Nirkoda Romani, Feb. 15-16, 2025







Teachers

Sonia Dion & Cristian Florescu (Romanian Dance)

Cristian Florescu was born in Bucharest, Romania. He started dancing in 1982 with different Romanian folk ensembles, and studied with various specialists including the renowned Theodor Vasilescu. Cristian has danced with and choreographed for many troupes, including the National Ensemble Cununa Carpatilor, Folk Ensemble Balada, Academic Ensemble Joc (Moldova), and Les Sortilèges (Montreal). In 1990-91, the Romanian Ministry of Culture and the Folklore Choreographers Association of Romania awarded him a certificate recognizing him as a solo dancer and choreographer in the field of folklore. Since coming to Canada, Cristian has acquired multiple skills in various dance forms including modern dance, ballroom, jazz, tap as well as French-Canadian clogging and Irish step dancing.

Sonia Dion was born in Québec and has been a professional dancer for over 20 years. She was lead dancer and choreographer for Les Sortilèges dance company, Canada's oldest professional folk dance ensemble, with whom she developed several new productions including Une page d'histoire, un pas de danse, Montréal en danse, and Pour se faire plaisir. Sonia has toured worldwide and has been exposed to a wide range of dance techniques including Romanian folk dance, Scottish highland dancing, French-Canadian clogging and ballroom.

Cristian and Sonia have been guest performers with the Collage International Dance Ensemble of Boston, have been regular teachers at l' École supérieure de danse du Québec and have been selected to be part of the Artists in the Schools program sponsored by the Québec Ministry of Education. In recent years, they have developed a specific interest in working with recreational folk dance groups in Canada and the United States, Mexico and Brazil. They have been teaching in Europa (Austria, England, Poland, Germany, Italy, Norway, Belgium, Switzerland, The Netherlands, France) in Asia (Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia) and Australia to share their love of Romanian folk traditions.

Aaron Alpert (Israeli Dance and Workshop Organizer)

Aaron was born to two Israeli folk dancers, so he has been dancing his whole life. As a child, he danced at Alonim, a Jewish summer camp near Los Angeles, with David Dassa and Erica Goldman. He started getting serious around the age of 12, when he began to attend dances camps in earnest, beginning at Rikud. In college, he became one of the teachers at the student-led Israeli Dance DeCal class, and he began to teach at various Israeli dance sessions in the Bay Area. In 2012, he opened his own monthly session called Nirkoda, which slowly grew into a weekly session called Nirkoda Le'Chayim. He also runs a weekend dance camp (with wine tasting!) called Nirkoda Ba'Kerem.

He was introduced to the international folk dance scene by Loui Tucker, who recommended him to the Stockton Board of Directors, which hired him for Folk Dance Camp 2018. Since then, he has had the privilege to share his love of Israeli dancing at many international events, including Mendocino Folklore Camp 2019, Laguna Festival 2020, Fall Camp 2021, Mainewoods 2022 & 2023, and Stockton 2024.

Loui Tucker (MC)

Loui has been dancing since early childhood. She is particularly devoted to international folk dance and the dances of Israel. She runs several weekly dance classes, and she has taught at numerous camps. She has served on the board of Stockton Folk Dance Camp, the Folk Dance Federation of Northern California, and many other groups. She is also the editor of Let's Dance magazine, and an excellent photographer.

Adony Beniares (MC)

Adony is a well-known leader in the folk dance community. He is on the Board of Stockton Folk Dance Camp, where he does everything from organizing and upgrading the tech to MCing after-parties. He also regularly MCs at Peninsula Folk Dance Council parties. Early in the Covid pandemic, he was foundational in the establishment of virtual dancing, which he continues today with Global Folk Dance Parties every month, Stockton Winter Weekend, and teaching and dancing at various online classes. Adony is also on the Planning Committees for the annual in-person June Camp and World Camp events, as well as managing the tech at other dance camps.





