Ponderosa, Stolzenhagen

Ponderosa is an art-centered place in the German countryside, in the village of Stolzenhagen, around an hour on the train from Berlin, close to the border with Poland in the Lower Oder Valley National Park. For 20 years it has been a site where people gather and exchange in and with the stunning natural beauty of Brandenburg.Through a history of deep involvement with dance, contact improvisation, yoga, and international and regional artistic exchange, Ponderosa is a place where the theory and practices of dance, performance, somatics, and contemporary art-making merge. People who spend time here are motivated to step out, show their own approaches, and contribute to a kind of living library of thoughts and ideas in exchange between the independent scene and the established art and performance world.The Speicher (granary) guest house is located on the grounds of the Stolzenhagen estate, which has been run by a cooperative for around 15 years. The former granary with its stone floors, lots of wood, and rustic stoves offers sleeping accommodation for small and large groups as well as a large communal kitchen with a lounge area. Just a few steps away is our garden with an outdoor shower, fruit trees, vegetable patches, and several greenhouses. Three studios of different sizes for dance, yoga, theatre, music, or seminars complement the guest house perfectly.