with Gestalta & Saara Rei
This is the third in a series of 3 workshops. You can attend each as individual workshops, or book all 3 together at a reduced cost. The two previous workshops in the series take place at Daruma in November 2025 and May 2026.
Please Note: This workshop is NOT suitable for beginners. Please ensure that you have read the workshop prerequisites in detail.
“Falling Into Form: Performance & Presence” is the third and final part in a series of workshops exploring Gestalta’s style of tying through the lens of transitions—not just as movement between shapes, but as a core expressive element in rope itself.
Photo credit: Gestalta
This workshop brings together technical skill and creative intention. While earlier workshops build the foundations and complexities of transitions, this one turns to the question of expression: the way rope communicates, how presence can be cultivated, and how tying can be experienced as both an intimate exchange and a performative act.
This workshop is not only for those who wish to perform publicly. Presence is as vital in private play as it is on stage. We will explore how to create a sense of narrative and emotional resonance within a scene—through movement, stillness, rhythm, and attention. The focus will be on cultivating an intentional awareness that can be felt by your partner, and, if desired, shared with an audience.
Drawing on my experience as a rigger, performer, and researcher—where my MA focused on performance and the body—I will guide you through methods for building performance awareness into your rope. Together, we’ll examine how to shape experience, heighten connection, and develop rope that is not only technically sound but also deeply present & communicative.
Please note that switching is not possible at this workshop.
A note about this workshop series
The progression of this workshop series is not defined by increasingly complex technical skills (or “hard skills”.) Instead, it offers a multi-layered approach that brings Gestalta’s extensive experience as a shibari artist into conversation with their love of dance practice, and their academic background in performance art.
Foundations of Fluid Transitions explores foundational transition sequences whilst focussing on development of the core skills—such as fluid handling, body awareness, and efficient technique—that allow more advanced transitions to become sustainable, expressive, and safe.
Scheduled at Daruma: 1-2 November 2025
Evolving & Deepening Transitions works with more demanding structures and sequences that challenge students to refine their practice and expand their creative possibilities, whilst developing a deeper understanding of how to use dynamic movement to create intense opportunities for play. It is perhaps the most complex part of this series on a technical level, and requires that both riggers and models have a well developed skill set.
Scheduled at Daruma: 23-24 May 2026
Performance & Presence considers the language of rope beyond structure, sequence & form—whether in the intimacy of play or in the context of performance. It explores the architecture of a rope scene and focuses on cultivating awareness, presence, and intention to create engaging narratives for both audiences, and our models.
Scheduled at Daruma: 14-15 November 2026
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Gestalta is the owner of Daruma and teaches regularly at the studio.
Their approach to shibari has evolved from 18 years of practice on both sides of the ropes, and a diverse range of influences which they appropriate, blend and develop in their own practice. As a teacher, they strive to reflect the experience of both tying partners on a deep level.
Embracing the inherent flexibility of the art is fundamental to their style; rather than prescribing rigid techniques they have a strong belief that shibari should be approached as a versatile set of tools. They encourage their students to explore and adapt each tie to the individual body of their partner, tailoring it to their specific needs and desires in any given situation. To facilitate this process, they provide a comprehensive framework rooted in fundamental principles such as safety, efficiency, and fluency and moreover, they emphasise the significance of body awareness, effective communication, and the conscious consideration of personal experiences and motivations.
Their technical style has naturally evolved through keen observation and firsthand experience. Previously, they had the privilege of working professionally as a shibari model, offering them the opportunity to be tied by accomplished practitioners from Japan and Europe. These encounters have enriched their knowledge and repertoire with invaluable techniques and insights, and also gives them a deeply empathetic understanding of what the people they tie experience in ropes.
Presently, their focus centres on the exploration of movement both with and within ropes. This ongoing research fuels their passion for pushing the boundaries of shibari and continuously expanding their understanding of its possibilities.
Saara Rei is a workshop facilitator and performance artist with a background in music, dance, education, and public speaking. Saara's work generally centres around the exploration of suffering, both physical and emotional. Through their kink practice, Saara has come to understand that suffering comes from the comparison of what has been or could be to the present moment. And with that, Saara enjoys teaching about how to use suffering as a path to presence and enjoyment in life.
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All participants must have prior experience with suspension.
Riggers should be confident in using standard suspension harnesses (such as a Takate Kote, futomomo, etc.) and must be able to safely attach and lock off suspension lines under load.
Models should have experience being suspended in common harnesses, possess body awareness around nerve safety and circulation, and be able to communicate the difference between discomfort and unsustainable or unsafe sensations.
Please note: Teacher demonstrations will use TK-based suspensions. If your tying partner is unable to comfortably sustain a TK for extended periods, we ask that you arrive with a prepared alternative suspension harness (such as a hands-in-front variant) that can be used in a similar way.