MY LOOK: Dancer and choreographer Natalie Gelman
Profiles

MY LOOK: Dancer and choreographer Natalie Gelman
BY Matt Harrison
POSTED April 15, 2014 9:48 am

This feature appears in Ottawa Magazine’s April 2014 issue. Click here to subscribe to the print or digital versions.

By MATTHEW HARRISON

my-look-dancer-natalie-gelman
Natalie Gelman makes her own costumes, which are influenced by world music, both contemporary and traditional (Photo: Lucyna Bakowska)

For the past 10 years, you’ve been a dance instructor, choreographer, and performer in Ottawa, fusing an urban dance style with global dances. How did your interest in dance first come about?
Born and raised in Ottawa, I went to college in Toronto, and one night I heard drums coming from my basement and I discovered an African dance class being held in my building. For the first time, I got to explore the fusion of masculine and feminine energy — the athleticism and sensuality that is African dance. Prior to that, I had been exposed to drum circles, breakdancing, and belly dancing.
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