Reflect, Release and Reset: bringing in the new year with intention
- Ecstatica
- Dec 31, 2025
- 5 min read
Reflections of the past year(s) and our goals for 2026
What a year this has been. 2025 was the year that Ecstatica was officially born back in March when we held our first dance at The Tabernacle in West London. We have since relocated to North London where we have found a home at Soma hŌṃe in Stoke Newington. Our first event there, 'Drum The Wild', brought a full house and we were ecstatic! You see, for us 'the more the merrier' is kind of our motto (our actual motto is 'Reclaim Your Dancer') because we've always had one main goal - to spread the joy of ecstatic dance far and wide.
Perhaps we should wind the story back a little. Why ecstatic dance? And what even is it? Ecstatic dance (sometimes called conscious dance) is both a space and an intention. The intention being to be present with your body and mind while you dance, which is often not the case when we dance in places like clubs and bars. A conscious space is designed to facilitate that - with the rules of no intoxicants, no shoes and no phones set in place. There are a great number of conscious dance modalities (including 5rhythms, open floor, movement medicine, ecstatic dance, etc) but they all share this in common. For this reason, conscious dance has been equated with meditation as the central idea is about greater awareness of self and others.
I discovered Ecstatic dance about 5 years ago and it changed the way I saw the world - quite literally. At the time, I was experiencing chronic dizziness that meant the world felt constantly unsteady or shaky under my feet. It was not a nice feeling. When I arrived at the dance, I was a bit unsure about what to do. If I danced too much or too hard, would it make the dizziness worse? I decided to risk it (it was an easy choice, I was having too much fun not to) and at one point even decided to spin around and around in a circle. To my surprise, it didn't make the dizziness worse - it actually made it better.
That's when I knew there was something special here. Since then, the ecstatic dance floor has become my safe place and space to explore and be someone I'm not in everyday life. Unfortunately, the dizziness still comes and goes in my life. However, when I am on the dance-floor, it's gone - or at least I don't notice it anymore. I also forget about what I look like, the work I have to do, what I am doing tomorrow, and what people think of me. It truly is a magical space that takes me out of the humdrum of everyday life and into a world full of delight, play and possibilities. I've also made many new and meaningful connections and had several significant life experiences following meeting people at dances.
I'm not saying it will be like this for everyone. But what we have seen at the end of our dances suggests that it does have a positive impact on many. Smiling faces, conversations that keep going after the dance, and an ease in which people interact after the dance suggests an openness and relaxedness that comes from dancing together. It can be daunting to dance in front of strangers, but by the end of the dance no one feels like a stranger anymore. If only for a couple of hours, we connected over our willingness to be vulnerable and show parts of ourselves we usually keep secret.
Yes, that was one of the highlights of our 2025: the willingness of you, the dancers, to bring your unseen parts and lay them out for all to see. We are honoured to have been witness to that.
Another highlight was receiving the support and help from members of the Ecstatica community. A lot of work goes into running a dance and we would not have been able to do it without help from friends who offered to drive, set up the space, set up the equipment, serve the tea, etc. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
We also had the absolute joy of collaborating with many talented musicians, DJ's and teachers including Nomine, Yoga teacher Mati Liaz, DJ Morpho from Cocoon, DJ Kata from Ecstatic Dance Culture, Gabor Turucz from Ecstatic Dance Tunbridge Wells, multi-instrumentalist EduWild and (DJ) Alex Dunhill. Each artist brought their personal magic to each event and made it unique. We can't wait for more collaborations in 2026.
Our First Event of 2026: 'THE RESET' (16th Jan)
After a period of hibernation we are back this January for The Reset - a dance with a theme suited to the new year and the change of the Chinese calendar, as we move from the Year of the Snake to the Year of the Horse this February. If the year of the snake was about introspection and careful & strategic planning towards our goals, then the year of the horse is about taking hold of opportunity by the reins and going for it! A year set to be full of forward momentum, bold ambition, and good fortune - if we bring the lessons of the Snake Year with us.
One of the great lessons of the Year of the Snake is the shedding of what is no longer needed; removing the obstacles and blocks to our success. This dance is all about one final release before the new year. If we have any stagnant energy or unhelpful beliefs, let us rid ourselves of them - through dance! To 'let go' or 'release' on the dance-floor may be a common trope but what makes this different are your specific intentions. That's why we invite you to come to the dance with some intentions: What would you like to let go of this year? And what would you like to get out of the year ahead?
Here at Ecstatica, we have already been thinking about that and we'd love to share it with you with the hopes of inspiring you to do the same.
This year we are letting go of:
The need to do things a certain way and do it our way
The fear of things going wrong
The need to please everyone
Choosing a 'work' mindset over 'joy' mindset
Self-imposed restrictions
This year we have the intention to:
Host events frequently and consistently
Continue to grow the Ecstatica community
Collaborate with old and new connections and host different kinds of events
Try new ways of spreading our message
Play many DJ sets at Ecstatica! (Yasmin's personal one)
We also invite you to bring an object to place on the altar that represents your intentions.
And once it's placed there (literally or metaphorically) you can forget about it and come and join us on the dance floor where there is no need to think about what to release. Just by dancing, it releases you.
Find out more about the event and buy tickets here.
You can also join our community on Instagram, where we post more news, inspiration and updates.
Wishing you a wonderful New Year 💜
