Our Story

It all started one afternoon at the BU dining hall where Ulrich and Angela were getting their usual lunch. Angela was going to a salsa workshop and Ulrich, a dancer eager to learn tagged along. Without knowing that day they decided to make a commitment to do something they loved and would change their lives. They quickly joined the salsa performance team at Rumba y Timbal Dance Company and worked day and night on technique. About a year into the company they noticed that they were losing their love and connection to dance during long rehearsals and constant critiques. Where was the purpose and intention behind the dance and movement? They did not feel whole as dancers or human beings. After years of dealing with this issue Ulrich and Angela decided to do something about this emptiness and unhealthy relationship with dance.
Fawakaa was born.

Fawakaa‘s purpose is to bridge the gap between dance and soul, dance and music, dance and voice, dance and food and dance and being. Fawakaa will create whole dancers and beings connected to movement, yet still aware of the technique and precision of dance. Fawakaa is a place where all can come to learn to dance and more importantly to live. Fawakaa is a state of mind and a way to share all of our stories and journeys with dance and beyond.
Angela and Ulrich discovered themselves through dance and they want everyone to have this opportunity.
Are you ready to discover your Fawakaa?
Defintion: FA*WA*KAA

Fawakaa is a place where you can come and say hello to new people, new ideas, new opportunities, and new ways of expressing yourself. The word comes from Suriname slang and means “Hello.”
This single word captures what we are about.

We believe that in order to grow we have to be willing to say hello to new things, be willing to be at peace in ourselves and learn to just “be”.

Bruce Lee tells the story of his martial arts students in his book Artful Living. He mentions that his students do not come to him to learn martial arts but that they come to him to learn how to express their bodies. Our intention is to help teach you to use dance as a form of expression that will bring joy to your life and to the lives of people you meet.

If you break down the word Fa*Wa*Ka down to its core it means:
“How are you walking?”
“How are you?”
“How do you walk?”

In any context the essence is about asking the question people have been pondering for thousands of years-Who am I? Why am I here? What am I here to do?