Dancers

Get to know the weird and wondeful Raq-a-Bellians!

Amanda / Ayana

I never thought I’d ever be able to call myself a dancer, especially after so many years of feeling wildly uncoordinated.

I tried bellydancing a few times while in University, but it was only after graduating and beginning a sedentary office job in 2004 that I started taking classes more intensively. Thus began the story of bellydance in my life, a story that continues to surprise me, challenge me, delight me and define me. Raqs Sharqi is the style that seems to best suit my personality, but I am interested in other styles too: I love the spirit and sense of community around ATS, and when it comes to Fusion… I suspect somewhere in there is a dark side that might come out one day. My favorite dance moment is every time I sneak a glance across the stage and see all my Raq girls dancing together – I’m so fortunate to be a part of such a talented and unique group of women. I am still working to find my voice as a dancer and as a performer, but in many ways I am happy to not have found it yet, because that tells me I have much more dancing to do! When I’m not dancing I am usually traveling, my other great affair with movement.

Bronwen / Umniyah

I’d always been fascinated by the beauty of bellydance, and in 2005 I took a class just for fun. “Just for fun” turned into a full-fledged obsession.

After just nine weeks of classes I took a workshop hosted by Raq-a-Belly dance! with Ariellah Aflalo. This was the beginning of my love of the Tribal Fusion style and my introduction to a wonderful group of ladies. It had been my ambition to dance with a troupe, and on the night of my 30th birthday I got to perform with Raq-A-Belly Dance! as a last-minute replacement—a perfect birthday present (which is still one of my favourite memories)! Shortly after, I was officially invited to join the group. I continue to study all styles of bellydance, but my focus still lies with Tribal Fusion. In 2009 I went to Costa Rica to study with the magnificent Rachel Brice for a week, which was a life-changing experience both from a dance perspective and a personal one. Over the years even my hobbies have focused on dance, and I spend my free time sewing costumes. My dance name, Umniyah, means wish or aspiration: the exploration and love of this beautiful dance is my wish, and to continue to develop my skills and experiences, my aspiration.

Jolene / Fardoos

Photo Credit: Allan Yucoco

It was while having dinner in October 2000 with my mother and husband at a Greek restaurant when the dancer started asking women in the audience to try dancing with her during her set. I enthusiastically accepted the invitation.

That January, I entered the wonderful world of Middle Eastern Dance by enrolling in beginner dance classes, and have been blissfully entangled in it ever since! Over the years, my training has included classical Egyptian, American Tribal, and more recently, have discovered a peculiar pull towards Tribal Fusion. My dance journey has led me to some amazing places in the world, the most memorable being Egypt, where I had the opportunity to dance with a 5-piece Raqs Sharqi band and a professional dancer on a Nile River dinner cruise. That same week, while sitting on the West Bank of the Nile River, smoking Shish’a and drinking hibiscus tea, the Nubian villagers gave me my Egyptian name, Fardoos, which stems from the Arabic word for “paradise”.

Jodi / Nuwayrah

Co-Artistic Director

Photo Credit: Allan Yucoco

I began this crazy bellydance adventure in 2002. I signed up for classes as a birthday gift to myself and have never looked back!

It was in my very first class that I decided to give up teaching martial arts and do this instead… I had found my passion. When I dance, I am truly alive and everything else just slips away. Give me a beat and the music takes over—I can’t help but move! These days, this is all I do; I quit my “grown-up” job and now teach as often as I can. My specialty is Baby Bellies – those who are just starting out in this dance form, or who have never danced before. I challenge my students to push harder, to overcome their own limitations, and the joy I get from watching all my lovely students come alive is beyond words. Breaking news on Jodi! In January 2012, she has opens her very own bellydance studio – go to School of Raq immediately and check it out!

Kamallah

Photo Credit: Amy Senecal

I officially started bellydancing in 2005 to remedy my pathetic lack of grace and coordination, and I was thrilled to meet this group of fabulous and unique ladies.

Originally trained in Raqs Sharqi, I dabbled in ATS but fell in love with the dark, sinewy, expressive style known as Tribal Fusion, where I can let my dominatrix side out to play. I have taken workshops with many incredible dancers, including my idols, Zoe Jakes, Kami Liddle, Rachel Brice, Sharon Kihara, and Ariellah. Spending time every week with my fellow Raq’ers has been an important part of maintaining my sanity in this crazy world, and their friendship and support and wise(ass) ways have kept me afloat when I didn’t think I’d make it. (Cue music for “The Wind Beneath My Wings.”) Performance-wise, I had an especially fantastic time with the huge success and daily high of the Fringe Festival 2009! In between my travels, athletic pursuits, and occasional gainful employment, I also perform improvisational Tribal Fusion and fire dancing with another Edmonton-based group, Vibe Tribe Gypsy Circus Society.

Karen / Nazmiye

Co-Artistic Director

Photo Credit: Allan Yucoco

I took my first bellydance class in 2000 because it was the raciest thing I could think of! I was extraordinarily shy and felt the need to take a wild and crazy step outside of my comfort zone.

