Grupo Afro Dendê
Maculelê

This piece explores what happens when people come together to fight for love.

Born and raised in Salvador, Bahia, Tania Santiago grew up in the heart of African-influenced Brazil. She has taught, danced, and choreographed for the most well-known companies in Brazil. Tania has also extensively studied other forms of dance such as Jazz, Ballet, West African, Afro-Cuban, and Modern dance. She spent six years working with Olodum, a highly respected and internationally acknowledged Bloco Afro in Brazil. Tania also choreographed and performed for Olodum on television, at concerts, and at music festivals. Since 1997, Tania has been teaching classes and giving workshops in California, New York, Hawaii, Florida, and Vancouver, Canada. She has been an artist in residence at various school programs in San Francisco as well as a featured teacher at the Brazil Camp in Northern California.

Tania Santiago founded Aguas Dance Company in 1999 and has been teaching Afro Brazilian dance to all ages throughout the Bay Area since 1997. She leads an annual dance intensives to Salvador each Summer and has led an mulitple award winning contingent- First Place in the Brazilian category at the SF Grand Carnaval Parade that covers 20 blocks in San Francisco’s historic Latino Cultural District in the Mission. She has MFA in Dance from Bennington College.

Instagram: @afrobraziliansf