The dark that holds it all 🌑
Winter is a season not often honoured for its beauty, or for the way it calls us inward.
We are often taught to push through it, a waiting space between light and warmth.
Te Pō offers the opposite invitation.
In Māori cosmology, Te Pō is the long night before the world of light
the cocoon,
the womb space,
the place where life quietly gestates before it is ready to be seen.
There is a quiet beauty in the dark, not as absence, but as depth. A place where everything softens, where what is unseen is still alive and forming.
Winter Solstice marks the deepest point of that darkness.
In this retreat, we enter that space together, exploring what it feels like to be fully held, fully safe, and free to express all that we are.
A slow unfolding through the day and into the night:
• Opening ceremony — honouring the season through intention and ritual
• Connection workshop — meeting each other on a deeper level, establishing safety as a group
• Vocal expression — sound before language, the voice as instrument
• Somatic dance — exploring in an embodied way what Te Pō means within us
• Creative expression — your inner world, brought onto paper through charcoal
• Ecstatic dance — the release, the long, full exhale
• Yoga Nidra & integration — time to settle the nervous system and integrate what has been explored through the day
• Fully catered — vegan, gluten-free, sugar-free options available
📍 Aroha Shanti, Huapai – Auckland
📅 Saturday, 27 June
🎟 $160 – fully catered, Early Bird (only 20 tickets)
🎟 $200 - fully catered, General
You don’t need to be a dancer, an artist, or anything in particular.
Only a willingness to honour the darkness, and to explore yourself through embodied expression.
Held by music, ritual, and the season itself,
you may find parts of yourself that light often keeps quiet.
Wha is Ecstatic Dance?
A free-form movement practice
no steps,
no talking,
no judgment.
It’s a journey guided by music,
where your body leads the way.
Some come to release stress,
some to express emotions,
and others simply to feel alive again.
Everyone is welcome,
no matter your age,
experience,
or background.
Next dance is this Friday @thedustpalace with @djmangosago leading the way on the dance floor 💃
See you there x
✨ MANAWA ECSTATIC DANCE • 22 MAY ✨ 📍 Dust Palace
Join us for an energising night of movement, rhythm, and connection. Featuring DJ Gabriella Gonzalez and her vibrant fusion of Latin, Tribal & Afro beats.
Cacao Lounge opens 6PM Opening Circle 7PM 90 min Ecstatic Dance Journey
DJ Gabriella Gonzalez weaves together earthy tribal rhythms, Afro grooves, and uplifting Latin sounds to create a dance journey full of passion, freedom, and expression.
Expect a set that invites you to move deeply, sweat freely, and reconnect with your body through music.
This is a space to dance without pressure or performance.
No choreography.
No judgment.
Just movement, community, and pure energy. ✨
This is your chance to experience Manawa’s first international DJ @itsleahluna
holding a mini festival space for our community. ✨
Early bird tickets end in 8 days on the 23rd of May.
Early Bird $45
General Admission $50
On the 30th of May, Manawa transforms into a mini festival of movement, music, expression and connection.
We are beyond excited to welcome Leah Luna to the Manawa dance floor.
Known for immersive, high-energy sets that blend Bass House, Afro House, tribal rhythms and hypnotic electronic textures, Leah Luna creates sonic journeys where expression unfolds naturally, barriers dissolve, and music becomes a fully embodied experience.
From Berlin to Bali to Aotearoa, her genre-fluid approach bridges underground electronic music with emotional depth, sensual tension and explosive collective energy.
Through projects such as Morph Festival NZ and her Ecstatic Boiler Room experiences, Leah Luna is helping reimagine what dance culture can feel like when freedom, embodiment and human connection take centre stage.
✨ What to expect ✨
Yoga
A gentle practice to arrive fully in your body and prepare the ground for movement.
Ecstatic Dance — 90min DJ Set
Let go and move freely in a safe, judgment-free space guided by deep, earthy beats and uplifting soundscapes.