Though I had taken tap and jazz classes for many years as a kid, the idea of dancing in a revealing costume to exotic music made me blush. Well, it turns out that first step led to a giant leap into the sparkly, jingly, shimmy-tastic world that I live in today! In 2005, I was lucky enough to be a part of the fabulous group of women who formed Raq-A-Belly dance! Together we have learned, challenged, rehearsed, performed, and best of all, truly befriended each other. My best memories include Tania’s infamous birthday parties, the Fire Truck hot tub, workshops in Las Vegas, dance festivals in San Francisco, and “Once Upon A Belly” at Edmonton’s 2009 Fringe Festival. Bellydance has opened up a world of fantastic friends, interesting music, sparkly costumes, and ancient culture. It has given me the gift of self-confidence and has taught me to appreciate my body and the intriguing ways that I can make it move. As Co-Artistic Director, I have enjoyed drawing multicolored formations on the mirror and commanding the troupe to do a six-person orbit. Nowadays I teach beginner Raqs Sharqi classes at Bedouin Beats and hope that I can pass on at least a little bit of the fun, the joy, and the challenge of bellydancing to my students.

Kristy / Sukaynah

Photo Credit: Allan Yucoco

In 2006 I decided that I was going to take an adult dance class. I finally decided that a bellydance class was the way to go, and after the first class I was completely hooked.

I had such an unquenchable thirst for dance that at one point I was taking 2 classes a night 5 nights a week. Some people said I was insane, but I called it passion. Since then, I have trained under many talented dancers, locally and around the world. I love to dance Raqs Sharqi, Khaligy, American Tribal Style, and Tribal Fusion, but I have yet to choose a favorite style. I remember my first recital where I first saw Raq-a-Belly dance! Perform, and I told myself that one day, I was going to be a part of that troupe. In 2009, that dream came true, and along with that, I made some amazing new friends. Dance has helped me physically, mentally and socially… I don’t know how I ever lived without it!

Shelley / Naia

Photo Credit: Jason Bouwmeester

In 2001, after a few life-changing alterations, I decided to treat myself to a bellydance class. Since then, I have been rewarded with a place to de-stress, many great friendships both at home and around the world, and a self-confidence I had never known before.

I work as a carpenter, so being in a male-dominated field by day, bellydancing is my balance, a place for me to reconnect with my feminine side. Even though construction doesn’t always allow me to dance as much as I would love to, dance has become my way to let my spirit soar. My favorite styles are Cabaret drum solos and dancing with swords. When I hear a great drum solo, my hips start moving to the beat—I have been caught dancing while working, in stores, and even in my car. In contrast, dancing with swords allows me to combine my masculine and feminine sides, the strength of the swords mingling with the grace and fluidity of the dance. My two greatest experiences both in dance and in life were dancing in Tunisia in 2007 with Khadejah and Mustafa El Oueslati and performing with the troupe at the Edmonton Fringe Festival in 2009. They were not just learning experiences but the grandest adventures of my life. I have been dancing with Raq-a-Belly dance! from the beginning and they all have become not just my dance partners, but my extended family.

Stacey / Caasi

Photo Credit: Allan Yucoco

Once upon a time, or more precisely in the year 2001, a woman named Caasi began her love affair with Middle Eastern dance after moving to Edmonton. Really, she just needed a break from 2 toddlers at home.

Fast forward to the present… Bellydance has given me an outlet to re-discover myself as someone who is more than just “Mom”. I love the music and movements, the self-awareness and sisterhood. And the costuming…. mmmm… it’s addictive! Good thing I like to make most of them myself.

Being a member of Raq-a-Belly dance! gives me an opportunity to perform many styles, but my favorite will always be Raqs Sharqi… with VEILS!! I am thrilled to be one of the founding members of the troupe (2005), and the designer of Raq’n Monkeys (a fusion of sock monkey meets bellydance). I can be found most Wednesday mornings playing with my student group “Glenora’s Goddesses”.

Tania

President

Photo Credit: Star Newman

Ever since I started taking bellydance while “finding myself” as an expat in Prague in 2002, I’ve been living a blissed-out life.

I discovered my verging-on-crazy obsession with all things Tribal Fusion, and I became part of this family of women who taught this geeky tomboy what girl power is really all about. These awesome chicks helped me bring my idol, Ariellah, into town for a workshop. They also helped me to realize my dream of a bellydance Fringe Festival show with “Once Upon a Belly” in 2009. The Raqs Sharqi gals even occasionally dress up in dark clothes and chains in exchange for my occasionally dressing up in sparkles. Most importantly, I now get to teach this dance for a living, and it has been my full-time job since 2008. Happiness is a dancing girl called Tania!

For a more rambling bio, visit Tania’s Belly.

Terri-Lynne / Zahirah

Standing in the wings, hair in a tightly woven bun, wearing a pink bodysuit, sequined trim, perfectly placed tutu, pink tights and immaculate little ballet slippers. That was my first memory of being on stage.

I was 5 years old. 15 years living in ballet shoes, tap shoes, jazz shoes, and character shoes. Why would I do anything else? I met my husband while taking classes in ballroom and country & western dance. We danced, fell in love, married, and had 2 beautiful boys… everything I wanted, but still something was missing. It was in my first class in 2003 that I found out that Middle Eastern dance was that missing piece. With every flowing movement, every swing of the hip, and every shoulder shimmy, I was transformed into a goddess. I soon became a part of Raq-a-Belly dance! and it became a part of me. I have taken workshops from many international bellydancers, including my idol, Ansuya. Highlights would be performing in San Francisco on the main stage in 2006 at Rakassah West and most recently, at the 2009 Edmonton Fringe Festival.

In 2006, I took a year sabbatical to care for my husband after he was diagnosed with cancer, and sadly, he lost this battle a year later at the age of 37. With my family’s support, I returned to one of the only things that kept me grounded: bellydance, and the amazing group of women that I have grown to love and proudly call my sisters. Music and movement runs through my veins. There is something about a piece of music that sends my soul soaring. Dance has been—and always will be—a part of me.