Zouk Nation - "Zouk is the dance of the 21st Century"

Adilio is one of the most famous Zouk teachers currently working on the zouk scene. His career as a dancer began in 1988, when he met Jaime Aroxa. Sixteen years later he is a well known and respected dancer, instructor and choreographer. During the course of his career Adilio has done much to spread the rhythm of Zouk Love not only all over Brazil but in the rest of the word as well. He has participated in many different international events, including congresses, films, television, theater and live performances. Adilio currently works in Holland with Claudia DeVries of BrasaZouk, Salsa Dance Explosion, and Salseros. Recently, he opened his own dance academy: ‘Mirror Zouk Centre’in Amsterdam. His goal is to use his his experiences and knowledge from living in Brazil to bring greater awareness of Brazilian dances throughout Europe.

Originally from San Francisco, Adrian grew up with a strong fear of dancing and until 23 had never stepped foot on a dance floor. After returning from a 2nd tour in Iraq he resolved to force himself into something he’d always wanted and began training in Latin dance under Antonio Moran and Irene Silva. He quickly began a familiar face in the vibrant Bay Area scene, often dancing 6 nights a week and performing regularly after joining his first of what would become five professional Latin troupes. After relocating to Washington DC Adrian accepted an invitation to become a ballroom instructor at Fred Astaire Dance Studio in Fairfax, gaining a mastery of American Smooth and Rhythm dances. It wasn’t until a chance meeting with a visiting American expatriate that Adrian was introduced to Zouk. He was hooked immediately, finding in it an unpretentious connection and sensuality that spoke to him as in no other dance; within a month he was training in Buenos Aires. In the three years since, Adrian has studied with virtually every Zouk instructor to visit the US and has made wonderful friends of the American Zuqueros on both coasts. And his love of the dance over time has only grown. Known for his energy and innovation, he is currently recognized as one of the foremost Zuqueros in the US and is eager to bring this unique and dynamic art to DC in 2010.

Adriano is known throughout Australia for his pioneering work in Zouk Lambada dance. Now based in London, he has in recent years been developing new teaching techinques to further encourage the dance community. Recognising the importance of making the dance easier to learn for students, he employes an 8 count teaching system, similar to those used in other dance styles. His qualifications as a dance instructor is among the highest of zouk lambada instructors. Having worked in the industry for fifteen years, he is one of the few instructors that has the qualifications to teach other zouk / lambada instructors.

Aria started dancing zouk/lambada, samaba, and salsa in 1997 and became hooked (especially to zouk). He stopped dancing zouk/lambada actively in 2000 and restarted in 2007. He currently works as an assistant instructor at the Sandra Cameron Dance Center in New York City. He is a member of both Zouk NY and Zouk Nation.

Berg Dias is a Brazilian dancer and instructor of Lambada. He holds a professional teaching credentials from the UK Alliance and has been performing and teaching for 18 years along with his two sisters, Solange and Magda Dias. Many of their students have gone on to reach the professional level and won dance competitions. He has been teaching at Danceworks in London for 14 years and has promoted Lambada around the world by offering lessons and doing shows in many different countries throughout the world. He has performed on MTV and most recently on the BBC with Simply Red for Strictly Come Dancing. Berg’s dance group, Viva Brazil, performs regularly all over the UK.

China is the creator of SOULZOUK, zouk Freestyle. The first style to be “baptized” by the new generation of zoukerros, it has been taught in more than 100 workshops and 12 Congresses. A dancer for 11 years, choreographer and a teacher for four, today China teaches at Jimmy de Oliveira’s Dance Studio. In 2004, he received the zouk dance award for “Best Of The Year”. In Rio de Janeiro, this former student of Jaime Aroxa’s, works tirelessly to spread the Soulzouk style throughout Brazil.

In 2005 he created the first version of www.soulzouk.com, together with his partner Luciana Guinle, that by 2007, had become the biggest website about zouk dedicated to zouk, with currently more than 4.200 users.

Claudia was born in Surinam, South America. She is a teacher in both Brazilian and Latin dances, and in November 2005 she became a Licentiate at the United Kingdom Alliance of Professional Teachers of Dancing. She is the organizer of the Brazilian Dance Congresses and the Zouk/Lambada Dance Competitions in Amsterdam, Holland (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 & 2008). She has her own Brazilian dance school, BraSaZouk, and her own dance company (that she runs with her fiance Tico) the Brasa Dance Studios & Events, where she organized the 2nd / 3rd Brazilian Dance Congresses & the 3rd / 4th Zouk/Lambada Dance Competitions in 2006 / 2007 and this years congress.

