Sticks & Stones – Ballycastle’s exciting new dance and arts studio
Tucked away at the heart of Ballycastle is a fresh new space dedicated to nurturing creativity in both young and old. Offering a range of interactive workshops and classes, walls for art exhibits and a floor for dancing, Sticks & Stones is a studio you’re going to want to check out.
Run by native Aussie and long-term Ballycastle resident, Georgia Wilder, Stick & Stones can be found up a flight of stairs which opens out into a newly renovated space brimming with potential. A black-varnished timber floor contrasts neatly with pale, creamy walls; the room airy and spacious now the former ceiling has been removed to reveal the original timber beams.
The overall effect is one of calm and otherworldliness, thanks also, in part, to the strings of twinkling fairy lights strung across the rafters, and the ethereal gauze curtains. Driftwood, quartz and other treasures collected from Ballycastle beach also decorate the space, some of which have been crafted into trinkets. Music plays softly in the background, creating a tranquil soundscape which really does make you feel as if you’ve shut the outside world away…
“My idea was to to create a space where people can safely feel uninhibited,” says Georgia, a dancer, performance artist, writer and a fair few things more.
“What I’ve found quite a lot through my life – whether as a performance poet, a youth worker or anything else – is that the biggest thing that stops people being able to do something is that first hurdle of thinking they can’t do it. So, I wanted to create a space that looked and felt different to the outside world – which isn’t like your living room – where you can just try a new thing and give that time to yourself.”
G
eorgia first had the idea for her studio a few years ago, when the recession hit Ballycastle and indeed, the rest of the UK. Her son had just started school and she wanted to work more flexibly to allow for family time, while also giving something back to Ballycastle – a new space offering new opportunities.
Launching her meditative movement classes for adults (‘Chill Step’) in January 2016, she quickly realised that to get the flexibility she desired, she needed a space she could control as a sole trader. This would allow her to work to her own schedule, mix things around as needs be, and just experiment with her workshops and classes.
“I was running Chill Step at Sheskburn, then I hired Portrush town hall and it was lovely, but I thought it would be so great to have my own place,” she says. “Then other people could run workshops there too and there would be a lot more flexibility and adaptability around it all.
“I wanted to have control over the business so I could adapt it for both myself and for other people.”
Scouring Ballycastle for an appropriate space, Georgia’s search led her to The Diamond, where she found her current studio. Situated on the first floor, it’s convenient and easy to find – being beside a rather colourful fruit shop – and is ideal for running all sorts of workshops and events.
“Being on the first floor gives privacy to people doing dance classes,” she says. “They can see out, but no-one can see in. We got the place in August and from then until October, we did it up. It was a hair salon before and there was a reception bar which we had to rip out. We then had to sand it all back and repaint it, opening up the ceiling with the rafters and the fairy lights.”
Assisted by friend and artistic partner Jack, a sound and graphic designer, the end result is a space which now offers everything from kids’ storytelling sessions, to those relaxing adult meditative movement classes.
“The creative storytelling class for children uses a few different methods and styles,” says Georgia. “It’s all about unlocking the imagination, for example, taking nonsense poems and acting them out; dressing up, and letting the kids create their own characters.
“They’ll also inadvertently be learning about narrative arc and world-building without being bombarded with theory, developing their own style and writing voice.”
Having studied creative writing herself, Georgia has self-published novels and poetry, and has experience as a performance poet. She’s also a qualified community worker and counsellor, and previously studied dance, as well as maths and science. As she puts it, she’s something of a ‘multipotentialite’ – one who turns her hand to all sorts of creative pursuits.
Originally from Sydney, she initially studied dance, then took some maths classes, discovered she was good at them, and switched to studying science. Her plan was to study direct neural interface, which uses technology to alleviate disabilities by directly connecting the brain to external devices. However, life intervened and Georgia returned to Australia, before coming back to Northern Ireland, where she took up her writing and dancing again.
This rich experience all feeds into what she’s now doing at Sticks & Stones, with other classes including Kid’s Movement (for P3-P7 age) on Saturday afternoons.
“This is more lightly guided for children who love to move but don’t work well to the pressure of rules and structure of other movement classes,” she says. “It’s about listening to music and understanding or expressing the emotions or actions from that. For example, asking the kids – what kind of animal do you think this music sounds like? It’s simple physical theatre games.”
Meditation classes for toddlers, older kids and teenagers are also coming soon with Jo McQuillan, while for the adults, Georgia is on the look-out for a pole fitness teacher.
In the meantime, adults can enjoy Chill Step, a meditative movement workshop for all abilities.
“It draws on principles from Zen meditation and mindfulness to ease our bodies and minds into a gentle practice of finding harmony and inner peace,” explains Georgia. “We also do Zen walking, which is all about being able to focus on the present moment.”
A Beginner’s Dance Movement class also draws on Georgia’s experiences in contemporary modern dance, while the Ballet-style Body Conditioning class includes basic ballet positions to help increase flexibility and balance.
“I also really want to set up a free dance night,” says Georgia. “Where, instead of going to a nightclub, people can come here and dance… I’m also going to be running some soundscape spoken word nights – open-mic poetry nights – and there’s room for arts and crafts activities and space for other workshops, art exhibitions and acoustic gigs.”
Sticks & Stones also holds seasonal parties which are free to attend, with nibbles and refreshments, music and games provided for anyone who wants to drop by and see the space. Two such events have already taken place – for Hallowe’en and for the official opening – with another planned for the Winter Solstice. 
Whether you want a space to reclaim some me-time, relax and recharge, or would like to experiment and try something new, Sticks & Stones is ideal. With the potential to become a hub for all types of creatives on the coast – be they writers, artists, musicians, dancers or anything else – the space is certainly one worth visiting.
A warm welcome will always be waiting, and you can leave your inhibitions and stresses at the foot of that winding stair…
Sticks & Stones – Dance and arts studio is located at 11C, The Diamond, Ballycastle. (Just upstairs from Q-Cutts the barber shop.)
Website: http://sticksandstonesballycastle.weebly.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sticksandstonesballycastle/?fref=ts
Email: georgia.adele.wilder@gmail.com
Tel: 07892 915 592