Biographical Information

I have always loved watching Middle Eastern dance and was intrigued by the strength, grace and beauty of the performers as well as the dance itself, but I was also a little shy and self-conscious about taking lessons. In the fall of 2001, I gathered my courage and began taking classes from Alexandra, troupe director for the Shadows of the Fire. With a lot of hard work and dedication, I was happy to be accepted as a full-fledged member of the troupe in December 2002. Middle Eastern dance truly makes me feel strong and beautiful when I perform and the really gratifying part is when other women watch us perform and become inspired to learn the dance. It’s also a lot of fun when little girls point to us, smile and say, “Princess!!”. I am very proud to have been an active participant with the troupe at the East Coast Bellydance Classic in Virginia Beach, Virginia for the past five consecutive years. During those five years I am pleased to have been part of the reason why we won first place in 2002, second place in 2003 & 2004, first place in 2005 and second place in 2006. Teaching new students this art form has been very rewarding for the past two years, but I am currently taking a break so I can concentrate on my own advancement in bellydancing. I choreographed the majority of the dances I taught and have helped choreograph some of the troupe numbers that we perform.

Middle Eastern Dance: I “cut my teeth” by doing American Tribal Style (ATS), but have also worked with Cabaret and, most recently, Urban Tribal Style – I enjoy them all. I enjoy working with zills (finger cymbals), the sword, the veil and drumming with the doumbek (doom-bek) – a middle eastern drum (I’m still learning...very much a baby beginner). My bellydance role models are Ansuya (www.ansuya.com), Rachel Brice (www.rachelbrice.com) and Sharon Kihara (www.sharonkihara.com). They are awesome cabaret and Urban Tribal Style bellydancers, respectively. Last, but certainly not least, I am and will continue to be grateful to my best friend Luna, for giving me the courage to take bellydance classes, to Alexandra for her patient and excellent instruction and to my husband for giving me his unending support, being one of the most awesome bellydance husbands and being my #1 fan. I would also like to say how much I appreciate all of my troupemates...without you ladies, this wouldn’t be nearly as much fun! You guys are awesome!

In the coming year I would like to become more familiar with the language, history, zills, sword...in short, everything