GagaEden at Orsolina28: A Review

An introduction to Gaga, the travel, and the program.

Gaga is a formal movement methodology developed by Israeli choreographer/dancer Ohad Naharin (so, no, it definitely has nothing to do with Lady Gaga). The principles of Gaga focus on the concepts of blood, flesh, and bones as means to discover movement capability within the body, including injured or compromised bodies.

Snuggled under the covers, I felt an immense sense of warmth and relief. I was finally safe and cozy, surrounded by people all there for the same purpose, after days of solo travelling for the first time. I could finally let my “high alert” go.

From October 16-19, 2023, I attended GagaEden at Orsolina28 in the beautiful countryside village of Moncalvo, Asti, Italy. Moncalvo isn’t on anyone’s major radar when they think Italy (even some Italians don’t know the place), but it’s a hidden gem for dance enthusiasts around the world, namely because they harbour the expansive campus of Orsolina28.

Orsolina28 is a huge dance haven and school for international presentation and training. Besides dance shows, they also house teacher certification courses in Pilates, wellness retreats, and regular dance programming in ballet, modern, etc. I’ll go into more detail about the campus itself in another article.

Batsheva Dance Company — the resident company of Ohad Naharin — is a frequent guest. Several Gaga programs take place throughout the year at Orsolina28, with faculty from current and past Company members. For a dance lover, this is the most direct way to see Batsheva up close and learn from them — maybe even make friends with them! I certainly had my little moments of awe when I saw Ohad Naharin in the flesh, teaching us, looking at us, after having only seen him in videos and textbooks (for more information on Ohad and Batsheva, check out the Netflix documentary Mr. Gaga).

Cost: 4600 ISL Weekday Edition (presale 4300 ISL)

Includes accommodation, food, and access to campus amenities. Always check the official website for most recent pricing.

An Introduction to Gaga

Gaga makes up part of Batsheva’s daily training.

Gaga is divided into Gaga/dance and Gaga/people. No experience is needed for Gaga/people, only a love of movement. Gaga/dance uses the same principles as Gaga/people, expanding on dance-specific muscles and movement for successful artistry in the professional realm.

That said, both Gaga/dance and Gaga/people are appropriate for professional dancers. Those wanting to learn repertoire can opt for GagaLab, a 1-3-week intensive held in major hubs worldwide like Tel Aviv, Berlin, New York City, and at Orsolina28. A video audition is required. GagaEden is unique to Orsolina28 and is open to everyone. It combines a wellness retreat with scheduled programming. There are also regular Gaga/dance and Gaga/people classes by local certified teachers around the world. The official website hosts a list of these teachers in every available location.

There is also Gaga/metodika, which offers a more flexible pace to the regular Gaga classes.

After a Gaga session in The Eye. Photo by Lonely Girl, Lonely World.

The most important thing about Gaga (besides its somatic qualities): You must be certified to teach it. That means at least a year of training and assessments. This is a serious matter. You can’t teach it, even if you’ve taken Gaga classes for 5 years, without that certificate. All official external events should also be approved by the Company. I’ve seen some of my own teachers cut it very close by leading “Gaga-inspired” technique.

Currently, the Gaga certification program is on hiatus, according to a former member of Batsheva; “for quality control,” they think. It makes sense; the more people inducted into a group, the harder it is to control the outcomes of those groups and their teachings.

Gaga is similar to modern dance forms in that it is very much codified; there are specific principles and movement articulations to follow.

If you’re interested in waiting for the renewal of this program and general Gaga events, consider signing up for their newsletter on their website.

The Journey to Orsolina28

Getting to Orsolina28 isn’t easy. It’s a commitment. Fortunately, Orsolina28 organizes shuttles from the Asti train station to the campus, but before that, there are several stops to make.

My own journey consisted of catching a flight to Milan Linate from Berlin, an airport shuttle to Milano Centrale Station, the #2 metro to Milano Porta Garibaldi, and, finally, a train to Asti province. The shuttle bus then took us on a 45-min ride to the village of Moncalvo, high in the Italian countryside. If this isn’t logistically challenging enough, imagine it with my parents’ decades-old 29” suitcase on those European cobblestoned streets (as soon as I returned home, I bought myself a new BÉIS luggage set with 360° wheels).

I will admit Milan didn’t wow me like I half-expected it would, at least from the two hours I saw of it. We passed by some pretty old European apartments: small, colourful, but overall a little dingy.

On the shuttle to Orsolina28. Photo by Lonely Girl, Lonely World.

But the countryside — WOW! As the shuttle bus rattled on, my new friend and I slowly fell into amazement at the lush, green hills rolling out before our eyes. The further away from the already remote Asti we went, the more I saw the Italy of my dreams. Screensaver-worthy, no doubt about it.

