MARTA KORZUN BIOGRAPHY
Marta Korzun is an internationally recognized star in oriental dance, originally from Ukraine and now residing in Toronto, Canada. Her unique style of raqs sharqi combines beautiful, elegant lines and posture, delicate details, complex hip work, and her captivating personal charisma. She is a worldwide belly dance champion (including in Cairo!) and has also coached many fantastic award-winning dancers. She is also a well respected and sought-after competition judge.
As a teacher, Marta is recognized for her unique teaching method and clear and concise explanations, and regularly holds training workshops worldwide – in over 58 countries to date!
SOPHIANNA BIOGRAPHY
Sophianna is a Greek-American performer and instructor who has studied, taught, and performed throughout the United States and abroad. She is internationally trained in Middle Eastern, North African, and Mediterranean styles with a specialty in social dances; namely Egyptian baladi and Greek tsifteteli.
Her love of dance comes primarily from her own Greek heritage. While Sophianna’s formal dance experience began in 2016 at the Nile dance studio, it had begun informally from a young age at cultural festivals, birthday parties, and celebrations held by local churches, family, and friends. What she brings to the studio is a rich understanding of Greek culture, as she spent her summers on the island of Tinos, where she was immersed in the language, music, food, and dance. Her earliest memories of family celebrations include her yiayia smashing plates and her father lifting her up to dance on the chairs and tables while everyone sang and clapped along. Opa!
Before discovering dance, Sophianna found her foundation in disciplined movement through yoga, a practice she has studied for nearly 15 years. Her classes weave together breathwork, mindful meditation, vinyasa, yin yoga, and animal flow to create a unique experience designed to support dancers through strength building, flexibility, body awareness, and recovery.
She has a special reverence for movement as it has helped heal her self-image, given her ways to express herself through art, and connected her with a like minded community of individuals who share the same passions. To her, the somatic and communal experience is just as important as any technique or choreography. That is why in every class, Sophianna makes it a priority to create a safe space for students to feel supported in experimenting with movement and exploring self-expression through authentic and improvisational movement.
Sophiana will be presenting these two workshops during the retreat
Vintage Tsifteteli:
This workshop will explore the cultural, historic, and political facets of the old-school genre of Greek music known as “Rebetika.” You will walk away understanding the context and history of a genre that strongly influences modern-day Greek music, dance, and culture. Identify and practice the stylization of vintage tsifteteli, a Golden Era belly dance style. Finally, you will learn choreography to an original recording by the legendary singer and musician, Rosa Eskenazi.
Zeibekiko for the Soul:
In this workshop, we will explore the origins and technique of Zeibekiko- the dance that captures the essence of Greek character. After mastering the rhythm and movement technique, we will each learn to dance zeibekiko in our unique way.
We will practice dynamic combinations that fuse stomping, slapping, clapping and spinning- expressing a story of heartbreak, desire, and freedom.