IŻFEN ma’ ŻfinMalta – Dance with us!

Martina Zammit

Ballet

Iżfen ma’ ŻfinMalta offers open ballet classes where participants are guided through the basics to develop skills, strength, confidence and ownership. Classes are led by ŻfinMalta’s Martina Zammit and Emma Walker, both also working together on delivering the company’s Education and Outreach programme for the season.

Martina Zammit first danced with the Olivia Dow School of Russian Ballet in Malta, where she studied the Legat System. Martina completed three degrees at the University of Malta, beginning with a Bachelor degree in English and Archaeology, and followed by a Masters in English, Modern and Contemporary Literature and Criticism. She then undertook a Bachelor of Dance Studies before joining ŻfinMalta as a company dancer in 2014, and since 2018 has been ŻfinMalta’s Education & Outreach Artist.

Emma Walker

Ballet

Iżfen ma’ ŻfinMalta offers open ballet classes where participants are guided through the basics to develop skills, strength, confidence and ownership. Classes are led by ŻfinMalta’s Martina Zammit and Emma Walker, both also working together on delivering the company’s Education and Outreach programme for the season.

Emma Louise Walker was born in the UK. She was accepted as an associate at the Royal Ballet School at the age of ten. She graduated with a First Class Honours degree in Dance and Performance from the Central School of Ballet in London. After touring the UK with DeNada Dance theatre, Emma joined ŻfinMalta as a company dancer working with choreographers including Paolo Mangiola, Jacopo Godani, and Tânia Carvalho.

Douglas Comley

Contemporary

This class is for adults who like to move at a steady low impact pace to great music. Fun, friendship and revitalising  for mind and body: A Great place to meet new people! No experience necessary.

Douglas became  the director of the Welsh male dance company Dynion for 15 years touring nationally and internationally to raise the profile of male dance leading to Creative Arts Wales award winner in 2010. Throughout this period he has also been involved in the choreography and implementation of several large-scale opening ceremonies. These include the Rugby World Cup, The Millennium Youth Games, Dubai City Festival, Commonwealth Games and the World Gymnaestrade.

Douglas teaches for various establishments in Malta and heads different  performance projects with different  age groups and abilities. He is currently working with Opening Doors Association and Jo Casabene Dance School. If you would like to join, or are interested but have any questions, get in touch with Doug via douglascomley@hotmail.com 

Lotte La Haye

Yoga

“In these gentle yoga classes we will end our days tuning back into the body. Through simple guided movements, we focus on how and why we move, while at the same time exploring new ranges of motion. Through our breath we will process the day we’ve had, ending the class in full relaxation. Contrary to popular belief, yoga is an approachable practice that can be modified to anyone’s level. Above all it is a way to understand and care for ourselves. It is this which I wish to share in the classes I teach.”

Lotte La Haye was born in 2000 in The Netherlands. Since 2009 her dance education at The Royal Conservatoire of The Hague has included both the School for Young Talent and the HBO Bachelor Program. From 2014-2018 she was part of the Netherlands Dance Theatre’s (NDT) Young Talent Project, a collaboration between NDT and The Royal Conservatory of The Hague. Here she danced in works from Jiří Kylián, Johan Inger and Ohad Naharin. Lotte became an apprentice with Scapino Ballet Rotterdam in 2018 under the direction of Ed Wubbe. She joined ŻfinMalta in 2021. To book yoga, contact  Lotte via email at lahaye.yoga@gmail.com

Zoe Camilleri

Contemporary

The Iżfen contemporary classes led by Zoe are aimed for people who feel a calling to move and dance. Zoe started her professional dance journey with ŻfinMalta in 2014 as a full-time dancer. As a freelancer her roles range from dancer, performer, maker, educator, rehearsal and movement director and seamstress. She has been leading the Iżfen contemporary sessions since their start in 2021 and is excited to be back leading this growing and developing platform.

Iżfen is a space where people of any dance experience are welcome. During Zoe’s open sessions we move away from focusing on aesthetics and learning stylised movement and move more towards finding and investing in how each of our bodies like to move. We will physically explore fluidity, coordination, groove and dynamics mostly through guided improvisation and simple contemporary dance techniques. If you would like to join, or are interested but have any questions, get in touch with Zoe on her email zoe.camilleri1@gmail.com

Sarah Vella

Contemporary

In this class participants will explore the fundamentals of contemporary dance with a focus on body awareness, somatic practice, basic technique, and creative movement. ‘We will tap into your creative potential with guided improvisational exercises that encourage you to explore personal movement style and self-expression. This class is great for dancers and non-dancers alike who want to connect with their bodies and themselves in new ways. No prior experience required!’

Sarah is a dance artist, dance/movement therapist and speech therapist from Malta. After 12 years based in Berlin, Sarah moved back home continuing her artistic practice spanning from initiating, leading & supporting performing arts projects to taking on various roles as a performer, choreographer, collaborator, producer & educator. Sarah is also an active community artist, bringing movement to various age groups, settings & communities. She is also the current president of the Creative Arts Therapies Society.

Sarah has also co-founded Hale – body+mind which is a space for well-being – therapy, creative arts, assessments, consultations, workshops and more. She is driven to share her passion for movement across all ages and communities, both on-stage and off-stage!

Get in touch with Sarah at sarahvella87@gmail.com

Julienne Schembri

Contemporary (Somatic practice)

‘Somatic Dance’ is Julienne’s offering for the Iżfen series. Each session will engage in a creative process of learning dance calling from each persons’ felt experience. This class invites you to become an explorer, to investigate how movement, breath, mindful sensing and touch, can help you explore dancing from within.  We will introduce fundamentals for floorwork taking inspiration from concepts of the developmental movement patterns to support the development of dance technique, alongside improvisation and partner work to unleash the expressive dancer in you!

Julienne Schembri is an independent artist working in the community and a movement educator.  She holds a Masters from The London Contemporary Dance School, and is a certified movement analyst through Laban Bartenieff Movement Analyst with EMOVE Institute in The Netherlands, where she currently teaches as an assistant on their modular training programs.  Independently, she works as a somatic movement educator to create communities of people moving together. She is co-founder of Dance Beyond Borders whose intention is to unite diverse people through the Arts.

Get in touch with Julienne at juschembri@gmail.com

Sandra Misfud

Yoga & Contemporary

Sandra’s Iżfen ma’ ŻfinMalta classes combine the grace and fluidity of dance with the mindfulness and body awareness of yoga. Starting with a gentle warm up and moving into some hatha yoga poses, these asanas will inform the dance sequence focusing on fluidity and transitions with use of breath. The class will wind down with some slower movement leading to Yin poses (held yoga poses), breathwork and eventually Savasana.

With a career spanning several years in the field of dance, Sandra’s journey into the world of yoga, began as a sporadic exploration. Over several years she tried different yoga techniques with different teachers, but it was when she stumbled upon Yin Yoga that her path truly deepened. Recently certified as a yoga teacher. Sandra’s teaching style reflects her experience in dance and movement and her newfound passion for yoga. She believes that these practices hold the key to find balance in our fast-paced lives.  Sandra is a registered Yoga Alliance teacher. Book Sandra’s Iżfen classes by contacting her on: sandymifsud@gmail.com