Spring

Shimmy

featuring...

Jessika Cruz

May 3, 4, 5, 2019

Workshops

The Workshops

Rejuvenate your dance expression...

Combo Pack

May 3 - 5, 10+ Hours of Inspiration

ALL 4 WORKSHOPS

Join us for an immersive weekend in beledi, exploration and subtle nuance. Jessika will take you on a journey through mind-body and into soul, as she shares her honest and sincere expression of movement while calling out onto the dance floor your personal dance voice and expression. As the weekend progresses, the workshops will all build upon the energy of transitions and flow of movement as we work closer towards Sunday’s complete choreography to the music of the Legendary Umm Kulthum.

$300

Workshop 1

Fri., May 3rd 7 PM - 8:30 PM

Technique (I)

Fluid hip movements, strong shimmies, soft upper body movements, balancing out the energy of upper and lower body in a performance and seamlessly weaving these together to create a beautiful, effective dance artist.

$66

Workshop 2

Sat., May 4th 10:30 AM - 12:30 PM

Technique (II)

Deepen your understanding as you work with energy transitions from one movement to another within the same combination of movements through the journey of different songs (faster/slower/mix). This skill is essential to developing your personal dance vocabulary so you can draw from your “toolbelt” of movements and apply this, in 1001 different ways to any expression of music.

$72

Workshop 3

Sat., May 4th 1:30 - 3:30 PM

Folklore (Saiidi)

Immerse yourself in the earthy, grounded rhythms of Saiidi, working on building skills to dance with the stick, and finish off the afternoon with powerful, short choreography!

$72

Workshop 4

Sun., May 5th 11:00 AM - 4:30 PM

Uum Kalthum Choreography

El Hob Kolloh

We will start by understanding the lyrics we will be dancing to, why is it so important to know the meaning of the lyrics specially when you do not Speak the language. The instrumental parts of the song are a little complex , so we will be putting to practice some of the moves we saw in the Saturday technique class. There will be a couple of parts where you’ll be adding your own touch, by improvising and connecting to the song on a personal level.

$114

Spring Shimmy Showcase

The Showcase

Poetry in Motion...

Spring Shimmy 2019

One Magical evening

Filled with Artistry, Passion, Sensuality & Expression.

BUY TICKETS

Our Spring Shimmy's Showcase features Jessika Cruz of Brazil. Set One will highlight our Student Performers presenting Chinese Dance, Oriental, Hula Hoop & regional amateur dancers - completed by a feature performance by Jessika Cruz.

Set Two is our Master Gala performance where Delkash Dance Co., Allspice Dancers., Sarah Mayne & regional professionals will present. The evening will finish with another performance by Master Artist, Jessika Cruz.

$20 adv / $25 @ door

ABOUT JESSIKA CRUZ

As a Brazil native, Jessika began learning oriental dance at the age of 11. She went to look for Egyptian style teachers, when she found Luxor schools in Sao Paulo Brazil, the school was transitioning from one to another, so Jessika ended up moving to the new school of Hayat el Helwa, the Rede Hayat also in Sao Paulo. There, she learned more about the Egyptian style, and folklore dances, always being inspired by all the teachers, she taking workshops, and participating on amateur competitions. Started to perform at restaurants and small events.

Jessika moved to United States at the age of 18 in 2009 to study English and psychology, but she decided to leave school to pursue her dreams with the dance.

Jessika began to teach a couple of small groups, made part of a theatrical dance troupe for a year; Compiled for the first time as a professional dancer at the RAKSTAR festival in Miami organized by one of her teachers Virginia Mendez, where she won 1st place in 2011. After living in the United States for 5 years USA she moved to France July of 2014, where she participated in dance competitions in Spain and Hungary.

1st Winner Professional at RAKSTAR Festival-Miami USA 2011
1st Place at the Eshta Eshta festival in Paris organized by Semsemah 2014
1st Place at Ya Amar Festival in Paris organized by Myrto dancer 2014
4th Place at Mahrajane Al Sharq festival in Paris organized by Bina 2015
2nd Place at Oriental Marathon Festival in Montpellier organized by Sharon Mesguich 2015
3rd Place at Tarabesque Festival in Barcelona organized by Salimah 2015
2nd Place at Cairo! Budapest organized by Mercedes Nieto Festival 2016
2nd Winner at Raqs of Cairo Egypt 2016

Her teachers include renowned Brazilian dancer Hayat El Helwa, one of the leading dance inspectors, attended workshops through the years with international master dancers from many countries, Egyptian and non Egyptians.

Her style is very earthy and powerful, her energy is being brought to life with the Brazilian taste that is not to be missed.

Video Link

About Jessika

Belly Dance

Grand Rapids