Dr Maria Bougiesi will present a lecture as part of the Greek History and Culture Seminars, entitled Greek traditional dance, an alternative form of exercise and an inexhaustible source of well-being.

The seminar will be held online on the evening of Thursday 24 March, offered by the Greek Community of Melbourne.

Recent research into quality of life and health matters pertaining to dance has found that Greek traditional dance can be a great alternative form of exercise for preventing and improving a variety of parameters in older adults, like gait balance and cognitive function, as well as stress and emotional management in all ages.

Greek traditional dance is intricately linked with Greek culture and folk traditions, while for Greeks living abroad in the diaspora, it remains and important way of connecting with their heritage and engaging with cultural identity.

The lecture will delve deep into the relationship of mainly Greek traditional dance with quality of life and health issues as an inexhaustible source of well-being and cultural richness emanating from common people.

Maria Bougiesi. Photo: Supplied

Maria Bougiesi, who will present the lecture has graduated from the department of Physical Education and Sport Science of the University of Thessaly, Greece and her Masters was in ‘Sport Psychology’ at the same university, in conjunction with the University of Jyvaskyla, Finland and the University of Leuven, Belgium. She continued with her PhD in Greece and the University of Magdeburg, Germany where she worked in cognitive function improvement through dance and exercise in older adults.

Dr Bougiesi has since been utilising Greek traditional dance as a mean of quality of life and health promotion, while having collaborated with cardiologists she has organised exercise programs through dance focusing in cardiac function improvement.

Dr Bougiesi has been teaching Greek traditional dance in Greece and abroad during her studies and since 2020 has been teaching Greek traditional dance at the University of Thessaly. Her moto is “our life is a dance whose rhythm and melody is determined by us”.

When: Thursday 24 March, 7.00pm

Online Platforms: Facebook and Youtube

Language: Greek