My first contact with Stefan Freedman was through his circle dance videos. I was immediately struck by how his choreographies combine simplicity of steps with depth of meaning, and by the warmth, sensitivity and attentiveness with which he teaches the dances. I then discovered his book Dancewise. As a dance therapist I was fascinated by the many examples he shares of circle dance being used in therapeutic contexts—such as addiction recovery, supporting trauma survivors, and working with young people in conflict with the law. On this basis I invited him to come and lead a weekend in Warsaw. This was inspiring not only because of his knowledge and teaching methods, but also because of his empathy and encouragement for everyone in the group, and his ability to adapt to people's needs. Our second workshop with Stefan went even deeper, and participants shared very moving feedback about how meaningful and healing the experience had been. We are already looking forward to welcoming him again to Warsaw. As the first dance therapist in Poland, I have spent many years training other therapists. Early in my career I discovered circle dance and recognised its powerful healing, balancing and regulating qualities. Since then I have always integrated it into my dance therapy practice. I highly recommend Stefan Freedman as a teacher and workshop leader in both educational and therapeutic settings. His work brings together artistic sensitivity, deep human understanding, and a rare ability to create spaces where people feel safe, connected and inspired.

A testimony to the efficacy of Stefan Freedman's therapeutic dance work I have known Stefan Freedman for many years through his involvement, as a dance facilitator, in a charity I co-founded in 2003, called Inside Out Community. The programme provides therapeutic art experiences for people experiencing challenging and at times overwhelming mental health issues. We witness how a healing process can take place through an active engagement in various art forms, including dance. Stefan’s creative approach to dance offers a safe, inspiring way to well-being. The body-mind is always searching to re-balance, to move towards a state of equilibrium compatible with functional mental health. Embodied in Stefan’s work is an invitation to free oneself from what William Blake called: the mind forged manacles, that hold us imprisoned in distressed, dysfunctional states of mind. In dance we can find the freedom to re-discover our more resilient, emboldened self, that is able to engage more fully and fulfillingly in life. Dance works! My own professional background is in psychiatric nursing. I have spent much of my professional life as both a practising community nurse and as a senior lecturer in mental health studies. I have published two books on mental health: Recovery: a guide for mental health practitioners and The Art of Compassionate Care ———— EXTRACT Embodied in Stefan’s work is an invitation to free oneself from what William Blake called: themind forged manacles, that hold us imprisoned in distressed, dysfunctional states of mind. Stefan’s creative approach to dance offers a safe, inspiring way to well-being.

Stefan Freedman has been running dance and movement sessions at the Karibu Centre in Ipswich for the past five years. Karibu began as an African diaspora women’s support centre and broadened its aims to become an established achieving charitable status in 2007. Karibu has developed a wide range of inclusive social, cultural, and wellbeing activities. Within this context, Stefan has brought together a distinctive combination of skills, including creative and imaginative movement work, live musical accompaniment, inclusive drumming, singing and clearly structured yet flexible dance activities. His sessions are designed to be accessible and engaging for a wide range of participants, including vulnerable adults who attend with one or more carers. Participants come with diverse needs, including behavioural challenges, learning difficulties, and social or communication difficulties. Stefan works with a high degree of sensitivity and awareness, creating an environment that feels safe, supportive, and sufficiently open for individuals to engage at their own pace. The space he creates allows participants to become physically active, to interact with one another, and to explore a broad range of movements as well as musical expression. This groupwork includes verbal sharing, grounded in movement and somatic awareness. Through music, rhythm, and embodied exploration, participants are encouraged to build confidence, vitality, curiosity, and emotional expression, gently expanding their physical and imaginative horizons. Over his five years of work with Karibu, Stefan has shown reliability, creativity, and a deep respect for the people he works with. His sessions consistently enliven participants and make a positive contribution to their sense of agency, connection, and overall wellbeing. Stefan Freedman comes highly recommended by Karibu for his specialist skills, reliability, and depth of experience in inclusive community dance practice.

