was born in Belém in the Brazilian state of Para. Jânia's childhood was set in the studio of her mother, Sr. Helfany Peçanha. As a certified dancer and teacher at the ballet school of the Municipal Theatre in Rio de Janeiro, she got the 1stPrize in classical, modern and Spanish dancing.
In 1978, she got the diploma of the London Royal Academy of Dancing - elementary, intermediate and advanced levels - with honors. She furthered her training with renowned teachers in Brazil and the United States.
At the age of nineteen, she was hired as a soloist at the Ballet of the Municipal Theatre in Rio where she interpreted a rich repertoire: Odette, Odile in "Swan Lake", Myrtha and Giselle /2nd act, Kitri and Mercedes/ "Don Quixote", "Casse-Noisette", "the Sleeping Beauty", etc… She also danced in Moscow, Cuba, the USA, and was invited to take part in numerous festivals, the 8th Festival in Havana in particular.
Along with her career as a soloist, Jânia worked with her mother to establish the Fulminense Ballet Foundation, which runs a dancing company, and the Fulminense Festival of Niteroi (Rio de Janeiro). Three times she was prized for her choreographic achievements with the troupe, and the city of Niteroi made her a member of the Cultural and artistic Town Council.
In 1986, she was hired as a soloist at the Béjart Ballet in Lausanne where she could develop her full artistic nature. She took part in the most fabulous creations of Maurice Béjart: "Afternoon of a faun", "51 Cantata", "Light", "Sonata for three", "Malraux", "1789 and us", "The Ring", "Heliogabale", "Bolero", "the Rite of spring", …
She has an enthusiastic interest in all the dancing styles and disciplines connected to the stage. In 1991, she opened a new space for the students and professional dancers from the four corners of the world to share their common passion. With L'Avant-Scène - school & Co, Jânia intends to encourage the artistic involvement of the young, whom she confronts to the experience of the stage in conjunction with professional dancers.
As a ballet master, she is currently invited to teach in the following companies: "Pina Bausch Tanztheater Wuppertal" (Germany), "Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe (Germany), "Chemnitz Ballet" (Germany), "Mark Sieczkarek Company" (Germany), "Landestheater Salzburg Ballet" (Austria), "SEAD Experimental Danse" (Austria), "Nomades Cie" (Switzerland), "Linga Cie" (Switzerland). "Gulbenkien Ballet"(Portugal), "Teatro Municipal do Rio de Janeiro" (Brazil), "Teatro Municipal de Niteroi" (Brazil), "Fulminense Ballet Foundation"(Brazil) and "Bahia Ballet" (Brazil). Further to her activities as a teacher, artistic director and choreographer, Jânia presides over the Accordanse organization, whose aim it is to foster artistic exchanges, mostly with Brazil. Her presence is being felt on a number of positions, but, first and foremost, she is an achieved artist and a highly skilled professor.
