Vamp Camp
Healing Sexual Shame with Trauma-Informed Burlesque, Ritual & Play
Up all night sleepover vibes 🍭💄
Healing sexual shame, one bump n’ grind at a time
From complex relationship trauma to other forms of systemic & religious oppression, there are many layers that have fueled shame, confusion, and disconnection around our bodies. But being connected to our bodily/pleasure signals is exactly what leads to empowerment, life-giving relationships, ability to set boundaries, and increased life-force.
Through trauma-informed burlesque, belly dance, crafts, rituals, dance parties, and more, Vamp Camp™ is a space to explore fun and accessible ways back to your body and sense of pleasure. Pack your bags, babe… see you at Camp! 🍭
Play
Noun, verb | /plā/
To engage in fun activities for the purpose of pleasure
To joke or to jest
An accessible way to help your nervous system feel safer being in a state of pleasure, especially after trauma
Guided by trauma-informed therapies, Somatic Experiencing®, polyvagal theory and more, we understand that feeling safe with our sexuality, especially if you’ve been impacted by trauma, won’t happen overnight. But PLAY helps us access our pleasure signals without overwhelming the nervous system.
Playing dress up.. being Jessica Rabbit for a day.. midnight margarita dance parties.. we hope we can have you over for some play time soon!
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We want to help you feel more confident in your body and with your sexuality; in big part, this means your nervous system has to feel safer. Through a combination of trauma-informed burlesque, belly dance, play, rituals, somatic/attachment skills and more, we want pleasure to be more accessible and fun for you.
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Sometimes it’s a dance class series, sometimes a retreat, sometimes a workshop or dance party. We hope that in the future it will also look like sleepovers, midnight goth balls, and whatever else our community dreams up!
*Always beginner level unless otherwise noted | Modifications for accessibility needs and chronic pain always available
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No matter the event, from naughty fairy retreats to Disney villain burlesque classes, certain foundational elements guide our process. Each event includes:
Trauma-informed movement and somatic, attachment, + polyvagal skills to help you read and understand your body and nervous system
Burlesque and belly dance instruction and choreography (beginner)
Honoring the seasonal energies, as influenced by our cultural, Earth-based practices
Playing with Archetypes and characters to help us access parts of us that have been suppressed and demonized by dominating, oppressive culture
PLAY & FUN
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So far, we’ve had
a naughty fairy day retreat inspired by the seasonal energy of Beltane (late Spring), and
a 2-part burlesque class series inspired by Mary Magdalene and the seasonal energy of Imbolc (late Winter / very early Spring)
🎉 Be the first to hear about our upcoming workshop, Midnight Margaritas: Sister Witch Burlesque Class & Dance Party! 🖤🍸🎉
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Vamp Camp may be a perfect fit if you’re:
Recovering from purity culture (or any high-control relationship system, domestic violence, etc.) and looking for an accessible, fun way to connect with your body and sexuality
Looking to learn super fun dance technique and choreography in an intentional, grounded, politically progressive space
Wanting to unravel internalized oppressive conditioning from your tissues through liberated movement
Wanting to feel more comfortable with yourself and in your skin; you want to make friends with your sexual, seductive, playful self
Looking for a grounded, intentional & FUN space to make new friends!
Deeper Healing + Justice
Along with helping our nervous systems feel safer with pleasure, we also view embodiment and sensuality as resistance to systems of oppression. This PLAY-work has deep roots for us, and we’d love to share more with you.
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Systems of oppression (patriarchy, white supremacy, high-control religion and on) thrive on disconnection from ourselves, our bodies, and our pleasure.
When we’re in our bodies, we’re connected to a deep intelligence that shows us what we need, where our boundaries are, and what feels good and not good. We have more capacity to be in power-with relationships, to mobilize toward what we care about, and to be joyful and fulfilled.
Is it any wonder that power-over systems would rather us feel overwhelmed and small? When we’re fully alive, embodied, and turned on, we’re a force to be reckoned with.
Within these systems of oppression, we’ve also been conditioned into hyper-individualism, being in relationship in ways that minimize/deny our inherent connection with each other, the earth, and with all beings. At Vamp Camp, we see our innate connection with the earth and the seasons as a vital part of healing our relationship with our bodies and each other. Campers are always invited to bring their personal and cultural earth-based (and otherwise) practices to our gatherings.
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As practitioners of body liberation, we also stand for liberation and autonomy in all of its forms, for ALL beings.
