Casa de Naz
2023 Showcase Biographies
Learn more about the 2023 Dance Showcase participants!
@spinalrhythmjazz @2295arp @hernameisnaz @casadenazofficial
Get your tickets for the November 25, 2023 show here!
Sabrina Naz Comănescu(Choreographer) : As a Canadian based dancer, Sabrina Naz Comănescu is truly a dynamic member of Canada’s artistic landscape. She has helped cultivate the Calgary dance scene for over a decade as a performer, choreographer, filmmaker, dance instructor, Caribbean festival coordinator and volunteer, yet her curatorial outreach spans worldwide.
She has traveled throughout Canada, United States, Trinidad, Finland, Romania and Mexico to teach and gather dance knowledge to share with the city of Calgary.
As an alumni of Central Memorial’s Performing Arts Program and the school of Decidedly Jazz’s Professional training program, Sabrina grew up in Calgary, Alberta as a first generation Canadian of Trinidadian and Romanian heritage.
As a performer, Sabrina has worked with Machel Montano, House of Dangerkat, The Bad Girls Club YYC, Headly and has opened for international acts such as Pop Caan, Sean Paul and Kes The Band. She is also the current major force behind The Diversity Performing Arts Club of Calgary that “celebrates cultural diversity while promoting inclusion and respect for all youth”.
Sabrina loves to explore the nature of Jazz and Caribbean movement and music as well as various funk styles. Through a fusionist lens, Sabrina's work manifests in dance, fashion, photography and film. Sabrina has found herself behind the camera, directing videos for Kaeyae Alo (“Only We Know”), Tourism Calgary (“#LoveYYC”), Casa De Naz (“Bonum”), Ready on 8, Alberta Culture Days and more.
Her tastefulness has bled into her fashion where in June 2014 Avenue magazine featured her as one of the faces that “brings her own unique style and flair to Calgary’s dance community”. Sabrina is a 2015 Black Gold Award recipient for best dance act and the Alberta Foundation of the Arts Young Artist Prize winner in 2017.
She is currently in her 9th season performing full time with the Decidedly Jazz Danceworks Company!
Chenise Mitchell: Chenise Mitchell is a Jazzer; an all around performing artist driven by rhythm and social connection. With a BFA in theatre and 17 years of professional experience, Chenise has toured across North America, appeared in commercials (Hasbro, Rogers, MMVAs), and performed in festivals (Fringe, Ignite!, Provocation, Particle and Wave, Fluid Fest, MADbeatz, Calgary International Children’s Festival and more), concerts (WE Day, Fenulla Jiwani), music videos (Witch Prophet and others), musicals (Nunsense), plays (Streetcar Named Desire, inVISIBLE and others) and has created with: Dance Matters, Toronto History Museums, Nuit Blanche, SummerWorks, Toy Guns Dance Theatre, EveryBODY On Stage, Downtown Disney, Wildseed Centre for Activism and Art and many more. Chenise believes that Jazz ignites a connection to the rhythm of life like no other. Chenise feels belonging with Jazz because it is healing, it is social, it is connection, it is community. Chenise is passionate about emphasizing the revolutionary nature and Black origins of Jazz and this rhythm and connection is infused in her education, creation and performances.
Nyasha Nyamaka: Born and raised in Zimbabwe, Nyasha Nyamaka discovered her passion for dance while immersing herself in a street dance crew in 2009. Initially focused on hip-hop and funk styles, Nyasha later fell in love with KRUMP upon moving to Calgary in 2012. With Calgary-based KRUMP collective, Empirical Freedom, she performed & trained locally, traveled to Montreal and Germany to expand her training and compete in tournaments and participated in the collective’s local event, FIFTY HYPE. Nyasha began nurturing her love for African dance when she became a company dancer for Woezo Africa Music & Dance Theatre in 2016. Through her diverse experiences with African vernacular dance and Black originated dance expressions, Nyasha hopes to be a part of the global movement that connects dance movement cultures both on the African continent and in the diaspora.