Compass Arts Retreats in Rural Spain
Intensive training for performers who love what they do so much, they want to do it on holiday!
Like summer camp (but in a beautiful country palace house in the mountains in Spain), and drama school (but without all the drama) put together in one amazing week-long getaway.
Your creativity will explode, your skills will level-up, your community will grow, and you’ll leave feeling relaxed, inspired, playful, confident, and supported.
Upcoming retreats:
October 21st - 26th 2024
Five nights in a historic palace house in the mountains outside of Madrid.
45+ hours of intensive training to develop your skills with like-minded professionals and internationally experienced instructors.
Healthy and delicious meals are all included as part of your retreat.
Your bus ticket to and from Madrid or Segovia is included too.
When you enter our retreat home and gardens, Villa Ángeles, you step back in time to 1904, but with modern comforts. Enjoy breakfast on one of the many terraces. Rehearse and train on original solid-wood floors surrounded by beautiful Spanish tile work. Explore the nooks and crannies and wake up every one of your senses as you turn off the world, and dive into your creativity.
The walls breathe inspiration and the stairs creak with stories of those who sought refuge in this very location for more than a century. There's something magical about honing your craft while surrounded by a blend of elegance, history, beauty, nature, and simplicity.
The origin of our town, San Rafael, dates back to 1784 when a coaching inn was built by order of King Carlos III. Located on the royal road that connected Madrid with the nearby royal palace of La Granja de San Ildefonso, San Rafael was a perfect resting place for travelers crossing the Guadarrama mountain range, hosting a number of fascinating people such as Napoleon, and many members of the Spanish royal family.
Holly Renaut
Holly has had an international career in theatre, film and voice over, both as a performer and as a highly regarded dialect and acting coach, director, and writer, working with hundreds of performers all over the world individually and in production. For the first half of 2024, she was in production as the Acting and Dialogue coach for HBO’s When No One Sees Us (Cuando Nadie Nos Ve), and she also recently worked as Dialect coach for Chiwetel Ejiofor and Naomie Harris in the Man Who Fell to Earth. As an actor, you can catch her alongside Eva Longoria in Land of Women on Apple TV, which just came out June 26th.
She has performed and toured in 6 different countries, including two seasons at the RSC's outdoor summer venue. She was trained in the Linklater voice method both by Linklater herself, as well as extensively at Shakespeare & Company in the USA. She has directed and voiced countless projects, including Nintendo's Metroid, series dubbing for countless projects, and voiced international ad campaigns.
Yago Cardalda
Yago has spent his life in the arts, having performed, composed, and toured at an international level from a very young age as a musician, director, and actor. He has also been training actors and singers for nearly 20 years.
Yago’s experience is extensive, from Musical Directing productions and festivals, to performing in the cast of countless musical theatre productions and on TV, to writing, composing, and directing a hit musical on Gran Vía, (Madrid’s Broadway) and collaborating with artists all over the world. He has performed with artists such as Mika and James Arthur, music directed festivals such as Mad Cool and groups including Marlena, and has coached competitors in programs such as The Voice, Operación Triunfo, and Got Talent.
