A conversation with Lucija Velkavrh, teacher, dancer, choreographer and head of the jazz dance department at the Dance Academy. Barbra Drnač spoke with her for the Parada plesa portal.
Dear Lucija, hello — the information days are approaching, at which, as head of the jazz dance department at the Dance Academy, you will invite those interested to study with you. What is the advantage of studying in Slovenia, especially jazz dance?
Hello! That’s right: at this year’s information days, organised by the Alma Mater Europaea faculty, I will present the renewed three-year undergraduate programme in jazz dance, which offers students a broad range of theoretical and practical knowledge in jazz and related disciplines. Alma Mater Europaea – Dance Academy is the only institution in Slovenia offering a recognised first-cycle Bologna degree in jazz dance. The programme is directed towards developing a versatile dance artist with an accomplished technical foundation, able to build on that knowledge appropriately and use it to achieve their own goals. Another advantage of the programme is the roster of lecturers (academics, top dancers and choreographers), the renewed curriculum and the accessibility of the studies — dancers do not have to go abroad to gain high-quality academic knowledge and a degree in jazz dance.
Lucija Velkavrh with the team: on the left Michal Rynia, Nastja Bremec Rynia and Jadran Živković, on the right Anja Möderndorfer, Boštjan Korošec and Matevž Česen. Kaja Lin J. Avguštin will join the team in the autumn, as she is about to give birth. (photo: Tija Ažman)
The programme is of course not new — I graduated in this field myself — but it has been set up anew, hasn’t it? What changes have you prepared for the autumn?
That’s right, the undergraduate jazz programme has been renewed and rethought. We refreshed the old curriculum and reshaped its content; the courses connect, complement and meaningfully build on one another. The jazz department itself, that is the roster of professors who will teach in the field, has also been newly formed. All the syllabuses have been written afresh. Dance techniques that are no longer much used in jazz but were included in the old curriculum have been dropped and replaced with newer styles that appear and are used in jazz and modern. The number of courses per year has also been reduced and the option of electives added — students will be able to choose some courses from other fields of study at the Dance Academy.
Would you introduce the teaching team as well?
The jazz teaching team consists of: Anja Möderndorfer, Matevž Česen, Michal Rynia, Nastja Bremec Rynia, Kaja Lin J. Avguštin, Boštjan Korošec, Jadran Živković and myself. The teaching team is complemented by lecturers who teach in other fields at the Dance Academy and who lead the professional courses (preventive medicine, psychology, pedagogy, dance history, organisation and management in culture, the basics of stage technology and so on).
So when and where should interested dancers turn for all the information?
Interested students and dancers can find all the information on the website of the Alma Mater Europaea faculty (www.almamater.si), on the Dance Academy website (www.dance-academy.almamater.si) and on social media (Facebook and Instagram). More information about enrolment, auditions and the study programme is available at the information days on 12 and 13 February; we will also organise additional info days especially for the jazz and hip hop fields. Dancers can also contact me directly for any information.
Your schooling was very varied. You gained knowledge at different dance schools at home and around the world. I have nevertheless forgotten a little — what is your academic education?
I gained my academic education at the Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Ljubljana, where I took a master’s degree in strategic market communication. Between my undergraduate and postgraduate studies in communication I also trained in dance. I gained knowledge in Los Angeles, New York, Paris, London, Madrid, Amsterdam, Kyiv, Zagreb, São Paulo and Vienna. At home and abroad I have shared my knowledge as a teacher and choreographer at numerous workshops across Slovenia, in Austria, Croatia and Brazil, teaching at various dance schools and professional companies. I have worked with renowned Brazilian ballet, jazz and hip hop companies such as: Companhia de Ballet de Niterói (Rio de Janeiro), Raça Cia de Dança (São Paulo), SASHAS (Curitiba) and NAI Companhia de Dança (São Luís). Through past knowledge and experience I trained in various dance styles and techniques, such as jazz, show dance, contemporary jazz, lyrical jazz, modern, Horton, partnering and improvisation.
You once told my portal that whenever you want a change, you dance off to Brazil. That bond is still very strong, isn’t it? Why Brazil?
The bond with Brazil is and always will be very strong, because it rests on exceptional people and relationships, wonderful experiences connected with dance, the best of friends, wild travel adventures, hospitality, simplicity, love and connection. I am in touch with my dancer friends every week; we work a great deal with Brazilian dance schools and companies and organise workshops and events together. Why Brazil? Because the dancers are so hungry for knowledge (they lack it there, since most have no financial backing to train in dance), because good work with Brazilians repays itself a hundred times over, because they value your knowledge and effort incredibly and welcome you with open arms, again and again. Dancers in Brazil have a special energy — their positivity and expressiveness are impossible to describe. You can only feel it.
