Very small groups
Regarding very small groups of 3 to 6 people, Simone shares the following observations (note that a class of 2 is not classed as a group)
- The presence of all participants becomes vital for the existence of the group, as the absence of two or more in the same session will compromise its functioning
- Many dances and exercises will have to be left out, as they can only be done with a larger number of people. It follows that participants will not have the opportunity to access the inner experiences induced by such exercises
- Some songs become 'too long' for certain exercises
- The deflagration of some emotions becomes difficult. Joy, for example, is unlikely to escalate in a very small group. Instead, what we tend to observe are feelings of disappointment and the tendency is for the group to quickly become deflated, without vitality.
Simone believes that "it is possible to run groups of this size, provided that this is done sporadically, for a short period of time, or for a particular purpose, since the situations described above limit and undermine the work of these groups. The likelihood is that such group will not survive in the long term."
She goes on to say that we, as facilitators, should be aware these facts, and seek creative ways to increase the group's size without forgetting the importance of progressivity, especially when planning to merge a very small group of beginners with a medium or large sized more advanced group.
Small groups
With a small group of 6-10 participants then we have the possibility of facilitating and maintaining a regular group. However, the risk here is that the group becomes addicted to itself, and quickly closes up and loses the beauty in Biodanza, which is the possibility of dealing with the new and unpredictable side of life that occurs when dancing with different people. For these reasons, it's important for the group to be open to receive new members. Here again, the recommendation is to increase the size of the group.
Medium sized groups
Medium sized groups with 10 to 20 participants are often happier, with more vitality. We can propose all the exercises and people can experience the vivencias triggered by them. The absence of some people doesn't have a significant impact on the functioning of the session, and the choice of music is not compromised by its length. Medium sized groups promote friendships and the establishment of a level of trust and support to one another. It's a comforting, cozy group, which make us miss the vivencias and encounters. Its effect impacts other relationships and increases people's ability to make genuine human connections outside the regular group. In addition, it makes it possible for the facilitator to better understand the needs and limitations of each person, and work them more intensely in the group. I believe this is the suitable number of participants for the psychotherapeutic process to occur via Biodanza.
Large groups and very big groups
In large groups of 20 to 30 participants and in very big groups with over 30 people teachers can propose all exercises and the absence of participants doesn't interfere with the facilitation of the session. In general, these groups are more fun - all types of emotion circulate and can reach everyone. On the other hand, a scattering and higher participants' turnover may occur. The vulnerabilities and difficulties of each participant can remain hidden or go unnoticed by the facilitator. I believe that it might be harder to deepen the vivencias and attain significant psychotherapeutic results in these groups, as they tend to become more playful.
Conclusion
Simone came to the conclusion that the determining factor to define the number of participants in a Biodanza group is the objective of the particular session. For example, in situations where there is no continuity, this number can be unlimited, as is the case of opening or closing tasters in Congresses, double-vivencias, workshops in companies and one-off tasters open to the general public. In these cases, however, the "taster" is not a "session" (Simone uses the term session to refer to regular group getherings where continuity is implied).