Class Offerings
Our core curriculum program runs in 6 month cycles and consists of Module 1 (repeated two months in a row), Module 2 (3 months) and Module 3 (1 month). We do not allow students to skip modules, but you can take a break between modules.
Upcoming opportunities to enroll in our classes:
May 2023 Module 1 (Saturdays May 6-27) (SOLD OUT)
June 2023 Module 1 (Saturdays June 3-24)
Aug 2023 Module 1 (Thursdays Aug 3-24)
Sep 2023 Module 1 (Thursdays Aug 31 - Sep 21)
If these dates don't work for you, please contact us about private lessons.
Curriculum
HK's programming is based on a modular foundational curriculum and ongoing intermediate/advanced classes. The core curriculum consists of a total of 20 weekly 3-hour classes, broken into modules of 4, 12, and 4 weeks. Plan to devote at least 1-2 additional days to practicing each week. We ask all students to begin with Module 1 regardless of prior experience level - this is to ensure that as we move on to more advanced material, everyone is on the same page regarding the techniques, aesthetic choices, values, culture, and approach to safety.
While attendees are free to move on from participation after Module 1, our intention is to bring cohorts through the cycle of our core programs every 6 months, and integrate them into a longer term community for continuing education, social/play events, and as a student base to bring our Japanese and European instructors to Chicago for local workshops and private lessons.
Module 1: Foundations (4 weeks)
The curriculum will cover basic physical safety; emotional safety, communication, power dynamics, and negotiation; cultural and historical context; body manipulation and physical connection, scene building, and a range of Japanese inspired rope techniques and patterns that will empower participants to confidently top and bottom a diversity of floor based (non suspension) rope scenes.
Dates:
May 2023 (Saturdays 4-7:15 PM, Saturday May 6, 13, 20, and 27)
June 2023 (Saturdays 4-7:15 PM, Saturday June 3, 10, 17, and 24)
August 2023 (Thursdays 7-10:15 PM, Thursday August 3, 10, 17, and 24)
September 2023 (Thursdays 7-10:15 PM, Thursday August 31, Sep 7, Sep 14 and Sep 21)
Module 2: Partial Suspension (12 weeks)
*only open to students who have completed module 1.
The curriculum will cover more advanced anatomy and safety knowledge, foundational suspension ties adapted for partial suspension, more advanced tension and placement awareness, how to safely tie and evaluate suspension lines, and how to combine knowledge acquired thus far to create a diversity of partial suspension-based scenes, and a variety of bottoming skills to prepare bottoms for the physical and emotional experiences of intense rope scenes.
Each Module 2 continues directly after Module 1 in the same day/time slot. If you cannot enroll in the next Module 2, you may enroll at any time in the future.
Dates:
- Apr-Jun 2023 (Thurs)
- Jul-Sep 2023 (Sat)
- Sep 28 - Dec 2023 (Thurs)
Module 3: Basic Suspension (4 weeks)
The curriculum will cover a range of introductory suspension techniques, presenting themes and elements in exercises designed to give students an understanding of how suspension works, and how you can organically evolve and build suspension-based scenes adapted to each partner you play with. The final class will introduce techniques to begin transitioning in the air.
*only open to students who have completed modules 1 and 2
Dates:
- July 2023 (Thurs)
- Oct 2023 (Sat)
- Jan 2024 (Thurs)
Intermediate/Advanced Classes (ongoing, Wednesday nights)
*only open to students who have completed modules 1-3
This portion of the program consists of ongoing, open-ended continuing education for all members of our community who have completed our foundational curriculum. We'll cover more advanced suspension work, ties and techniques we didn't have time for in the core modules, present our interpretation of other styles beyond what was covered in the core modules, and use alternative class formats.
Dates: Wednesdays
Half-Day Workshops and Weekend Intensives
We offer regular workshops and intensives taught by our world-class instructors and by our visiting teachers. A sampling of upcoming events is below. Consult our calendar or email us for more info. These workshops are open to our core curriculum graduates, private students, and visiting/out-of-town learners on a case-by-base basis.
Dates: May 19 - Intro to Stemless Gote and Bamboo Uplines with sweetzephyr and ClaraRosa
June 17-18 - Single-Point Dynamic Transition Sequence Intensive with sweetzephyr and ClaraRosa
August 18-20 - Semenawa on Bamboo Intensive with sweetzephyr and ClaraRosa