We make every, ever-evolving effort within Vamp Camp™ to be anti-racist, anti-ableist, gender affirming, queer-allied, anti-purity culture, anti-fundamentalist, and vegan/cruelty-free. We strive to maintain a warm, welcoming, inclusive space for all bodies, sexual orientations, faith traditions, and cultural backgrounds.
We hold deep space for complexity, nuance, differences, and the relational process of rupture and repair, knowing that freeing ourselves from systems of oppression will not be clean or easy. However, any type of abusive, bullying, or oppressive behavior will never be tolerated at Vamp Camp™.
*A note on being vegan/cruelty-free: Including animal bodies in the fight for liberation is of the highest importance to us. We are currently replacing our inventory with cruelty-free options. Thank you for your patience as we make replacements.
FAQ
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Disability justice and inclusivity is very important to us. We work hard to include movement and dance exercises that can be easily adapted to varied levels of ability. Please always feel free to ask about modifications and accessibility aids.
We also try hard to choose locations with accessibility options for parking and movement.
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Until our Vamp Camp website and email system is operational, hear about all upcoming events by signing up for the Rose, Raven & Roar newsletter here (unsubscribe any time).
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For now, we try to host events at least twice per year. We have SO much in store for the future… hear about all upcoming events and happenings by signing up here!
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There is no way to repress pleasure and expect liberation, satisfaction, or joy.”
― adrienne maree brown, Pleasure Activism: The Politics of Feeling Good
Your Guides
Liá Miyamura | Wayward Pixie
Liá is an acclaimed burlesque dancer, fire artist, fusion belly dance performer and dance instructor, featured in Rainbow Room Review 2024 at the legendary Skull’s Rainbow Room, and member of the local performance troupe, Pyroglyphics.
Liá grew up in the enchanted place where the redwoods meet the ocean. Her passion for travel has allowed her to learn from and connect with many different cultures and communities, learning how integral these connections are to her art. Community is a priority. Coming from a background of being slut shamed and feeling small, her passion is sharing the way dance and burlesque have helped her feel more empowered and able to let go of shame and guilt.
Liá loves travel, festivals, Burning Man, food, fashion (especially vintage), makeup, making costumes, and anything art-related. She’s been playing dress-up since childhood, and now gets paid for it 👠 She’s very inspired by film and television, especially sci-fi and fantasy. She’s toured with big top circus, Flynn Creek Circus (human only!)
Liá is very excited to soon reveal her newest deep-dive offerings, blending coaching support + burlesque and belly dance fusion movement to help her clients go even deeper in unraveling sexual, sensual, and bodily shame. Offerings will include VIP 1:1 journeys, group immersions, and several delicious surprises along the way. Stay tuned! ✨
Favorite shows + films include Star Wars, Hunger Games, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Rocky Horror Picture Show.
Elizabeth DeVaughn, LPC-MHSP
Elizabeth (or Liz) is a licensed psychotherapist, clinical supervisor, and complex trauma + relationship specialist, practicing on S’atsoyaha (Yuchi) land, colonized as Nashville, TN.
Liz has been a practicing psychotherapist for 13 years, primarily working with clients recovering from domestic violence, high-control religion, and who wish to create secure relationship patterns based in safety and reciprocity. Having her own story of oppressive relationships + learning how to form bonds that don’t involve hiding and chameleon-ing, this work has deep roots for her.
Liz has advanced training in Somatic Experiencing®, EMDR, and Emotionally Focused Therapy for Couples, featured in publications such as the Trauma Therapist Institute Journal, HuffPost, Newsweek, and Medium. Her soul mission is helping heal the root cause of relationship patterns based in trauma and oppression. Her business, Rose, Raven & Roar™, aims to address this from both micro and macro lenses, blending somatic + attachment science, activism, history, nature-based practices, and cultural spiritual/magical practices. Practically, this looks like everything from psychotherapy to somatic-justice book clubs to witches tea parties 🫖
Favorite things include hiking alone or with her bestie, dancing, crafting & art, spending hours strolling outside alone or with her soul partner kitty, Ms. Truly, and drinking morning coffee with her artistic, hilarious husband of 14 years. HSP, Enneagram 3, highly sensitive and introverted, sarcasm and dark humor as a love language. Interabled and vegan, holding a candle for her dream of an animal sanctuary and trauma healing facility for abuse and oppressive violence (for both animals and humans).
Favorite shows: Schitt’s Creek, Golden Girls, True Blood, Cobra Kai, Dexter