Diaspora is a complex word that signifies both place and displacement, connection and disconnection, past and future.

This FREE dance class seeks to translate these ideas into the body — how can we embody principles of Afro-Latin dance practices while exploring our own unique expression? How can we embrace rigor and instinct, tradition and creativity, ancestry and individuality? Dancers are encouraged to cultivate an intimate relationship with the ground, a mobile spine and expressive pelvis, playful improvisation, and deep musicality.


All levels welcome. Come ready to sweat and play!


Marina Magalhães is an award-winning choreographer and seasoned dancer from Brazil based in Los Angeles. She has shared her work and unique movement approach throughout the US, Brazil, Cuba, Botswana, South Africa, and France earning her an LA Weekly Theater Award for Best Choreography and critical acclaim from Creative Feel Magazine, “riveting… a physical and emotional feat”. Magalhães is a graduate of UCLA’s World Arts & Cultures/Dance Department and is currently pursuing an MFA in Dance at University of the Arts. She is a Lecturer at UC Riverside, a Resident Choreographer with Viver Brasil Dance Co, a founding teacher of the East LA-based People’s Yoga studio, a border-crosser and bridge-builder.


This is a FREE community class thanks to generous support of the California Arts Council, Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs, and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission.

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Photo Credit: Bobby Gordon