Teachers
Adamo Ciarallo
Adamo is dedicated to nurturing, developing, and promoting the blues scene in Europe. Thanks to his impressive linguistic abilities he can offer classes in English, Spanish, Italian and (passable) French!
Adamo has a professional qualification in teaching adults and he sees his role as a teacher to facilitate the classroom in response to learner’s needs, enabling all students to achieve their potential. His classes focus on highlighting the relationship between the dancers and the music and the importance of personal expression and creativity.
He loves social dancing, teaching, competing, and listening to music, and spends his ‘spare’ time reading and learning about the history of the dance forms he loves so much. What makes Adamo’s dancing life worthwhile is the commitment, enthusiasm, and energy of his students and everybody else in what he describes as “this beautiful community of dancers”.
Alba & Gas
Passionate about Blues (and Swing), Alba and Gas are dedicating their lives not only to the music and culture but their goal is to inspire all who watch them dance and those who learn from them, to remain authentic in their dance and teaching, and to continually improve as dancers, teachers, artists, and individuals.
Their teaching style is ever-evolving, focusing on the connection between partners, connection to the music as well as the expression of individuality within the dance.
Beatrice Bibi
Bibi has been dancing for 27 years (and teaching for 20!), but it is only when she discovered the blues that she found her true "perfect match".
The overwhelming passion for blues music and dance quickly became a one-way ticket to the world. In fact, she is a well-known face on the international scene, she travels all around Europe, USA and Asia to deepen her knowledge, teach, share and spread all of her love and appreciation for the blues. She has given birth also to several communities of blues dancers in Italy, teaching weekly courses and workshops.
Bibi holds a strong sense of respect for the values of African American culture, and for the importance of researching and respecting the cultural roots and history of blues. What she loves about blues are the breadth of blues music as well as the creativity, the freedom of expression and the deep connection and communication with the music and the partner in the dance.
Bibi is also a known Dj, and for her, music is a great, continuous source of emotions, the true engine of everything she does! She has been spinning the decks since 2014, inspiring tons of dancers all around the globe and keeping the party jumping everywhere she went! She DJs with different supports, including Vinyls!
Catherine Palmier
Catherine Palmier assists individuals in unleashing one's authentic movement,
offering guided explorations to refine their dance using grounded organic
movement, effortless power, and fluid grace.
With over 22 years of professional dance experience, academic training, and
knowledge of multiple dance styles, Catherine's skills and keen movement
sensibility help dancers discover the origin and understanding of their movement.
She draws from performance concepts, emotions, visualizations, memories, body
mechanics, sensations, and alignment to support her students' constantly
flourishing understanding of dance.
Catherine hopes that her work will provide her students with insight, playfulness,
and enthusiasm, enabling them to develop their signature style in dance.
Catherine's ability to interpret various dance styles and proficiency in revealing the
limitless nature of African dance make her an excellent asset to dancers of any
genre or experience.
Damon Stone
Damon has been dancing his entire life, starting with vernacular Jazz/Blues first taught to him at the tender age of six by his grandmother.
After nearly a decade of learning at the heels of his elders, he went on and eventually studied numerous dance forms until coming full circle in 1995 to focus primarily on the history and styles of Swing and Blues as his family danced them with a special focus on the Southern styles from the Mississippi Delta region.
He has studied the development of vernacular Jazz/Blues dance across the United States learning from a number of the original dancers.
Dan Repsch
Dan is immersed in the music and the movement. As a teacher, his enthusiastic approach brings a focus on innovation, connection, and attention to your partner. As a veteran DJ, he's played for events across 4 continents, DJing everything from international events to local dances. He’s also organized both locally and for international events, including a Head DJ role in BluesSHOUT! and The Balboa/Blues Experiment.
In the end, Dan is most excited to work hard at improving the dance and to see his students break through their boundaries.
Dara Anderbard
Julie Brown
Jamica Zion
Currently living the nomadic life, Jamica Zion takes pride in being a groovy solo dancer, a dynamic follow, and growing lead. Jamica aims for range, not just in connection and style, but across genres too! Since starting Jazz and Blues dances 15 years ago, she’s collected multiple titles from contests across top US events including Lindy Focus, Camp Jitterbug, Beantown, and Camp Hollywood.
As a solo artist, Jamica has prioritized performance over contests so instead of a collection of solo wins, she has a diverse and abundant performance portfolio (check some out on YouTube(link is external))! When Jamica is not social dancing, teaching, or working on choreography, she is likely spending time with her dog, reading, playing games, napping, or relaxing with loved ones.
Kelsy Stone
Kelsy brings her lifetime of dance training, a passion for vernacular dance, and a sharp eye for technique to the Blues dance world. She has brought her joy and knowledge of blues idiom dances to some of the most important and high-profile events in the US and abroad, including but not limited to: bluesSHOUT!, The Experiment, Muse, Hearken the Blues, Black Label Blues, and BluesGeek--serving as faculty, mentor, competition coordinator, and judge.
Kelsy's critical eye and love of deep technique are tempered by her love of "dad jokes," getting lost in the music and embracing the ridiculous. She shows her appreciation of African American culture by speaking of the history of Blues idiom dance and taking her craft seriously, but never herself.
She believes every mistake is an opportunity to learn, every class an opportunity to challenge, and every dance an opportunity to pay respect to those who came before.
Mike Sonder
Mike strives to create a learning environment that is fun, challenging, and inclusive. The goal is for each individual student to find their next step forward and enjoy that process of growth. Mike loves seeing students’ eyes light up when they understand a concept or feel a movement work naturally in their body for the first time.
Mike has taught dance in 21 countries and counting. He currently teaches Lindy Hop, Air Steps, Solo Jazz, and many different Blues styles.
Mike loves teaching private lessons and wants to teach YOU. Private lessons are great for individually tailored learning and physically feeling movements. If you don’t know what to work on, no problem.
Vicci Moore
Vicci is a professional dancer, specializing in blues dance.
There is nothing Vicci loves more in the world than dancing! She trained in a number of solo dances before discovering partner dancing in her twenties, has a diploma in Anatomy and Physiology, a first-class honors degree in Dance and Choreography, and has accredited training in teaching adults.
A trained teacher, Vicci places a great deal of importance in high-quality pedagogy and is currently studying for a Masters's degree in Education. Her studies are focused primarily on the impact of cultural appropriation in dance teaching and the importance of the inclusion of dance in the national curriculum for young peoples’ development and self-esteem.
She puts music at the core of her teaching and dancing and tries to honor the cultural roots of dance in all her classes. She believes in giving people the tools to become their own dancers and encourages all her students to find their own voice.
