Ashtara Kukuk is a somatic movement guide, dancer, and psychosomatic coach whose work bridges movement, emotional alchemy, and embodied connection. Originally from Detroit, she spent over a decade traveling the world to explore how people move—and how they long to be moved.

Trained as a professional dancer from a young age, Ashtara eventually broke free from the confines of competition and choreography when she discovered the joy of authentic, soul-led movement. Her journey has taken her to remote rainforests and faraway islands, where she studied the language of the uninhibited body and the wisdom of the Earth.

In 2015, Ashtara began her deep study of free form dance and

Contact Improvisation, learning from master teachers such as Martin Keogh(Salt Spring Island) and

Mark Young of Leviathan (Lasqueti Island). Her practice evolved through numerous West Coast immersions—fostering a deep reverence for the roots of CI while adapting the form to be inclusive for dancers of all backgrounds. She weaves this form with functional movement and somatic principles

to support co-regulation, embodied trust, and meaningful connection.

Until 2023, Ashtara lived and studied on Maui, Hawai’i, where her work was profoundly shaped by training in functional movement and biomechanics. Her approach draws from the teachings of

Loz Koch (Stalking the Wild Psoas), the fluid movement lineage of Continuum as shared by Cass Phelps (AwakeOne Divers), and the subtle re-patterning work of Feldenkrais. These influences continue to inform her unique fusion of somatic depth, expressive movement, and nervous system awareness.

Ashtara holds a BA from MSU's James Madison College, a Certificate in Talking Hearts Coaching, is a

Dance as Medicine™ Trained Facilitator, a 200-hour Registered Yoga Teacher, and has trained in modalities such as

Internal Family Systems Therapy and indigenous medicine culture. Her multidisciplinary path blends movement, psychology, and emotional release into powerful and innovative pathways for transformation.

In 2024, Ashtara relocated to Chattanooga, Tennessee , where she now offers classes, workshops, and immersive events to a growing community of movement seekers.

Whether behind the DJ decks, facilitating retreats, guiding her signature Soma & Soul Psychosomatic Coaching

program, or rolling like a creature across the floor in a Contact Improv jam, her mission remains the same:

to invite others back into their bodies, their truth, and their innate capacity for connection and joy.