Middle Eastern Dance: Improvisation to Live Music
Music is more than just a backdrop-it’s a living, breathing partner in our dance. In this workshop, we’ll explore how to *feel* the music in our bodies, and translate sound into movement with nuance, depth, and personal expression. We’ll break down musical layers, dynamics, and phrasing to discover new ways of embodying rhythm, melody, and silence. Each day will provide dancers with practical tools to better understand and express the music in their own unique way. All levels and movement backgrounds are welcome!
About Natalie Nayun
Natalie is an international teacher specializing in contemporary and folkloric styles from Central Asia and the Middle East. She was lucky enough to study dance in her travels to Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkey, and Oman, and has been dancing for more than 17 years and teaching for more than 11. Natalie is the director of UC Berkeley’s Central Asian and Middle Eastern Dance Company, Sorayya, and former director of Adara Dance Company. You can see her dancing with Nava Dance Collective, with Ballet Afsaneh, and as a soloist.
Natalie has performed and taught in Argentina, Chile, Peru, Israel/Palestine, and New Mexico, and locally in California as a guest lecturer at Stanford University. She hopes to share the beauty of the cultures she has come to know, as expressed through regional dance.