Haitianite.com is pleased to have been a guest of honor as Haiti’s most renowned Folkloric Dance Teacher, Mikerline Pierre, was being awarded the medal of Teaching Excellence.  On Saturday June 9, 2007, Mikerline Pierre was among four award recipients at the Djoniba Dance & Drum Centre.

Ms. Pierre studied under Haitian Dance giants, including Vivian Gauthier and Pierre Desrameaux.  She also studied at the Enarts Dance School of Haiti in Port-au-Prince.  She sang as a backup singer for the roots band Ram in Port-au-Prince then joined a Haitian folklore group headed by Gertrude Francois in Paris.  She also danced with Ayiti La and Anacarona.  She served as artistic director and choreographer for Troupe Makandal in Brooklyn, New York.

Located at 37 East 18^th Street in the heart of Manhattan, Djoniba Dance & Drum Centre is mainly a dance & drum school devoted to bringing to the general public the beauty and joy of all forms of ethnic dance and drum, as well as Western dance forms and martial arts. The Centre offers a series of classes such as African Dance, Afro-Haitian, Afro-Brazilian, Belly Dance, Drumming, Hip-Hop and others.  "I would like to thank God, all my friends and students and I also am indebted to my manager, Mr. Jean Elie for believing in me" said Ms. Pierre as she proudly accepts her well deserved, overdue Award of Excellence.    

 Mikerline Pierre was awarded such a prestigious award in recognition of her commitment and support of Djoniba Dance & Drum Centre, her excellence and discipline as master teacher and her leadership and innovation for the advancement of the dance and drum community as a whole.  Mikerline’s artistry and devotion to Haiti’s culture is an honor to millions of Haitians and other different ethnic groups. 

Haitianite.com wishes to congratulate Mikerline Pierre for her commitment to our culture.  What a performance it was!  As the night came to a close, Mikerline and her group closed the night performing what I would describe as the "Banda" dance which is also known as "Guedé" dance.  Congratulations Mikerline.

 Mikerline homepage

Mikerline picture gallery at Haitianite.com

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