Today we’d like to introduce you to Maya Aghasi.
Hi Maya, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I started dancing when I was 11 years old back home in Israel; since the first moment I knew I found my purpose and could not imagine myself doing anything else. I spent my high school years in the studio or waitressing to save money and travel the world to learn from the best around the world.
When I was 17, I started working in the industry in Israel and danced with some of Israel’s biggest artists and stages, but I still knew it was not enough for me and wanted to go bigger.
So, when I was only 18 years old, I left my country and started traveling the world; I started working with international artists and teaching all around the world.
Through dance, I got to travel and earn a living doing what I love most. I got to teach and share my art in Spain, Germany, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Mexico, Italy, Thailand, London, Uruguay, and many more.
Now, after 4 years traveling and teaching, I’m ready to dream even bigger and get my artist visa to be able to work in the States to teach and dance with the best in the world.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The road was far from being smooth; living far from home or, in general, living as an artist is one of the most challenging things I have experienced. I had to make a lot of sacrifices along the way, starting from spending my teen years in the studio or working while my friends were living life cause I knew I had goals to accomplish and no time to waste; I had to do my final exams between rehearsals and shows sometimes I even had to go do the tests in my teacher’s private houses because I could not make it to school.
In Israel, when you are 18, it is mandatory to do military service, and I had to literally fight my way out to be able to leave the country, which made me face a lot of judgment from my people back home; this was this was one of the most difficult decisions I had to make when I was only 17
But by far, the most challenging part of it all was being far from home for so long; for the past 4 years, I had no place I could call “home.” I was moving from one place to another every few months, if not weeks if not days, I had to constantly say goodbyes and find myself in a new place all alone. It’s living a life where you have no idea where will you be next month or when will you see your friends next, it’s living out of a suitcase and always being on the look for new opportunities on the way.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar with what you do, what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m a dancer, choreographer & teacher, dancing and teaching mostly on heels.
One of the things that makes me the proudest is seeing my students growing and coming out of class feeling empowered. Dancing on heels can be very “sexualized,” but for me, this is one of the most beautiful art forms out there. Having a bunch of women owning their feminine energy and feeling confident in class Is one of my biggest goals as a teacher.
I think what sets me apart from others is that I had the courage to really go all over the world, some of the countries dancers will not even think to dance in. so my dance style really includes so many different cultures in it. every country I visited gave new vocabulary to my movement, and I learned something new as a person, dancer, and teacher, which I think most dancers don’t get staying only in their communities
We love surprises, fun facts, and unexpected stories. Is there something you can share that might surprise us?
That chasing your dreams is one of the scariest things out there! People who follow me/my students always ask me how I did this. Or where did I get the courage to do it?
But I think the part that always surprises them is that I literally have no idea; there was never a set plan, and I’m not the bravest or fearless person out there. Far from that, I am full of doubts and insecurities most times.
Most of the things I did scared me to death, but I just did it while being scared; I knew I wanted to go big, so there was no other option.
I think people are always so surprised to realize that the only way to travel the world or achieve your dance goals- is to just do it, there is no magical way or system to follow, its being scared and going for It anyway- fake it till you make it for a bit.
People on social media or in my classes often forget that it’s not so glamorous and that I’m a person with a lot of fears and insecurities, and like everyone, I have to work on that daily to keep doing what I love
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mayagasi/
