Sera SolsticeSera Solstice is an international Bellydance Artist, based in New York City, known for creating the East Coast Tribal bellydance style, characterized by intense multi-layer hipwork, extensive full-body movement, deep emotive power and story-telling flow. Founder and Director of Solstice Studio: a Bellydance Studio in New York with over 200 active participants using Bellydance as a means for building self-empowerment, expression, and creativity, Sera is director and choreographer of the dance troupe Solstice Ensemble, and The Solstice Project, as well as two student companies, the Lunar and Solar tribes. Sera has created 5 full-length instructional DVDs on East Coast Tribal Bellydance, produced by World Dance New York including 1) East Coast Tribal, 2) Foundations of Bellydance 3) Solar Bellydance 4) Lunar Bellydance, 5) Goddess Dance: Prenatal Bellydance and Mediation). And is featured in the DVD series: Gothic Bellydance and Fantasy Bellydance: Mystery. Sera's Choreography has been described as "complex, content-rich, sublime, haunting, technically superb, at the forefront of evolution of bellydance as an artform." Sera is frequently the featured dancer with bands: Raquy and the Cavemen, Djinn, Copal, Beatbox Guitar, and the Rhythm Shamans. Sera is fed artistically from underground electronic music culture. Sera has a passion for electronic music., but also enjoys earthy, acoustic elements: she has participated in American fire-circle culture for nearly 2 decades, therein developing bellydance as a sacred movement form, used in ritual and for healing. In 2005, Sera was invited to India to teach movement as a form of healing and empowerment for young women who had been rescued from sexual abuse and other oppressive circumstances. Sera was a full-time Sculptor upon discovery of Bellydance, and has transferred from her medium of clay and metal into the body moving through space. Although she challenges dancers to find deeper expression in their movements, Sera is known for her hard-driving, highly technical classes. She believes one must first master their tool-set before putting it to use. Sera is a former core member of 3 internationally acclaimed dance companies: Bellyqueen, The Silk Road Dance Company, and Raqs Sahara. Sera's foundation of technique, form, and discipline was by means of her formal apprenticeship with Rachel Kay Brookmire (of DC's Sahara Dance). Read more about Sera's projects. |
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SashiSashi is an internationally recognized performer, instructor and choreographer based in Orange County, California. Sashi has been a student of dance for over twenty years and began studying African Haitian and West African dance while a student at San Francisco State University. In the years following, Sashi found Middle Eastern dance to be the style she was most drawn to as it spoke to her Semitic roots and aesthetic interests. She has studied many forms of Middle Eastern dance including American Tribal Style Bellydance, Tribal Fusion Bellydance, Gothic Bellydance, Egyptian and Lebanese Cabaret Bellydance, Israeli and Turkish Debke, Saidi, and Nubian Folkloric dances. She is most recognized for her alluring and dynamic performances of Gothic Tribal Fusion Bellydance and Improvisational Tribal Fusion Bellydance. Inspired by the “Spirit of the Dance”, Sashi views bellydance as the honoring of the divine feminine by creating spiritual and physical unions through movement. This is evident as her ability to cultivate the energy that the dance evokes is translated to each audience member with a look, a gesture, a presence that is unmistakably unique to Sashi. You can see her perform solo or in collaboration with internationally acclaimed performance troupes in many venues, settings and shows. Information on her upcoming performances, workshops, tour dates and collaborations can be found at Ascend Tribal Dance. |
MorganaBorn in Madrid (Spain) Degree in Digital Sound Post-Production. Dancer and Choreographer since 1994. Morgana began her martial arts training at the age of 7. She started training in modern and contemporary dance in 1991 and has studied a very wide variety of styles with some of the world's best teachers. Her background in Middle Eastern dance began in 1998. She opened her own school, “Nieblas de Avalón,” in Madrid in 2006. It is the pioneer school in tribal fusion and gothic style in Spain, and also the first school in the country offering 5 levels of “unofficial” Middle Eastern dance training (classical, tribal, fusion, gothic and advanced). Morgana has participated as a guest dancer in the Solace Live Tour 2007 (Madrid and Barcelona) and at GothlaUK 2008, 2009 in Leicester (UK), TribaGoth 2009 in Gothenburg (Sweden). From 2006 to the present, she has been a dancer and instructor at tribal fusion and gothic and martial arts style workshops and seminars throughout Spain and the rest of Europe (Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Greece, Portugal, the Czech Republic, Sweden, and Poland). She organised Gothla Spain in October 2010. |
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SabrinaSabrina has performed for the Royal Families of the Middle East as well as headlined in the nightclubs and restaurants of Los Angeles, Orange County and San Diego California. She has worked with many of the top Middle Eastern musicians is a featured belly dance performer and instructor on The Flying Carpet TV. She holds the honor of being the first Gothic Bellydance instructor to teach workshops in Vietnam. She is the author of "Energy and Extension for Belly Dancers: A Hypnotic Meditation", a first of its kind mental imagery tool for belly dance training. Sabrina tours Internationally, presenting specialty belly dance workshops and is the Belly Dance Professor at Cuyamaca and Grossmont Colleges. Her roots in the gothic community pre-date her involvement in the world of bellydance and she is thrilled at the high level of respect gothic bellydance is achieving in the dance world. Sabrina holds the titles of: Belly Dancer of the Universe Egyptian Champion, Belly Dancer of the Universe Egyptian People's Choice, Belly Dancer of the Universe Universal People's Choice, Belly Dancer of the Universe Universal 1st Runner Up, Arabesque Cabaret Soloist Champion, Queen of the Nile Champion and Beirut Nights Winner. Sabrina has a foundation in ballet, jazz, and modern dance. She began her dance training in Western Dance and has studied extensively under master instructors such as the legendary Donald McKayle (mentor to Alvin Ailey) and Bernard Johnson, dance star of theater, stage and screen. She has studied Middle Eastern Dance extensively and professionally under the masters Angelika Nemeth, Hallah Moustafa and countless master workshops. In addition to performing Middle Eastern Belly Dance, folkloric dance, jazz, ballet, modern, gothic belly dance and fusion belly dance, Sabrina has starred in numerous national television commercials, theater productions and has modeled for famous department stores. |
Jesse StanbridgeJesse fell in love with belly dance in 2000. She first studied ATS with the Syracuse, NY based World Tribal Belly Dance Troupe, Shezam! and has also had the pleasure to study with Carolena Nericcio of FatChanceBellyDance, Megha Gavin of Devyani Dance Company, Jill Parker and Rose Harden of Ultra Gypsy and many other internationally respected teachers. From this dance she has not only learned the grace and poise required of the tribal dancer, but has also discovered the pure joy of dancing intimately within a troupe. Since moving to London in 2005, Jesse has been a founding member of Atalanta Tribal Fusion and Moirai Tribal. She has also had the pleasure of playing hostess to some amazing tribal dancers including Ultra Gypsy, to dance alongside Helm and Phil Thornton and to share the stage with Carolena and Megha in Madrid, Spain. Currently, Jesse is honoured to be one-half of Moirai, a FatChanceBellyDance Sister Studio and a producer of FireWater - an evening solely and obsessively dedicated to showcasing ATS and Tribal Fusion belly dance. |
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Elin Kåven/Elyn - The Arctic Fairy“After 100 years in the deepest woods and the hidden tundras, a demented elf emerged dancing…” (Heike Humphreys) As well as being a music artist - Elyn is one of Norway’s best known Tribal Fusion dancers. She belongs to the nomadic Sami people who live north of the Arctic Circle. Her style is very much influenced by nature, and the mystical dark creatures in it, as well as the shamanic side of her culture. Her grand-grandfather was the most famous Sami shaman in Norway. Elyn has travelled a lot teaching and performing in Scandinavia since 2007. She started bellydancing in 2004. Since her first Tribal Fusion classes with Rachel Brice in Australia in 2005, she has sought teachers all over Europe from whom to learn.. She has studied intensively with Sharon Kihara and Samantha Emanuel, Beata and Horacio Cifuentes in Berlin this last year. Other teachers that had a huge impact on her are Morgana and Ariellah. She has performed at festivals, shows and TV in Scandinavia and has also performed at a number of festivals in England including Raqs Britannia, Tribal London, and of course, GothlaUK! She, along with Callisto and Dud Murmaand, is a key person in the Swedish and Danish version of Gothla. |
