Intermediate Zouk Variations (Level 3.5): 8-Week Series

LET'S KEEP WORKING ON OUR MOVEMENT AND TECHNIQUE! As our community grows and we progress in our learning of Brazilian Zouk, it's important that we keep working to become more comfortable with the more advanced concepts we have learned so far. To that end, we are going to keep working on the head and body movements, cambre and balão apagado. This 8-week progressive series with Gui Prada, Ashley Kent and Valentine Luu will continue what we learned in level 3 by introducing some interesting variations. We will also learn chicote, boneca and avião, some other important Brazilian Zouk advanced fundamentals. Wednesdays at DanceSport Dupont [hidden] seriesJanuary 16 – March 6 Each week will build on what you learned the previous week. Topics will include: ● Review and variations on balão apagado, head movement and cambre ● Chicote ● Boneca ● Avião ● Musicality Pre-requisite: Level 3 Intermediate Brazilian Zouk These classes were designed as a continuation of our learning, following District Zouk’s curriculum. If you haven't done the pre-requisites for this class but are interested in taking it, talk to us. We will let you know if it is an appropriate option for you. Enrollment: $144 for the 8-week series No partner required No drop-ins - you must sign up for the full 8-week series When purchasing your ticket we ask you to decide if you'd like to lead or follow in the classes so we can keep the lead/follow ratio fairly even. Pre-requisite: this class is aimed at students who have taken the Level 3 Intermediate Brazilian Zouk series with District Zouk. If you haven't done the pre-requisites for this class but are interested in taking it, talk to us. We will let you know if it is an appropriate option for you. Note: DanceSport Dupont Circle class cards cannot be used for this series Location: DanceSport DuPont Circle2201 P St. NW (GPS 1520 22nd St. NW)The Church of the Pilgrims Fellowship Hall (Entrance from the south side via stairs going down) Washington DC 20037 Between P & Q St's, 2 blocks west of the Q St exit of the Dupont Circle red line Metro. Directions and unlimited adjacent Embassy Row parking info available at: [hidden] bus lines: G2, D2 & D6, 42, N line to Friendship Hts, S line from Silver Spring & downtown and Dupont Circle Circulator from Georgetown The Instructors: Ghee Prada started dancing in 2004 inspired by the movie "Shall We Dance?". He began to dive deep into dance in 2006 as a work-study trainee of the Jaime Arôxa Dance School in Rio de Janeiro. Jaime Arôxa, one of the creators of Brazilian Zouk, was the head instructor and was a mentor for the most accomplished dancers in Brazil. During his 6 years as a member of the school's team, he learned all Brazilian partner dances (Forró, Samba de Gafieira, Soltinho, Bolero and Zouk) as well as Argentine Tango. After he left the school, he continued dancing and learning from other remarkable instructors, including Fabiano Vivas, Kelly Reis, Érico Rodrigo, Guilherme Pimentel and many others. Since then he has focused his training and research on taking the best of each of these dances and applying it to the close embrace, with the purpose of conveying a sense of well-being and relaxation to dance partners. In 2016 he attended the first Zouk Retreat in Valencia, led by Xandy Liberato, Brenda Carvalho and Anderson Mendes. After that, his research on partner dancing took a new direction, as he continued working with Brenda and Anderson to seek for the application of the concepts explored at the retreat in different ways by using the references of the other Brazilian partner dances and Argentinian Tango. As a result, the importance of the basic steps and concepts became evident, since it is through them that all dances reach another level. Ghee is looking forward to sharing his technique and training with students here in Washington DC to help them improve their basics, comfort and confidence on the dance floor. Ashley Kent has been dancing from an early age, including training in jazz, tap, ballet, modern, west African dance, salsa, kizomba and Brazilian zouk. She got hooked on afro-latin partner dancing while living abroad in Ghana and Sudan, but when she was introduced to Brazilian zouk in DC in 2012 she fell in love with it. She has studied with top instructors from Brazil, Canada, Spain and the US and has traveled to Brazil to attend several of the most well-known Brazilian zouk festivals and a teacher training with Jaime Aroxa, Renata Pecanha, Jorge Peres, and other top international instructors. Ashley has directed the District Zouk dance team in 2016 and 2017 and has taught at dance festivals including the White House Kizomba/Zouk Summit (2015 and 2016, which she also co-organized), Midwest Kizomba Zouk Afro-Fusion Festival (2016 and 2017), NCZoukfest (2017), Interfusion Festival (2016 and 2017), Baltimore Salsa Congress (2017) and the DC Bachata Congress (2015-2017). She was voted the best instructor at the Midwest Afro-Fusion Festival in 2016, for which she received an award. Ashley loves sharing her love for this dance with the DC dance community and seeing Brazilian zouk in this city continue to grow. Valentine Luu spent her early years performing with various classical music groups, including the Tacoma City Ballet orchestra, and enjoying all forms of performing arts. She discovered partner dancing in 2004 when a friend took her to a salsa club. From there Valentine began her dance journey, including bachata, blues, West Coast swing, Argentine tango, kizomba, and Brazilian zouk. Valentine took her first zouk class in late 2011 and in 2012 began to pursue studying the dance in DC, Argentina, and the Czech Republic, and has since continued studying zouk with instructors from all over the world. Brazilian zouk has even taken Valentine to Brazil to dance at some of the most well-known festivals and is now her number one choice to dance. Valentine has taught District Zouk’s weekly classes and other local dance events and enjoys supporting District Zouk’s community efforts as this lovely dance grows in the DC area. District Zouk’s mission is to offer regular opportunities to learn and dance Brazilian zouk, and to nurture and grow the Brazilian zouk community in DC. Ashley Kent and Valentine Luu co-founded District Zouk with Amy Abbott and Bianca Desroches, and they have been teaching weekly Brazilian zouk classes at DanceSport Dupont Circle since June 2014, as well as organizing workshops and other events. District Zouk's classes are technique-focused and accessible to those new to social dancing, those with a background in other dance styles, and those who have been learning and dancing this dance for awhile. District Zouk received an award at the New York Zouk Festival in October 2017 for their contributions to zouk in North America. More Info below.