Teachers

Here we present the first teachers who will help you develop new skills in February 2025. Each of them brings their own unique style, energy, and passion. In the coming months we will reveal more teachers. Keep an eye on our website and socials!

Level 1

TBA

Level 2a

Louise Marius
Louise has been giving balfolk workshops and lessons for beginners to advanced students for more than ten years. She likes to get people moving and in touch: with each other but also with theirselves. For her, the power of balfolk lies in a simple basis, which allows everyone to participate, and which gives a lot of room for playfulness, improvisation and communication. She therefore pays a lot of attention to leading and following in her workshops and lessons.
In level 2a, Louise focuses on turning in three-times waltzes, having more fun with the Scottish and jig and a more comfortable Mazurka. Whether you are advanced and want to learn complex new variations or have just started dancing, according to Louise the most important aspect of dancing is being together. That will be her overall focus.

Level 2b

TBA

Level 3/4

Koen Dhondt

Koen (Antwerpen – 1977) was introduced to folk dance at the age of eleven. In 2000 he discovered the balfolk scene while studying in Portugal. Since then he participated in several dance festivals and stages every year and developed his own way of dancing. To contribute to the development of the Belgian folk scene, he has been teaching weekly dance classes in Brussels since 2002. Koen has his own company, Frisse Folk, which organizes dance lessons throughout all of Belgium. He taught workshops at many festivals and stages all over Europe. From the very first Dansstage in the Netherlands he has been popular amongst the Dutch dancers and we are very happy he is a regular guest!

Elena Leibbrand

We’re very happy to welcome Elena Leibbrand again, who always knows how to find the perfect balance between improvisation and tradition in bourrées, waltzes and many other dances. Elena founded her own dance school EléDanse in Belgium in 2018 to pass on to others what makes folk so special to her: the subtle combination of human warmth, exploration of movement, precision and tradition of the form/style, improvisation and playful atmosphere! She has been trained in a range of dance styles since 1995, from traditional to social and contemporary dances. She enjoys both the great potential for improvisation in modern “folk” as well as the specific beauty, precision, and connection to a territory of “traditional” dances. She has a soft spot for bourrées, waltzes, collective dances in general, and the dances from the south-west of France.

Other teachers for level 3/4 TBA