ARTISTIC DIRECTOR, CHOREOGRAPHER AND DANCER ABAKUA AFRO-LATIN DANCE COMPANY.
Frankie Martinez is one of the most innovative Latin contemporary dancers of his generation. Leader of the Afro-Latin Funk Movement, he founded the ABAKUÁ Afro-Latin Dance Company in 2002. Frankie and ABAKUÁ have performed and taught in over 20 countries worldwide.

Billy Fajardo, with over 30 years experience, has won multiple world dance titles. He has worked with Gloria Gaynor, Tito Puente, Celia Cruz and Bob Hope. Film credits include Carlito’s Way, Cross Over Dreams, and the Summer of Sam. Along with Katie Marlow, he runs Dancesation! Studio and Entertainment and Miami’s International Hustle and Salsa Competition.

Ryoko Ohara started her salsa training in 1997 in Tokyo, and began her carrier as a professional salsa dancer in 2000 with her former dance partner Ryu, founding the well-known and wildly creative WASABI. As well, she started her own Dance Company ELEGGUA in 2007.

Alex Lee is a Firefighter, dancing salsa since 2003. Kim Nodora began dancing salsa professionally with Alex in 2005. They are known for lifts and tricks that focus on speed, elevation, timing, and danger.

Reyno Tommy Mulyono founded Salsa Fresca Indonesia, well known throughout Southeast Asia for its high energy professional dance performances. They are two-time, first-place finishers at the Asia Pacific Open Salsa Championship. Their aim is to increase awareness of Arts Education in Indonesia.

A choreographer and instructor for over a decade working across Asia, Varun is the Director of Club Salsa International and Organizer of ISKBF Chandigarh. Varun has choreographed over 800 events and worked with over 20,000 students in 18 years of working in the dance industry.

Diogo started dancing in 2003 in Portugal. He began with Ballroom and later moved to Salsa, Bachata, Kizomba and Semba. He started the Diogo Silva Dance Academy in 2014, has pioneered the Urban Kizz style in Portugal, and is the organizer of Prestige parties.

ESCOLA DE SAMBA DE MANILA – The first and only Samba School in the Philippines that has been teaching and performing Brazilian Samba around the country for 14 years.

This Ladies-Styling team is founded by Mariko Takahashi in 2013 afer she moved back from Los Angeles, U.S.A. They are specialized in Bachata, Reggaeton and Salsa Fusion. Since 2014, they have performed at Japan Congress 2014. They also represented Japan performing at Los Angeles Salsa Congress since 2015 as well as at World Bachata Festival in Malaysia since 2016. This will be their first time in Salsa Bangkok Fiesta!!

Ana is a dance teacher and choreographer with expertise in: Latin American Ballroom, Belly Dancing, Brazilian Samba, Salsa, Bachata and more. Professionally trained, Ana spent 7 years in the ballroom competitive dance circuit across Southeast Asia. She has choreographed for ABC 5’s Shall We Dance and is the Organizer of the Manila Dance Classic Championship, Boracay Latin Dance Festival, Manila Salsa Congress, and Dance Director of A. Dance Company.

Arun, a science graduate of the University of Edinburgh, started Salsa in September 2007 as a social dancer and is now an internationally recognised afro-latin dancer, instructor, trainer, choreographer and promoter in India. He started his own Salsa Madras in 2014. He won the all India and Asia championships in 2013, and 2014.

Megha Khatri is the current Runner-up of the Asian Open Championship for KIZOMBA (Professional) and SALSA Solo Pro Division (2019) and Winner of KIZOMBA Professional 2018 and Salsa Professional 2017. Referred to as the “Queen of Kizomba” in India, she gained a lot of popularity on social media platform through her unique solo style of Belly Dance isolations and flowing Kizomba body movement.

Gentlemen of Bailar Production. Choreographed by Stefano Iovane with a collaboration with the talented Australian dancer Rob Butter! Stefano has been dancing for over 10 years, moving through Cuban, On 1 and On 2 Salsa. He has been choreographing, teaching, and performing throughout Australia, Europe and Asia. Rob found his passion for salsa in Guatemala and has since trained at many festivals internationally, including spending some time training under world champion Oliver Pineda.

