YEREVAN / ALICANTE, Spain – Emma Melikyan is a dancer of different dance styles, choreographer and dance instructor. She was born in 1984, in Yerevan; her father is a violinist and her mother a psychologist. She has been dancing jazz and modern since the age of 11. Emma studied at Juan Carlos and Complutense Universities of Madrid, improved at the Royal Society of Choreographers in London and Broadway Dance Center in New York. In 2006, she was one of the main actresses of the “Desordances 2” dance performance in Teatro Madrid in Madrid. In 2000-2011 she taught hip-hop at El Orno and Beatrice Luengo dance schools in Madrid, directed and danced at Dani Panullo’s dance theater, as well as performed during pop singer Maria Sanchez’s international tours. In 2009-2010 Emma Melikian was a paratherapy specialist at the Yehudi Menuhin Foundation in Madrid, and since 2013, a choreographer and choreographer at the Quiero Ser Artista Art School and the WOSAP Dance School in Madrid.
Emma, you dance and teach jazz, hip hop, street dance and other dances. Living in a country with such a rich dance culture, have you ever been interested in Spanish dances?
Sure, I have been very interested in Spanish dances: although never learned in a professional way, but I do not discard it. I always been focused on improving the styles I danced since I was little, but the power and personality of flamenco dance really do move me, so who knows, maybe in the near future I will decide to learn in a more professional way.
In 2007, you received the award for best dancer for your performance in the video for the song Toca Toca by famous Spanish hip hop artist Mala Rodríguez, recognized as the best video of the year. Please tell us about this cooperation.
This cooperation was very interesting and a whole experience for me. Mala was one of the trending female artist of that moment, so working with her was a blessing. The video shoot was very fun and challenging; we danced in very high heels which were tied to our feet with tape, so we could not take them off during the entire shoot, which was very, very long. I also traveled with Mala to do some shows, so the entire experience was really positive.
How is it to live as a dancer in Spain?
