The Playground -- Play as a Healing Practice
Hosted by AJ Alvarez & Hannah Dubner
Sat, April 5 - 7:30-9:30
Daya Bushwick
Price: $30
Play is a transformative force — a bridge between creativity, healing, and connection.
Drawing from Angeles Arrien’s The Four-Fold Way and over 30 years of experience in the creative and healing arts, we’ve created...
The Playground—a space for the inner child to expand, explore, and express through movement, sounding, storytelling, and rest.
Workshop Activities:
Embodied Movement:
Explore both victim and victor states through guided physical expression
Playful Exploration:
Use storytelling and role-reversal games to shift perspectives
Sound Experience:
Experience vocal toning, group sounding, and sound bath immersion
Reflection & Integration:
Breathwork, journaling, and guided share circle
Some benefits of play:
Reduces Stress & Anxiety - Triggers DOSE (dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin, endorphins), boosting mood and emotional resilience.
Reawakens Joy & Self-Expression - Sparks wonder, creativity, and the courage to show up authentically.
Boosts Physical & Mental Health - Enhances gross and fine motor skills, increases divergent thinking, & lowers the risk of lifestyle diseases.
Improves Sleep & Focus - Regulates the nervous system, supporting deep rest and mental clarity.
Builds Resilienne
& Adaptability - Strengthens the
default mode network, increasing flexibility, curiosity, and confidence in uncertainty.
Fosters Connection & Creativity - Encourages social collaboration, problem-solving, and a sense of belonging.
About the hosts:
Hannah Dubner is a breathwork guide, creativity coach, and multi-passionate artist dedicated to authenticity, pleasure, and collective freedom.
She draws inspiration from her lineage of artists, nature's rhythms, and her inner child's innate play codes.
Devoted to the creative and healing arts for the last 15 years, Hannah has a BFA from Ithaca College and an MFA from DePaul University.
She's toured as a performer through the U.S. and Germany. A certified yoga teacher, trauma-informed coach, and Theravada Buddhist meditation guide, she merges ancient practices with modern science to create expasnive experiences.
A.J. comes from a family of performers, teachers, and goofballs, where play and theatre were integral to his growth. Blending kundalini yoga, pranayama, energy work, and performance training with his indigenous perspective, he offers a dynamic and playful approach to breathwork.
As an internationally recognized teacher and energy mentor, he merges optimal performance training with spiritual insight, empowering others to unlock transformation and healing through breath and movement.
Having personally used play to navigate depression and chronic grief, A.J. understands the profound role of joy, presence, and creative expression in healing. His biodynamic style makes breathwork both accessible and freeing, inviting practitioners of all levels to engage with their energy in a deeper, more liberated