Dance is both my job and my passion. I have three main areas among which I split my time:
1. I am the founder and current head of Mondance dance agency.
2. I am the lead person of the LED&UV light dance show concepts Tron Girls and Tron Man
3. I teach Vogue, a dance style which I have brought to Slovakia, where I am currently working on building a local Ballroom community.
If you are interested in a more detailed story of my activities put onto a timeline, you can find that below. Sometimes they cross each other and sometimes, they simply coexist. 🙂
I discovered dance when I was in elementary school, in an after-school club for children . For five years, it was just me and my friend dancing in an apartment building hallway.. In 2006, I took matters into my own hands and tried out for Street Dance Academy, a studio lead by Laci Strike. There, my love for dance and its culture deepened. I learnt Hip Hop and Street Dance. Laci gave me the opportunity to taste the life of a professional dancer and he saw teaching qualities in me. Thanks to him, I began teaching and also performing with popular singers, such as Dara Rolins, Helenka Vondráčková and Michal David. I also appeared in TV shows, for example Superstar (an X-Factor franchise). That was when I realized that the stage is a place which fills me with euphoria and completes me. I began dancing in high heels and discovered my own womanhood and the feminine side of my personality. That got me to wonder where these styles, often called „women’s” came from. I found Waacking and later, Vogue. And when I started to fully get into these two more seriously, I parted with Street Dance Academy and began my solo career.
Vogue turned out to be my destiny. I wanted, and I still want to teach it to others and to spread it across. That’s why I teach lessons and why I organize so-called Vogue balls. I put down the foundations of a ballroom scene in Slovakia and Czechia and I am the founder of the first Czecho-Slovakian house, the Kiki House of Velvet. I’ve held annual balls in Bratislava ever since 2016. You may recognize them under the name „Ball of Shame.“ I have personally loved the ball atmosphere ever since I first walked in and now I travel all around the world to attend and take part in the competition which comes along with a ball. During the span of my career, I have won quite a few prizes, but my most valued wins are those from Paris, Berlin, New York and Taipei. I was also invited to TEDxBratislavaWomen. to speak about ballroom and how Vogue changed my life.
Now let me give you a little teaser: We’ve been filming a documentary about the local Ballroom scene since 2018. It’s going to be a full-length movie. In the meantime, we also shot a short film about our own House of Velvet and the need for ballroom in Slovakia and Czechia. You’ll be able to see that soon at film festivals.
After graduating, I merged my two talents, organization and dance, by founding the mondance dance agency. That was in 2015. The main focus of mine is to bring up professional dancers and to search for shows and productions they could perform in. I am a choreographer, but I also create projects as well as costumes. I communicate with my clients about their events too. My goal is to create a platform for dancers so they can dance full-time – while staying in Slovakia. Another goal of mine is to bring unique, unforgettable experiences to our audiences.
The LED&UV light dance show Tron Girls was created in collaboration with a Slovakian LED lights manufacturing company. This show opened the doors to the world for us. We started performing three times more often than before. We’ve taken it to the entire EU, Saudi Arabia, Maroc, even Quatar. I learnt to work in a special light-programming software, which brought my work as a choreographer into a new dimension. We wanted to show Slovakia what a special performance we’ve created, so in 2018 we auditioned for Czecho-Slovakia’s Got Talent, and we’ve managed to get all the way to the finals.
I have graduated from the Faculty of Management at the Comenius University in Bratislava. The German programme. (Summa Cum Laude, hihi). I am fluent in Slovakian, English and German.
2006-2012 I danced Hip Hop at Street Dance Academy under the leadership of Laci Strike.
Here I first discovered the stage and the life of a professional dancer, I learnt different street styles as well as high heels. I explored my inner femininity and I also started to teach dance.
Vogue
2012 I discovered ballroom and started voguing.
2013 I attended my first Vogue balls and also started competing there.
2013 I left to study in Berlin for one semester, all the while learning Vogue too.
2014 I returned to Slovakia with my first-ever Vogue ball trophy – from Berlin.
2014 I started teaching Vogue lessons in Bratislava.
2014 I became a member of a major scene international house: House of Milan (USA, European chapter).
My ballroom name now is: Monika Milan
2016 I began teaching Vogue classes abroad.
2016 We founded the first Czecho-Slovakian kiki house: House of Velvet. I became a ballroom mother.
My ballroom name on the kiki scene now is:
Mother Monika Velvet
2016 I organized the first Vogue ball in Slovakia: The Velvet Ball.
2016 The first time I competed in Paris and won Hands Performance (Galaxy Ball).
2016 The first time I competed in New York and won Women Performance (Vogue Knights).
2017 We left House of Milan.
2017 We began to organize regular Intensive Vogue Weekends in Bratislava.
2017 I organized my second Vogue ball: The Hunting Ball.
2017 The first time we performed at Dúhovy Pride (Bratislava’s Pride Parade) as House of Velvet.
2017 Those of us who left the House of Milan formed the House of Yamamoto.
2018 I got the position as the Princess of the House of Yamamoto on the major scene.
My ballroom name now is: Princess Monika Yamamoto
2018 I organized my third Vogue ball: Ball of Shame (Ixel).
2019 I organized my third Vogue ball: Ball of Shame 2 (Undead arena).
2019 I went to Taiwan. I won the Old way category at a ball there and I also taught workshops somewhere outside the EU for the first time.
