Pack your bags and jump aboard! We’re traveling the Silk Road and learning dances from North Africa, the  Mediterranean, and Asia in this 16 week youth course.

This class is available as a 16 week series, or two 8 week sessions.

Students will practice rhythm, coordination, communication, and kinesthetic skills in this fun and friendly environment while developing global and cultural awareness through dance. Each class will begin with an engaging warm-up and brief lesson about the region and style of dance, followed by a technique breakdown and brief combination drills. Students will get to play with a variety of props including ribbon wands, dance fans, veils, tambourines, hip scarves and more! Finally, we will conclude with a cool down and a meditative practice so your little ones leave feeling refreshed, grounded, and inspired.

Class Structure (same structure in each class):

• Etiquette Refresher + Follow the Leader (5 min)
• Stretch + Creative Movement (5 min)
• History Lesson/Video + Q&A (5 min)
• Movement Technique (10 min)
• Combination + Application to Music (10 min)
• Freestyle Song (3 min)
• Cool Down + Grounding Meditation (5 min)

Course Schedule

Week 1-4: East Asia 

• Weeks 1+2: Dunhuang Chinese Ribbon Dance – Prop: Ribbon Streamers
• Weeks 3+4: Nihon Buyo Japanese Fan Dance – Prop: Dance Fans

Week 5-8: South Asia (Bhangra + Bollywood)

• Weeks 5+6: Bhangra Punjabi Dance
• Weeks 7+8: Bollywood Mumbai/Fusion Dance

Week 9-12: Middle East 

• Weeks 9+10: Raqs Sharqi Egyptian Dance – Props: Hip scarf
• Weeks 11+12: Veil Egyptian/Fusion Dance – Props: Veil

Weeks 13-14: Eurasia + Europe 

• Karsilamas Greek+Turkish Line Dance – Prop: None (hand holding- optional)
• Zeibekiko Greek+Turkish Eagle Dance – Prop: Plastic cup

Week 16: Review Day

• Review Day; Reviewing what we learned, freestyling with props, and dance party!

About Sophianna 

Sophianna is a performer and instructor trained in Middle Eastern, North African and Mediterranean dances, with a specialty in social styles; namely Egyptian baladi and Greek tsifteteli. Her love of dance comes not only from her own Greek heritage, but also from the community building aspects and opportunities for self expression through authentic and improvisational movement. Sophianna is also our Youth program coordinator, with over 7 years of experience in early childhood education and a passion for spreading cultural awareness, she creates a fun and informative space for little ones to grow in the classroom and the dance studio.