Bänana & Fred – Announcing presenters

Bänana (she/her), a ten-year bondage enthusiast, found her passion in shibari in 2017, drawn to its raw and authentic nature. As she has always been fascinated by the expression of emotions, shibari, and more specifically semenawa has opened up a new path of exploration to her. She began to follow Docvale’s teaching in November 2018, later partnering with him to comanage Atelier Simonet in Paris until summer 2023.

Bänana considers that in order to tie well, we must understand each of our technical choices rather than learning the instructions by heart. She gives to her students a solid grounding so they can feel free while tying and put these technical abilities at the service of the relationship with their partners. Being in ropes is also something to be apprehended. Not that you have to behave in any particular way. On the contrary, every tied-up person has to find the way that pleases him or her. It’s also a long journey full of questions and emotions, and it seems important to Bänana that all this is taken into account during her courses.

Bänana’s courses are so often highly interactive, with the idea that everyone should have a place to ask questions and express their experiences and feedback in order to grow together in this practice.

During Prague Shibari Festival, Fred (he/him) will be tied by Bänana. They’ve known each other for about six years and have been practicing rope together on and off ever since. Fred enjoys the idea of being tied in public – something he sometimes explores with Bänana or other partners. Their rope dynamic tends to be playful, with a mix of exhibitionism and torment.

Find out more about Bänana at her Instagram.

Workshops

Targeting Breath: Anatomical Rope Placement

(Workshop level: L3)

During a bondage session, the breathing of the tied up person is often impacted. A simple chest harness can become real torture when breathing in certain positions.

This class focuses on the anatomical aspects of breath restriction using rope. We’ll study how to target specific zones — such as the lower ribcage, diaphragm, upper torso, throat, nose, and mouth — and how rope placement affects the ability to breathe.

You’ll learn how to safely and intentionally impact your partner’s breathing by adjusting tension, positioning, and structure, whether in floorwork or partial suspensions. This technical exploration will give you tools to incorporate breath play into your practice with more control and awareness.

Person being tied must be confortable with face ropes.

Skills: This course is suitable for riggers who are comfortable tying in partial suspensions. Having already been tied several times in partial suspensions is necessary for the models.

Trap & Trust

(Workshop level: L3)

When we tie someone up, we restrict their ability to move to varying degrees depending on the shape we’re creating. In this class, we’ll push the concept of immobility in rope to its extreme, treating it as a shared experiment.

During this class we’ll construct a suspension (or partial if you’d prefer ) where each added rope progressively limits movement, layer by layer. Like a trap slowly closing around the body, until in the end, the only thing left to move might be the eyes.

This approach to tying is one of my personal favorites. It requires precision, a deep level of trust and kind of mutual listening at each moment.

After untying, we’ll take time to reflect together on the emotions and sensations this kind of bondage creates both for the person tied and for the one tying.

Skills: This course is suitable for riggers who are comfortable tying suspensions. Having already been tied several times in partial or full suspension is necessary for the
models.

Suspension Mechanics: Adapting to Heavier Partners

(Workshop level: L3)

This workshop is designed for riggers eager to explore techniques that facilitate sessions when they are lighter than the individuals they suspend. When a rigger cannot provide counterweight during lifts, numerous questions arise to compensate for this lack of strength.

Through various exercises, I would like to show you that with experience, suspending someone heavier becomes just a factor to which we must adapt and is no longer considered a difficulty.

The course will then focus on understanding the mechanics of pulleys and friction to comprehend that impeccable technique and proper positioning of our bodies in space are essential.

We will explore a set of tips, adjustments, and techniques that will enable both the rigger and the person being tied to have the best suspension experience.

Skills: Riggers must know how to tie a propre chest harness (any style) and be comfortable tying in suspension. Models must be used to suspension.

Embodied object

(Workshop level: L1-3)

In BDSM, objectification means treating or perceiving someone as an object stripped of personal agency or identity. This can include restricting movement, using the body as a support or decoration, or engaging in acts that emphasize total control or a reduction to a single function.

This floor-based workshop explores ways to use rope to create and embody objectification. You’ll experiment with transforming the tied body into an object of contemplation, control, or desire. Each pair will be encouraged to interpret objectification in their own way whether through still postures, immobilization, or staged presentations of the body.

The class will offer both practical tools and reflective prompts about the emotional effects of objectification on both partners. We will also take time to discuss the relational dynamics and inner reactions this kind of identity-erasing play can evoke.

Person being tied must be confortable with face ropes.

Skills: Riggers must at least master single column tie, double column tie, counter tension
and X friction.