The music turns on. She makes two consecutive step turns and poses elegantly with arms raised and fingers pointed, making eye contact with herself in the mirror. Then, she turns to her awaiting students and says, “2, 3, 4, 1,” clapping along to the beat of the music. Her students strike their first pose and continue their rumba routine as Ekaterina Sarkisian watches their arms and legs carefully.  

Ekaterina has been dancing ever since she was growing up in Russia. Rather than finding happiness at the park like her friends and siblings did, she spent all her childhood in her dancing shoes at the studio.

“I would never want to take off those shoes,” she recalled.

Now the only thing that has changed is her shoe size. Because the language of dance is universal, she is able to continue to spread her passion after moving to America. In her Latin dance shoes, she teaches at various dance studios in Bensonhurst. On Sundays, she is at Art Plaza Dance Studio, a much hidden treasure full of young, bright musicians and dancers, teaching hour-long classes from 11:00AM to 5:00PM to students ranging from as young as five-years-old to adults.

Although many of her students are Chinese-Americans, she still communicates the importance of every movement in each dance with her body language and broken English.

“Dance is not just feet. It is hands, hips, feet, everything,” she said as she used her whole body to reposition one of her student, Angela’s, pose as she was reviewing the rumba. Standing right behind her, Ekaterina stuck on of her foot on the inside of Angela’s, forcing her toes to point outwards while using her hands to support Angela’s back as she opened her shoulders to open widely and lean slightly back. She does this to every single student and reminds them to straighten their necks. Only when Ekaterina is satisfied with her all student’s poses does she continue to the next part.

“They all shy. Don’t shy, I say. I don’t bite,” she said, describing her students. “They’re good. They do ballet, piano, Latin, everything. Some of them even win competition.”

Ekaterina treats every student like her children who, which should go without saying, are also Latin dancers. They’re eight-and ten-years-old, but they are as enthusiastic about dance as their mom. Her smiles as she shows a video of them at a competition radiates just how proud she is of them. On the screen, her daughter is happily bouncing on her feet, making the samba come right to life with its traditional up-down, up-down bounce movement in every step.

Ten minutes before class ends, her students run through all the dances they have learned, which includes the cha-cha, samba, rumba, jive, and paso doble. Ekaterina watches each dance carefully.

“Samba needs more practice,” she concludes and makes a note to review that routine more the next week. Then it’s time for the students to take off their shoes and cool off with stretches, which seems to be harder than dancing to them. As their legs open to second position, Ekaterina goes to each individual student and pushes them until their chest is touching the floor. With some students, it comes easy, but with others, it comes with a price of forcing their minds to make their muscles relax. As her students struggle, she quietly compliments them, encouraging them to continue to push themselves further. Ekaterina’s words do not go to waste, as her students are able to spread their legs into splits with ease and grace.

And as each hour comes to an end, Ekaterina never forgets to bow to her students with a smile and a “Thank you, see you next Sunday!”