Taylor native Lesya Popil has enjoyed an award-winning education and career in dance that started in Northeast Pennsylvania and brought her all over the world. Now, she’s using her eclectic knowledge derived from collaborating with dance artists across the globe to help a church in her hometown area.
On Saturday, Oct. 12, Popil will lead two sessions of her Movement Exploration Seminar at St. Michael’s Ukrainian Orthodox Church, 540 N. Main St., Scranton. (Street parking is available, and guests should use the side entrance.) The first session is geared toward students ages 11 to 15 and will be from 10 a.m. to noon, while the second session is for teens 15 to 18 and will go from 12:30 to 2:30 p.m. Dancers should bring footware they can move comfortably in, as each workshop will explore combinations of various dance techniques and styles, repertory and improvisation, plus conversation.
There is a $40 suggested donation for each session, with all proceeds going to the church. To sign up or register, visit the fundraiser’s Facebook page or email lesya.popil76@gmail.com.
Popil studied in the Scranton area with noted dance instructors including Dianne Haduck, Constance Reynolds, Joanne Arduino and Tydvil Leoncini. She graduated from University of Scranton, where she earned the Outstanding Modern Dancer award, and went on to get her master’s degree in fine arts from the University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. Popil has performed and taught dance throughout the Unites States as well as in Europe and Asia.
Patrice Wilding is a 13-year employee of the Lifestyles Dept. at The Times-Tribune, where she worked her way up from a clerk to a web video producer to a full-time reporter, writer and copy editor. An Olyphant native, she graduated from Mid Valley Secondary Center and earned a bachelor’s degree in liberal studies with concentration in media arts, political science and communications from Wesley College, Dover, Delaware. She lives in Clarks Summit with her husband, Justin, and their son, Johnny. Contact: pwilding@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9100 x5369; @pwildingTT
