Deshret Dance Company - Biography of Collaborating Dancers
DIRECTOR: Ariellah~
Ariellah studied classical ballet with the Royal Academy of Dance of London for twelve years, beginning at age three. After a four-year break from dance that included two years in the Peace Corps on Africa's Ivory Coast, she returned to the United States eager to learn the dance of her Moroccan ancestry.
Ariellah is an international performer and instructor of fusion belly dance. She has studied and performed belly dance for the past eight years, both with Janine Ryle of Danse Mahgreb and as a founding member of The Indigo with Rachel Brice. Her style infuses many genres of belly dance, all with a modern dark flavour that is uniquely her own. She is featured on many DVDs, including the first of its kind "Gothic BellyDance" DVD and her first instructional DVD, "Contemporary BellyDance and Yoga Conditioning" and she also won first place in Siren's Insanity belly dance competition in 2004. She is considered a leader in the innovative new genre of Dark Fusion Belly Dance and is known for her strong technique, precision of movements and her artistry. www.ariellah.com
~COLLABORATING DANCERS~
Crystal Silmi~
Crystal Silmi is a belly dance fusion instructor based out of Santa Cruz, California. She has become known for her unique style of hip hop infused movements and has performed for audiences around the world. Skilled in both the art of classical Middle Eastern dance and modern fusion, Crystal puts her Arab American roots to the dance with a deep sense of rhythm and powerful athleticism.As a long time student of master instructor Suhaila Salimpour, Crystal has danced with both the Suhaila Dance Company and Bal Anat. In 2006 she founded the belly dance fusion troupe RaksArabi based out of Motion Pacific Dance Studio in Santa Cruz, Ca with troupe members from across the South Bay and Central Coast communities. RaksArabi draws upon hip hop, jazz, north african and other dance styles to enhance the art of belly dance with vivid and contemporay feel. For performance information, workshops or classes visit www.crystalsilmi.com
Tanja Odzak~
Seducing audiences with her sensual grace, smoldering inner fire, and technical artistry, Tanja embodies fiercely passionate belly dance. She has been dancing professionally in the San Francisco Bay Area since 2003 and is known for her fiery stage presence and high quality of dance. Tanja is a fusion belly dance artist, performing a blend of American Tribal and American Cabaret belly dance.
Past performance experience includes work with Suhaila Repertoire Ensemble, Ultra Gypsy, Bal Anat, Ariellah, Rose Harden, Damage Control Dance Theatre, Bastet, Lapsus, and Fat Chance’s Third Tribe. An active choreographer, Tanja’s work has been featured in the Suhaila Repertoire Ensemble, Ultra Gypsy, Bastet, Lapsus, and L’Anonyme Collective. Additionally, Tanja was the 2007 “Tribal Fusion Champion” at the Hips of Fury Belly Dance Contest. She has been featured in Ultra Gypsy’s “Medusa & Machine” (Release Date TBA) and Suhaila’s “Docuality” (YouTube). During her years in Jill Parker’s Ultra Gypsy, she was an active choreographer and dancer when the dance company received the prestigious Golden Belly Award for the 2005 “Troupe of the Year”. She also participated in the Ultra Gypsy/Urban Tribal “Spark Tour”.
Since 2001, Tanja has studied extensively with legendary belly dance masters Suhaila Salimpour and Jill Parker as well as with a multitude of other talented dancers. A devoted student of her belly dance guru Suhaila, Tanja obtained Level 3 certification in February 2010.
Tanja is a founding member of L'Anonyme Collective, a group of like-minded artists coming together in an attempt to take part in the subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) bending of belly dance tradition. Tanja and co-founders, Abby Star and Erin Harper, formed L’Anonyme to offer a vehicle for colleagues and experienced dancers to explore the full spectrum of belly dance styles on a special project basis. In addition to performing with L’Anonyme Collective, she currently dances independently as a solo artist and as a guest artist/dancer with various dance companies. Tanja loves collaborating and doing projects with peers.
Tanja is very excited and proud to have choreographed for Suhaila Salimpour’s Repertoire Ensemble; her choreographic work was one of the pieces highlighted by Suhaila in the March 2010 Rakkasah West show where she also performed the work with the Ensemble.