Date and Schedule

The dates for the event Feburary 15-16, 2025. This is Presidents' Day Weekend, so you can sleep in on Monday! Due to a hiccup with the venue, we are still working on finalizing times.

  • Saturday, February 15, 2025
    • Location: Etz Chayim, 4161 Alma St., Palo Alto, CA 94306 (map)
    • 2:00-5:30 PM, teaching session with Sonia & Cristian and Aaron
    • Dinner break, on your own
    • 7:30-11:00 PM, party with MC Loui Tucker
  • Sunday, February 16, 2025
    • Location: Mountain View Masonic Lodge, 890 Church St., Mountain View, CA 94041(map)
    • 2:00-5:30 PM, teaching session with Sonia & Cristian and Aaron
    • Dinner break, on your own
    • 7:30-11:00 PM, party with MC Adony Beniares




Saturday Location

Congregation Etz Chayim, 4161 Alma St., Palo Alto, CA 94306 (map). Parking is free, easy, and plentiful, right next to the building. Large sprung wood floor. Air conditioning and heating.

Sunday Location

Mountain View Masonic Lodge, 890 Church St., Mountain View, CA 94306 (map). Small parking lot in back and lots of free street parking. Large sprung wood floor.





Prices

  • Pre-register and pay by Feb. 8, 2025 to receive the following discounted prices:
    • $100, entire weekend (all 4 teaching sessions & parties)
    • $35, each event (i.e., 1 teaching session or party; for example, if you attend the Saturday teaching and the Saturday party, you would pay $35 x 2 = $70)
  • Pay at the door:
    • $110, entire weekend (all 4 teaching sessions & parties)
    • $40, each event (i.e., 1 teaching session or party; for example, if you attend the Saturday teaching and the Saturday party, you would pay $40 x 2 = $80)

Full-time enrolled students up to age 25 pay half price.

Cancellation policy: If you cancel in writing by Feb. 12, 2025, you are entitled to a full refund, minus a $5 per person cancellation fee. After Feb. 12, 2025, no refunds.

We accept:

  • Cash
  • Checks made out to "Nirkoda"
  • PayPal to @alpert8 or QR code below, please select "friends & family"
  • Venmo to @Aaron-Alpert or QR code below, please turn off "goods & services"
  • Zelle to aaron@nirkoda.com or QR code below
  • Any credit card (add 3% for processing fees), present your card to Aaron





Restaurant & Hotel Recommendations for Out-of-Town Visitors

Airports. If you are flying in, your best options are San Francisco (SFO) or San Jose (SJC). While SJC is a little bit closer (12 miles vs. 25 miles), SFO is a larger airport and may have more flight options. Consider both. However, other airports like OAK or STS are not recommended.

Getting There. Your best option is to drive — rent a car, carpool, or take Uber / Lyft. In general, public transportation in the Bay Area is not great. However, both venues are very close to Caltrain. Etz Chayim is close to the San Antonio Station, and while it is possible to walk, the route includes several major vehicle thoroughfares that are not pedestrian-friendly. (Use Uber or Lyft for the last mile.) The Masonic Lodge is close to the Mountain View Station, and it is a pedestrian-friendly 15 minute walk.

Restaurants. Dinner is on your own 5:30-7:30. We like the following restaurants:

If you look on Yelp, try places in the San Antonio Shopping Center in Palo Alto or on Castro Street in Mountain View.

Hotels. Look for something along El Camino Real. The suggestions below are listed from least expensive to most expensive. In general, the Mountain View Masonic Lodge is in a more pedestrian-friendly area, so if you are planning to walk, you may want a Mountain View hotel, and just drive to Etz on Saturday. If you want something on the more luxurious end and don't mind driving a bit more, take a look near Stanford on University Ave.




Questions & Registration

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask aaron@nirkoda.com. If you're ready to sign up, go to nirkoda.com/register or click the button: