Natalie Borg

I am a performance artist and educator based in Edinburgh, working under the name Dancing Cymbalist. My practice brings together dance, finger cymbals, music and improvisation, exploring the point at which movement and musicality become one cohesive physical practice.
My work is rooted in Middle Eastern dance traditions and influenced by my mixed Scottish and Anatolian Greek heritage. I use improvisation as a way of exploring identity, embodiment, musicality and intercultural connection. Rather than treating dance and playing the finger cymbals as two separate disciplines, I am interested in developing a physical language in which both can happen simultaneously and organically.
My movement aesthetics are particularly influenced by vintage Egyptian dance and Ottoman visual and cultural influences.
Collaboration is central to my practice. I am interested in working with musicians, dancers, artists and communities from different cultural and musical backgrounds, particularly where different artistic forms and cultures can meet and create something new.
My creative practice currently takes place at Studio Cybele, an artist's studio I hire in East Lothian.
At the heart of my work is the idea of 'improvisational creative embodiment' — using dance and music together as a means of expressing personal identity while creating opportunities for connection between people and cultures.