Since 2001, Saori has traveled the world learning and dancing. She co-founded a dance school in Japan, performed with a group in Bermuda and established Salsa scene in Luang Prabang. Saori moved to Bangkok in 2012 and continues to teach Salsa On2 and hosts Bachata On Mondays, a popular dance party. Saori and her Bachata partner, Alex, become the co-directors of the Bangkok Touch and the Ladies Touch Bangkok, which is part of the global Island Touch Dance Academy. Saori also created a Salsa Ladies Team, Las Chicas Salsalicious (pro team) and Las Hermanitas Salsalicious (student team)

Founded by Saori Watanabe from Japan, Las Hermanitas Salsalicious is a little sister group of Las Chicas Salsalicious which is a group of liked-minded ladies from Japan and Thailand who are crazy about Salsa! They have come together to not only entertain you with their fun and eclectic routines but to also promote and energize the social dancing scene in Bangkok Thailand. They often travel locally and abroad to attend dance festivals and satisfy their never-ending thirst for Salsa.

What started as an all-ladies team with a surprisingly impressive debut performance last June 2019 has turned into a bootcamp project by popular demand and now a student team — all unfolding in less than a year.
Jenny’s passion for salsa dancing and creating unique choreographies that are super charged with snappy moves along with strong body movement will finally be in full showcase at a larger scale. Just like the team name, El Movimiento, which translates to “the movement”, this team is trying to go against the norm and break barriers to pursue a common passion…salsa dancing.
With the help of technology, Jenny has been remotely directing the team of 6 dancers of varying backgrounds such as hip hop, bachata, dancehall and bellydance all the way from the US. Together with the help, cooperation and motivation of the members to learn, they have pushed the limits in preparation for this Salsa Bangkok Fiesta 2019 performance!

Lia is an Afro-Latin Dancer and Coach based in New York. In 2009, she joined the Abakuá Afro Latin Dance Company. Trained in vocal music, Lia developed her skills as a dancer through her experience and training with Frankie Martinez.

Ahtoy Juliana, one of Salsa’s most beautiful dancers, is the Artistic Co-Director of BAILA Society (BASo). She trained with the Houston and San Francisco Ballet Companies and was a top Latin Ballroom competitor. Ahtoy was a principal dancer and instructor of Santo Rico Dance company and has traveled the globe performing, teaching and judging international dance competitions.

Kaytee is the heart and soul of Salsa India and is a perfectionist, laying great emphasis on technique and also on attitude and interpretation of the music. He calls his unique style ‘Karma-Salsa’. Why? Because ‘Karma’ is Kaytee’s real name. Karma-Salsa as Kaytee likes to say, focuses on musicality, body movement and dancing through one’s body, mind and soul.

Back in 2000, Jonathan became well-known as a pioneer of Japanese NY On 2 Salsa / Mambo and an event promoter. Rhythm, trained in Ballet, Jazz, African Dance, Hip Hop and Disco Dance before coming to Salsa. They perform and teach in many Salsa festivals around the world.

Carlo Grasso & Veronica Rossi from Italy, started learning Kizomba in 2012 with some of the world’s best Kizomba teachers. Partners since 2017, they have been sharing their creative, lyrical performance style in various Congresses througout Italy and Europe.

Richard David Tholoor, a choreographer, instructor and performer, was the first Indian to qualify for the World Salsa Championship in 2007. He is the co-founder of The Richard David Tholoor Dance Project. A number of dances like Salsa, Hip Hop, Jive, and Rock and Roll are taught there. He has hosted a show on ‘Ted Talks,’ a well known online show for emerging talents.

Pedro started dancing Kizomba in Angola in 2004. He began with Kizomba, Semba and later moved to Urban Kiz. He started the “Kizomba na Linha” Dance Academy in 2014, he is the organizer of “Absolut Kizomba Events” parties in Lisbon since 2015 and one of the organizers of “Afrosunset” Parties & Trips since 2016.

Mariko Takahashi is a director of M Style. She also owns LOVE The Studio and is a dancer, teacher, choreographer and fitness instructor. She had a degree in Dance from U.S.A.. She taught classes, performed and choreographed Salsa and Latin Hip Hop for dance companies in L.A.. Mariko has over 20 years of experience and now owns “LOVE The Studio” for past 4 years. She creates 2 ladies styling teams performing in many Salsa festival around the globe.

