MASTER CLASS
Craft the Experience of a Lifetime
A radical weeklong deep-dive into empathy, artistry, and transformation for those ready to create work that truly moves people.
We gather a small cohort of cross-disciplinary artists, designers, performers, and researchers to design a singular, immersive Odyssey for an audience of one—a durational performance interwoven with the life of a single participant.
In 2026, Odyssey Works celebrates its 25th anniversary. To honor a quarter-century of crafting profound, personalized, site-specific experiences around the world, we are returning to the waters that inspired our very name: the Ionian Sea. The story of Odysseus — navigating trials, transformations, and ultimately homecoming — has been at the heart of our practice since the beginning. We invite you to apply to learn about this practice and craft the next Odyssey on the island of Zakynthos, a neighbor to legendary Ithaca among the crystal-clear water of the Ionian Islands.
Fellows will join Odyssey Works Director Ayden LeRoux and Associate Director Sophie Larsmon for one week to learn our secrets from 25 years of designing experiences for one-person audiences. Together, we will collaborate to make a once-in-a-lifetime Odyssey for one chosen individual.
We will hit the ground running. We will present concepts of empathetic design, teach methods for making diagrams, and practice creating spaces of intimacy and curiosity. Each fellow will be selected for their particular expertise, and we will work across disciplines to create a transformative experience that is site specific. Days will be spent researching our chosen participant, collaborating in the development of particular moments for them, and learning the Odyssey Works approach to experience design. Each fellow will return home seeing their personal, professional, and creative lives through a new lens. Be prepared to spend the week deeply immersed in creative research, design, and production. We will be in a remarkable place, and the project we complete together will be demanding. We will live, eat, and work together full-time for the week.
WHAT YOU'LL DO
In one immersive week, you’ll learn Odyssey Works’ method of designing with empathy and precision — tools honed over two decades of pioneering experience design.
You’ll:
- Learn diagramming, world-building, and empathetic research techniques
- Collaborate across disciplines to design meaningful moments
- Explore the boundaries of performance, ritual, and reality
- Create an Odyssey for a real person—and witness its impact firsthand
You’ll leave with new language, new collaborators, and a new lens on your creative life.
TRAVEL
The Master Class will be held Saturday 6 June thru Sunday 14 June 2026. You will be responsible for your own airfare or transportation to Zakynthos International Airport. We will transport you from Zakynthos International Airport to the villa and back again.
PRACTICAL DETAILS
Saturday, June 6-Sunday, June 14, 2026
Applications for Master Class Fellows are open until Jan 31, 2026
Tuition: $3800
Room & Board: $925 (all rooms are shared)
Fellows are responsible for their own travel to Zakynthos International Airport.
A number of need-based partial scholarships will be available. We are incredibly aware of the widening economic gaps around the world. It is our goal to make this Master Class as accessible as possible. On average, 50% of our Fellows receive some support via our scholarship programs. Additionally, there will be two Work Study positions available. One is a Production Assistant and the other is a Meal Coordinator. Work Study Fellows pay a flat fee for Room & Board ($925).
ACCOMMODATION
The Odyssey Works Master Class 2026 will be held at a stunning villa near the North Coast of Zakynthos. The island's North Coast is a place of wild, untamed beauty where sheer limestone cliffs plunge into shimmering turquoise waters and hidden coves glimmer like secret jewels. Bathed in golden light and scented with pine and salt, it feels almost otherworldly, a place where the sea and sky blur together. The magic of our surroundings will fill us with inspiration and creativity.
We will share meals together each day and cook collaboratively using local produce.
WHERE YOU'LL BE STAYING
Past Odysseys
Pilgrimage
From Brooklyn to a sacred park in Virginia, Ayden’s Odyssey unfolded as a transformative pilgrimage—woven with choreography, talismans, and the power of personal rebirth.
The Narrative Spiral
Through sound, story, and strangers, Laura’s Odyssey spiraled inward—until all that remained was resonance. What followed was a return to self, forever changed by what she heard.
The Map Is Not The Territory
What began with a Borges book and a man in a goat mask became a wild hunt across New York—and a fiery, joyful rite of passage that pulled Carl from his mind into his body, and into a new life.
When I Left The House It Was Still Dark
A mysterious children’s book. A secret room. A flight to the Canadian prairie. Rick Moody’s summer was overtaken by art, blurring life and performance until the line disappeared completely.
The Dariad
From farmers market to museum, Dare’s Odyssey unfolded through fire, faces, and frames—transforming the familiar into the surreal, and turning quiet attentiveness into a powerful act of connection.
The Woven Life
In the mango groves of Baja, Suldano wove yarn, memories, and dreams into a new vision of self—blurring the real and the possible in a fabric of transformation.
The First Chapter
In a world where stories were currency, Josh journeyed through waterfalls, farm stands, and a writers’ commune—rediscovering creativity, community, and his own long-lost First Chapter.
The Book of Separation
A remote, poetic journey for two—The Book of Separation invites you and a loved one into a custom-built story of connection, distance, and what it takes to find your way back to each other.
The Road to Taz
In Lisbon and beyond, Jude followed signs only the searching can see—tattoos, songs, strangers, and stories—on a quest for TAZ, a fleeting world where chosen identity and imagined community come to life.
There Are Mountains Beneath Us
As she crossed the threshold into the second half of life, we invited Tiu to consider how to plant the seeds of the legacy of creating an artist residency she had been dreaming of for years. Playing with pronoia and disappointment, she was sent on a quest to balance her intuition and the will to make it happen.
