Marina Orlova – Russia/Orlando

Born in the heart of Saint Petersburg, Russia, Marina comes from a family of musicians and artists, and where the arts are essential and prized. She fell in love with dance from the very first lesson she went to as a little girl, which was folkloric Russian dancing.

Upon her arrival in the states, she began her studies in ballet with the School of Classical Ballet (Vaganova Method) in Aventura, Florida with Vladimir Issaev in 2003. She received professional ballet training from not only Issaev, but numerous other principal dancers and prima ballerinas from Miami City Ballet and from all across Russia and Europe. Once she gained a solid foundation in ballet, she branched out into Jazz and Modern, training and performing with contemporary dance companies Fusion and Vibe. She was introduced to the Latin dance scene in college and has since then focused a great deal of her attention in the latin dance world.

Some large productions Marina has performed in as a soloist include: The Sleeping Beauty, Diamonds, The Nutcracker, Chipolino, and various Spring Galas. She has also taught and performed at the Orlando Salsa Congress and the Miami Salsa Congress and participated in The Unity of Dance Festival.

Marina is currently teaching in Orlando and co-directing the Sensual Bachata teams with her partner Christian Sola, the creator of the Sensual Bachata style here in the States. They travel and teach at numerous different events to share their fervent passion for dance.