Sound Healing
A soothing integration experience to rest, reflect, and settle the energy stirred through the dance.
Chai & Kai
Enjoy warming chai and nourishing kai in community — time to connect, share, and be held in warmth.
Whether you’re a seasoned dancer or brand new to the space, you’re welcome here.
This is for anyone seeking deeper connection to self and others through movement and meaningful conversations.
Let’s cultivate a community where we live from the heart.
Auckland… ready to move? ❤️🔥
MANAWA ECSTATIC DANCE
FRIDAY 15 MAY • Dust Palace, Ellerslie
This Friday we gather again for a night of music, movement, and real human connection featuring DJ Pierro Lunaire taking us on a genre bending dance journey from disco grooves to deep hypnotic techno.
No dance experience needed.
No choreography.
Just a room full of humans moving and letting go together.
Expect:
⚡ Uplifting electronic beats
🌀 A 90-min ecstatic dance journey
☕ Cacao Lounge from 6PM
💫 Opening Circle at 7PM
🌙 A playful, immersive atmosphere designed to help you reconnect to your body
This isn’t about performing.
It’s about feeling.
Come solo.
Come with friends.
Come exactly as you are.
Tickets in bio
POV: you host a Pop-up Dance in Auckland! 🕺🏻
And suddenly…
strangers are smiling at each other.
People are laughing in the street.
There’s something powerful about dancing in public.
It interrupts autopilot.
It softens social anxiety.
It reminds people they’re allowed to take up space, be playful, and feel seen.
No alcohol.
No performance.
Just humans moving together for the joy of it.
Honestly? Auckland needs more of this. ❤️🔥
Would you join the next pop up dance?
✨ MANAWA ECSTATIC DANCE • 15 MAY ✨
📍 Dust Palace
Join us for another vibrant evening of movement, connection, and sound.
Featuring DJ Pierro Lunaire and his colourful electronic dance journey from disco to techno.
Cacao Lounge opens 6PM
Opening Circle 7PM
90 min Ecstatic Dance Journey
DJ Pierro Lunaire blends uplifting disco grooves, deep electronic rhythms, and hypnotic techno beats to create a playful and immersive dance experience. Expect a journey that builds energy, freedom, joy, and release on the dance floor.
This is a space to move however your body wants to move.
No choreography.
No judgment.
Just music, movement, and presence.
Making friends as adults shouldn’t be this hard.
So we’re creating the kind of space we wish existed more often.
A cozy sober day party for connection, movement, creativity & genuinely good humans.
No alcohol.
No pressure.
No surface-level energy.
Just a softer kind of socialising 🤍
Tomorrow May 9th 10am -3pm
📍 Button Factory, 2 Abbey St, Auckland.
Manawa × @thebuttonfactorynz
Tickets are limited and going fast!
Link in bio 🎟️
What if your Saturday plans actually left you feeling better the next day? ✨
Please rotate ur screen!
This weekend, we’re bringing a different kind of party to Tāmaki Makaurau.
No alcohol. No pressure. Just music, movement, creativity, and genuine connection.
Part of the global rise of “soft clubbing” and sober social spaces happening across Europe, this is about replacing the hangover with something that actually fills your cup.
Expect:
☕ Barista coffee + smoothies
🥪 Toasties (GF options available)
💌 Guided connection workshop
@askdeeperquestions
🪩 2 hours of dancing with DJ @pierro_lunaire
🎬 Cozy movie wind-down
🎨 Creative art space
🌿 Warm, welcoming, alcohol-free vibes
This isn’t networking.
This isn’t forced small talk.
It’s simply a space to meet people, move your body, and feel a little more human again.
Come solo or bring your people.
Wear something comfy. Stay for the full experience.
📍 Button Factory | 2 Abbey St, Auckland
🗓 Saturday 9 May
⏰ 10AM — 3PM
🎟 $35–$45
Auckland’s craving new ways to connect.
Maybe this is one of them 🤍