You are known as an energetic and precise dancer, which matters all the more in jazz. Do you feel jazz dance is any less popular than when you started out in it?
I think not — quite the opposite. Jazz dance has advanced greatly in its form and its expression. Dance styles such as contemporary, modern jazz, lyrical jazz, jazz funk and street jazz have gained in popularity and standing. More and more dancers are choosing jazz and trying out different styles, and there is a great deal of fusion between jazz, modern dance technique, hip hop and even acrobatics. I find this diversity and the drive to connect and mix different dance techniques wonderful, because it helps a dancer grow into a versatile creator.
But why dance jazz?
Jazz gives a dancer the chance to discover the capacities of their body — coordination, speed and strength. By training jazz, dancers gain a good technical foundation based on ballet technique, which also serves as a basis for other dance genres. Turns, jumps, awareness of the body’s centre, flexibility, expressiveness, musicality — these are all concepts a successful dancer must master. Besides that, jazz is a highly expressive and lyrical dance. Expressing emotion and interpreting movement through rhythm, music and lyrics is of key importance in jazz. It has many styles and always challenges the dancer in a different way. A jazz choreographer can follow contemporary dance technique or an Afro style, can be strongly ballet-oriented or entirely free in movement. Jazz dance can be linked to the performing arts (theatre jazz, musicals), it can be complemented by tap or hip hop technique — the possibilities are endless.
You are also a teacher and a choreographer. You teach at the Bast performance school and you founded the non-profit organisation, or association, Meraki Dance Project. Tell us what the association is about.
I always wanted to create something different in dance, something that would leave a mark in the inner, heartfelt world of dancers. The word Meraki itself describes the essence of the association: it comes from Greek and means doing something with complete love and a pure soul. Meraki means that you always leave a piece of yourself in your creative work.
Meraki Dance Project is a non-profit organisation whose aim is to give access to high-quality dance knowledge to those who cannot afford it. On a voluntary and charitable basis we travel to poorer countries, where we organise a variety of dance workshops and lectures on healthy nutrition and injury prevention; at the end of the workshops we also organise a performance by all participants. We offer dancers intensive workshops in ballet technique, yoga, jazz, contemporary jazz, the dancer’s physical preparation, partnering and improvisation. Our key values are responsibility, trust, openness and honesty. We build on an intimate, personal approach and on a positive, loving relationship with the dancers. From time to time we also organise workshops for our dancers in Slovenia, whose attendance and contribution help make our dream come true: to share the passion for dance with dancers all over the world and to help them discover their own movement potential. Meraki Dance Project expeditions rely on voluntary contributions and donations, so we are always very grateful for any support.
Meraki Dance Project (photo: Matic Oblak)
You are also very fond of dance video creations — at least it seems to me I occasionally notice your work. Why dance on video?
Dance on video is an excellent way to present and promote a dancer, their artistic work and their creation. When working with partners abroad, videos always come in handy; often they are the first showing of your work to a client. In the current situation of isolation and the inability to perform on stage, it is also one of the ways a dancer can show and express themselves. I enjoy creating and connecting dance with spaces other than a studio. The Museum and Galleries of Ljubljana (MGML), the former Mladinska knjiga printing works, home to the Big – Centre for Creative Economy, the National and University Library (NUK), abandoned warehouses, a sandy beach in Rio de Janeiro… these are all locations where we have shot dance videos. Every location has its own character and each adds an extra artistic note to the final dance work.
With taking over the leadership of the department at Alma Mater Europaea, will you direct your career more towards teaching, or will you still divide dancing and choreographing evenly?
Teaching, dancing and choreographing — I want to go on doing all of them successfully, developing them and connecting them with one another. I think constant development is key for a good teacher: the desire for new knowledge, for creating and for training, both at home and abroad.
What kind of year is behind you, and what kind of year should lie ahead?
Full of dance, work, creativity and certainly full of challenges! May the year ahead be healthy, courageous and free — that is what I sincerely wish for all of us.
What do you wish for yourself, for your dance colleagues, for us viewers?
Each of us carries a treasure within. Roll up your sleeves and go for it!
Thank you, and stay well!