The picturesque landscapes surrounding dotted villages here and there reminded me of my own grandma’s mountain village in rural China. I was softly nudged with a sense of longing for my cultural roots.

Moncalvo is a charming, steep village in northwestern Italy. Orsolina28 is located at the very end, on a huge plot of land stretching far into the hilly distance. Entering it felt like stepping into a modern world, but at the same time its glass buildings seemed to coexist perfectly with the environment.

Orsolina28: The Campus

Orsolina28 is the most amazing blend of technology and nature I’ve ever seen. It’s dedicated astutely to sustainability, taking only what it needs and returning everything else to the soil. From greenhouses to organic gardens and circuit recyclable water, the place is a powerhouse demonstration of how we can respect the land we thrive on.

Every meal of ours was served with homegrown ingredients in the massive restaurant/dining area. Waiters and chefs attended to our every need, though I got some hints of that European brusqueness for sure.

Other cool features include an onsen (which seems more like a hot tub, to be honest), an outdoor stage overlooking the campus nearby, glamping tent dorms, and a chicken farm.

Our classes took place in The Eye, a proper dance studio in the centre of the property shaped to look like … well, an eye (although you can only see this clearly from a bird’s eye view). Of all the technological advances on site, it was the doors in The Eye that astonished me the most. The studio is made circular by a border of large wall doors to block off the pointy edges of space on each side, leading to washrooms, water fountains, and a “backstage”/changing area. The doors don’t take any effort to push or close, and they’re completely silent. If the future is now, then I’ve seen it.

I’ll go into more detail about these facilities in another article.

Sunbathing deck - Orsolina28. Photo by Lonely Girl, Lonely World.

GagaEden: The Program

Orsolina28 is primarily a dance school, and our daily schedules reflected that. Of course, we weren’t ten-year-old children, and GagaEden is organized as a retreat, so really it was up to us what we did with our time. (However, since you’re there anyway, you might as well take as many Gaga classes as you can).

Check out 2023’s GagaEden October schedule below:

GagaEden Oct 2023. Photo by Lonely Girl, Lonely World.

Apart from Gaga, you can choose to take part in Gravity® (a type of Pilates), horticulture/organic gardening classes, and tours of the ground. Meals are served three times a day. With all of these activities (even the dance classes), you’re free to attend or not as you please. After all, a retreat is about attending to your needs, not a set schedule.

Something to note is that you’re not confined to campus grounds. This was one of the first things I asked staff on arrival. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to explore Moncalvo itself, but I made up for it by trekking along the back routes of campus to discover far-off fields and even a hostel nearby.

The Gaga and metodika classes were hosted by three teachers: Yaara Moses, Saar Harari, and Ohad Naharin. When the teachers weren’t teaching, they were actively taking part. Even when they were teaching, they went full out; Gaga is unique in that every teacher teaches by doing. The structure of Gaga is set out so that the instructor takes center stage, with the students in a circle around them. Some of the Batsheva dancers joined us on the three-day retreat. No filming is allowed in session.

In my opinion, there’s a marked difference in taking class with Gaga-certified teachers versus Company teachers. The movement, the quality, everything seemed so much more sinuous with the Company teachers. That’s not to say there aren’t amazing Gaga-certified ones (or else they wouldn’t have passed) — my own Gaga teacher is the most magnetic presence I have ever met — but I will say, with a little trepidation, that in most external classes, I have felt boredom and confusion. Like all activities, it’s not for everyone. In my case, perhaps I have learned from someone so influential to me that I can’t accept anyone else now. GagaEden is not a small program, by the way. It attracts 50+ people each time, so group intimacy is not the biggest takeaway.

On the last day, we were treated to a special improvisational performance by the Batsheva dancers. I recognized segments of Kamuyot, a piece choreographed by Ohad, that I’d just seen performed by the Charlotte Ballet in Toronto. Excitingly, one of the Batsheva dancers was from Toronto, and it was great to make that brief connection.

This in-studio performance was in place of a trip to Turin, Italy, to watch Batsheva’s Momo at the Turino Danza Festival. Due to ongoing political conflict with Israel, the trip was cancelled, and we got refunded for that portion. However, one of my new dance scholar friends said that this was much better than the Turin trip, seeing as we could watch the dancers close-up, practicing in an intimate setting.

There was a general sense of wonder at the Batsheva dancers’ presences among us. Definitely many of us wanted to get to know them more informally but were too shy to. Finally, another friend of mine took the reins to just sit with them during dinner one day.

That night, we also had a dance party in the restaurant. A couple ladies and I led the way to shimmy after waiting in vain for the staff to clear the tables. Others started to join us, and finally the staff pulled out the LED lights and champagne.

