Workshops

Helsinki Dance Festival Ballet Workshop 2024 taught by Laura Poikolainen! 

Laura will be focusing on turn out and pirouettes during the 60 minute workshop. 

Laura Poikolainen received her basic dance training at the Helsinki Dance Institute. She graduated as a dancer from the Finnish National Opera Ballet School and worked as a dancer at the Finnish National Ballet between 2004-2006.

Laura graduated from Savonia University of Applied Sciences as a dance teacher in spring 2010, majoring in classical ballet. In spring 2012 she graduated with a Master's degree in dance from the Theatre Academy of the University of Arts Helsinki. 

Since graduation, Laura has been working as a full-time dance teacher at Helsinki Dance Institute, teaching mainly ballet to children, teenagers, adults and special education students.

Helsinki Dance Festival Contemporary Workshop 2024 taught by Iiris Laakso!

The workshop includes improvisational prompts, release and floor technique, spine rotations and movement materials. 

Iiris Laakso is a Helsinki-based dance and performance artist who loves and craves dance. In the context of contemporary performance, she is currently particularly interested in epic drama, versatile expressions and insightful and silly humour. She is also a dance teacher, a Master of Dance Arts (2021, TeaK) and a capricorn/ cancer/gemini.

Laakso has been teaching contemporary dance for ten years in a variety of contexts. The contemporary dance workshop will involve dancing in a terrain of release and floor technique, rotation of the spine, weight transfer and flow of movement. The class will include both improvisational prompts and choreographed movement material.