Harmonic Motion
Dynamic Bar Retreat
with Nico Stocco
Static Trapeze – Dance Trapeze
March 21 – 28, 2026
Casa Chango Mexico, Puerto Escondido
BIPOC Scholarship Available. To apply, please send a motivation letter and a link to a video of yourself (performing or training) to workshop.nicirco@gmail.com
Scholarship Recipient will be announced on December 15, 2025.
This retreat is intended for people willing to dive into the world of dynamics, for dynamic movers who want to broaden their skills, or for any curious aerialist who wants to learn a new language in bar apparatuses.
“Harmonic Motion” is a training methodology developed by Nicolas Stocco (Argentinian aerial artist) for learning and developing aerial technique. It is based on didactic and methodological exercises executed both on the ground and in the air, and has the aim of improving the apprentice’s motor and coordination skills, as well as their strength and flexibility. In essence, we work with the development of body awareness in order to understand the positioning and correct use of our center and our shoulder blades, fundamental pillars in aerial acrobatics, as well as the physic laws that affect our bodies.
Through progressions, we are going to set the foundations of what will evolve into advanced movements, respecting each student’s time and body. Nico believes aerial acrobatics shouldn’t be painful and shouldn’t harm our bodies, so together we are going to research how to find safe ways for each body type to develop their dynamic movements further.
We will have 5 hours a day of lessons that will include specific warm-ups for aerialists, dynamic technique development of different movement families, sequences, flexibility lessons and improvisations and movement tasks to research new ways of moving in the air.
Worried about your hands? Stay chill! The program is thought to keep the skin on your hands as long as possible, mixing different movement families to avoid always relying on the hands.
Since 2015, Nico has been working as a circus coach specialized in technical development and training, in several professional circus schools of Europe, as well as online. As a complement to the training, Nico is coming with one of his most advanced student, Camille Swift, who will assist Nico and support the bar training with some sling lessons, to understand how the body works in the air from another perspective.
Spend a WEEK in PARADISE with new friends, the beach, delicious, fresh, local food, and learn loads and loads of new dynamic skills!
Morning Classes:
During the morning, we will do a warm-up all together based on what we are going to work on later in the air, putting the focus on coordination and flexibility, to then bring these exercises into the air, during the morning the main bar-technical work will be executed, depending the day we will visit different beats, rolls, c-shaping or re-grips.
Starting from an easy foundation exercises, we will make them progress until crazy tricks, but don’t worry, we will go slow in order to let the brain understand the pathway and avoid injuries.
Afternoon Classes:
After lunch the warm-up will be shorter, more focused on getting the body ready for the air, and depending the day we will work on some sling lessons guided by Camille to save a bit our hands, or keep working the trapeze and hoop training, trying to bring the movement worked in the morning into sequences and improvisation task.
Right before the sunset, with the golden hour, we will have some time to make cool videos and pictures and cool down all together, watching the sun setting by the sea.
Daily Schedule Sample:
- 7:30 – 9:30 a.m. – Tea, Coffee and Breakfast
- 9:45 a.m.-12:45pm – Warm Up, Dynamic Technique Class
- 1:00 p.m. – Lunch
- 2:00 p.m. -5:00 p.m. – Free time (pool, hammocks, massages, naps)
- 3:30 p.m. – Afternoon snack and beverage
- 4:30 – 6:30p.m. – Sequencing and Creativity
- 6-7pm – Sunset photos and videos (in the gym and by the infinity pool)
- 7:00 p.m. – Dinner
- 8:00 p.m. – Free time, jacuzzi, and evening activities
We will take you to our favorite beaches for swimming, surfing, snorkeling, and releasing baby turtles into the sea. Optional evening adventures include a bioluminescent lagoon & local night market.
Read more about our excursions here.
Ask about our significant other / BFF rates!
Aerial nerds can indulge in all of your aerial desires while friends and family can enjoy the retreat environment, delicious, healthy food, surfing, swimming, relaxing, and get into their bodies.
Prerequisites:
The retreat is intended for any aerialist with 2 years of practice or more, specially for trapeze and hoop practitioners. Making pull-ups and straddle-ups its a must to be able to profit the maximum for the retreat, but if you have any doubt, contact Nico at nicostocco@gmail.com with some videos of you practicing and he will be happy to tell you if your level is enough for the retreat.
Your coaches:
Nico Stocco
Nicolás Stocco is a multidisciplinary circus artist, specialized in aerial arts, with skills in dance and physical theater. He was born in Argentina, where he learned the foundations of various circus disciplines and their respective techniques. He believes that the aerial technique is unique, but that we apply it differently depending on the element we use. This allowed him to develop his own circus training methodology called “Harmonic Motion”, where he combines aerial technique with training theory, flexibility, and biomechanics. Since 2015, he has trained adult groups and taught workshops in amateur and professional circus schools such as EsactoLido (Fr), ACAPA & Codarts (Nl), and Carmpa (Es). Since 2020, he has transferred his methodology to an online version, where he coaches in groups to develop trapeze and hoop technique.
Camille Swift
Camille Swift is a Chicago-based circus artist, specializing in static trapeze, dance trapeze, and aerial sling. She has performed in AirOtic with Les Farfadais, CREACTIVE by Cirque du Soleil at Club Med Opio-en-Provence as well as performed multiple times at the Seattle Moisture Festival and various shows and cabarets across the Midwest. When not performing or creating, she works as a professional aerial coach, training her students in dynamic form and technique, helping them develop a professional standard of creative and acrobatic movement, and the more general but still critical skill of body maintenance to keep a professional aerialist in peak form.
