Dervish in Progress

Ziya Azazi

was born in Turkey, graduated there as a mining engineer, and is currently based in Vienna. His training includes gymnastics, ballet, performing arts, and contemporary dance. At the beginning of his dance career, he collaborated with various local and international artists (e.g. Ismael Ivo, Yoshi Oida, Marcia Haydée, Sebastian Prantl, and Parastou Forouhar. In 1999, Ballet International Magazine recognized him as “The Most Outstanding Dancer of the Year in Austria”. In the same year, he also began self-studying Sufi dances and has since choreographed many interpretations (around 500 performances worldwide, 150 workshops with roughly 3,000 participants, 10 creations, and 20 collaborations in around 50 countries). Ziya lectured in academic and non-academic settings (e.g., Goldsmiths University London, Culture University Istanbul, University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna, TEDx Talks, IKU/Istanbul).