Crystal is professional contemporary Dancer, Choreographer and teacher who is also somatic movement practitioner student of Body-Mind Centering® with Embody Moves Organisation. She facilitates somatic movement workshops in community, studios and one to one context.

Crystals approach draws on Body-Mind Centering®, the work of Bonnie Bain Bridge, Linda Hartley as well as perspectives from Gabor Maté , Thomas Hübl and practices from Zen Master Thicht Haht Hahn.

Crystal has toured her solo and duet work for over a decade internationally and nationally. She has worked and performed as a performer and somatic movement facilitator different contexts to bring care & creative self-enquiry to a wide group of people. Crystal has been since 2013 inspired by the focus on human evolution on all levels. She brings her practice of mindfulness from the Plum Village tradition within her work and facilitations bringing the focus back to compassion and to each other.

Crystal holds spaces for anyone that is curious to feel safer, freeer in their bodies. Crystal appreciates everyone is unique and meets them where they are at in their journey with deep reverence and openness. Her offerings are comforting, playful, inclusive, curious and creates a sense of safety that allows participants to go deep if they feel inclined to.

Crystal is DBS checked, and has a current first aid certificate.

Crystals embodied experiences

Crystals studies are informed by her lived experience of somatic healing . Crystal understands first hand how trauma encodes in tissues, how grief freezes in the body and how patient, embodied work supports nervous system reorganisation. She is particularly drawn to supporting those navigating complex trauma, relational recovery, and the integration of profound loss.

In addition to her somatic training, Crystal receives one-to-one shamanic mentoring which has informed her understanding of how healing occurs at both somatic and energetic levels aswell as how fascinating it can be to address transformation through multiple dimensions.

My Trainings, practices and experiences that inform my somatic movement facilitation and coaching practice.

BA( Hons) in contemporary dance speaclising in movement studies

Pg diploma in professional dance company Verve'13

Decade of professional performances, choreography, collaborations and faciliting classes, workshops and supporting auditions.

Body-Mind Centring Courses:

2021-2022: SOEL: Experiential Anatomy online.SOEL

2022- 2023: SOEL: Experiential Anatomy Online . SOEL

2020 – 2023 : one to one session with Rosalyn Maniard Director of SOEL

Ongoing studies :

2022 : Body-Mind Centering® Somatic Movement Education certification with Embody Moves organisation.

Modules completed.

CPD Courses.

2021: Thomas Huble Collective Healing course 2021.

2020: Kimberly Jhonson – Female Nervous system & sexuality

2025: Kimberly Jhonson- Trauma & Transcendence

2020: Irene Lyon- 21 day Nervous system tune up 2020

2023: Level 2 in Counselling Skills

2023: 50 hours in humanistic Counselling skills with Embody Moves Organisation. 2023

2025: CPD Collective Healing Summit.

2025. Life Coaching Diploma- Online Alison.

2025. Meytal Blanaru’s Fathom High fascia and creative movement CPD training.

Spiritual Dimension/ facilitation of workshops.

2016: Ongoing annual visits to Plum Village Buddhist Monastery in France.

2021 : ongoing receiving Shamanic mentorship one to one with first Suzi Crockford to then Carolyn Blake.

2022: Facilitated somatic Movement workshop at Plum Village EIAB Monastary Germany.

2023: Facilitated Somatic Movement workshops with Elemental retreat, Dartington Devon with Gemma Mahol. Exploring the organs.

2021: Ongoing once a month Somatic Experiencing Counselling- Josh Knight

2025:

Plum Village ‘Artist,Warrior and mediator’ Retreat

Plum Village Volunteer at Family retreat

Plum Village ‘The Zen Art of Saving the Planet’

Dance Bio.

Crystal Zillwood trained at the Northern School of Contemporary Dance achieving a BPA Hons in contemporary dance (majoring in movement studies). She continued her studies at NSCD with the postgraduate dance company, Verve. The company toured the UK and Switzerland with commissioned pieces by Ben Wright, Frauke Requardt, Angus Balbernie , Gary Clarke, Theo Clinkard.After graduating with Distinction, Crystal has worked with a multitude of choreographers and companies including; Liz Roche, New Art Club, Ben Wright, Gary Clarke, Theo Clinkard and Stephanie Singer where she is part of the “Bittersuite” project.

In 2016 she was awarded ‘Catapult’, a professional development programme led by the NSCD in partnership with Spin Arts to support the most gifted and talented maker in the North. She has also received support from Dance City, Yorkshire Dance ,Activate Arts and Pavilion dance southwest.

During this time she has also been developing her teaching practice and leading dance workshops at the Northern School of Contemporary Dance ,The Place in London  and Galway Dance in Ireland and also expanding her practice in Somatic Movement practices which lead and inspire the way crystal facilitates her classes and collaborations.

Crystal received an Arts Council England Grant in October 2016 to focus on ‘Spirals’, a triple bill of solos developed with Artistic mentorship from Theo Clinkard. ‘Spirals’ contains three 15 minute solos, ‘Ritual Echoes’, ‘These Hands’ and ‘Evolutio’.  Crystal also has toured her work Internationally and including performances with ‘Carn to Cove’ Rural touring organisation in Devon and Cornwall and was nominated for the Young Person of the Year award 2018 by the National Rural Touring forum.

Crystal had a tour of Spirals and has received support from Arts Council England, Spin Arts Production, Pavilion Dance , Kalam Sangham, Dance studio Leeds and has performed her work at Bristol Old Vic, The Lowry, Rise Festival in Findhorn, Sadlers Wells,The Riley Theatre in Leeds and Agitart Dance Festival in Figueres in Spain.

2022 is a year of collaborative projects such as ‘Metamorphosis’ & ‘Souls&Cells’

Crystals passion are creating work in a collaborative nature as well as expanding her understanding and practice of the body on deeper level. Crystal is inspired by all things interconnected and interbeing and is inspired to create work that reflect these themes.

Crystal Zillwood Facebook Page

“Simply captivating and wonderful”
Alistair Spalding. Artistic Director and Chief Executive Sadler’s Wells.