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Celestial Cabaret Seminar
Instructors |
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Thursday Celestial
Cabaret
Instructors: |
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Princess Farhana
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Internationally acclaimed dance star Princess Farhana
(Pleasant Gehman) has performed, taught, researched and written
about belly dance and burlesque since 1990. She has appeared in Egypt,
Turkey, Hong Kong and Australia; toured several times across Europe and
The United Kingdom, as well as throughout North America. An artistic
chameleon and a boundary-pushing pioneer, she performs many styles of
dance with ease, from ultra traditional to contemporary belly dance and
burlesque. Her diverse talents encompass visual, literary, musical and
dramatic arts as well as dance. She has fronted three bands, and is
featured as an actor in several motion pictures and television shows,
and has been interviewed for numerous feature-length documentaries,
including director Steve Balderson's "Underbelly: A Year In The Life Of
Princess Farhana".
Trained in Egyptian style belly dance by Zahra Zuhair in Los Angeles and
Raqia Hassan in Cairo among many others, The Princess is well known as a
theatrical belly dance fusion performer, conceiving and executing
fantasy tableaux in minute detail, a dramatically recreating vintage
styles of Oriental Dance from the Edwardian Era, the 1920's, The
Egyptian Golden Age, and the American Cabaret Style of the Sixties and
Seventies
The Princess is known for her high-concept, innovative performances,
dramatic stage presence, and incredible abdominal work. Her warmth,
enthusiasm, extensive knowledge and her adventurous spirit -both on and
off stage- captivate audiences worldwide.
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Rachel George-
Since
beginning her bellydance career in 1995, Rachel has become an extremely
sought after dancer and instructor. With her highly accredited dance and
musical training, this multi-award winning performer has taught
workshops and classes across the USA. Based in Southern California,
Rachel is San Diego’s number one premier Bellydance entertainment
highlight. Rachel continues to teach and perform her incomparable
musical interpretation with a great rooted understanding in dance
movement, technique, and isolation strength. Her performances are
fantastically radiant, full of amazing technique and grace while
accompanied by her captivating authentic style. Rachel's artistry brings
to the stage a rare and unique element in emotional expression that
leaves her audience thirsting for more. |
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Friday Celestial
Cabaret
Instructors: |
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Sadie
- Sadie is an International performing artist,
instructor and choreographer recognize worldwide as one of today's most
exciting and innovative Belly Dance artists. First seen as a 'Rising
Star' on BD-TV Vol. II in 2004, Sadie is now featured in dozens of
instructional and performance DVDs displaying her dynamic style of belly
dance which has captivated audiences and inspired students around the
globe. As one of the most sought after performers and teachers of Belly
Dance, Sadie has visited over 70 cities in more than 30 countries and is
one of the most watched belly dancers on youtube with over 20 million
hits on just one video clip alone. Sadie's fans and colleagues have
crowned her 'The Queen of the Drum Solo'. Recently Sadie and her dance
partner Kaya wowed the judges of 'America's Got Talent' and the American
public all the way to the 'Top 48' out of 70,000 auditions on season 5
of the program. They are the only belly dancers to make it that far on
the American version of the show.
Sadie has held a lifelong passion for dance, music and culture. In
addition to Bellydance Sadie has studied and practiced other forms of
world dance such as, Brazilian Samba, Salsa and Tahitian to name a few.
Sadie's styling and bellydance techniques, along with those developed
together with her dance partner Kaya, have marked a new genre of
bellydance defined by their signature isolations known as "Pops" and
"Locks", and is sought after and followed by students and
teachers around the world. Together Sadie and Kaya have trained many up
and coming dancers in the Denver area and the US as well as
internationally.
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Ruby Beh
- Ruby
is internationally recognized for her passionate, untamed dance style.
She is truly a powerhouse of energy. Her background of American Classic
Bellydance and Turkish Oriental makes her performances stand out with a
raw, individual interpretation. Her love of Turkish culture drew
her straight to the source with multiple years of study in Istanbul. In
addition to being an award-winning performer, Ruby is a certified
Pilates instructor and is featured on instructional and performance DVDs
including her own series, Flawless Floorwork, Totally Turkish, and All
About Arms. Ruby has an active touring career, brining her joyful
and energetic style to workshops and performances around the
globe. Ruby’s educational background includes a B.S in Environmental
Chemistry and her study of Kung Fu lends a unique flavor of controlled
stamina to her performances.
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Saturday Celestial
Cabaret
Instructors: |
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Raqia Hassan
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Raqia Hassan
of Cairo, Egypt is the most internationally known teacher and
choreographer of Egyptian style belly dance in Egypt and the world
today. She has her own very unique "Raqia technique" that she currently
teaches in her videos and in her dance workshops all over the world.
Raqia's teaching style is top notch. She is friendly, professional and
patient. She knows just what she is aiming for and is very clear in her
explanations. She always has something new in her thrilling
choreographies, and her teaching skills are top class.
Raqia started dancing at the age of 4. She joined the most esteemed "Reda
Troupe" of Egypt at the young age of 16. One year later she became one
of the first principal solo dancers with them, an honor achieved by very
few dancers. The "Reda Troupe" was the first Egyptian dance company to
record Egyptian folk songs and dances and perform them on stage. They
became world famous with many followers. Their work has shaped and
influenced what is known today as Oriental Dance (Raks Sharki). Later
on, Raqia started teaching "Oriental Dance" on her own because that's
her true passion and first love.
She travels most of the year around the globe for workshops. She
is constantly in demand giving workshops in various parts of the world,
and is the producer of the highly sought after Raqia Hassan technique
videos. Raqia's choreographies are full of interesting moves that are
challenging without losing the fun and joie-de-vivre of the true
Egyptian style.
