ADRIANNA YANUZIELLO
ADRIANNA
YANUZIELLO
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ABOUT ADRIANNA
CULTURAL ALCHEMIST
& BRIDGE BUILDER
Adrianna Yanuziello is a Canadian-born multifaceted artist, educator, and the founder and CEO of Dance Migration, based in Toronto. For over 20 years, she has devoted her life’s work to the preservation, education, and performance of Brazilian arts and culture, establishing herself as a true pioneer of samba and Brazilian dance in Canada.
As a visionary cultural bridge-builder, Adrianna has developed one of Canada’s first and most vibrant Brazilian dance communities. She is the creator behind the Canada Samba Congress and the Toronto Samba Encontro—two groundbreaking events that have brought together over 14 international master artists to share the richness of Brazilian dance, music, and culture with Canadian audiences. Her early international performance experience began at age 17, when she toured Europe as a performer in FAME the Musical, setting the stage for a career that would span continents.
After graduating from Toronto Metropolitan University’s dance program in 2006, Adrianna was invited to study in Salvador, Bahia under Master Rosangela Silvestre, creator of the Silvestre Technique. This pivotal moment launched more than 15 years of immersive research into Brazilian dance, music, and spirituality. Through her deep cultural connections, she has built enduring ties between Brazil and Canada, earning recognition in Brazil as a key international reference for Brazilian dance and samba.
Adrianna’s impact extends globally—she has taught and performed across Brazil, the U.S., the U.K., Sweden, Switzerland, Israel, Taiwan, and throughout Canada. She has created and toured full-length productions in Toronto, the Netherlands, Ecuador, and the United States, cultivating an international community of students and collaborators through Dance Migration. Her programs provide transformative opportunities for students to immerse themselves in Brazilian culture through intensive training and curated experiences with master teachers.
Most recently, Adrianna curated a multidisciplinary show for the Toronto Jazz Festival featuring world-renowned musician Chief Adjuah (formerly Christian Scott) alongside master artists from Brazil, exemplifying her ability to create groundbreaking artistic collaborations that honor tradition while pushing creative boundaries.
WORK HAS BEEN FEATURED…
KEY ARTISTIC COLLABORATIONS
CONNECTING ARTISTS WITH ARTISTS
Through Adrianna’s “The Bridge” programs, she connects artists across cultures to co-create bold, boundary-breaking work rooted in tradition and artistic exchange.
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Ongoing partnership with this respected Brazilian artist, contributing to authentic cultural exchange and artistic development.
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Wisdom of Orixa (Toronto Jazz Festival)
Co-directed and curated this significant performance with Chief Adjuah, showcasing a powerful fusion of jazz and Afro-Brazilian spiritual traditions for one of Canada’s premier music festivals.
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Creative collaboration enhancing the contemporary expression of traditional Brazilian art forms.
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Mestre King (in memoriam)
Important collaborative relationship with this master artist whose influence continues to shape current work and artistic vision.
Rosangela Silvestre
Active creative collaboration bringing depth and authenticity to Brazilian cultural elements in performances.
Carlinhos Salgueiro
Artistic partnership contributing to the rich tapestry of Brazilian musical traditions in theatrical works.
I was born from dance… literally
WHERE MY STORY BEGINS
My parents met at my grandmother’s dance school in Toronto, where my mother studied classical ballet, traditional Mexican folk dances, and flamenco that my grandmother brought back from her own journey of cultural discovery. A pioneering dance educator and entrepreneur, my grandmother had traveled to Mexico searching for her roots after being adopted, finding in its traditions a place where she could come home to herself. She instilled in me the fundamental importance of honoring and respecting culture, values that would later guide my own transformative journey. With my father as a musician, drummer, and writer, the arts flowed through every corner of my childhood, shaping who I would become.
My formal dance training began at age three with classical ballet, jazz, tap, musical theater, and modern dance, leading to my dance degree from Toronto Metropolitan University. In 2007, I moved to Brazil, where everything changed. Through the Silvestre technique—a contemporary dance form integrating sacred geometry and elements of nature—I discovered how movement could align body, mind, and spirit. This experience opened the door to my deepening practice and my immersion into Brazilian culture and Afro-Brazilian traditions. Over the next 20 years, I studied with master teachers, learning not only Samba but the full spectrum of Brazilian dance forms rooted in African sacred practices.
Brazil became my teacher in profound ways, showing me how to honor the body, connect to my emotional self, build sacred relationships, and respect our elders and history. I learned that without knowing and respecting our past, we cannot authentically step into our future.
This understanding became the foundation for Dance Migration, which I founded in 2007, creating bridges between Brazil and Canada. Today, I believe dance is a sacred tool that connects us to ourselves, helps us evolve as human beings, and brings more beauty to our world. Through my diverse programs—from the Foundation and the Expansion classes to transformative retreats and collaborative artistic experiences—I guide people to connect more deeply with themselves, clear what holds them back, and align with their true essence. Whether in my teaching, productions, or curated collaborations, every experience is rooted in the understanding that dance is not just movement, but a pathway to living a more fulfilled and conscious life.
“Dance is the hidden language of the soul”
Martha Graham
Wisdom of Orixa (Toronto Jazz Festival)
MY ARTISTIC WORKS
Adrianna’s impact extends globally, she has taught and performed across Brazil, the U.S., the U.K., Sweden, Switzerland, Israel, Taiwan, and throughout Canada. She has created and toured full-length productions in Toronto, the Netherlands, Ecuador, and the United States, cultivating an international community of students and collaborators through Dance Migration.
DANCE MIGRATION
Adrianna has been the founder and artistic director for Samba and Contemporary dance company, Dance Migration for 18+ years. You can learn more about Dance Migration here.