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bearnstow

A summer arts and nature retreat with dance workshops, artist residencies, and kids day camp located on Parker Pond in Mt. Vernon,ME

We at Bearnstow wish our community a very happy ne

We at Bearnstow wish our community a very happy new year! Here is a serene Parker Pond morning to give you a bit of peace today.

Today we are feeling grateful for the amazing day

Today we are feeling grateful for the amazing day campers and families who bring youthful wonder to Bearnstow. Day Camp is a huge bright spot every summer because of the magical chaos the campers bring. Bearnstow is meant to be an inspiring and curiosity evoking place, and it is special to get to share that with young people and keep them excited about the playing, creating, and exploring the natural world.

We are especially grateful to our day camp staff, Erica, Hannah, Shawn, Harper, and Elliot for their commitment to our campers and the way they inspire imagination, sensitivity, and confidence in our campers. You make it all happen baby!

Every year Bearnstow is filled to the brim with in

Every year Bearnstow is filled to the brim with inspiring educators, artists, movers, and scholars coming from all over for workshops and artists retreats. We are so grateful to our teachers, workshop participants, and retreat artists for bringing their experiences, authenticity, innovation, and joy to Bearnstow. We sincerely hope you will all return next summer!

Eleanor, Ren, Dawn, and Tania- we are so grateful

Eleanor, Ren, Dawn, and Tania- we are so grateful for you all for sharing your gifts with us this summer. This all star team can handle cooking meals for 20+ people, taking six weeks of workshops, choreographing new work all summer, and cleaning cabins all while staying up to date on Bridgerton. They are our heroes!

As 2024 comes to a close, we are deeply grateful f

As 2024 comes to a close, we are deeply grateful for the beautiful community, artistry, and FUN that made up this past summer at Bearnstow. Through the end of the year we’ll be sharing our gratitude for the people who make Bearnstow special.

There are so many questions about what the coming year holds, but the one thing we know for certain is that creativity, connection, and knowledge are our biggest super powers. Let’s keep fostering those things together.

Giving you a fix of some quiet community moments a

Giving you a fix of some quiet community moments at Bearnstow from this past summer 🍃

Image description:
1. Three people sitting on the cabin 4 porch, one with a guitar, and a fourth person resting in the ground
2. Tania and Eleanor doing crafts on the dining porch
3. A group breakfast on the dining porch
4. 3 day campers relaxing on a hammock, smiling widely
5. Dawn leaning sideways behind a Bearnstow lunch setup in the kitchen

A Moment to Remember Don Andress We are sorry to

A Moment to Remember Don Andress

We are sorry to learn of the passing of Don Andress, a great friend of Bearnstow.

Don attended a Bearnstow workshop every summer since 2016. To quote Ruth (Reg) Grauert, Don “[became] a perennial” at camp. He loved each workshop but rarely repeated, always leaning into new experiences. Many of the workshop instructors remarked on his incredible openness and curiosity. His performances were memorable, genuine, and straight from the heart.

It strikes me that each summer he attended just one workshop until this one. He felt compelled to rearrange his summer plans and come for 2 additional workshops in August.

I’m thankful for that extra time with him.

His spirit will always have a welcome place at Bearnstow taking early morning dips in Parker Pond and dancing among the pines.

Images:
1. Don in the water during a performance for Claire Porters workshop, asking “How do we receive this gift”
2. Don smiling in the main hall photo by Eleanor Crawford
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The Bearnstow community is having a busy couple we

The Bearnstow community is having a busy couple weeks! If you’re in western Mass, check out Director Molly Hess in ‘Love is a Crowded Room’ TONIGHT alongside past artist in residence Ciarra Fragale as well as past interns Harper Foote and Sonya Marx!

And if you find yourself in the Boston area next week be sure to check out ‘Lost and Found,’ choreographed by our admin Eliza Malecki and featuring day camp staff Erica Codd!

A show is nothing without its crew, and our crew w

A show is nothing without its crew, and our crew works in STYLE. Thank you to these amazing humans who volunteered their time to make ‘Salad for Breakfast’ a huge success! 🪩🥗🎂

*holding back tears* as we look back on the last f

*holding back tears* as we look back on the last few days at Bearnstow with this years’ incredible group of interns. You each have left a unique mark on Bearnstow and we cannot thank you enough for sharing your light with us this summer. We miss you already, please come back next year!

