Teachers for 2009
The Mainewoods
Experience
Schedule
Teachers
Fees & Membership
Registration Form
Membership Form
Day Rates
Scholarships
Kitchen Crew
Directions & Maps
What to Bring /
Accommodations
Contacts
Staff
Camp Pictures &
News
Mainewoods
Supporters
Dance Links
Privacy Policy
Susan Anderson (International Folk Musician)
has been actively involved in the folk dance
community since 1962 as an international folk dancer and musician.
She has led international singing workshops for groups, festivals and
schools and has taught folk dancing in the Philadelphia area and beyond.
Her talents are many: she sings and plays fiddle, gaida, balalaika,
keyboard, guitar and tambura. Along with Carol Wadlinger, Susan is a
member of the International
Folk Sounds, a folk dance band that plays for folk dances, festivals,
concerts and special events. In addition, Susan is the president of the
Folk Dance Council of the Delaware Valley, leads a weekly dance and a
monthly international music jam, and performs Appalachian clogging with
the Fiddlekicks.
|
Sonia Dion and Cristian
Florescu (Romanian) are known for their wonderful energy, warmth
and exciting choice of dances and music. Cristian has danced with and
choreographed for many Romanian folk ensembles and has studied with
various specialists including Theodor Vasilescu. In 1993 Cristian joined
Les Sortilčges, a professional folk dance company based in Montréal,
where he danced, taught and choreographed. In the course of her 20 years
with the same company, Sonia was lead dancer, choreographer and artistic
director, among other roles. It was at Les Sortilčges that the two met
and formed a professional and personal partnership. They have
performed with the Collage
International Dance Ensemble of Boston, have taught at l'École Supérieure
de Danse du Québec, and have been part of the Artists in the Schools
program sponsored by the Quebec Ministry of Education. In recent years,
they have been teaching workshops for recreational folk dance groups in
Canada, the US, Europe, and Asia, sharing their love of Romanian folk traditions.
Dion & Florescu's website
|
Ya'akov Eden (Israeli), a professional dancer and choreographer in both Israel and the United States, has taught for years at Ball State University, Indiana and has served as a specialist in Israeli folk dance and culture at numerous folk dance camps and workshops.
Born in Israel, Ya'akov started dancing at the age of 11 with the Israeli Youth Movement. Later, he performed with the National Troupe of the Kibutzim and also danced with a semi-professional group, The Students of Haifa. He taught dancing in the northwestern district, Sulam-Tsor, and directed the Sulam-Tsor Troupe. In 1965, he staged the choreography for the National Convention of the Youth Movement in Israel.
Ya'akov is a very popular teacher at folk dance camps and workshops across North America, including Stockton Folk Dance Camp and the Kentucky Dance Institute, and has choreographed Israeli dance suites for various groups.
|
George Fogg (English Country Dance) has been teaching English Country Dance for over 35 years. He is a member of the Pinewoods Morris Men and Black Jokers, and his knowledge of Playford, early American, morris, and sword dances is notable. Since 1984 he has presented semiannual English Country Dance Balls in the Boston area. George is the coauthor of Country Dances from Colonial New York and Social Dances from 18th-Century Virginia: The Richmond Assemblies 1790-1797. In addition to offering a first-rate English Country Dance class, George can be counted on for wonderful contributions to our evening dance parties.
|
Željko Jergan (Croatian) is a renowned choreographer and teacher throughout the world. Since moving to the United States in 1986, Željko has created over 450 original choreographies for 95 different amateur, semi-professional, and professional ensembles, including Les Sortileges, Brigham Young University, Radost Folk Ensemble and the Duquesne University Tamburitzans.
When he's not researching and creating new choreographies, Željko stays extremely busy working with the international folk dance community, where he is in demand for his in-depth knowledge and style in teaching Croatian folk dancing. He has traveled extensively both domestically and abroad, conducting folk dance seminars and workshops in the United States, Canada, Europe, Japan and Taiwan.
A native of Varaždin, Croatia, Željko was a leading performer with the Croatian National Folk Ensemble LADO for twelve years. He also performed with the Zagreb National Ballet and Modern Dance Companies for several years.
