The flagship program

Dance Your Ancestors, get your birthright

A 4-month online journey of dance, ritual and research — culminating in a dance intensive in Peru, in community with the artists who keep these traditions alive. This goes far deeper than a dance class. This is legacy.

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Watch the invitation

Hear it from us

One program, four perspectives

Three dancers moving together in a studio, from the Dance Your Ancestors invitation film

The invitation

Cynthia on why this work exists, and who it’s for.

Cynthia Paniagua dancing in a blue skirt on an open shoreline in Peru

Teaching artists

A keeper of the tradition, in their own words.

A dancer mid-movement with arms raised during a Dance Your Ancestors session

The dancers

Past participants on what the journey gave them.

Family legacy

A family in Lima on what the program has meant to them.

Get your birthright

The wisdom is already in your body — an intelligence passed down through the elders. Dance, and it will come.

This is a way home — to la madre tierra, to our roots, to ourselves. Over more than twenty years of dancing, living and researching in Peru, I’ve come to understand these dances as medicine. Dance Your Ancestors is how I share that path with you.

Who Dance Your Ancestors is for

THIS IS FOR YOU IF

✓

You feel a pull toward your roots — and want to move through it in your body, not just read about it.

✓

You’re ready to commit to four months of practice and research, in community.

✓

You want to enter a living tradition with authenticity and experienced culture bearers.

✓

You want something that goes far deeper than a dance class. This is legacy.

✓

You are looking for ways to give back to the communities that you learn from.

✓

You want to learn the history and significance of each dance.

THIS ISN’T FOR YOU IF

You’re looking for a beach vacation with a dance class attached.

You're not willing to put in the time required for dance training.

You're not willing to do the research and reading — the history is an important element of the dances.

You're looking for choreography only, without the technique training underneath it.

You’re not open to the cultural and ancestral depth of the work.

The rounds

Rooted in Festejo & Tondero

Each round centers one of the traditions I carry — most often Afro-Peruvian Festejo or Tondero — going deep into its history, rhythm and dance.

Enrolling now · Round 7

Afro-Peruvian & Afro-Andean

The current round centers Afro-Peruvian and Afro-Andean dance, with an emphasis on Festejo rhythms. Four months online, then a dance intensive in Lima and El Carmen.

Enrollment ends October 26, 2026

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Past rounds

Six rounds completed since 2022

Round

Afro-Peruvian & Afro-Andean

Afro-Peruvian: Festejo

Afro-Peruvian: Festejo

Afro-Peruvian: Festejo

Afro-Peruvian: Festejo

Completed

2022

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Two ways to join

THE FULL JOURNEY

Online + immersion in Peru

Four months of online training and research with your cohort, culminating in the in-person dance immersion in Lima and El Carmen — the complete Dance Your Ancestors path.

VIRTUAL ONLY

Join from anywhere

Can’t travel to Peru? The virtual path gives you the full cohort, the teaching and the research online — and performance-ready skills, without the travel.

How it works

Four months online, ending in an immersion in Peru

4 months online

Weekly dance training, historical research and community connection with your cohort — building the foundation before you travel.

The immersion in Peru

An in-person dance immersion in Lima and El Carmen with lead cultural ambassadors and artists of the genre, visiting historical sites and dancing where these traditions live.

Integration — carry it home

Give back to the local community in right relationship, then return to the diaspora and integrate the dances into your own life and lineage.

In community

Taught alongside the artists of each pueblo

This is not my culture to teach alone. Every round is led alongside teaching artists in Lima and in El Carmen, Chincha — and, for the alumni round, in Piura — keepers of these dances, paid and centered as the authorities they are.

Lima

THE CAPITAL · ~4 TEACHING ARTISTS

Gian Franco Rafi

Cajón · Rounds 3, 5 & 6

Eder Campos

Afro-Peruvian dance · six rounds

Graciela Bramón

La Valentina

Sara Calmet

Teaching artist

El Carmen, Chincha

WITH THE BALLUMBROSIO FAMILY · 4 TEACHING ARTISTS

María Ballumbrosio

Teaching artist

Lucía Ballumbrosio

Ritual, La Yunza & vestuario

Miguel Ballumbrosio

Carnaval de El Carmen

Alma Ballumbrosio

Teaching artist

Piura

DYA ALUMNI ROUND · TONDERO · 4 TEACHING ARTISTS

Cecilia Fernández

Tondero

Gaby Meneses

Tondero

Luis Seminario Fernández

Cajón piurano

Maritza García Rey

Tondero

Ayni · sacred reciprocity

“Ayni” — giving back, retribution & right relationship.

Giving back to the communities we learn from is at the heart of this program. Without years of trust and right relationship, Dance Your Ancestors would not be possible. We honor our teachers, the land, the community and the ancestors by giving back in ways that create lasting, positive impact. Here’s how, so far:

✦

A portion of every tuition goes directly toward building and supporting El Centro Cultural Amador Ballumbrosio, and local arts, education and health initiatives.

✦

Students are invited to offer their own skills back to the community — free educational workshops, environmental clean-ups, and more — long after the program ends.

✦

We stay in relationship: actively staying in touch and listening for how we can keep supporting the communities we learn from.

This work is done with the communities of origin, never extracted from them — part of what you invest goes home to them.

From past cohorts

“

No words to describe what I feel about this experience. Thank you for this life-changing experience — and yet, this is only the beginning.

Silvana D.

Round 6

You gave me Tondero — a gift I didn’t know I was aching for. It unlocked a love I didn’t know lived in me: one that heals, that roots, that frees.

Ruby

Round 4 · Tondero

It was an honor to be invited to perform during La Yunza de la familia Ballumbrosio. A song was born that day too. My heart could not be more grateful.

Cindy R.

Round 3

Program questions

Do I have to be Peruvian to join?

–

No. A diasporic connection deepens the experience, but dancers from outside the culture are welcomed — with the understanding that you are entering a living tradition, not leading it.

Is this only for women?

Historically the work has centered women and femme-presenting dancers, but Dance Your Ancestors is now open to anyone ready to do the work in community.

What does the program actually include?

Four months of live online dance classes and folkloric-dance history, 1:1 coaching, and all research materials — then a 10–12 day immersion in Peru with 15–25 classes from teaching artists in Lima and El Carmen. In Peru, accommodations, in-country travel and airport transfers, excursions and entry fees, most meals, and a tailored Festejo vestuario are included, along with a donation to El Centro Cultural Amador Ballumbrosio. Airfare is not included.

How long is the commitment?

Four months of guided online practice and research, culminating in the Peru immersion. It asks for consistent weekly practice — this is a path, not a weekend workshop.

Can I do it if I can’t travel to Peru?

Yes — a virtual path gives you the full cohort, the teaching and research, and performance-ready skills, without the travel.

How much does it cost?

We share investment during your consultation, so we can match a path and payment plan to your situation. Reach out and we’ll talk it through.

What is the reciprocity commitment?

A portion of every tuition goes toward building and supporting El Centro Cultural Amador Ballumbrosio and local arts, education and health initiatives. This work is done with the communities of origin, and part of what you invest goes home to them.

When you’re ready, we’ll talk it through together.

Book a Consultation