Dahlia Stankovic, OPA-cize Greek Dance Fitness

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Resident of Altona Meadows

I am second generation Australian of Serbian and Greek descent. My grandparents arrived in Australia for work, and both my parents were born in Australia. I understand Greek more than I can speak it. I sometimes, quite unintentionally, listen to a Greek conversation and actually tell myself “Oh, I can understand that!” Unfortunately, I’ve not been able to pick up Serbian as much but I am trying! I find myself gradually learning both languages by listening to Greek and Serbian music.

I’m pursuing a Bachelor of Arts and Masters of Teaching and am currently in my third year in La Trobe University (Bundoora Campus). Luckily I don’t travel from Altona Meadows to Bundoora daily as for two nights a week, I stay with my maternal Grandma who lives close to the campus.

I have extended my studies from the normal four-and-a-half-year course duration as I am only doing three subjects for each semester. I find it easier to manage three subjects. My marks are better and I’m less stressed out with the workload especially since I also work and hold OPAcize® classes twice a week.

My family has lived in Altona Meadows since 2002, but my first home was in Kingsville, in a block of flats that still stands today. My paternal Grandma lives in this area and my family and I regularly have dinner together at her place a couple of times a week.

For the first four years of my life, I suffered from severe asthma and general health. The doctor advised my family to move away from Kingsville for fresher air. I used to get sick all the time as the air was so polluted. As soon as I moved to Altona Meadows and away from the pollution, I got better.

A massive highlight of my life happened just this year. I joined a traditional Serbian folk dancing group in October 2016 and the group was invited to perform at a large festival in the middle of Serbia. Our group – ten of us – performed two routines on this huge stage. It was crazy, the audience went wild as they did not expect the Australian group to be as good as what we were. Over in Serbia, people are really professional about folk dancing. It’s as intricate as ballet over there, and some people even folk-dance as a career.

The dancers are so incredible and precise, I was in absolute awe watching them and also felt immense pride for my Serbian background. I could hear people cheering, saying “Keep our traditions alive! Good on you! You are great!” I remember having an amazing time, telling the locals how much we loved being there and how important it was to us that they enjoyed our performances. That’s one of the best experiences I’ve ever had and it’s so surreal thinking about it.

Being immersed in both Serbian and Greek culture is incredibly important to me as I feel that it connects me to my family. My paternal grandfather passed away just over a year and a half ago, and he used to be amazing at traditional Serbian dances or ‘kolos’. He loved dancing at events and weddings and showing off his incredible skills, and I feel honoured to be pursuing something that he used to really enjoy. I have had family tell me that they feel he would be very proud of me, and it makes me feel really happy knowing that I’m continuing a pastime that he really loved.

My mum and I do OPAcize® two to three times a week together, and people sometimes mistake us for sisters because of how close we are. We have always had a great relationship. It’s more than a mother-daughter thing as we do everything together; she is my best friend. Mum is lively, but is also a strict and supportive parent, just like my dad. They have both kept my younger brother and me in line all these years, and I feel like I have a great relationship and support system with them. I feel very lucky to have parents like them.

I got into OPAcize® around April 2016. The program started in Sydney but is now huge in Melbourne. You can check out our website or even our Facebook or Instagram pages! The founder, Kathy Skettos, had this idea of creating a specifically Greek dance fitness program as there wasn’t anything out there like it. She thought “Why not build one?” and then it took off!

OPAcize® may play Greek music, but it’s a program that is diverse, inclusive and is suitable for everybody no matter fitness levels, ages, genders or ethnicities. We don’t just have Greek people in our classes; a lot of different people of various background are involved! We have Serbians, Filipinos, Macedonians, Italians and Australians enjoying these workouts, just to name a few different backgrounds of people who have attended my classes. I think people love it because it’s something different and exciting to communities that haven’t been exposed to this type of thing, I know that’s why I enjoy it!