Claudia has performed in numerous national and international events including, but not limited to, the World Salsa Congress in Puerto Rico, World Salsa Congress in Valencia, Dansa de Encontro in Rio de Janeiro, UK ’s first Salsa & Lambada Congress (2003), World Salsa Congress in New York, World Salsa Congress in Montreal, Salsuri Congress in Surinam. She has also performed on such television programs as Soundmixshow, ATV, Onderweg naar morgen, Sonntagskonzert, and with famous singers Gil Semedo, Irmaos Verdades, Revelaco & Gerard Joling.

It is a real pleasure and honor for Claudia to teach and to perform. She is widely recognized for her skilful teaching, her enthusiasm and drive during performances and her talent as a tireless event organizer.

He studied at the ‘Facultade de Artes de Paraná’, Brazil. Once in Argentina he continued his studies at ‘Instituto Universitario Nacional de las Artes’ in Buenos Aires; where he acquired all the necessary tools to create choreographies for important artistic events, such as motion pictures, television, and cultural activities and forms of expression.

Not only was he an instructor of ‘Danzario Americano’, the first academy of Afro-American Dances, but also the director. He is the creator of ‘Balaio, Nueva Escuela Contemporánea de Danzas Brasileñas’ -new contemporary and Brazilian academy of dance. He is an expert in the area of popular and afro-brazilian dances. He has been training instructors and dances for more than 10 years. The technique taught at his academy is represented by both, the instructors and the students. It can be appreciated during classes and events.

Claudio is the main promoter of Brazilian Dances in Buenos Aires. He has been working with Lambada Zouk in Argentina since 1996. In this area he has trained several instructors. He is a pioneer in Sweden, where he organized the first zouk workshop in that country.

Nowadays, he is teaching at ‘Universidad de Buenos Aires’. He is also organizing congresses and workshops in several cities in Brazil. Currently he is an important personality of new expressive tendencies of Brazil.

Claudio Gomes was born in Goiania, Brazil and later attended ¬the University of ESEFEGO where he specialized in Physical Education. He is considered something of a legend in the dance community for being among the first people to bring Brazilian dancing to Holland, when he moved there in 1990, and for encouraging its growth not only in Holland, but throughout Europe.

While credited with creating the first instructional video of Salsa and the first instructional DVD of Zouk in Holland, his greatest impact on the dance community has been as the founder of several Brazilian Dance Schools where he has personally overseen the training of hundreds of students. Many of his students have since gone on to win major competitions in both Salsa and Zouk in many countries around the world, while others have gone on to become instructors and train students of their own.

In dance circles, Claudio is a well-known figure appearing in Dance Congresses and festivals around the world, where he often participates as an instructor, dancer and choreographer. Some of the congresses and festivals he has participated in include, but are not limited to, the following: Rotterdam-Holland, Amsterdam-Holland, Rio de Janeiro- Brazil, Brasilia-Brazil, Porto Seguro-Brazil, Valencia-Spain, Barcelona-Spain, Aruba-Caribbean, Brussels-Belgium, New York/-USA, Montreal-Canada, Denmark, Switzerland, Austria, Puerto Rico, England.

In addition to the dance world, he is something of a something of public figure as well, over the years having appeared in three movies, two documentaries and various news segments throughout Europe. In recent years, he has spent a great deal of time and energy back in Brazil on various social activities. Currently, he is working on organizing a group of instructors to bring Brazilian dancing to remote parts of Brazil that have never had a chance to experience the art of dance. Among his many goals is make it possible for people from low income families to have the opportunity to participate in a dance class. As he believes strongly that dancing should not be limited to only people who can afford it, but to all people. “It is through dancing, that one finds it possible to fill one’s life with happiness, motivation, inspiration, warmth and hope.”

David was born in Barcelona twenty years ago. His dance began at fifteen, when he starts to dance lambada in Barcelona. After that he learn more and more, and in 2005 he participated with Laura in the zouk/lambada international contest in Holland and they won. Then the real lambada life starts, and after that, they participate in congresses as a teacher like the DansaBrasil congress in Barcelona, the Uppsala salsa congress in Sweden, and more (London, Amsterdam, Pontin’s …). He is in the DansaBrasil organization for the lambada congress in Barcelona, a new mundial reference for the lambada dancers. David already dances salsa since seventeen, and he won the second prize of an amateur competition in Barcelona. Now he is dancing in the world known salsa company called “Salsa del Barrio”, and teaching classes of salsa and lambada in Barcelona.

Erik Marçal Garcia was born in Goiânia (Brasil). At the age of 10 he realized he loved the rhythm and dances of his country and began to dance axè. As he grew up his love of dancing drove him to participate in different axè contests. It was fortunate for him as it brought him a lot of experience performing on the stage. Later in his career he became a member of Rekebra Dance, group of dance, which permitted him to perform a lot of shows in many different places. His wide knowledge of rhythm and choreographies has allowed him to teach in the gyms of his home town. It was about one year ago that he arrived in Barcelona and felt immediately at home and very happy. Currently he offers classes in axè and works as a co-teacher with Nuriaxè at theCelebrity (Puerto Olímpico).