Member Spotlight: Nina Perez, Baila Vancouver
MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: Nina Perez
Baila Vancouver Dance School 
 




Sept 2, 2009 Social Butterfly Club Member Interview: Nina Perez, Baila Vancouver Dance School
Reporter: Alice Zhou
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Nina Perez is an expert Latin Dance Instructor from Argentina who has been dancing since the age of 2. Currently, at 28 yrs of age is owner and director of Baila Vancouver Dance School.
 
Nina shares her experience and passion in group lessons, private lessons, team building corporate events, and social events for all ages. Her innovative teaching techniques are based on extensive research on brain and body dynamics that make learning how to dance easy and fun.
 
Nina has been featured in the Vancouver Sun, Georgia Straight, Asian Pacific Post amongst other national publications since her dance performance at the Orpheum Theatre with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra at the young age of 18. She is widely recognized as one of Vancouver’s best dancers and instructors and is known for her style and grace on the dance floor and in the classroom. Her website is  www.bailavancouver.com
 
 
Company Profile
 
Baila Vancouver Dance School is located 1055 Dunsmuir St inside the Bentall Centre Athletic Club. “Baila” means “Dance” in Spanish and we specialize in group and private lessons, team building corporate events and social events for all ages in all the Latin Social Dances: Salsa, Argentine Tango, Cha Cha, Merengue, Casino Rueda, and Bachata.  No partner, No Rhythm, No problem!

Contact Info:

A: Where were you born, and how has it affected how you conduct business?
N: I was born in Buenos Aires Argentina. A very vibrant city. There is a saying that goes “Argentineans are Italians that speak Spanish that live in French houses and drink tea like the English”, and it is very true. If you imagine a cross between Paris and New York, you get Buenos Aires!
 
It has definitely affected me in various ways… from a Dance perspective the music is in my blood as Argentineans listen to everything from samba to salsa to our native dance of Argentine Tango, we don’t miss a fad. So from a very young age I was exposed to many different types of dancing and music.
 
As well it is a very vibrant place to live where the pace of life is “ work hard, play hard” and that has definitely influenced me I believe in what I have chosen as a dream, career and business. Running and building a dance school definitely keeps me very active, alive and busy. So I am keeping true to my heritage.
 
A: Please tell us why you do what you do, what other passions do you have in life?
N: I know with all my heart that dancing is one of the ways we can attain many moments of happiness. As an instructor and coach I am very grateful I get to witness the magical transition of people who come from not knowing what to do, with a perceived belief that they have 2 left feet to a person who discovers a new passion in life, a change of lifestyle and an improvement of their quality of life just from learning this type of skill.
 
I am a born teacher and love to help people learn. So I enjoy teaching dancing, Spanish, and anything I come across that will help people connect to a greater sense of well-being. So I am very passionate about living a fulfilling life. Learning anything your heart desires. Experiencing new adventures all the time. Currently I’m learning piano, swimming and tennis.
 
A: What kind of training or development did you undertake?
N: I am a certified dance instructor. I started dancing ballet and flamenco from the age of 2. Argentine Tango at the age of 16 and at 19 started my Latin dance career and learned Salsa, Cha Cha, Merengue and Bachata. I constantly take lessons in any type of  dance and continuously train under many masters that travel the world teaching their art, be it in Argentine Tango or Salsa Rhythms. I have taken lessons and worked with many great instructors, to name a few Francisco Vasques, Josie Neglia, Liz Lira, Eddie Torres, Miriam Larici and Leo Barrionuevo, Esteban Moreno and Claudia Codega.
 
A: You're considered the top Salsa female dancer in the Lower Mainland, what type of conditioning and upkeep do you do to stay in tip top shape?
N: Thank you! I’m honoured people would think of me that way. I really dance from my heart and work on being in the moment when I hear any form of music. Then creativity flows in ways you cannot imagine or control.
I also do a lot of inner work. I meditate an hour a day. I do the grouse grind 3 times a week and teach many, many hours a day. I observe other people dancing any type of dance and then see how I can incorporate it in my dancing. I think what keeps me on top of my game is that I’m always learning from someone, be it a beginner student, a colleague or a video. You never know where the most valuable piece of new information or ideas are going to come from. I just adopted a new shoulder shimmy from a male dancer from a video sent to me by one of my students. I liked the movement and I tried it to see if I could make it look good on me. That’s what you have to do: observe, attempt and assess. If you like it, keep it, if not, don’t.
 