Student Testimonials
The Harmonic Motion Retreat at Casa Chango was hands down the best retreat I’ve ever been to. I would love to have more constructive feedback, but everything I have to say is positive. I admire the way you were able to meet the needs of the entire group and really make every single one of us feel good about our aerial journey! Nico’s technical, “nerdy” style is great. He teaches with so much efficiency and clarity, and I learned a ton from how he broke things down. I also really appreciated his loud, positive encouragement – it brought such great energy to the room. Somehow Nico has eyes everywhere and can see 10 things happening at once. You contributed some amazing progressions for some really big skills that I never would have dreamed of achieving. These progressions made these big skills feel more accessible and offered a clear path forward.. I felt you were very, very adept at being able to point out the things that weren’t working in our bodies, and offering cues about how to correct the movement so that the skill would work. You were also super mindful and responsive to how the group was feeling each day, adjusting focus to make sure we were taking care of ourselves.
Honestly, I left with way more than just new skills, I left with knowledge that’ll keep serving my practice for a long time. It was honestly a dream come true to train with you. I’m so grateful for that experience.
– Mackie
I enjoyed the format of each class, the 3 hour then 2 hour class lengths each day, and felt there was the right amount of instruction to the right amount of time on the apparatus. I also really enjoyed that everyone in the class worked on the same things (vs separate workshops by each apparatus). I felt that the warm-up each day was the appropriate length and intensity, and I appreciated that each day had a different warm-up. I also really enjoyed the group cooldown each evening. That really pulled everything together full circle. If you decide to come back to Mexico, or anywhere else in the Americas, I would so happily sign up for your workshop again.
– Diedra
Working with Nico has been such a rewarding experience. His coaching consists of not only technique, but also has such a healthy approach with discipline and listening to your body. He will push you to your limit without exceeding it and knows how to maximize your time by training different skills instead of breaking your body training one thing into exhaustion. He’s got such a beautiful style and technique! It’s genuinely been such a pleasure learning from him. I really couldn’t recommend him enough!
– Diego
“A workshop to take home” The experience in Nico’s workshop was really good. The organization of the content and the working dynamics helped to profit and to hold on physically until the end. The warm-ups gave various ideas and perspectives to each student to be able to put them into daily practice. In the development of the technical part, he has been able to adapt the complexities to each participant, so that they have the tools and/or adequate guidance when implementing the practice of the same. In general, the workshop is a great time, both at a learning and social level. Highly recommended!”
– Martin
Retreat pricing:
Per person pricing in USD
Prices listed are the Early Bird Prices which are $300 discounted. Full price is $300 more than the prices listed. Early bird discount ends Dec 15.
Need a payment plan? Email us at SweetRetreatsMexico@gmail.com and we will set that up for you.
| Your choice of accommodations: | Early Bird Price | Full Price |
| Shared Dorm (mixed gender) | $2000 | $2300 |
| Shared Private Room (2 friends sharing a room) 1 king size bed or 2 individual beds | $2200 | $2500 |
| Shared Private Room (2 friends sharing a room) 1 king size bed or 2 individual beds | $2300 | $2600 |
| Private Room w Shared Bathroom | $2500 | $2800 |
| Private Room w Private Bathroom | $2800 | $3100 |
| Private Room w Private Bathroom & Air Conditioner | $3100 | $3400 |
$500 Deposit is required to secure your spot.
Early bird price ends Dec 21.
Full tuition is due by one month before the first day of the retreat.
Rates refer to cost of one person’s tuition.
Couples must sign up together.
Significant others and friends who are not taking classes are welcome at a special price.
Dorms are mixed gender.
Click here for room descriptions.
What’s included:
- Ground transportation to/from the Puerto Escondido Airport (PXM) to our accommodations*
- Arrive on March 21. Depart on March 28.
- Accommodations for the duration of the retreat
- Daily meals – breakfast, lunch, dinner, & desserts and treats!
- 2 daily classes
- Aerial photoshoot
- Evening activities
- Trips to a local beaches and night market
- 24 hour use of swimming pool and community space
- Evening Jacuzzi soaks
- Ice Bath
- Starlink Wifi Internet
BIPOC Scholarship Available.
Links for more information:
- Casa Chango accommodations – room descriptions
- Meals and Food*
- How to get here**. Info and advice on booking your travel
- Weather in Puerto Escondido
- Testimonials
- Excursions
Discounts:
- Book and pay early and save $300!
- Refer a friend to any of our retreats and save $100 with our referral discount.*
- Sweet Retreats Alumni discount $200.
Questions? Email us at SweetRetreatsMexico@gmail.com
*Food service begins with a snack and dinner on arrival day, and ends with breakfast on departure day. All meals are provided. The food is amazing! ** Your taxi to/from the PXM airport is included if you arrive/depart on designated days. Click here for info about getting to Puerto Escondido.
Cancellation Policy:
- No Refunds.
- Deposits are non-refundable and non-transferrable.
- Cancel more than 60 days before 1st day of retreat: 50% of your tuition paid can transfer toward a future Sweet Retreat within 18 months of cancellation.
- Cancel 30-60 days before the 1st day of retreat: 25% of your tuition paid can transfer toward a future Sweet Retreat within 18 months of cancellation.
- Cancellations up to 30 days before the 1st day of the retreat will not be credited or refunded for any reason.
- At the time of payment for your retreat, we strongly advise purchasing a travel insurance policy. Make sure your policy covers the full cost of the retreat fee, as well as unexpected cancellation, trip delay, losses and other risks. Also, consider protection for canceled or delayed flights, lost luggage, medical needs while traveling. Please bring the policy with you in case of emergency. Click here for IM Global Insurance. Click here for WanderWell Insurance.