Ori Tahiti Workshops with Leolani, 2014

ALL THE WAY FROM LOS ANGELES, BELLYDANCE BOHEMIA IS DELIGHTED TO PRESENT WORKSHOPS WITH TAHITIAN DANCER LEOLANI!

ABOUT LEOLANI:
Born and raised in Los Angeles, Leolani Gallardo has 20 years of dance experience in competing, performing, and teaching internationally.

With a bachelor’s degree in World Arts and Cultures from UCLA, Leolani has gone on to dance for Tokyo Disney completing a yearlong contract in 2009. She was an assistant choreographer on ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ in 2010 helping with the debut of the very first Tahitian dance performance to ever be on the show.

In 2012, Leolani lived and trained in Tahiti for three months and competed in the 130th annual Heiva I Tahiti competition with dance troop Hitireva, under the direction of Kehaulani Chanquy. Hitireva won 2nd place in the Hua Tau (professional division) group dance category.

In the last 5 years Leolani has travelled and taught workshops extensively throughout the U.S., Tahiti, Mexico, New Zealand, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, and Hong Kong sharing her love for Tahitian Dance.

"My goal is to use this style of dance to empower women! All women deserve to express themselves artistically, and deserve to feel beautiful and sensual. Ori Tahiti is the catalyst for this exploration and creative expression. I aspire to inspire my students creativity, encourage other dancers in my community to follow their dreams, and foster respect for all Pacific Island Cultures."