Bio

	As an energetic and dynamic dancer, Maya Christina is known best for her unique combination of graceful technique, precision, and highly expressive dance. Maya's performances are dramatic, incorporating her fine-tuned control of expression and technique into a well-rounded and multi-layered performance. In classes, Maya instructs with an unusual and highly successful approach: in addition to traditional dance and strengthening techniques, Maya employs lecture-demonstrations, white boards, and homework, and strongly encourages note-taking, in order to provide a well-rounded and deep learning experience for the dance student. In addition to performance and teaching, Maya is a successful and sought-after choreographer, incorporating traditional technique with individual expression and artistic exploration, creating unique art performances for individuals and troupes worldwide. * "Beautiful dance ... beautiful hair ... beautifiul costume!" . . . Eva Cernick * HISTORY Dr. Maya began dancing in 1990, training extensively at the internationally reknown Cassandra School of Oriental Dance in Minneapolis, Minnesota, where she later became an instructor in the Cassandra School. In addition to the great influence by Cassandra Shore, Maya also studied with Ranee Ramaswamy, a master bharatanatyam instructor and performer, and has studied and performed Kathak, Flamenco, film acting, and theatre acting with various instructors. Maya's other major Middle Eastern dance influences include Raqia Hassan and Nadia Hamdi, and the videos of Sohair Zaki. Maya gained the title of 2004 Grand Champion at the East Coast Bellydance Classic sponsored by Taaj in Norfolk, VA. Currently, Maya bases her dance in Edmonton, Alberta for the 2008-2009 academic year. *"Gorgeous -- just right -- you don't see dance like that any more"...Habiba* PERFORMANCE Maya is an international performer, specializing in Raks Sharqi, American Classic Bellydance, Saidi, and her unique blend of fusion, and has minor emphases in melaya lef, modern and traditional ghawazee, and tribal bellydance. Maya also has performed Turkish rom, Saudi Arabian kaleejy, Moroccan shikat, Tunisian folkloric dance, gypsy and classical flamenco, bharatanatyam, and north Indian kathak. During her sojourn in Minneapolis, Maya became a member of Jawaahir Dance Company, the premier U.S. traditional Middle Eastern dance troupe. While travelling the nation with Jawaahir, she performed folkloric, fusion, and Raks Sharqi dances choreographed by herself and by Cassandra and other master dancers. Also in Minneapolis, Maya performed with Ragamala Music and Dance Theatre. Later, in Austin, TX, Maya was a principle dancer with Desert Passion Dance Theatre and appeared regularly on the Mirage and Carousel Caravan stages. Maya's dance career has led her into some unusual performances. In addition to appearing on presitious stages such as the Southern Theatre and the Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, she has danced on the screen in several independent and sci-fi films and as a background dancer in music videos. She has shared the stage with several rock/pop icons such as Prince and Meatloaf, in addition to having the chance to dance to music performed by great American Bellydance musicians such as Light Rain and Chris Kalogerson, and the influential Arabic-American artists Simon Shaheen, Georges Lammam, and Rachid Hallihal. As a musician, Maya has performed percussion and vocals in several Middle Eastern and Greek ensembles in the U.S., most recently as a second percussionist (riqq, castanets, cymbals) for Fantacea in central California. In addition to traditional dance performances, she has appeared in several fusion dance-theatre productions, including Shoma, The Mirror of Fire, and Ten Incarnations of Vishnu. In her wildest performances of the mid 90's, Maya even briefly assumed the stage name of "Scherezade" as a ring-side dancer for several professional wrestlers. Currently, Maya performs on stages throughout the world, mostly in major shows and theatrical performances, although at times, can be seen dancing for restaurant and nightclub patrons. A portion of Maya's performance schedule is dedicated to increasing awareness of, or fundraising for, human society and environmental issues, such as women's shelters, companion animal welfare, environmental concerns, and food banks. *"Phenomenal dancer!" . . . Rachid Hallihal* TEACHING AND CHOREOGRAPHY Maya began her teaching career at the Cassandra School in 1995. After leaving Minneapolis for grad school, Maya founded MayaDance School of Oriental Dance in 2000 during her years in Austin, TX; currently, the school "follows" Maya to whatever city she resides in for the moment. In addition to teaching regular classes, Maya also teaches seminars and day-classes around the country. Academia, doubtlessly, has followed Maya into the bellydance studio. Students gain a basic understanding in the laws of physics; for example, Maya educates students on centrifugal force and lever dynamics for spins with arm movements and the role of bent knees in hip isolations in order to embed the reason for good dance posture. In class and in seminars, Maya employs a unique and successful blend of traditional dance teaching, mini-lectures, and chalkboard illustrations, and dance students are highly encouraged to take notes. In addition to teaching and performance, Maya greatly enjoys choreographing dance performances for others, and has done so for professional individuals and troupes around the U.S., including Jawaahir, Lost Jewels of the Ghawazee, Gidda Hoop, and Zalzali. Maya's choreographies range from the traditional folkloric and danse orientale to unusual pieces, such as theatrical tableaus, folkloric-fusion, and dance sculpture. A MOBILE DANCER: WHERE IS MAYA? What an exciting life! At this stage in her professional academic career, Maya Christina frequently is employed as a visiting professor and postdoctoral researcher. To date, she has lived and based MayaDance (temporarily) in Austin, TX, Mt. Vernon, IA, Boone, NC, Bakersfield, CA, Davis, CA, Friday Harbor, WA, and Colorado Springs, CO; currently, Maya resides in Edmonton, Alberta for fall, 2008. Check back to see where she will be based in 2009, she could still be in Edmonton, or anywhere else on this planet...or even in space! * * * "Dr. Maya ROCKS!" . . . Esme Raya * * * ** A founding member of Rocks Sharky, the Sisterhood of Bellydancing Geologists MORE ABOUT MAYA -- the Paleoecologist!** Maya's research utilizes the fossil record to better understand environmental and ecosystem dynamics in order to reveal information that is pertinent to modern environmental and ecological crises. Geographically, Maya's research is based in the North America, Europe, and New Zealand-Australia-Antarctica-Southeast Asia regions. Her teaching expertise includes paleontology, geology, and marine science. Maya also has academic interests in archaeology, botany, and mathematics, and has studied or is studying 12 foreign languages, including several ancient and aboriginal tongues. Recently, Maya was awarded the prestigious American Association of University Women American Fellowship and is a research fellow at several museum and research institutions. (Photo of Archaeocidaris brownwoodensis, commonly known to collectors as the "Brownwood Echinoid," a 300-million-year-old sea urchin from Texas, squashed flat. Large, serrated spines radiate out from the circular test, or body, of the urchin. The star-shaped piece in the middle is the top view of the urchin's 5-part jaw aparatus; the top of the urchin has been lost to time, exposing the inside of the jaw aparatus situated at the bottom of the urchin. The small, white scale bar to the northwest of the urchin is one centimeter in length.)

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