the Kairos Eurythmy ensemble and 3rd /4 th year students to perform on a larger scale at the Baxter Theatre during the Dance Festival on October 18, 2014. With its threefold presentation (K.Pendereski music piece; a Wally Serote poem; K.Osteveen music piece) , the performance stood out because of its unique quality, that is, the dynamic and flowing movement of Eurythmy accompanied with live music (piano, violin, saxophone, drum) and enhanced with the colourful veils and dresses of the Eurythmists. Despite the fact that we had to get used to a huge stage (with only one rehearsal on it!) and perform before an audience unfamiliar with Eurythmy, our contribution was successful. Through the eyes of friends and colleagues who came to give us support, the experience and response of the public was one of awe and admiration. What was outstanding for me was to experience the artistic performing aspects of Eurythmy and I enjoyed the creative process of building our pieces together. Through the artistic skill of our dedicated lecturers who guided the whole process I saw how the work grew and flourished. It was also a privilege to perform side by side with them and the professional musicians who accompanied us. But the greatest highlight for me was the encounter with the public and the challenge of bringing to the world the essential nature of Eurythmy as an art of movement for our times. Geralyn Laset , 4 th year

Kairos hopes you enjoyed our update.

We invite you to keep in contact and visit us.

Centre for Creative Education, 4 Victoria Road, Plumstead 7800, CT Tel: +27 21 797 6802 Fax: + 27 21 797 7095 email: [email protected] www.cfce.org.za Bank details: The Centre for Creative Education, Standard Bank Constantia, Branch Code: 051001 Acc no.: 071793046 Swift Code: SBZAZAJJ. European funding: Southern Cross e.V., GLS Bank Hamburg BLZ 43060967 Konto Nr: 27995300