A: What should we know about the type of dancing you teach?
N: I always explain that I teach social dancing. Which is not the competition or showcase dancing that you see on tv. That type of dancing is very inspiring but not for everyone. I teach Latin Social Dancing where you apply some simple leading and following rules and you can dance with anyone in any part of the world. I teach people how to connect with a partner and communicate through the beautiful language of leading and following. I teach people how to build trust and enjoy a wonderful feeling dance with HOW they do their movements not WHAT funky complicated combos they have. I teach people how to be in the moment and learn a new skill easily with smoothness and ease, and I specialize in Salsa, Tango, Cha Cha, Casino Rueda, Merengue and Bachata.
 
A: What are the benefits of learning from a female instructor like yourself?
N: My philosophy is always think about the other person first. I teach the leads from a perspective of how the follows would love to feel the leader’s signals, which is very valuable information as the leads are always looking to make the follows have the most fun, feel good and memorable dance of the night.
 
As an experienced follower I understand what is needed and expected from a leader’s point of view for them to have an equally memorable and wonderful dance. So I teach the follows how to provide this feeling while adding stylish elements to enhance their look as well. I have a great time doing it as it is very fulfilling to teach people how to be the best for their partners.
 
A: What music is usually playing in your car or ipod?
N: Everything! I have lots of salsa, tango and all the latin rhythms… I also love mainstream singers like Shakira, Beyonce, India Arie, and Diana Krall. Bands like Greenday and Coldplay. Oldies, Etta James and Louis Armstrong… you name it I’m sure I have it.
 
A: What are your thoughts on the Latin community and Salsa community in Vancouver?
N: It is a great scene. The energy you get from going to these events is unbelievable and I’m really glad to be part of it in Vancouver. I think we have many pioneers that are always looking to improve the scene, and try new creative events, classes and venues. We really are lucky.
 
A: Where else in the world have you been or lived, and your thoughts on that?
N: I have lived half my life in Buenos Aires and half in Vancouver. I am very grateful for this as it definitely gave me some understanding about the difficulties in different parts of the world.  In Canada, we have many benefits and advantages that we never even question, but are not common in the rest of the world.
 
A: Tell us your experience as a young female entrepreneur, what were some of the challenges you had to overcome and any tips or advice for other woman who are considering jumping in?
N: I think everyone battles with the question: “ Am I doing this right?” and to overcome this I had to really get clear of what I wanted to accomplish in my business and life, and give up being perfect. You learn from it all, your plateaus, failures and successes. You need to trust your intuition and your desire to do your best and it will lead you to all the different business people, books and resources that you need.
 
My advice would be to read a lot of books and look to learn from people who are successful in the way you define success to see what you need to improve upon or learn. I am also a big believer of surrounding yourself with like minded people and providing service and value to everyone you come into contact with. If you always do this the challenges become opportunities for growth and you’ll have a support group that will help you through anything.
 
A: What legacy would you like to leave?
N: I would like to leave behind a system of connecting to a happier way of life, be it through dance lessons or different well-being practices. You cannot be too young or too old to learn how to dance and live life to the fullest. I have developed techniques that accelerate your learning in a fun and easy way. I would like to be able to pass that along through different vehicles like Dance Studios, Videos, through the School System, to name a few.
 
A: Tell us about your family?
N: I have amazing parents who have always been there for me. They each have very a loving and supportive husband and wife. I have beautiful younger sister, who sings very passionately and has a vibrant personality.
No pets yet;)

Nina was kind enough to sponsor 3 dances last year at one of my fundraising events with her team.  They're simply delightful.  I would highly recommend trying out her classes for great fun and exercise.
Last Updated ( Wednesday, 18 April 2012 )
 
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