Dr. Sangita is Founder and Artistic Director of Sangita’s Studio of Performing Arts. She was a Chief Minister awardee (Punjab) for service in the fields of Art and Culture. With a PHD in Indian Classical Music & Dance and an MBA in Finance, she revolutionized Indian-Western & Latin dance – most notably by introducing Salsa and Bellydance in 2005 and 2009, respectively.

Thu started Salsa and Bachata 10 years ago. She is self-taught and has become one of the major performers and teachers in Hanoi. She is the founder of S-FIRE Dance Studio which attracts a new generation of dancers in Vietnam with her 11-members ladies’ team.

Akshay, the 2012 Australia Salsa Open Amateur champion, is known for his crazy turn patterns and powerful footwork. Trained internationally by World Salsa Champions, he is also a judge in state and national level dance sport championships, a sponsored athlete of the Acrobatic Rock and Roll Federation and the subject of a “Match TV” documentary.

Joe started his dancing career as a pop lock dancer and later discovered his passion for Kizomba in 2011. A Latin dance DJ and winner of Best Kizomba Choreography at Malaysia ALIA 2015, he is currently teaching and sharing his knowledge of Kizomba, Urbankiz and Semba in the U.S. and Canada.

Amar Sohal n Aman Sohal is a sensational duo from India, popularly known as “Salsa Twins”. They started their dancing journey in 2008 as a hobby and now both of them have been teaching, dancing and performing for the last 6 years. Salsa Twins has been featured at many local and international festivals and they are also co-organizers of International Salsa, Bachata, kizomba Festival (ISKBF) in Chandigarh.

Alex has been dancing and teaching for over 10 years. Director of Bangkok Touch under the supervision of Ataca and Alemana since 2013, he has been traveling the world performing and teaching in dance festivals around the globe. His energetic and fun style is easily recognized and unforgettable. Alex is happy to share his passion and energy wherever he travel.

Ladies Touch BKK was formed in 2014. They are part of the Island Touch family (Jorge and Tanja (Ataca y La Alemana) and DJ El Tiguere), run by qualified local director, Saori Watanabe with over 18 years of experience in the international salsa scene. The team provides ladies who has passion for Bachata and eager to improve dancing skill with the professional standard of training, learn the high standard choreography with maximized performance opportunities around the world.

rumPUREE is Thailand’s premiere dance studio and international dance company. Founded by Apple who has years of teaching, choreographing and performing experience in world dance, rumPUREE always brings creativity yet maintains the authenticity to stage. rumPUREE has professional, semi-pro, and student teams and they have performed in numerous Latin Dance festivals.

Hugo Leite, one of the best latin rhythm DJs in Portugal, has been awarded the Best Salsa DJ (Portugal) on three occasions. A sound designer for dance performances and TV presentations, he also focuses on technical event production, and has created DJ Trainings to help people develop their passion.

Kaytee is the heart and soul of Salsa India and is a perfectionist, laying great emphasis on technique and also on attitude and interpretation of the music. He calls his unique style ‘Karma-Salsa’. Why? Because ‘Karma’ is Kaytee’s real name. Karma-Salsa as Kaytee likes to say, focuses on musicality, body movement and dancing through one’s body, mind and soul.

DJ Hegza, a world music DJ based in Lisbon, has played in several European capitals. He is also an Urban Kizz dancer and part of the AFROSUNSET team, travelling to the world’s best beaches to make people dance Kizomba in the sand.

Roberto Grasso is a one of most popular teachers in Liguria region, Italy. He teaches, performs and DJs (Roby El Gordo) in various venues and cities in Italy. He specializes in Salsa, Bachata, Kizomba and Surfing. His style is cool and fun. His line dancing is super charming. Roberto is a very good entertainer who can keep the party going endlessly.

John Vincent Ordonia (aka Johnny O.) is a photographer, musician, and DJ from Bangkok, Thailand. He began his Salsa journey in early 2010. He became deeply involved with the Bangkok Salsa community via his love of Salsa and Bachata. When not dancing, you can find Johnny behind the camera capturing beautiful moments at various weekly Salsa parties throughout the city. Johnny has been taking photos for the Salsa Bangkok Fiesta since 2014. In addition, he has recently begun his DJ training with Henry Knowles and has been involved with the Salsa scene through DJ-ing for the Bangkok Salsa Tuesdays and Salsabangkok parties, and is the resident DJ at Flamenco Bangkok on Saturdays.