This was an amazing turning point with our relationship with the Batsheva dancers. Although we started out vibing in our separate groups, by the end of the night and a couple drinks later, the remaining dancers and I circled up with them for a long-lasting cypher and cheers.

It wasn’t until about midnight that the last of us packed up, and we said our goodbyes. We’d been dancing for several hours by then, and the staff were eager to go.

If only Ohad could’ve seen us then. I remember there was something said during class that prompted me to think, “Ha! If Ohad saw this, he’d say, ‘Where was this before?!’”

On departure day, a shuttle bus took us back to Asti Train Station, where we said goodbye to our newfound friends and made our merry ways. It surprised me how many of them didn’t have a return ticket already, but I’ve since learned European rail travel is frequent and expansive enough to justify buying one on the spot.

My next stop was Genoa, and then on to the Amalfi Coast, but those are other stories.

A Note on Politics

Art is political.

The more I delve into world dance, the more I realize — sometimes reluctantly — that art and politics are minutely linked. As much as I want to believe that art can exist without hinging on politics (and, in certain cases, it can), I’m also learning that politics influences the reach of art. Whether or not an art form leaves a country’s borders or is inspired directly as a result of political congress is very much tied to international relations at the time.

My previous workshop in Berlin was cancelled because the instructor was from Israel and couldn’t fly out. Even this GagaEden almost got cancelled. We were lucky to only have the Turin trip cancelled in the end, but I don’t know the depths to which the Batsheva dancers have sacrificed to be there for us. There were whisperings that they wouldn’t be able to return to Israel after GagaEden ended, and that the school, perhaps, had offered them an extended stay in light of that.

Sunrise. Photo by Lonely Girl, Lonely World.

Again, I don’t know the details. A fellow dancer expressed guilt at being in this wonderful oasis while war was worsening in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. They also intercepted one of the Batsheva dancers after our dance party to express their sympathy over their plight. I felt a bit uncomfortable with this, partly because I didn’t want the Batsheva dancer’s night to end on this note, and also because I didn’t have enough knowledge to lend a helping ear.

Batsheva itself has historically been a politically wrought company. Martha Graham, the Mother of Modern Dance from New York City, co-founded Batsheva in 1964 with Baroness Batsheva de Rothschild (Batsheva Dance Company - Wikipedia). You can see some of the trials the Company has been through since Ohad took over in the documentary Mr. Gaga. Routinely, there were protests outside the theatres Batsheva was due to perform in, and many people still refuse to watch their shows, one of my own good friends included.

What this has to teach us is that art and politics may never be truly separate. I admire Batsheva for their dancers’ capabilities and choreographic artistry; therefore, I want to learn their physical methodology. I must also remember that many companies’ repertoire is politically based, and that my responsibility as an artist extends to understanding the backdrop of these works and their implications. Who do they support; how do they present; what are the effects of engaging with them? These are hard questions and ones that we must reflect on in order to make informed decisions.

And these questions don’t stop at dance and art. The difficult part is finding reliable sources of information; after all, there can be so much bias from source to source. Even documentaries are first outlined with an intention in mind.

This note on politics is not meant to discourage you; art is one of the most healing ways to express your truth, and it is entirely up to you what you choose to attend in the context of healing. You know yourself best; you know your body best.

The artist I am now chooses my activities based on healing. Politics shouldn’t undermine that the Gaga practice was intentioned as a healing mechanism to counter injury and age. There is much to be gained from sharing and learning from different cultures. I only invite you to do research along the way.

Final Thoughts

I wish I could’ve had more time to take in the land and facilities more. GagaEden overall was a very good experience, but the schedule was honestly jam-packed. You could forego all the tours and Pilates lessons, but doing so might deprive you of unique experiences. There was also a popular massage therapist nearby you could call but only if you had the time. Compared to my experience at a dance retreat in Portugal, I felt much less connected to my retreat participants and the land here. That’s not to say you won’t make wonderful friends here!

To get more time, you can book both the weekend and weekday GagaEden programs, back-to-back. I attended the weekday one for the Turin performance (slightly more expensive), which was a 3-night stay. If you book both, you’ll have another 3 nights to really relax into it.

I ended up skipping 2 Gaga classes due to acute knee pain, an intermittent side effect from my previous ACL surgery that probably flared up from the travelling. Instead, I took the time to revisit campus sites and just delight in the nature around me.

The weather was grey and rainy all the way through. Not a bad thing in itself, since I’m a pluviophile, but I did catch a cold my first day in Italy that took weeks to recover from. Another tent mate’s cough worsened due to the dampness. Some sun was dearly needed. Book for the summertime if you’d rather not take this risk.

Conclusion: If you’re looking for professional development in rural Italy, look no further. Orsolina28 is a dance haven; all you need is to be mindful of your time and how you spend it.

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Letters to My Lover #1