ABOUT
"My research aims to embody the pulse,
the grounding as
well as the groove of afro-brazilian dances"
Stella Ariadne Spyrou was born in Pau, France in 1984 and is currently living in Athens. She is a choreographer, professional dancer, as well as a Capoeira, Contemporary and African diaspora dance instructor.
She obtained a BA degree in Contemporary Dance Practice from the American College of Greece (Deree) and a MS in Mechanical Engineering from the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Aeronautics of the University of Patras (2009). In 2011 she was admitted to the two-year MS program of Biomaterials and Biomechanics Department of Unicamp University in Campinas city in Brazil and also attended the postgraduate program of the Department of Dance and Somatic Institute of Performing Arts (Instituto de Artes Cênicas e Corporais) of Unicamp University in Brazil. She lived in Brazil for 2 years where she she had the opportunity to explore the corporeality and the kinesiologic vocabulary of afro-brazilian dances. Her research aims to embody the pulse, the grounding and the groove of afro-brazilian dances.
AS A CHOREOGRAPHER
óMNIRA
Her first work “óMNIRA” participated in MASDANZA International Festival (Canary Islands, 2016) where she received the “Special Mention of the Jury” Award in the Choreography Contest.
The piece also participated in Arc for Dance Festival (Athens, 2015), Cádiz en Danza International Festival (Cadiz, 2017), Trayectos International Contemporary Dance Festival (Zaragoza, 2017), Agitart Figueres International Festival (Figueres,2017), Lekuz Leku International Festival (Bilbao), Ammutinamenti (Ravenna,2018), Danza Urbana Bologna (2018).
The initial version of this work was created under the "Choreographic Attempts" seminar held by
Patricia Apergi and organized by Dance Unitiva.
It was first premiered as a work in progress at the
Arc for Dance 7 Festival.
CLOUD
IN TROUSERS
Her second choregraphic work “Cloud in Trousers” –inspired by the iconic poem of the great Vladimir Mayakovsky, adapted by Yannis Ritsos– was a collaboration with director and musician Christos Thanos. It was produced by Emeis-Collective Cultural Group and premiered at the Bob Theater Festival in June 2018.
PODER
The same year, she was a resident artist at the Fienile Fluò Center in Bologna, where she presented a study on the physicality of the, popular Brazilian folk dance, Cavalo Marinho.
The residency resulted in the original choreography Poder, which participated in the "Cultural Association Crexida" Festival (Bologna, 2018).
ENTROPIA
The past five years she has also been focused on exploring how deaf and hard of hearing individuals experience the African percussion pulse with a view to achieving a successful inclusion in African dance classes with live percussion. Her third work in progress piece “Entropia” was performed in 2019 by a mixted-ability group of dancers and presented in Kyma Festival in 2019.
MATARIKI –
Dancing with the stars!
In 2023, in collaboration with Liminal, she facilitated the Matariki Dance Workshop –movement patterns and dance phrases in solos, duets, or group pieces for mixed-ability participants– and created, together with the group, a unique choreography on the constellation Matariki –known in our country as Pleiades– using the educational tools of Touch Compass professional arts organization from New Zealand. This choreography resulted in a short video, which is being uploaded to the Touch Compass platform, among other creations from around the world.
AS AN INSTRUCTOR
INCLUSION
Over the past years she concerns herself with effective models of inclusive dance education.
Since 2016 she collaborates with the cultural organization "Liminal" where she teaches dance and improvisation to mixed-ability groups of individuals with the aim of transitioning to a more inclusive and accessible artistic reality.
Within the Educational Programs of Liminal, she conducted, among others, the inclusive workshop on Kinesiology Improvisation "NIMATA" in 2021.
FESTIVALS
In 2019 she participated in Athens and Epidaurus Festival, delivering African dance workshop for mixted-ability participants.
In 2021 she held an online dance training seminar for vulnerable groups as part of the Arc For Dance Festival, with the support and accessibility services
of Liminal Access.
DANCE COURSES
In recent years she has been teaching African dance
of the diaspora to mixed ability groups, focusing on the inclusion of people with hearing impairments or with total hearing loss in dance, especially through the symbolism of African dance and the pulse of the percussion instrument.