Greetings from Germany where the first tiny flowers of Spring are starting to show their faces!
 
At our online introductory session for ANAR DANA West Coast we chose a new repertoire.  I'm always amazed and surprised by this process...the women always choose such and interesting repertoire!  
 
Drum Roll.....
New ANAR DANA West Coast 2024/25 repertoire:
 
1) Guedra trance dance of the Sahraoui People of the West Sahara
2) Nubian dance and percussion from Southern Egypt and Northern Sudan
3) Multi-ethnic songs and dances (including a spoon dance in 9/8) from the Dobrudža region of NE Bulgaria
4) Henna Evening Celebration from Elazığ in Eastern Turkey, including the candle dance Çayda Çıra (in 10/8 Curcuna) and Delilo Halay
5) Adygean (Circassian) Women's wedding dances from the North Caucasus
6) Dances of the Qashqa'i nomads of Southern Iran
7) "Lyazgi" dance from Khoresm in Western Uzbekistan
 
I've added photos from past performances of some of these dances on the bottom right.
 
We are still accepting dancers for this new season.  Unit 1 will be in the Bay Area, Unit 2 in Seattle, and Unit 3 online.  You can come live to the Bay Area and/or Seattle Units or Zoom in from anywhere in the world.   Unit 1-3 focus on the basic building blocks and characteristics of each dance style (with little or no choreography), on the songs, basic techniques for percussion (spoons and frame drums) as well as music analysis and dance notation. It is possible to participate in these first 3 Units without committing to the whole project. 
 
Over the course of the project we will have 7 Cultural Talks, one for each region chosen.  The Cultural Talks are always also accessible online and are available to the larger community beyond just the project members.
 
We would love to have you come join our amazing global community of women! Remember: ANAR DANA is for everyBODY from amateur to professional, from young to old.  We support beginning dancers and challenge experienced ones. Our community of dancers reflects the dance of real people in real communities, where everyone dances! ANAR DANA is rooted in tradition and blossoming in YOU!
 
If you can't join us live, join us ONLINE!
 
 
In Germany, Sunday, June 2, 2024 will be a very special day for ANAR DANA with it's final recital Tänze unter dem Sichelmond.  Not only does the German project (with members from around Germany and from Finland) celebrate the culmination of 2 years of hard work, but they will also be joined by dancers from last year's ANAR DANA West Coast project!  We are so excited to share this important collaboration with you!
Dances in the program include: Moroccan Raissat, Palestinian Dabke, Hungarian Roma dance, Turkish Zeybek, Turkish Misket, Armeinan "Uzundara", Iranian Bandari, Afghani Logari, dances from Balochistan and Rajasthan.

 
 
I'm really loving helping visitors explore the world of tango in Buenos Aires.  My new house is unique and wonderful and I have a small dance studio where I regulary teach private students!  The house is perfectly located in Villa Crespo (8 blocks from La Viruta) with good public transportation connections to all the best milongas! I also have a room to rent to visitors (although word is getting out and you do need ot contact me well in advance to reserve a space). Come let me help you explore the world of Tango in Buenos Aires! 
 
My tango classes focus on close embrace tango as it is danced at my favorite milongas in Buenos Aires. This style is highly improvisational and the partners are in a constant conversation about the music in a delicious and comfortable embrace.  I want to help you make the dance you already have even better!

 
 
 
I am especially grateful to those of you who support my work on  the ANAR DANA Patreon Page.  Thanks to your support, getting through these difficult times has been more feasible, and too be honest, the post-pandemic situation is worse than during the pandemic. 
 The Patreon site is the archives for ANAR DANA and there is new material every month: performance videos of ANAR DANA and of me (including some cool vintage footage) as well as Cultural Talks you may have missed or want to review and interviews with some of our diverse and fascinating community members.  Please check out what we have to offer!!! This is a great way to support our work even if you can't attend events.

 
 
 
Awaken Your Dancing Body! continues to inspire me profoundly.  Even though I have been teaching it twice a week since the beginning of the pandemic it still gives me an unending source of inspiration and enthusiasm! People around the world join for this hour of deep exploration of the body.  This is a class for all levels of experience and capability.  In fact we have had people using the class to recover from major injuries and hip replacements. People who attend regularly have seen a big difference in their bodies.
Class is EVERY Wednesday and Saturday at 10am PT You can write to me to join the Whatsapp group for these classes. Come discover new things about how your body moves! 
Here is what students have to say:
 
"Awaken Your Dancing Body is a wonderful amalgamation of information and practices.  At the end of each session I always feel better than I did when I started, and my understanding and appreciation about how my body works is improved.  I've learned how and why it's important to energize the muscles of my abdomen and lower back to support the upper part of my body.  I've learned how to breathe better.  I've learned about body mechanics that help me move with more power and agility and without injuring myself.  I've learned to experience the energy of the earth moving up through my body and out the top of my head and cascading around me.  While there are some practices we do every session, each session is also completely unique as Helene shares her ever widening understanding of the human body.  This is so much more than an exercise class; it is a rich and unique sharing of a lifetime of learning about.... awakening our dancing bodies!"
R.F. 
 
"I have been awakening my dancing body with Helene, ever since we moved our classes to zoom in March 2020. I was absolutely thrilled that she established it as a weekly practise ... I have gained strength and body awareness, which has a great impact on my dancing. Form and stability have definitely improved, giving me freedom to work on expression and other details. Love! love! love it!"
C.G.

