Barbara Mintz

🪔 About

Barbara Mintz is an accomplished dancer, teacher, and choreographer with a diverse background in various dance forms, including the Indian classical dance style of Odissi. Her foundational training began at an early age with Western classical dance forms such as ballet and modern dance. She pursued higher education in New York, attending Adelphi University, The Juilliard School, and Empire State College (SUNY), where she earned a B.S. in Dance Therapy. Her extensive studies also encompassed improvisation, African dance, yoga, Sacred belly dance, and martial arts (Pencak Silat). Mintz's artistic journey led her to Bali, Indonesia, where she resided for ten years. During this period, she deeply engaged with Balinese culture and dance, teaching and performing internationally. It was in Bali that she developed a unique "Holistic dance technique," also known as "Shakti Dance," which integrates her diverse studies to foster awareness, healing, and the joy of movement. Her introduction to Odissi dance occurred in the U.S. and later in Bali, inspiring her to travel to India to deepen her understanding. She undertook intensive studies in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, at The Orissa Dance Academy under the tutelage of esteemed gurus such as Guru Gangadhar Pradhan, Yudistir Nayak, and other members of the academy. She returned to India for further study and continues her training with Sri Manoranjan Pradhan, a leading dancer and teacher from Odisha. She has also studied with Nandita Behera. Beyond her classical Indian and Balinese dance pursuits, Barbara Mintz has also been studying Argentinian Tango since 1998, including at Estudio DNI in Buenos Aires from 2008 to 2010. She has shared her knowledge and passion for dance through teaching, offering classes in Shakti Dance, Balinese Dance, Odissi, and Tango in Bali between 2006 and 2010, and Balinese Dance and Odissi in Buenos Aires from 2008 to 2010.