Bex PriestBex is a Dark Tribal Fusion and Gothic performer and instructor from the West Midlands. A lifelong member of the UK Goth Scene and ex-DJ for one of the country's top goth nights, Bex has been able to use her passion for exquisite clothing and alternative music to add a much spookier twist on Tribal Fusion Bellydance. Primarily a solo artist Bex travels the UK and has performed at many shows, events and festivals during the time she has been dancing. Bex is an instructor in both Tribal Fusion and Dark Fusion styles of dance and has taught many workshops alongside regular classes to sell-out audiences across England. Recently Bex has performed Internationally - travelling to the U.S to take her experiences to the next level. She has studied with a wide range of excellent artists both Nationally and Internationally including Ariellah, The Uzume, Samantha Emanuel and Sharon Kihara. Bex is well-known for her blend of creepy characterisation and strong Tribal Fusion technique. Her careful balance of personal musical interpretation and her instantly recognisable style has meant that she is known through much of the UK as quite a kooky personality! Notable performances to date for Bex have included Barefoot Festival, the Tribal Infusions Show (with special guest Sharon Kihara), Raqs Britannia 2010, The Asylum - Britain's premier Steampunk event, the Samantha Emanuel Showcase in Peebles, and The Bean Scene in California! Bex thinks Halloween should be celebrated every day...... :) |
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Christine, aka HRH Lucretia of RaqsmacabreChristine went to her first bellydance class over 15 years ago, and was lucky enough to have as her teacher Kay Taylor who runs Farida Dance - where Christine now works. Through her work with Farida, Christine has had many opportunities to study and observe this dance form all over the UK as well as in Egypt, Turkey and the States in San Francisco, where she and Kay danced with JimBoz at the Rakassa festival. Except you wouldn’t have recognised Christine and JimBoz as they were both inside Christine’s favourite dancer – The Great Desiree – an authentic Egyptian dancing horse who now lives and works in the UK, dancing with Farida, Christine and Tarab Dance Company. Desiree is also a bit of a goth and loves to raise money for animals, she danced and collected money at the Whitby Goth New Year weekend in 2006, in aid of local animal charities. Christine’s favourite authentic styles are Baladi and Saidi, especially stick. However her real love is mixing Arabic moves with alternative music and Arabic techno remixes. She teaches regular classes and has held fusion, goth and horror workshops at Ford Castle, Raqs Britannia, Belly dance Congress and JOY as well as many smaller events in the UK. Raqsmacabre started as a bit of a joke at a themed hafla where her troupe performed to Rob Zombie’s Living Dead Girls, since then she has been inundated with pleas to teach folks ‘the zombie dance’. Her other specialities are vampire, anything undead and feline fusion. A fan of goth since its early days – Sisters, Siouxsie, Cure, Bauhaus etc, a regular Whitby goth weekender for many years, and a lover of horror films, having appeared in two locally, this is a great opportunity to put together things she loves - dancing, music, performing, horror and of course – dressing up! Her style is based on Egyptian moves and technique and provides a lighthearted slant on dancing from the darkside. |
Beverley SpracklenBev Spracklen is a Yorkshire based teacher and performer who gravitated to the darker side of tribal in 2006. Due to the lack of a gothic tribal fusion scene in the north of England, Bev used her dance knowledge and own innovation to develop her own style. She teaches gothic in many guises and is particularly known for a very fluid fusion style and also her creation of avant-garde style goth rock combos in tribal group format. Bev founded Leeds-based gothic tribal fusion dance troupe Tanzhexen in 2009 who have gone from strength to strength, performing regularly on the circuit - including at Gothla UK open stage. Despite a busy solo schedule Bev still values the group tribal ethos and still performs with Four Hundred Roses tribal folk fusion troupe on a regular basis at folk and bellydance events across the north of England. Bev’s philosophy is that tribal fusion needn’t be the preserve of lifelong professional dancers, since it is possible to simplify dance and make it accessible to anyone who is at least prepared to put in a little bit of work. Bev enjoys the holistic, creative process of musical choice, choreography and costume making, especially as this process taps into the original spirit of goth culture, with its DIY fashion ethos and personal process of self-expression without commodification. |
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tree russell of Spiral Tribe Dance Companytree is the founder of Spiral Tribe Dance Company. She always had a vision for the direction for the dance company and troupe, an eclectic mix of her spiritual beliefs connecting with the energy of the dance. Troupe members are picked for their individual qualities and energy. tree choose the triple spiral as the logo to highlight the 3 stages of womanhood: maiden, mother and crone. tree's ethos is that any woman can dance, regardless of age, size and ability. She actively encourages this with in her teachings, helping to free the body of blockages, encouraging confidence to flow freely once more. The exploration of different experimental dance styles has always been an important element within the tribe, believing dance need to flow freely without restrictions and preconceptions. This way we always stay fresh and challenged to be the best we can at our art form tree has also been involved in the production of bespoke designs for the clothing and pagan products range, called 'the wicked fairy.' tree has now added her gothic/tribal and belly dance range:'children of the henge,' which will have one-off designs of costuming and jewelry. She makes bespoke costuming for the individual a service which will be online shortly at spiraltribedancecompany.co.uk blessings |