Željko has received two full fellowship grants from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts in support of his artistic work.
|
Jaap Leegwater (Bulgarian) is known by many folk dancers worldwide for his fun teachings and dances like Karamfil, Dobrudzanska Pandela and Mari Marijko. He started his dance career in his native country, The Netherlands, where he earned degrees in both education and international folk dance. Fascinated with the irregular Balkan rhythms and drawn to the expressiveness of its movements, Jaap specialized in Bulgarian dance and choreography. He was one of the first non-Bulgarians invited to study at the State Choreographer’s Schools in Sofia and Plovdiv, Bulgaria.
|
Monique Legare (Hungarian) is an internationally known teacher of Folk Dance and a native of Montréal, Canada. She trained and performed with les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal Ballet Company and studied dance in Canada, USA, Poland, and Puerto Rico. She graduated from the Choreography School in Plovdiv, Bulgaria and did extensive research on folk dance in Hungary. She has taught on the North American continent, Poland and Ukraine and is an authority on French Canadian clogging. A remarkably versatile dancer and teacher, she directs the Monique Legaré International Dance Company and the Professional Dance Academy of Montgomery County. With late husband Dr. Morley Leyton, director of the Janosik Polish dancers, she won first place at the 2003 and 2004 state of Pennsylvania's polka dance championships.
|
Roo Lester (Scandinavian) has traveled in Norway and Sweden to study Scandinavian dance and the Spanish Basque Provinces to study Basque dance. Her work in dance has taken many different paths, including teaching folk dance in public schools, performing in and choreographing for performance groups, and directing dance camps. Roo conducts workshops throughout the US, specializing in the turning dances of Norway and Sweden and Basque dances of the Spanish Basque provinces. Roo's hallmarks are clear, positive teaching that incorporates background information, styling and technique, and her ability to present the basic concepts of dance to dancers of all levels in a fun and lighthearted manner. She received her MA in Dance (Ethnology) from UCLA. Harry Khamis will be assisting Roo as her dance partner. Harry received his big silver medal for polska in 1999. He is a regular teacher at Miami Valley Folk Dance Club in Dayton, Ohio. He travels to Sweden each year to study Swedish dance and has partnered Roo on numerous occasions. |
Miroslav "Bata" Marcetic (Serbian) has devoted his entire professional career to the preservation and perpetuation of folklore and dance. His contribution to the Canadian Serbian folklore community is significant. For 17 years he was a leading performer, soloist and choreographer with the Serbian National Folk Ensemble Kolo in Belgrade. He has created a great number of choreographies that have won first or second prize in competitions and was chosen by the Serbian Folk Dance Association to be a judge at folklore competitions. Currently he is the Artistic Director and choreographer of Serbian Cultural Associations. These include Oplenac and Hajduk Veljko in Toronto, and Kralj Petar II in Winona. He also teaches Serbian and East-European dances for the international folk dance community, including the Ontario Folk Dance Association, Hamilton International Folk Dance Club, and McMaster University. He has presented seminars in Yugoslavia, Japan and Israel, in addition to the US and Canada.
Miroslav Marcetic's website
|
Kay Munn (Scottish) grew up in Glasgow, Scotland, where she was introduced to Scottish Country Dancing in school. She emigrated to Canada in 1986, and has lived in the Toronto area, South Carolina and upstate New York. Following a chance remark at a Burns night celebration in Binghamton, NY, she was reintroduced to the dance in 1998 and enjoyed classes with renowned deviser Terry Glasspool and at Cornell. Kay returned to live in Canada in 2001, in Kingston, ON, where the local RSCDS Branch immediately adopted her. With support from the Branch and an RSCDS scholarship, she obtained her Teachers Certificate in St Andrews, Scotland. Kay has taught classes at all levels and currently teaches the advanced class in Kingston. She is a proud Scot who is as comfortable baking shortbread, clootie dumpling or scones, knitting kilt hose, or addressing haggis…but has little time for much of this…because she's usually dancing! |
Karim Nagi (Arab Folkdance) is a native Egyptian who specializes in traditional Arabic music and folk dance. He uses his traditional foundation to re-imagine the culture, discovering progressive deliveries and new concepts. Karim performs Arabic, Turkish and Andalusian hand percussion, including the Egyptian Tabla (goblet drum), Riqq (tambourine), Duff (frame drum), and Segat (brass castanets), as well as melodic instruments like the Buzuq (long lute) and voice. Karim is a former faculty member of the New England Conservatory of Music, and currently leads the SHARQ Arabic Music Ensemble performing the classical Arabic instrumental and vocal repertoire. Karim performs and teaches Arab Folk Dance including Dabka (line dance), Tahteeb (cane dance) and Sufi Zikr (religious movement ceremony). He lead the Zaitoun Dabka Troupe for 2 years, and is currently the director of the Arab Dance Seminar, a travelling weekend of workshops for professional training in pan-Arab dance. Karim Nagi has performed in over 300 schools and theaters in America, plus several high profile events in Cairo, Beirut, Paris, Prague, Tokyo and Taipei. Karim Nagi's website
|
Barbara Pixton (International Folk Musician) [left in photo] began playing her mother's button accordion at the age of eight. She moved on to the piano, obtaining a degree in piano performance from Boston University. A folk dancer for many years, in the early 1990's she and her husband Tom Pixton began playing for dances. Since then they have put together several bands, played at music festivals and dance camps all over the US, published a music book, and made several recordings. Barbara has picked up skills on many other instruments including double bass, santouri, guitar, flute, violin and panflute. In 1994 she started the International Music Club under the sponsorship of the Folk Arts Center of New England. She is known for her wonderful ability to pull together amateur musicians for music-making and merriment.
