Dance
KSENIA PARKHATSKAYA is one of the most interesting and versatile contemporary artists in the field of jazz and swing dance. Best known for her sensational Charleston dance style she has garnered over 150 million views online. Ksenia has toured the world since 2010, teaching and performing her original work in over 35 countries around the globe.
Trained in competitive ballroom dance since the age of 6, and modern jazz and theatre since 2006, currently her specialization is solo jazz dance styles from west african dances to ragtime, charleston, swing and bebop as well as exploring new ways of dancing to contemporary jazz music.
Ksenia regularly performs with live ensembles and orchestras, to name a few, Christian McBride Trio (US), Postmodern Jukebox (US), Barcelona Jazz Orchestra (Sp), Paul Dunlea Big Band (Irl), etc. Being a versatile soloist Ksenia is also much in demand at classical dance and music festivals. She has performed original choreographies to jazz arrangements of classical pieces and vica versa with the Paris Opera Orchestra at “Un Violon Sur Le Sable” and “Symphonie sur l’Herbe (Fr), danced in the full length opera piece at O/Modernt (Swe) and performed for Aspen Santa Fe Ballet company (US).
Currently, Ksenia is living in Barcelona where she runs two dance companies CIA Khalo (co – created with Ainoa Pons) and BCN Jazz Dancers as well as her educational dance project “K Jazz Formation”.
CIA KHALO is a female troupe, where Ksenia as a choreographer has a platform to explore femininity in it’s depth and diversity. Her style influences female dancers to be impressive and powerful yet elegant and feminine.
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KSENIA & BCN JAZZ DANCERS is a international dance troupe creating pieces to big band contemporary jazz arrangements, exploring new ways of jazz movement as well as creating stories through jazz dance and film.
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K JAZZ FORMATION is a seasonal swing & jazz solo dance workshop where Ksenia teaches swing dancers how to find their own unique voice and personality allowing them to dance with more creativity and musicality through improvisation, acting and movement techniques.
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Music
ALONG WITH DANCING, KSENIA IS A JAZZ VOCALIST Together with her husband, bass player and composer David Duffy, she leads her ensemble – K Quartet (Formerly Swing’n’joy). Playing a selection of classic tunes from the American songbook along with the original compositions, the core idea of the band is to combine jazz dance and music together on stage, showing the audience how inseparable one is from the other. Throughout the performance Ksenia sings, scats and improvises in a range of dance styles that can portray the music best. The band has has performed all over the globe from at Guinness Cork Jazz Festival in Ireland, La Jam Festival in France and Happy Stomp in Spain.
Film & Theatre
KSENIA WAS A LEADING ACTRESS in St -Petersburg musical theatre “Uventa” from 2005 – 2009. It is there she studied drama and theatre, K. Stanislavskii system and fundamentals of M. Chekov acting technique under the direction of V.I.Nikolaev.
In 2017 Ksenia starred in a short film production “Paris You Got me” (director Julie Boehm). The movie is winning nominations all over the globe, to name a few “Best Dance Film”, “Best Film Director” at PAMA, “Best International Short Film” at FICVI, “Best short film” at Cuenca Short Film Festival FICCión-20‘, “Best cinematography” at BokehFFF18, “Best Short film of the year 2019” at Promofest, etc. Ksenia was nominated “Best Actress” at BokehFFF18.
Images: Paris You Got Me – all rights reserved
→ parisyougotme.com
RADIO HERMITAGE
In 2016 Ksenia and David Duffy brought to light their first full length production – “Radio Hermitage”, a one woman theatre show with live jazz quintet. The culmination of 6 years research, the show intertwines a history of jazz dance with the personal story of a Russian girl escaping a tragic moment in her life through a radio station.
→ radiohermitage.com
