Nonviolent Communication training for the Performing Arts 

How do you communicate as an artistic or business leader, as a director or choreographer, in a way that allows colleagues to feel the space to speak out? As a performer, how do you express what you need without losing connection? How do you take responsibility for your role without taking over someone else’s? How do you ensure that all voices continue to be heard during a rehearsal process and remain connected, even when tension or conflict arises?

The elements and processes of Nonviolent Communication can be beneficial in various ways for professionals in the performing arts. Nonviolent communication promotes:

• Self-connection: what do I need and what is important to me, and how can I communicate this, even when it feels vulnerable.
• Clarity: what is the essence of what is happening here when there are conflicting interests.
• Conflict skills: how to disagree and speak your mind without it being perceived as “unsafe.”
• Empathy: how to put yourself in another person’s position and see the underlying needs.
• Mutual trust through being heard and seen.
• Energy where it is needed: you do not lose energy to conflict or miscommunication.

Equanimity is a preferred supplier of the Dutch Association for the Performing Arts (NAPK). Therefore, its members can participate in our public Nonviolent communication introductory training for the general public at a reduced rate. The same arrangement applies to our In-Company offer for tailor-made training for organizations within this sector. Read more about the possibilities below.

Equanimity complies with the CRKBO quality code for educational institutions in short-term vocational education. The training courses are therefore exempt from VAT. No prior level of education or preparatory work is required.

If you work for an organization that is a member of the NAPK, you can participate at a discount in the public introductory Nonviolent communication trainings for the general public that are held monthly.

More about the content of this training can be found on the Nonviolent communication introductory training page. If you check the box “I am eligible for NAPK member discount” on the registration form, you will receive a 20% discount on the Employer rate.

For companies and producers in the theater, dance, and music sectors, there are various possibilities for team training on-site. The focus is on Nonviolent communication training sessions ranging from one to several days or half-day sessions. Nonviolent communication is pre-eminently a tool for working toward a psychologically safe work environment.

Organizations that are members of the NAPK receive a 20% discount on the rates. If you would like to know more about the possibilities for your team or organization, please contact me: Boris Nauta via boris@equanimity.nu or call 06-39422005. I enjoy collaborating with trainers who have specific experience in the Performing Arts, such as Suzan Tolsma.

Image: scene from the Circus Theater production Brave Spaces, used with permission from Aloft Theater Group (USA).