A few shots from our dress rehearsal today for our

A few shots from our dress rehearsal today for our show tomorrow night!!! We have a great show for you!

Tickets still available online or at the door!
7pm @viennaunionhall
General 15$ child/senior 10$ supporter level 25$

The end of the summer at Bearnstow means the blueb

The end of the summer at Bearnstow means the blueberries are ripe and the interns are prepping for their final show THIS weekend! Don’t miss your chance to see the dances these incredible interns have been working on all summer on Saturday August 24th at 7 pm at Vienna Union Hall. See you there!

This past week with @kjhlms has been incredibly fr

This past week with @kjhlms has been incredibly fruitful and filled with exploration, play, and reflection! Enjoy these shots of the incredible movers who joined us this week 💃🏻🪩🌲☀️📓

Photos by @joangreenpainter !

A whole new week has started but we need to take a

A whole new week has started but we need to take a moment to appreciate the incredible week we just finished. Claire Porter led another fabulous workshop. It was a beautiful blend of old friends reuniting, new friends meeting and creativity bouncing off the walls.

Julie Davenport, District forester, came and led a walk about the trees on camp and we learned about the past, present and potential future of our forest.

We had a laughter filled community class and and incredible performance that took us indoors and outdoors ending with the reading of a first draft a play written by our retreat artists for the week Sam Kann and C Green. Sam and C set up shop in the lab for the week making beautiful use of the space. And we were fed very well by former retreat artist Sarah Patterson.

What a week! Thank you to all who made this week such a joy.

Our traveling site specific performance, ‘Shine

Our traveling site specific performance, ‘Shine On My Parade’ throughout downtown Mt. Vernon was so engaging and fun, and we are so grateful to the community for showing up and dancing with us! Thank you to @kennebecsavings for making this performance possible!

If you want another chance to dance with the Bearnstow dancers, you can find us at weekly community classes TONIGHT 7/31 as well as 8/7 and 8/14 at the Mt. Vernon Community Center from 7-8:30 pm

The four weeks of day camp at Bearnstow are always

The four weeks of day camp at Bearnstow are always hectic and full of joy and laughter. Look back with us at the amazing times we had this summer! Our campers are kind hearted, nurturing, curious, creative, and hilarious, and we already can’t wait to welcome them back next year!

Shoutout to our incredible day camp staff who make each summer so magical! @thefloatingbear @shawnthedawn382 @mamasita.bacalao @hannahjillian_ @harperfoote @spir1tedsouls

This week at Bearnstow we have a workshop with Jan

This week at Bearnstow we have a workshop with Janis Brenner and Brother(hood) Dance! In residence! It has been a beautiful week where we have really felt the power of community and creativity and we feel so lucky to have this stellar group with us.

Join us to sing and dance tonight at 7pm for community class at the Mount Vernon Community center

And then Friday for a sharing of works in progress by the participants and retreat artists on camp!

@janisbrenner @bhood.dance

Slides: 1. Janis being lifted by Orlando and Ricarrdo of Brother(hood) Dance! 2. A group of of workshop participants and guests 3. The same group but with dramatic flair 4. The group singing a round, “as I went walking,” led by Janis 5. A session of writing while listening to music 6. A drawing of the group made during that same listening session.

Join the Bearnstow dancers and collaborators in a

Join the Bearnstow dancers and collaborators in a free performance in downtown Mt. Vernon! Shine On My Parade is a traveling site specific dance performance by the Bearnstow dancers in collaboration with dancemaker Matthew Cumbie with live music by Rob Flax. We will perform at all your favorite local sites and can’t wait to see you there!

Last week we were thrilled to have Anjali Nath in

Last week we were thrilled to have Anjali Nath in residence at Bearnstow! A distinguished disciple of Pandit Chitresh Das, Anjali epitomizes a legacy of exceptional artistry and unwavering dedication to service through Kathak dance. We loved hosting Anjali, check out her amazing work at @anjnath !!

Cassie Wang is in residence at Bearnstow right now

Cassie Wang is in residence at Bearnstow right now with Eliza Malecki and Aliza Franz working on a film project that takes place at local drive in diner Fast Eddie’s! Take a look at these behind the scenes looks 🍨🚙💃🏻

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