"I have been intrigued by the power of Awaken Your Dancing Body!  I started taking the class to increase my strength, flexibility, alignment and control in dancing, but have been delighted to find that the learning stays with me throughout my day.  How I stand washing the dishes, sit down in a chair, find my footing while hiking, even pumping up a hill on my bicycle, all are more supported, free and energized.  I have dubbed this class, 'Awaken Your LIVING Body!'.
H.R.

I look forward to dancing and exploring with you!
Helene
 
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CALENDAR
 
FEBRUARY 2024
 
Sa 17 February, Göttingen, GERMANY
Tango und Milonga
KAZ, eV 20Uhr
 
Sa/So 17-18 February,  Göttingen, GERMANY
ANAR DANA Deutschland Unit 10
KAZ, eV 
 
Sat/Sun. 24-25 February, SF Bay Area/CA, USA
ANAR DANA West Coast Unit 1
 
MARCH 2024
 
Sat/Sun. 16-17 March, Seattle/WA, USA
ANAR DANA West Coast Unit 2
 
APRIL 2024
 
Sat. 7 April, ONLINE
ANAR DANA Germany
Cultural Talk: Hungarian Rom
 
Sat/Sun. 13-14 April , ONLINE
ANAR DANA West Coast Unit 3a&b
 
Sat/Sun. 20-21 April , ONLINE
ANAR DANA West Coast Unit 3c&d
 
MAY 2024
 
Sat/Sun. 11-12 May, GERMANY, Hannover
Tango Workshops & Milonga
KAZ eV Göttingen
 
Tuesdays 14,21,28.5 & 4.6 GERMANY, Göttingen
Tango Argentino Tanzkurs
 
Sat/Sun. 25-26 May, GERMANY, Göttingen
2 Workshops: 
1.Roman Tänze aus der Türkei in 9/8 Rhythmus
2. Ägyptischer Baladi
 
JUNE 2024
 
Sun. 2 June, GERMANY, Göttingen
ANAR DANA Germany
Tänze unter dem Sichelmond
Mit Gastttänzerinnen aus ANAR DANA West Coast!
Junges Theater
 
Sun. 9 June , ONLINE
ANAR DANA West Coast
Cultural Talk: Guedra from the West Sahara
 
Sat/Sun. 22-23 June, SF USA/CA, Bay Area 
ANAR DANA West Coast Unit 4

AUGUST 2024
 
Fri. 2 August, USA/WA, Seattle & ONLINE
ANAR DANA West Coast Potluck & Cultural Talk:
Elazığ Turkey: Armenian Past, Turkish Present
 
Sat/Sun. 3-4 August, USA/WA, Seattle 
ANAR DANA West Coast Unit 5
 
Sat/Sun. 10-11 August, ONLINE
ANAR DANA Germany Intro a&b
 
Sat/Sun. 24-25 August, ONLINE
ANAR DANA Germany Intro c&d
 
SEPTEMBER 2024
 
Sun. 1 September , ONLINE
ANAR DANA West Coast Cultural Talk: Nubia
 
Sat/Sun. 7-8 September, ONLINE
ANAR DANA West Coast Unit 6a&b
 
Sat/Sun. 14-15 September, ONLINE
ANAR DANA West Coast Unit 6c&d
 
Sat/Sun. 21-22 September, GERMANY, Göttingen
2 Workshops: Volktänze aus dem Iran
1. Nord- und West-Iran: Gilan & Kurdistan
2. Süd-und Ost- Iran
 
Tuesdays 24.9 & 1, 8.10, GERMANY, Göttingen
Tango Argentino Tanzkurs
 
Sat/Sun. 28-29 September, GERMANY, Göttingen
ANAR DANA Germany Unit 1 
 
OCTOBER 2024
 
Sat/Sun. 12-13 October, GERMANY, Hannover
Tango Workshops & Privatunterricht
 
Sun. 20 October, ONLINE
ANAR DANA West Coast Cultural Talk:
Multi-Ethnic Dobrudža, Bulgaria & Romania
 
Sat/Sun. 26-27 October, USA/CA, SF Bay Area 
ANAR DANA West Coast Unit 7
 
NOVEMBER 2024
 
Fri. 8 November , USA/WA, Seattle & ONLINE
ANAR DANA West Coast Potluck & 
Cultural Talk:
Adygean (Circassian) People of the North Caucasus
 
Sat/Sun. 9-10 November, USA/WA, Seattle 
ANAR DANA West Unit 8
 
Sat/Sun. 23-24 November, GERMANY, Hannover
Tango Workshops & Privatunterricht
 
Sat/Sun. 30.11-1.12, GERMANY, Göttingen
2 Workshops: Kerzentänze
1. aus der Türkei, Armenien, Azerbaijan
2. aus dem Iran
 
DECEMBER 2024
 
Di. 3 & 10 Dezember, GERMANY, Göttingen
Tango Argentino Tanzkurs
 
Sat/Sun. 14-15 December, GERMANY, Göttingen
ANAR DANA Germany Unit 2 
 
January 2025
 
Sun. 12 January, ONLINE
ANAR DANA West Coast Cultural Talk:
Qashqa'i Patoral Nomads of Southern Iran
 
 
 
 
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