Top Innovators Join Miami Immersive Intensive for a Groundbreaking Four-Day Experience in Downtown Miami

Two of Miami’s most visionary cultural forces — Live Arts Miami and Juggerknot Theatre Company — are joining forces to launch the Miami Immersive Intensive (MII), a four-day convening of creators, performers, and producers pushing the boundaries of performance, storytelling, and audience experience.

Taking place June 26–29, 2025, at The Idea Center on Miami Dade College’s Wolfson Campus, the Miami Immersive Intensive will feature hands-on workshops, panels, and curated outings led by local, national, and international leaders in the immersive arts.

This moment marks a significant milestone for Miami’s creative community. Live Arts Miami and Juggerknot Theatre have long been at the forefront of the city’s immersive evolution — from Juggerknot’s groundbreaking Miami Motel Stories series to Live Arts’ ongoing dedication to boundary-pushing performance. Together, they have transformed spaces, engaged communities, and redefined how art can be experienced.

The Miami Immersive Intensive arrives at a moment when immersive performance has become one of the most compelling and experimental forms in contemporary art, pushing past traditional boundaries and inviting audiences into fully embodied, multi-sensory, and often site-responsive worlds. With this initiative, Live Arts Miami and Juggerknot Theatre establish a new platform for learning, exchange, and creative development—one rooted in Miami’s vibrant artistic community and global in its vision.

The intensive will feature keynote speaker and workshop leader MiKhael Tara Garver founder  of Culture House Immersive and director of Disney’s groundbreaking Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser experience. A live-streamed session with Punchdrunk (Sleep No More) senior producer Lauren Storr exploring the craft of producing large-scale immersive experiences from Sleep No More to their latest work, Viola’s Room. Alexandra Renzo, creative director at Meow Wolf, will lead a workshop on collective creativity and immersive world-making. Other featured artists and facilitators include France Luce Benson, playwright for Miami Bus Stop Stories, Tanya Bravo, producer of Miami Motel Stories, choreographers Octavio Campos and Pioneer Winter, and the French transmedia collective Le Clair Obscur leading a workshop in Transmedia Storytelling and interactive technologies.  Le Clair’s  performance “Drift” (presented by FilmGate Miami at the Frost Museum of Science) is one of two featured immersive outings for participants. The program will close with a keynote by Natasha Tsakos, who is pioneering live performance in microgravity environments.

Designed for artists, curators, producers, and performers at all levels, MII blends practical training with expansive thinking. The schedule includes hands-on workshops, panels, roundtable dinners with local creators, interactive technology experiences, and deep dives into the logistics, aesthetics, and ethics of immersive work. From movement-based storytelling and transmedia performance, to site-specific choreography and virtual reality encounters, the program reflects the many forms and futures of immersive art.

“For far too long, Miami artists have had to look beyond their own city for the training and opportunities they need to grow. We’re changing that,” said Tanya Bravo, Founder of Juggerknot Theatre Company. “Our goal is clear: to establish Miami as a national hub for immersive storytelling, while building lasting support networks for emerging and mid-career artists.At Juggerknot we’ve always believed in using performance to transform spaces and perspectives. With MII, we’re opening up our city as a canvas for new ideas, new artists, and new possibilities.”

“Live Arts Miami has long championed performance that connects, challenges, and reinvents,” said Kathryn Garcia, Executive Director of Live Arts Miami. “This intensive is a way to honor the extraordinary immersive work that’s already happening in Miami while welcoming a new generation of creators into conversation with leading voices from around the world.”

MII is both an educational event and a platform to spark collaboration, expand creative toolkits, and empower Miami’s arts ecosystem. Whether you're an artist exploring immersive forms for the first time or a seasoned creator looking to deepen your practice, the Miami Immersive Intensive offers a rare opportunity to learn, engage, and build lasting connections.

Save the dates: June 26 - 29. For tickets & more information: https://www.miamiimmersiveintensive.com/