She is the producer of the annual “Ahlan wa Sahlan” dance
festival in Cairo, Egypt. Almost behind every successful Egyptian style
dancer is the name "Raqia Hassan". Madame Raqia has trained Azza Sharif,
Mona el Said, Nani, Nelly Fouad, Dina, Amani, Sorraya, Dandash, Randa
Kamal, not to mention countless other dancers in Egypt and all over the
world.
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Suhaila Salimpour
- Suhaila
Salimpour is a highly acclaimed performer, teacher, and choreographer of
belly dance. Schooled from an early age in jazz, tap and ballet, Suhaila
began integrating her extensive classical training with the Middle
Eastern dance passed on by her mother, Jamila Salimpour.
The result was a true artistic breakthrough:
a revolutionary foundational technique that has brought the art
of Belly Dance to a new level.
In the U.S., Suhaila appeared on television series such as Fame and Max
Headroom and choreographed various music videos. For six years, she was
the featured dancer at Byblos, a prestigious Arabic nightclub in Los
Angeles, where she shared the stage with the most renowned singers of
the Middle East. Miles Copeland, owner of IRS records, prominently
featured Suhaila in his 2005 documentary, American Bellydancer. Comedian
Margaret Cho is currently producing and directing a documentary about
Suhaila, and producing Suhaila’s one-woman show.
Suhaila is the artistic director and producer of Sheherezade, an
acclaimed performing arts spectacle that mixes belly dance with the
synchronization of Riverdance, the pounding rhythms of Stomp and the
aerial artistry of Cirque du Soleil. For Sheherezade, Suhaila was
nominated for an Isadora Duncan Dance Award (“Izzie”)-making her the
first performer in the belly dance genre to receive this prestigious
nomination.
Today, Suhaila creates instructional and performance videos for all
dance levels, as well as fully-orchestrated Middle Eastern dance
musicals and CD recordings of the latest percussion artists. In
addition to touring across the globe, Suhaila maintains her
second-generation family business, the Suhaila Salimpour School of Belly
Dance, in Berkeley, California. Suhaila has developed and implemented
the first-available certification program in Middle Eastern dance.
Suhaila looks forward to expanding the audience for and appreciation of
traditional Middle Eastern dance in a distinctly contemporary style.
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Sunday Celestial
Cabaret Instructors: |
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Raqia Hassan
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Raqia Hassan
of Cairo, Egypt is the most internationally known teacher and
choreographer of Egyptian style belly dance in Egypt and the world
today. She has her own very unique "Raqia technique" that she currently
teaches in her videos and in her dance workshops all over the world.
Raqia's teaching style is top notch. She is friendly, professional and
patient. She knows just what she is aiming for and is very clear in her
explanations. She always has something new in her thrilling
choreographies, and her teaching skills are top class.
Raqia started dancing at the age of 4. She joined the most esteemed "Reda
Troupe" of Egypt at the young age of 16. One year later she became one
of the first principal solo dancers with them, an honor achieved by very
few dancers. The "Reda Troupe" was the first Egyptian dance company to
record Egyptian folk songs and dances and perform them on stage. They
became world famous with many followers. Their work has shaped and
influenced what is known today as Oriental Dance (Raks Sharki). Later
on, Raqia started teaching "Oriental Dance" on her own because that's
her true passion and first love.
She travels most of the year around the globe for workshops. She
is constantly in demand giving workshops in various parts of the world,
and is the producer of the highly sought after Raqia Hassan technique
videos. Raqia's choreographies are full of interesting moves that are
challenging without losing the fun and joie-de-vivre of the true
Egyptian style.
She is the producer of the annual “Ahlan wa Sahlan” dance
festival in Cairo, Egypt. Almost behind every successful Egyptian style
dancer is the name "Raqia Hassan". Madame Raqia has trained Azza Sharif,
Mona el Said, Nani, Nelly Fouad, Dina, Amani, Sorraya, Dandash, Randa
Kamal, not to mention countless other dancers in Egypt and all over the
world.
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Nourhan Sharif
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With
over 4 decades of training and experience in Egyptian/ Lebanese Cabaret
& Folkloric Dance, Nourhan Sharif is a leading American Artist of Middle
Eastern dance and music~ Her skills are in demand around the world; She
has taught and performed on nearly every continent!! Dedicated to the
art of Raks Sharqi and to formulating her own expressive style –
attributes exemplary of a fine educator and artist ! Ms. Sharif has
carefully chosen a serious course of study in Egyptian, Lebanese, Greek,
Turkish and Flamenco idioms with the most respected teachers including
Yousry Sharif, Tayyar Akdeniz, Morwenna Assaf, Elena Lentini, Shadia
Malouf, Mariano Parra, & Anahid Sofian! She has also taken workshops
with the following Egyptian Born Artists: Raqia Hassan, Mohamed El
Hosseny, Denise Enan, Nervine, Faten Salama, Lubna, Freiz, Tito Seif,
Mahmoud Reda, Sohair Zaki, Dina, Hassan Affifi, Aida Nour, Zaza Hassan,
Ibrahim Akef, & Nadia Hamdi to name a few!Lebanese Artists Ibrahim
Farrah, & Hassan Harfouche. Nourhan has studied ballet, modern dance, &
most recently Tango & Cuban Salsa!
Nourhan’s dance style exemplifies great technique, focused
energy, dynamic presence, and precise articulation. Within her more
contemporary renditions, knowledge of the folklore and its various
rhythms are always in evidence. Her years of immersion in Middle Eastern
culture lend her dance an authentic depth that is immediately recognized
by her enthusiastic audiences – including students, peers, and Middle
Easterners. Nourhan Sharif deftly combines Egyptian lyricism and
Lebanese theatricality with personal expression that is all Nourhan!!
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