Greek dance

For nearly 60 years, the Oakleigh and District Greek Orthodox community (community) has played a vital role in the preservation of the Greek Orthodox faith and language. The Community now aims to extend its services to traditional Greek dance.

This will be a free service offered by the Community to students of Sts Anargiri Greek Language Center and Oakleigh Grammar.

Greek traditional dance background

Dancing, according to Greek (classical) thought, was one of the civilizing activities, like wine making and music.

Greek dances (horos) are a very ancient tradition, to which authors such as Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch and Lucian refer.

There are different styles and interpretations of all the islands and the surrounding mainland areas. Each region has formed its own choreography and style to suit its own ways. For example, the island dances have a more different flow, while the Pontic dance closer to the Black Sea is very clear.

There are over 10,000 traditional dances that come from all parts of Greece. There are also Pan-Hellenic dances, which were adopted throughout the Greek world. These include syrtos, kalamatianos, pyrrhichios, hasapiko, and sirtaki.

Traditional Greek dance mainly has a social function. It brings together the community at key times of the year, such as Easter, the harvest or the patronal feasts; and at key times in the lives of individuals and families, such as weddings.

For this reason, tradition frequently dictates a strict order in the arrangement of the dancers, for example by age. Visitors tempted to join a celebration should be careful not to violate these provisions, in which the prestige of individual villagers can be embodied.

Greek dances are typically performed in Greek diaspora communities and among international folk dance groups.

Purpose and operation of the Dance Academy

Specialized dance instructors will give lessons specific to the region in which they specialize. There will be a rotating list of covered dances in a two to three month rotation, which will depend on demand and availability of instructors.

Dance lessons will be given according to demand and numbers.

The objective is to have a successful group that will represent the Community at internal and external events.

Dance lessons will take place every Thursday from 6.30 p.m. to 8.00 p.m. with schedules for each level to be confirmed once registrations have been received. The appropriate age for beginners is 5 years and over.

All organizers and instructors will hold a valid Working with Children check.

The importance of dancing

• Like any other art form, dance is a form of expression.
• It’s a great exercise.
• Children learn cooperation and teamwork.
• Dancers enter society with the ability to maintain the uncompromising high standards nurtured during their dance training.
• Creative thinking skills are developed,
• Learn the value of discipline, commitment and work ethic.
• Self-confidence develops when young people take on challenges to achieve new goals, learn to apply themselves and complete any task assigned to them.
• Children learn music, rhythm and rhythm.
• Social skills are developed and children learn the importance of being part of a team.
• Children take turns learning to share their attention and cooperate with others when working in groups

Registration details

If you would like to register your child (ren) ‘s participation in the Dance Academy, please complete the following information for each separated child and send an e-mail: [email protected] (an e- mail by family):

• Child’s name (surname and first name):
• Date of birth and age of the child
• School: Sts Anargiri / Oakleigh Grammar / Other
• Contact parent name:
• Parents contact phone number:
• Emergency contact phone number

When Kathy Skettos, a Greek and Australian Latin dance instructor, decided to start an exercise and fitness program based exclusively on Greek music and dance to encourage her overweight sister to follow an exercise program to fight Against some health issues, she never expected that hundreds of women around the world would also embrace her idea of ​​OPA-cize.

“I realized that a structured Greek dance class was not available anywhere in Australia, so I decided to start one myself,” said Kathy. Neos Kosmos.

She then created the first OPA-cize training program, which is a one-hour exercise program combining Greek music and dance.

The daughter of migrants from Kastellorizo ​​and Corinth, her adventure began in March 2015, when, in her attempt to persuade her sister to adopt a healthier and more active lifestyle, she created her own choreography combining the modern Greek music with various types of Greek dances. .

“My sister Mary hated exercising. She was a victim of domestic violence and after a failed marriage in Greece she returned to Australia severely depressed and with very low self-esteem, ”she revealed.

Mary hardly ever left the house. Desperate to find incentives and various ways to encourage her sister to change her life, Kathy came up with the idea for a program inspired by the one and only thing Mary loved: Greek music.

Unfortunately, the two sisters were never able to dance together.

Two days before the official launch of OPA-cize, Mary was found dead at her parents’ home after heart failure.

“I never had the chance to dance with my sister, but she was my inspiration and my program is therefore dedicated to her, because without Mary, I would never have had the motivation to design this alternative form of exercise, “says the Sydney-based fitness instructor.
“OPA is full of real kefi that has changed my life, but also the lives of so many others who can’t wait to come to class every time and dance their problems.”

Since its inception, Opa-cize has spread widely around the world with hundreds of courses held in Australia in Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane, Perth and Canberra, and overseas in New Zealand, the United States. United States, Canada, United Kingdom and Greece. , Cyprus, Switzerland, Germany and Japan.

According to the 51-year-old founder, the OPA-cize philosophy is based on the principles of Greek hospitality and the idea of ​​friendship (παρέα), offering a variety of programs for all fitness levels without excluding or discriminating in because of age, gender, race and body type.

“We don’t just focus on results and body image; our goal is to get people moving, to introduce them to a healthier way of life and most importantly to make them feel welcome and be part of a larger fun loving community that is there to support and inspire them, ”explains Martha Kavouki, based in Adelaide, one of the 100 instructors who have since joined OPA-cize.

Kathy has also designed a guide to healthy foods, which will be launched in February 2019.

“After my own personal experience, where I gained a lot of weight after six unsuccessful IVF attempts, I decided to design a clean nutrition guide, which I named Clean Zoi (life) and which consists of recipes tailored to complement the OPA-cize program and achieve weight loss without the exaggerations or unrealistic demands that most people lose motivation, ”says Kathy, who is also the mother of a 14-year-old girl.

Although three years have passed since Mary’s death, Kathy says she can still feel her sister’s presence every time she teaches a fitness class and admits that her small OPA community has helped her heal and to face his loss.

Now, she says her goal is to continue giving others the two things she never had the chance to give to her own sister: health and happiness.

“I love nothing more than meeting and connecting with all of our members around the world, listening to their stories and trying to make a difference in their lives. “

Most people believe that syrtaki (συρτάκι) is a traditional Greek dance dating back to the early 20th century and the millions of tourists who visit Greece each year will dance – or at least watch – the syrtaki being danced in taverns.

Yet, according to Greekreporter.gr, syrtaki is not an authentic Greek dance. It is a “fabricated” dance, created for the needs of a film. Well, not just any movie, but “Zorba the Greek”, based on Nikos Kazantzakis’ iconic book, “Zorbas”, released in 1964.

And the composer is none other than Mikis Theodorakis, arguably the most acclaimed Greek musician of all time. What Theodorakis did was alternate the slow and fast steps of the Hassaposerviko dance and compose the music of Zorba the Greek.

The most characteristic aspect of Syrtaki music and dance is the acceleration of the rhythm. The name syrtaki comes from the word syrtos, a common name for a group of traditional Greek dances. The word derives from the verb σύρω (syro), which means to drag, while I drag my fellow dancers.

The dancers form lines or a circle, with each dancer holding the shoulder of the person next to them. The time signature is 4/4, gradually increasing and reaching 2/4 in the faster part of the dance. The dance begins with slow, fluid movements that gradually become faster, more lively, often including small jumps.

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Photo source: Wikimedia Commons Copyright: Ivan C License: CC-BY-SA