HERE & NOW
28–29 November 2026 | Elizabetes 45/47, Riga, Latvia
HERE & NOW is a two-day educational improvisation intensive for dancers, choreographers and teachers who want to improvise freely, develop their own expressiveness and use improvisation as a tool for working with movement.
It is a space to explore improvisation in different forms: as a way to discover and develop your own movement material, create composition and performance, express yourself through movement and communicate with other dancers in real time.
PROGRAM
01
IMPROVISATION
ME ↔ ME
Working with your own movement.
How to start improvising, where to find material and how to develop it further. Working with music, rhythm, accents, movement quality, space, the body and impulse.
How to make decisions in the moment, work with limitations and create form through improvisation.
02
LAB
ME → MATERIAL
Improvisation as a tool for creation.
How movement becomes material:
improvisation → movement → development → phrase → composition → performance
Working with creating and developing phrases, repetition and transformation, contrasts, structure, beginnings, climaxes and endings.
03
BATTLE / JAM
ME ↔ OTHER
Improvisation as communication.
How to interact with another person through movement: listen, respond, pick up an impulse, transform, contrast and create a dialogue in real time.
After HERE & NOW, you will be able to:
- improvise more freely to different types of music;
- find new movement material through improvisation;
- make decisions in the moment;
- work with rhythm, accents, movement quality and space;
- develop found material into movements, phrases and compositions;
- use improvisation to create choreography and performances;
- express ideas and emotions through movement;
- interact with other dancers through improvisation;
- use improvisation in battle and jam formats.
FORMAT
2 days
Each participant has their own pole
5 particioants
13 hours of practice & exploration
HERE & NOW is for you if you:
- want to feel more free in improvisation;
- want to learn how to find material through movement;
- want to use improvisation in your choreography;
- want to develop your expressiveness and musicality;
- want to create performances through improvisation;
- want to explore battles and jams as a form of dance communication;
- want to expand your toolkit as a dancer, choreographer or teacher.
Recommended level: any level.
Some pole dance experience is recommended — at least 6 months.
TEACHERS
Diana Paramonova
Studio founder and teacher
A choreographer, pole dance coach, and founder of EMBODY Studio in Riga, Latvia, with over 14 years of teaching experience.
She began dancing at the age of four, training in ballet and show dance before continuing her education at the Riga Ballet School. Diana later graduated from the Latvian Academy of Music named after Jazeps Vitols with a degree in Choreography and Dance Education. Throughout her studies, she explored a wide range of dance styles, including jazz, contemporary, tap dance, Latvian folk dance, hip-hop, vogue, and many others. This diverse background continues to shape her movement language and teaching methodology.
Diana discovered pole dance in 2016. Just six months after starting, she placed at the Pole Emotion competition, which led to an invitation to join Feel Good Studio as a pole dance coach.
In 2023, she founded EMBODY Studio in Riga—a space dedicated to conscious movement, artistic expression, and high-quality education.
As a coach, Diana focuses not only on technique but also on movement quality, musicality, body awareness, and helping each student develop their own authentic style. She believes that pole dance is both an athletic discipline and a powerful form of artistic expression.
Recent Competition Results
1st Place – Czech Exotic Open 2023 (Pro/Star Category)
3rd Place – Fusion 2023 (Star Category)
3rd Place – Exo Queen UK 2024
Yulija Antonova
Studio teacher
At the age of four, Julia began training in ballet.
At a dance studio in Daugavpils, she explored a variety of dance styles, including jazz, modern dance, contemporary, and later gymnastics, Latvian folk dance, oriental dance, and Jewish folk dance.
At the age of 14, Julia enrolled in the dance program at West Thames College, where she received professional dancer training.
While living in England, she discovered even more dance styles, including afro, hip-hop, house, twerk, heels, fusion, and vogue.
Julia is a certified yoga instructor (Erica Rintovich).
She received her massage therapy education at Campus Broshim.
To deepen her expertise in teaching Heels Pole Dance, Julia completed a mentorship program with Diana Paramonova.
Julia believes that dance gives people the opportunity to fully express themselves—first in the dance studio, and then in life itself. This is exactly what she found through dance, and what she now shares with her students.
PRICE & BOOKING
Participation fee
The price includes participation in all sessions of the intensive
€560
€485 — Early Bird until 20 September
How to book your spot
If you would like to join HERE & NOW and reserve your spot, please fill out the form below.
After submitting the form, you will receive confirmation of spot availability and payment details.
A €200 deposit is required to reserve your spot.
Your spot is considered reserved once the deposit has been received.
The remaining balance must be paid by 19 October 2026.
After full payment is received, you will receive registration confirmation and all the necessary information about the intensive.
Cancellation policy
Cancellations made by 18 October 2026 are eligible for a 50% refund of the amount paid.
From 19 October 2026, all payments are non-refundable.
If you can no longer attend, your spot may be transferred to another participant with prior approval from the organisers.