is a third generation dancer. His grandfather Powers was
president of the Cotillion Club at VPI in Virginia, back in the ragtime era,
and his parents were swing kids who met at a Tommy Dorsey dance. Today Richard
is one of the world's foremost experts in the history of American and European
social dance. He has been researching and reconstructing historic social dances
for thirty years and he is currently a full-time instructor and dance
historian at Stanford University.
Angela Amarillas - USA
has assisted Richard in his classes and
workshops for the past fifteen years. She is a graceful dancer who shares Richard's
passion for historical and vernacular social dance.
Sylvia Hartung - Germany
continues her research in historical and modern dance in the fields of choregraphy and (re)construction.
She has appropriated various dance choregraphies from dancing schools and in courses with university lecturers.
She has also collected historical information about dances from sources such as dance writings and historical biographies.
An emphasis in her training and research is her specialisation in Ballroom dances from the 19th and 20th centuries - Vintage and modern dances.
Sylvia founded Dance and Creativity School in 2004.
Jitka Bonušová & Jan Pumpr - Czech Republic
specialize in the European social dances of the 19th century.
They are continuing the work of professor František Bonuš and his son Jasan
and are reviving their studies. Jitka and Jan proceed also their own studies and
create their own choreographies.
