Bio content provided by individual
Teacher Bio
Kumari Suraj, coined as the "The Queen of Whacking Nuevo" by the dance media, is also the Queen of many historical firsts. The first whacking choreography videos on youtube, influencing everyone in the industry the world over.
...Read moreKumari Suraj, coined as the "The Queen of Whacking Nuevo" by the dance media, is also the Queen of many historical firsts. The first whacking choreography videos on youtube, influencing everyone in the industry the world over.
If there is a Whack in a routine, guaranteed it's impact can be traced back to Kumari, one way or another. She is the first whacking choreographer to explicitly introduce the dance style to mass media by creating dance content for the FOX reality hit TV show So You Think You Can Dance.
Kumari is the founder and CEO of the LA's International Waack/Punk/Pose Festival (Waackfest), which is the first and only festival in the world solely devoted to the cultural education and preservation of Whacking, Punking, and Vogue. She is considered as the “go-to” expert for this underground dance from the 70's, serving as an international ambassador of its history, culture and technique.
Read lessClass Descriptions
Created by Kumari Suraj in 2009. The BollyWhack dance style fuses Bollywood Dance, Bhangra, Khattak,Bharatanatyam, all traditional movement from Kumari's Indian roots, with the 70's Disco styles of Punking & Whacking. This cross cultural connection is a seamless union of powerful arms, elegant hand gestures, exotic poses and dramatic story telling facial expressions.
Kumari Suraj's unique choreography tells the story of her experience as a multiracial human being influenced by dance cultures of the 1970s-1990s. Her body of work is the melting pot of her creativity. Be it traditional Whacking & Punking meet street jazz. Or her world renowned Frankie Douglas style mixing Dancehall, 90s Hiphop, House and African styles with Whacking. As one of the first vlogers to upload Waacking/Whacking choreography videos to youtube in 2006/2007, Kumari has spent the last 9 years crafting her signature style of movement.