As a qualified somatic movement therapist and dance teacher of many years, I am constantly impressed and inspired by Stefan Freedman’s approach and passion for the therapeutic benefits of dance and movement. I have had the good fortune to work with Stefan for three years on the Journey to Joy, Embodiment, and Circle Dance weeks he organises on the island of Paros, Greece. Stefan is a talented and passionate circle dance and therapeutic dance teacher, with a wealth of experience working within both mental and physical health recovery and rehabilitation. He has strong foundations in safeguarding adults at risk and brings a compassion-based approach to everything he does. His work embodies deep care for others and an ongoing inquiry into community dance as a holistic therapeutic modality. Stefan’s facilitation of circle dance and embodiment sessions is always beautifully crafted, thoughtful, participant-focused, context-driven, creative, flexible, relaxed, and fun. His ability to create imaginative movement within both circle dance choreographies and embodiment sessions is central to his work, while his adaptability ensures that all participants are able to experience a sense of wellbeing and empowerment. He communicates clearly and confidently when leading groups, and also uses simple prompts and embodied characters to engage participants and enhance the overall experience. He has a particular gift for making movement therapy feel safe and consent-based, which is a rare and special skill, and one that I have found especially inspiring. At the heart of all his work, Stefan is deeply committed to facilitating change and improving the wellbeing of everyone who attends his dance and embodiment sessions. I highly recommend Stefan for work within the somatic embodiment and therapeutic movement sector.

In 1996 I graduated from university with a Psychology degree and spent 18 years working with children who had been through abuse and trauma, working initially supporting children in the care system and then for a national children’s charity as a Project Co-ordinateur of a Children’s Advocacy & Mentoring scheme. All of these children had experienced trauma and were facing difficulties with their mental health. In 2014 I retrained as a Massage Therapist and set up my business Connective Healing, offering treatments to support muscular pain, tension, postural issues and conditions. I continued to train; in Arvigo Therapy in 2017 and specialise in Women’s health in particular relating to the menstrual cycle and the menopause after experiencing issues myself. Through my work I support a number of clients who have experienced child abuse causing them trauma within their pelvic bowl as well as women who have experienced sexual assault. I continued my training with Burrell Education in 3rd Age Woman Menopause Transition, Optimal Health Before and After Hysterectomy, and Therapeutic Coaching. I attended Journey to Joy in June 2025 with Stefan Freedman, supported by Anne Kingston and Laura Renata. I found this to be incredibly informative in relation to the body and trauma. Stefan has a wealth of experience in teaching circle dancing. His method of teaching the dance steps was accessible to all and I loved his comment that there are no mistakes, only variations. As someone new to circle dancing this was very reassuring and took away the pressure to get it right and to enjoy the moment. Stefan explained how circle dancing can help heal the psychological wounding we feel in our minds and body when we experience trauma. I particularly liked his lesson on collective trauma and how dance can foster unity and connection. It is clear that Stefan has experience in a professional capacity of working within the mental health field and a solid understanding of trauma and its impact on physical and mental health. For me the dance and movement has become a regular practice which I use to move emotions or to be with a difficult emotion and work through it. I clearly understand the power of music and movement and feel the benefits daily. I understand the importance of movement and dance beyond a personal experience and how this could be applied when working with clients. I have continued to attend circle dances locally and practice myself before my clients attend my clinic. I have had many conversations with clients about my experience and they are showing an interest in accessing dancing and movement as a form of therapy. Stefan’s retreat- Journey to joy was a deeply healing and transformative retreat for me. Many of the retreats I have attended in the past have focused on trauma and the psychological angle but have lacked the movement and dance element. I feel that this was the vital missing piece. It helped me to feel expansiveness, freedom and joy in the safe hands of 3 individuals who themselves are a formidable team. I can see how working one to one with my clients or within a group how this can be applied to help them move through their emotions using dance and movement.