For more information about Tanja, visit www.tanjabellydance.com and www.bellydancecollective.com
Freyja~
Freyja, is an internationally acclaimed belly dance teacher and performer. Her dance background includes ballet, jazz, hip hop, ballroom, salsa, club dancing, flamenco, Indonesian and Indian dance. She has developed her own unique style, drawing from many of these sources. Freyja has studied many different styles of belly dance and being a life-long student, she continues to study dance as well as other movement disciplines Freyja has taught and performed all over the United States, Canada and Europe. She is credited with excellent technique and musical interpretation, crisp isolations and original innovative choreography. As an instructor, she gives great presentation and breakdown while emphasizing proper posture and movement to prevent injuries. An interest in alignment, body mechanics and therapeutic application of movement led Freyja to the advanced studies teacher training at the Iyengar Yoga Institute of San Francisco and later to Pilates which she currently teaches full time. Freyja has immersed herself in somatic education and she specializes in working with dancers of all styles to increase strength, flexibility, technique and improve biomechanics. She also does extensive rehabilitation work with both dancers and non dancers alike.
To learn more about Freyja, please go to her website here: www.freyjafusion.com
Jodi~
Curious glammy glitterphile with a gypsy heart and an affinity towards dead things and creepy baby dolls, Jodi has been fascinated with hobos and gypsies since for a long while. When she picked up the art of dance at a wee tender age, her passion was embedded and has now turned it into studies of Contemporary Fusion and Cabaret belly dance, Modern, Jazz and Hip Hop dance, Burlesque, Fire, Butoh and Theatrical Performance…and her performances encompass a fusion of all of these. Jodi is the 2010 Breakthrough Fusion Dance Solo Artist, SF. She is also a good eater and likes cats and stripes.
Jodi performs regularly with the burlesque variety show, Hubba Hubba Revue (Oakland, SF) as part of the vaudeville duo Room For Cream, with her burlesque troupe Jellyfish Kiss, and as a solo performer. She appears as her alter ego, Svetlana, with the Vulgarian circus rock and roll band, Brothers Horse, and also dances in the electro rock band, Fans of Jimmy Century. Jodi will be performing and giving workshops later this year with Troupe Joweh at the Guatemalan National Theatre in Guatemala City as the featured Tribal Fusion belly dancer. Jodi produces a monthly burlesque variety show in Sebastopol called Risk-A Cabaret.
Lisa~
Lisa began her bellydance training under the watchful eye of the incomparable Mesmera in Los Angeles where she gained a solid foundation in the classic resturant/cabaret style of dancing. A few years later she traded her coin belt for a tassel belt and joined the dark side of fusion after moving to the Bay Area. She has covered the the California coast dancing in festivals and street faires occupying the coveted, " we have no idea who you are and if you can dance " 11:00am spots. Lisa also enjoys studying ATS style dance, yoga, and collecting just about anything that existed before 1950.
Nayun~
Nayun fell in love with belly dance in 2003 after she first saw it performed in Santa Fe, New Mexico and has been dancing non-stop ever since. She studied American Tribal Style and Egyptian Belly Dance intensively with Myra Krien for two years before moving to the Bay Area to continue her belly dance studies. She has studied intensively with some of today’s top dance artists, notably; Ariellah, Mira Betz, Zoe Jakes, Nanna Candelaria, and Suhaila Salimpour. Nayun is not only a well-known soloist, but is also a principal dancer in Deshret Dance Company directed by Ariellah.
Nayun has studied and been influenced by other dance forms which have come to shape her own interpretation of Belly Dance including Classical Indian, Flamenco, Modern, Jazz, Hip-Hop, and Fire Dancing. She performs many styles of belly dance including Cabaret, Egyptian, Tribal Fusion and American Tribal Style. She enjoys performing each of these styles, which gives her a well-rounded approach to the dance form. Nayun is known for her great technique, versatility, and personality as both an artist and performer.