2019 The second time we performed at Dúhovy Pride (Bratislava’s Pride Parade) as House of Velvet.
2019 We performed at the Pietro Filipi for ELLE fashion show in Karlovy Vary as House of Velvet.
2019 I had a TED talk about ballroom in Slovakia at TEDxBratislavaWomen.
2020 The House of Yamamoto merged with the American House of Tisci and we became its European chapter.
My ballroom name now is: Monika Tisci
2020 I wanted to organize my fifth Vogue ball: Ball of Shame 3, but I couldn’t because of coronavirus.
2020 I put the PUSSY IS A FEELING slogan on a few t-shirts, which we wanted to sell at the ball. Since that wasn’t happening, I put them on my Instagram.
The PUSSY IS A FEELING t-shirts started gaining popularity
2020 Because of high demand, I had to make more batches of the PUSSY IS A FEELING t-shirts – multiple times. I also added the CUNT WAIT! slogan.
2021 I organized my fifth Vogue ball: Ball of Shame 3, for the first time with (and thanks to) the support of FPU (The Fond for Artists‘ Support) (Undead Arena)
2021 The demand for the PUSSY IS A FEELING t-shirts and hoodies grew even bigger, so I made an e-shop for my clothing brand, which I called Identities,
Identities,
I founded a clothing brand Identities
Identities supports the idea of a diverse and understanding society. Though I didn´t expect it, by creating the brand, I brought together a community of people who understand each other.
2021 had an Identities stand at Dúhovy Pride (Bratislava’s Pride Parade) for the first time.
2021 I was hired by The Slovak National Theatre to choreograph a piece for Gabika Dzúriková for the Declaration of Dependence play.
I choreographed a vogue piece for the declaration of dependence play in the slovak national theatre
2022 I organized my sixth Vogue ball: Ball of Shame 4, again with the support of FPU (The Fond for Artists‘ Support). We also invited the legendary Archie Burnett to sit on the judges‘ panel (Nová Cvernovka)
2022 The Kiki House of Velvet competed in Czecho-Slovakia’s Got Talent, where we presented ballroom to our nations.
2022 We performed on the main stage of Dúhovy Pride (Bratislava’s Pride Parade) with an hour-long performance. Identities had a stand there again.
2022 We shot a short film about the House of Velvet, directed by Igor Smitka and Ivana Hucíková.
We shot a short film about the house of velvet
2023 I organised the Tepláreň Kiki ball at The Pálffy Palace on Zámocká street as a reaction to the tragic shooting that had taken place a few months prior at Tepláreň Café.
2023 Our short film about the House of Velvet was presented at film festivals
2023 I was hired as an assistant choreographer for The Slovak National Theatre Ballet for the Fashion Ballet play.
I made a vogue choreography for the Fashion ballet 23 play for the slovak national theatre ballet
2023 I organized my eight Vogue ball: Ball of Shame, with the biggest support from public subsidies yet – FPU (The Fond for Artists‘ Support), The Foundation of Bratislava City, as well as the biggest support from private partners.
Ball of Shame got a big financial support from both public and private sources
2014 I got my first job as a freelance dancer.
2015 I graduated from the Faculty of Management at the Comenius University.
2015 I founded mondance
2015 I entered a partnership with the CreativePro Event Agency, which has only grown deeper throughout the years.
2015 I entered a partnership with CCC (a shoe company), which also gets deeper throughout the years.
2017 We performed at the Pohoda Music Festival for the first time and since then, every year.
2017 We performed at the Grape Music Festival for the first time.
2017 We performed abroad for the first time – in Dubai on NYE.
2018 We started working with Nikita Slovák, a director.
2018 For the first time, we perform on live TV – in Cesta na Olymp on RTVS channel (an award ceremony for Slovakian Olympic athletes).
2018 We started working with the DJ B-Complex.
2018-2021 We performed with B-Complex at the Pohoda Festival and other events of hers.
2018 we created a special LED&UV lights SHOW: TRON GIRLS
2018 We got into the Czecho-Slovakia’s Got Talent finals as Tron Girls.
2019 We performed at Lenka Sršňová’s fashion show during Fashion LIVE!
2020 We created a male version of the LED&UV show: Tron Man
2020 We ‘d created a fashion show for CCC, which was sadly cancelled due to coronavirus.
2020-2022 Our activity was low due to coronavirus.
2022 We performed at Lukáša Krnáč’s fashion show during Fashion LIVE!
2023 We performed with world-famous interprets from the 90s: Haddway, Captain Jack a Mr. President at the 90s Super Fest.
2023 We entered a long-term partnership with Haddway.
2023 Monika performed with Purple Disco Machine at the Colours of Ostrava music festival.
2017 (July) I began working with Showtacle (a LED lights manufacturing company)
2017 (October) We created the first prototype of the dance-light show, but we were unsuccessful.
2018 (March) We created a second prototype of the show and deemed it the final one.
2018 We started performing, first in Slovakia, soon enough abroad.
2018 I learnt to program a lights show in a special software.
2018 We auditioned for Czecho-Slovakia’s Got Talent.
We got into the Czecho-Slovakia’s got talent 2018 finals
2019 We began travelling abroad with our performance on a regular basis.
2019 I flew to China for the first time to present Tron Girls at a fair.
2019 I flew to Saudi Arabia for the first time, as a choreographer, along with my 20 dancers. This was also the first time I coordinated my own lights for the show as the tech.
2020 we brought a male version of the LED&UV lights SHOW: TRON MAN
2020 (February) We have our first Tron Man performance – in Paris.
2018-2020 We’ve performed in Quatar, the UK, Poland, Romania, Germany, Monaco, Italy, France, Switzerland, Croatia, Hungary, Saudi Arabia, Czechia and Slovakia.
2020-2022 The pandemic took performing away from us, but we slowly began recovering.
2021 We created a new type of the LED costume – TRON DOLLS
2021 we created a new type of the led costume: Tron Dolls
2022 We performed as the headliners at the Pohoda Music Festival with FVLCRVM
