Jayne (or Julyana as she’s also known) has been belly dancing in Central Massachusetts for the past 15 years. Her interest in tribal style dancing began in 2005 when she performed some simple Gypsy Caravan style moves for a performance with the troupe, The Velvet Moon Gypsies. From there, she began studying with Phoenix Avathar and performed with her troupe, Primal Redemption, which also did fusion and gothic styles. She also performed with troupe Ambika Badi'ah, which was a rich collaboration of Massachusetts dancers. However, as she dove deeper into the history of the dance, she decided to study the Fat Chance style, and began taking from Cécile. She’s very excited to be a part of OmBellyCo!

Instead of studying jazz/tap/ballet, her initial interest began in the theater/music/arts, which all influence her dance.

Her theater experience began 25 years ago, studying several aspects of theater including stage presence, writing short plays, behind the scenes, vocal direction, set construction and costume design. She was accepted into Up with People at 17, and has done voice-overs and local commercials. She has been a drama teacher and has directed several plays and musicals for young thespians. She has studied improvisation, comedy, and can cry on cue.

Jayne’s music passion includes vocal study, piano and flute at The Thayer Conservatory of Music. She has been a member of several singing groups including The Leonard Gaskins Chorale, as well as The Post Road Chorus and The Colonial Spirit Chorus; two Sweet Adelines International groups. She has found this knowledge to be extremely helpful in learning the accents and rhythms of dancing and she also recently studied the doumbek with David Curry.

In addition, she has also done more than 25 years of modeling. At 15, she went to the John Robert Powers School to learn posture, confidence and the proper way to accessorize an outfit. She began doing runway and has been a study for several local artists and photographers. Her modeling experience comes out in her expressions, body framing of moves and her obsession with good posture and strong arm positions.

When not dancing, Jayne is a professional videographer and local TV access coordinator. She has a brother with Autism and is very involved with human rights for people with disabilities.



Back to the Dancers page