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Angela Wooi is Creative Director/ choreographer of The Brides of Dracula and Anaconda Bellydance, one of the UK'S most versatile dance troupes. Her dances tell stories, and her passion for oOriental dance and theatricality has driven her to push boundaries. Gothic dance has been a huge part of her life since 2007 when she produced /directed and choreographed the sell out show, The Bride of Dracula. Her unique sense of fun, love of the macabre and narrative in dance have entertained audiences throughtout the UK. She is currently working on a project which will be the UK's first Gothic Bellydance horror film, encompassing all her favourite things .... vampires, blood, Victoriana, hip isolations and Afternoon Tea!!!! An experienced instructor and performer, Angela will challenge and inspire you. |
Credit: Photography by Krystyna FitzGerald-Morris |
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Yvette Cowles Yvette Cowles was a founder member of Josephine Wise’s Masriat Dance Company and is now a soloist with Josephine's new London-based company, Johara. She has taught and performed bellydance for over 15 years and her background is in Egyptian style dance, although she now specialises in theatrical bellydance. She trains bellydance teachers on the JWAAD Foundation and Diploma Courses and very much enjoys working with them to improve their own technique and develop their own style, as well as to hone their teaching skills. Her real passion is for dance as a form of self-expression and she works with dancers from different dance disciplines to develop storytelling and theatrical skills in their performance. According to Kay Taylor, joint organizer of the 2009 Bellydance Congress and the annual festival at Ford Castle, ‘Yvette has a uniquely theatrical and expressive style thanks to her experience of a variety of different dance and art forms, including Bollywood, Burlesque, Theatre, Eccentric Dance – and even Clowning! Her workshops are massive fun, inspiring - and very informative.’ Yvette has performed and taught at a number of prestigious UK national events including the London Fantasia, the 2008 Bellydance Congress, several Farida Dance weekends at Ford Castle, the Jewels of the Nile show. She teaches regularly at the JWAAD Summer School. While living in South-West France, she taught regularly in Bordeaux and Marmande and performed as a soloist in La Nuit de la Danse Orientale at the Casino Municipal, Biarritz in 2004. |
Yolanda Yolanda is a bellydance and tribal instructor, performer, choreographer and ATS teacher certificated by Carolena Nericcio. She was one of the pioneers of tribal bellydance in Poland, and first artist who brought gothic bellydance for the Polish tribal scene. She began her dance adventure in 1996 with Irish dance company Comhlan. In 2004 Yolanda discovered bellydance and fell in love with this beautiful and emotional art. A year later she watched BDSS dvd presented at bellydance workshops and saw Rachel Brice, which was a turning point in her bellydance life. From that moment on she started travelling all over the world taking workshops with the oriental and tribal dance stars such as Rachel Brice, Ariellah, Beata & Horacio Cifuentes, Morgana, Sharon Kihara, Mira Betz, Raqia Hassan, Kami Liddle, Jamila and Suhaila Salimpour, Elizabeth Strong, Mardi Love, Orit Maftsir, and others. She also made her professional wish come true by spending a month in San Francisco, the capital of Tribal Bellydance, where she had an opportunity of taking private instructions from Zoe Jakes. Yolanda is truely dedicated to spreading tribal knowledge in Poland. She organizes the most important tribal events, festivals and workshops there, in cooperation with international dance community. She is also invited to perform abroad. |
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Carlos Moreno: Excalibur Dance Company Martial Arts: Dance: |
Javier Perez: Excalibur Dance Company National Aerobics Instructor, Official F.E.D.A. Trainer, National Funk and Aerobics Judge for the L.A.G., Reebok University Master Trainer (for their official program: step, funk & hip-hop, aerobics, cycling, etc.), Head of Studies and instructor for the F.I.D. Funk & Hip-Hop Instructor Training Course and Dance & Productions Group. Expert in self-defense and judo. |
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Antonio Rodriguez: Excalibur Dance Company Martial Arts: Dance: |
Go see videos of performers in action at Gothla.UK on YouTube.