I got into the program through my godbrother’s birthday. My mum started having a conversation with a lady who turned out to be an OPAcize® instructor. She later invited us to some along and give OPAcize® a go. From the first class, after the endorphins kicked in, I was obsessed! I had never enjoyed any exercise in my life until I tried this class. I’ve been to the gym about three times in my life and hated it, mainly because I didn’t know what I was doing and was embarrassed, and I had been for walks around the block but got tired of that too. The energy and the fun of OPAcize® made me feel like I was dancing, not working out and that made me feel a lot more comfortable exercising even in a room full of people.

I had no idea what OPAcize® was when I first attempted it, but straight away I was hooked. It’s crazy. In late 2014-early 2015, mainly due to the stresses of year 12 and my first year of uni, I put on about 20kg. I didn’t have a lot of time to go anywhere. In my free time, I would just eat, watch TV, and go back to studying.

After I started to attend OPAcize™ the weight began to come off. I have lost about 13kgs in the last year, but have also gained a lot of muscle. There’s a lot of muscle in my legs, purely from jumping around and having a great time in class!

I have been an OPAcize® instructor for just over a year now. People love to participate in classes as they feel they are in a community. Some of the traditional folk dances involve holding hands which can help people bond and make them feel like they’re a part of a team – you don’t really get to do that in other dance fitness classes. They grow and become friends. All my clients love it and are forming new friendships every class.

Classes on Tuesdays (Girl Guide Hall, Clare Street, Yarraville) and Thursdays ( Kindred Studios, Yarraville) generally have between 10-15 people. I love teaching regardless of the turnout as it’s great fun for me. I don’t want someone to come in and see a small group of people and then want to leave. It’s fun for me to teach, and so I want to ensure that the participants in the class have fun too, no matter how many people are there. I always try to make people feel comfortable.

When I started attending OPAcize® classes myself, I couldn’t do more than one song without being so puffed out I needed to sit down. I understand what it’s like to be in a position where you’re unsure of yourself and if you are capable as I was once in the same position. I don’t want to push anyone; it’s always got to be them being comfortable at their own pace and enjoying the classes on their own level.

A typical class consists of a warm-up, before getting into an aerobic, fast-paced, high cardio routine. There are a lot of arm and leg movements. You go fast after a few songs, before taking it down to relax. It’s like a wave. Towards the end of the class, you have about two-three folk dances. They are Kalamatiano (12 steps), Zorba (5 steps) and Zeimbekiko (which is called the ‘drunk dance’ as the movements are very slow).

Kalamatiano is eight steps forward, two forward and two back and you go in a circle. We try to mix it up but we try to keep it to older music as it’s more nostalgic for people who may have heard the song years ago. For many, it brings them back to their childhood.

Zeimbekiko is a slow, free style dance where you move how you want to move. We are definitely not drunk as we don’t drink during classes!

Zorba is super traditional. Everybody can do it. When people think of Greek music, they think of Zorba. It’s the one people dance to at Greek weddings where it gets faster and faster. You can use modern music too but it’s just not the same. It’s usually the first thing that pops into peoples heads when you said “Greek dance”.

There was a song that I have been playing recently in my classes which reminds me of my maternal Grandfather. The song is called ‘Aneva Sto Trapezi Mou’, which translates to ‘Get up and dance on the table’. It’s describing how everybody is watching this lady, who dances really well. My Grandfather used to sing this with me when I was a kid and this is one of the fondest memories of I have of him as he passed away when I was nine years old. It brings back a lot of memories when the song is played and I feel quite nostalgic but also quite happy that I have that memory.

Both my Tuesday and Thursday classes start at 7.30pm and end at 8.30pm. I change the music every week and mix together old and the new song and routines to keep things enjoyable. I like bringing up routines I have not done in awhile to keep classes interesting. My doors are always open to anybody wanting to try out this incredible program or even just come and see what it’s all about!

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