|
Julia Poirier (International Folk Musician) has been singing and playing in Boston-area choruses and folk dance bands for more than 20 years. During that time she has led numerous groups in singing a variety of music ranging from Christmas choral arrangements to folk dance songs to a cappella pop. She is currently a member of the Divi Zheni Bulgarian Women’s Chorus and Orchestra, The Pinewoods Band, and the Tufts Early Music Ensemble, and expects to complete a Master’s degree in ethnomusicology at Tufts in the spring of 2009.
|
Carolyn Rapkievian (Armenian) has been teaching and performing dance in a professional capacity for over 20 years. Her experience and training have included classical and character ballet, social ballroom dance, and international folk dance focusing in particular on Armenian dance.
Carolyn grew up dancing at Armenian picnics and at home. She has studied Armenian dance with Antranig, an Armenian dance ensemble from 1992-1999. Antranig's artistic director, Gagik Karapetian, also directs the Armenian State Dance Ensemble in Yerevan.
Carolyn has studied Russian and Ukrainian dance and character ballet with Marina Popova and Sergei Zubitov from Kiev. She has also studied ballet, ballroom dance, and international folk dance with a variety of teachers. Carolyn is currently the director of the Arax Armenian Dance Ensemble whose performing highlights include the Smithsonian's inauguration festival, the Dance DC Festival and the Washington Folk Festival. More information about the ensemble and about Carolyn can be found at www.araxdance.org
|
David Smukler (Contras and Squares) calls for American and English country dances throughout his home territory of New York State and beyond. Known for his meticulous teaching and gentle humor, David has been dancing since the mid-sixties, and calling for dances since 1981. He is an engaging instructor who presents a wide variety of dances, including plenty of New England contras, assorted squares, singing calls, triplets, mixers, old chestnuts, and freshly minted dances. As well as calling, David is a dance organizer, composer, and musician. He is also the author of Cracking Chestnuts: The Living Tradition of Classic American Contra Dances, published by the Country dance and Song Society.
David Smukler's website
|
Sandy Starkman (International Folk Dance) has taught folk dance classes and workshops in Canada and the U.S., has been the featured teacher on several of Mel Mann's Dance on the Water cruises, teaches every year at the Kentucky Dance Institute, and has taught folk dance teacher training courses at the university level. Sandy is well known for the easy way she breaks down a dance, for getting everyone moving quickly and for running an outstanding evening program. She joined the staff of our predecessor, Maine Folk Dance Camp, in 1980 and has also served as President of the Mainewoods Board of Directors. She is also Chair of the Ontario Folk Dance Camp.
|
Carol Wadlinger (International Folk Musician) started playing music when she was five years old. Her
first instrument was the piano, and at ten she switched to the flute. A
few years ago, she added the English concertina. Along with folk musician
Susan Anderson, Carol is a member of the International
Folk Sounds, a folk dance band that plays for folk dances, festivals,
concerts, and community events. She also plays in various contra dance
bands, a klezmer band, a concertina band, and a small ensemble that plays
at synagogue. She particularly enjoys encouraging adults to make music
with others. When she is not busy playing music, she is on the floor
dancing. She and her husband Bill started and ran the Beaver Folk Dance
group in the Philadelphia area for over 25 years. She only wishes she
could play music and folk dance at the same time.
|