She was the Assistant Director of Pomegranate studios in Santa Fe, New Mexico in 2008, and was the Master Teacher of the SEEDs Youth Dance Program from 2008-2009. In 2008 she formed Ambrosia Dance Company which performed frequently at venues throughout the Santa Fe area. Nayun believes that no matter how long she dances she will always be a life-long student, learning all she can about belly dance. nayundance.com
Predslava~
Predslava came to belly dance in 2004 with no prior dance background. Her introduction and subsequent addiction to the dance form occurred under Mina of Dalloua Dance Company. Two years later, an attraction to tribal fusion and a natural inclination towards the dark side of belly dance brought her to Ariellah. She liked it there. She stayed.
Predslava has been performing with Deshret Dance Company (DDC) since its inception in 2007, and is an instructor at DDC workshops. Her martial arts background has been an inspiration in exploring internal practices and body awareness topics. When not dancing, she can be found painting in her art studio or hiking in the hills.
Raven~
Raven was a lifelong musician - studying classical & contemporary music and performing with bands and orchestras throughout her youth - before she began her dance career in 2003. It was American Tribal Style bellydance that first hooked her and she joined Midriff Crisis bellydance troupe in Tucson, Arizona. When she moved to the Bay Area late in 2006 she began studying with a large variety of world-class instructors. After a brief hiatus to focus on her other artistic endeavors, Raven returned to dance with Lapsus - a fusion bellydance troupe that appealed to her darker sensibilities - and L'Anonyme Collective, which was very much outside her usual style. Currently, besides collaborating with Ariellah and the other Deshret dancers, Raven is studying other dance influences with Cera Byer and dancing with Damage Control Dance Theater. She is also developing her career as a soloist and seeking constant artistic evolution & innovation. And she bellydances to metal music when given the chance.
Outside of dance, Raven is usually painting, drawing, sculpting, making jewelry, sewing costuming, and partaking in any other artistic medium she can get her hands on.
To learn more about Raven and her art go here: Corviid
Grace~
Grace began belly dancing in 2001. She began performing with Frederique of Belly Groove and Rachel Brice of the The Indigo. Grace and Ariellah met while dancing with The Indigo in 2003, and since then have performed as a duet and in troupes. Grace also performs as a soloist, and in collaboration with other artists and companies.
Besides belly dance, Grace also has performed hip hop and salsa. She’s been featured as a dancer in music videos, TV, and film. She’s been honored to choreograph and collaborate with world-renowned choreographers Gabriel Romero of Mambo Romero Latin Dance Theater and Carla Service of Dance-A-Vision Entertainment (hip hop).
Forever a student of the arts, Grace regularly takes classes, in ballet, salsa, martial arts, yoga, tango, modern, and jazz. She especially enjoys ethnic dances, including Flamenco, Balinese, Indian, Cuban, Brazilian, Polynesian, and African dances.
Known for her alien-like belly rolls and sharp hits and locks, Grace is sought after as a choreographer, performer, and instructor. To contact Grace, email SSerpentsKiss.
Molly~
Molly is a lifelong dancer who spent her early years training in tap, ballet, jazz and modern dance. She began belly dancing in 2001, studying a mix of cabaret and American Tribal Style throughout her college years in Bloomington, IN. During that time she performed with a number of local dance troupes before collaborating with two of her peers to form Dark Side Tribal, which continues to offer classes locally in Tribal belly dance and to perform around the Midwest. In 2006 Molly moved to the Bay Area for graduate school and began taking Ariellah’s tribal fusion classes soon after. She joined Deshret in 2007 and continues to hone her abilities as a soloist in addition to performing with the company. When not dancing, Molly can be found behind a sewing machine, and her costume creations have been known to find their way onto her troupe mates from time to time.
Erebus La Voie~
Early in her dance career Erebus La Voie studied traditional Egyptian Cabaret in Solano County. It was at the renowned Northern California belly dance festival “Tribal Fest” that she saw the Indigo perform for the first time in 2005. Completely infatuated with the technique displayed by these dancers and awestruck by their exquisite costumes, a new quest for dance inspiration began. Living in the Mecca of the tribal belly dance scene she sought out inspiration and teaching from such tribal fusion dance instructors Rachel Brice and Jill Parker. In 2006 she found her true kindred spirit in dance, Ariellah.
A life long obsession with all things dark, she embraces the opportunity to entertain fusing her gothic sensibility with belly dance.