Maria Kamberis
Maria Kamberis is a dance educator and choreographer. She holds a Masters Degree in the Science of Education (University of Cyprus), a Bachelor of the Arts in Dance Education (University of Nicosia) and a Licentiate in Modern Theatre Dance (Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing).
She is the founder, and the primary teacher of Maria Kamberis Dance Studio, in Nicosia. The Studio is an area of practice and experimentation of the pedagogical thematic units and departments that are designed by her with the focus on dance education both as art and a technique.
Kamberis is the founder, artistic director; choreographer and producer of the professional dance research company Selas Dance Company. Selas Dance Company is a shareholder of the board of the Lefkosia Dance House. She is President of Governing Board of Lefkosia Dance House since 2020. Selas is also a member of Assijet Cyprus.
She has presented her dance productions at festivals such as Cyprus Choreography Platform, No Body Dance Festival and at Scientific Conferences such as CCRSM, while it has also taken part in European Programs such as ERASMUS + 4 For Silver Safety “Kendao” 2016 in Slovakia. The group's projects have been funded by the "Culture" Program and by the Youth Board of Cyprus. Through the Company, she creates and choreographs interactive Dance Theatres addressed to preschool and primary school children, approved by the Performance Committee of the Ministry of Education and Culture, such as “To Skaw” and “Magiki Avli”. Her works “Aneradwn Oniremata” and “Mes stous efta Planites” have been selected and presented in the Cultural Services Program “Politistiki Apokentrosi” (Cultural Decentralization Program) in 2020 and in 2021, respectively.
Her most recent production “Kokones” has been selected and sponsored by the “Terpsichore” Program (Cultural Services of the Ministry of Education and Culture have created this program in Cyprus, supports the creation and research in contemporary dance) in 2021. “Kokones” have been presented at ICOM-International Museum Day, at the Cyprus Museum. https://youtu.be/Arkc4LnouGw
Kamberis is also the coordinator and the creator of the first Dance Department at secondary education embodied in the morning curriculum of the school, at Forum Private School in Nicosia since 2019. The program received awards in 2020 at Cyprus Educational Leaders Awards in the category Educational Work, Arts and Culture, Dance in Education.
She's the creator of “Omou” festival, a themed, interactive festival in the countryside since 2016.
She created “En Fantasia” a Professional Learning and Development Programme offering experiential workshops for teachers on creative movement.
In 2015, she created the workshop “Valitsa” which includes creative activities through which children are connected with their roots, learning and exploring with elements, terminologies and rhythms inspired by Cypriot heritage. The workshop is approved by the Performance Committee of the Ministry of Education and Culture.
She delivers workshops and lectures regarding creative movement and she is a collaborator at Cyprus Pedagogical Institute since 2020.
Kamberis is an academic associate at the University of Nicosia in the department of Music and Dance and teaches the pedagogy modules.
She also cooperates with European University Cyprus and its Center of Excellence in Research & Innovation in Social Science, the Arts & Humanities SOCIEATH.
Kamberis creates actions, lectures, workshops with stimulus works of Art exhibited in the Museums and at A.G Leventis Gallery in Nicosia.
She is a collaborator with Youth Board of Cyprus.
Her academic and research interests focus in creativity, creative movement, the body, the embodied learning and Aesthetic Literacy.
Her choreographic interest focuses on the development of young audiences and ways of utilizing creative movement in order to understand contemporary dance by young audiences.
She is currently engaged in the writing and rendering of the fairy tale “Aneradwn Oniremata” as a research and artistic project, presenting versions of it in the Leventis Gallery and the “Politistiki Apokentrosi” (Cultural Decentralization Program) of the Cultural Services and in the editing of an Academic Book in collaboration with UNESCO.