AMAR GAMAL
Queen Amar, born in Havana, Cuba began bellydancing at the age of 13 under the direction of Tamalyn Dallal. She won the double title of Ms. America and Ms. World in 1996, winner of Bellydance Breakbeats Competition 2002, and first runner up in the Ms. Egypt competition in Cairo, Egypt 2004. Amar is a principal dancer with the Bellydance Superstars and is co- founder and member of Bellyqueen. Her elegant and unique style has made her a sought after performer and instructor both in the U.S. and internationally. amar@bellyqueen.com

ANASMA
Half-Vietnamese and half-Tunisian with a dash of Turkish, Queen Anasma was born and raised in Paris, France. Her mixed origins led her to have a diversified background in dance (bellydance, modern jazz, hip hop, salsa, wushu, flamenco, tribal-fusion, kathak). She started belly dancing at the age of 14, with Sylvie Abdel Khalek. Anasma and Sylvie worked together for 7 years within the Turquoise Company in Paris, blending belly dance and hip hop, and developing an ethereal belly dance style. Then, Anasma worked with Leila Hassan, Mayodi and Souraya Baghdadi. Anasma also studied theater for 5 years with the successful director Chimel.

While pursuing her Business Management studies, Anasma performed in dance festivals, TV shows, and concerts before 3000 plus spectators. In 2001, she performed salsa at the Parisian Zenith for the Tribute to Tito Puente. In 2002, Anasma performed before the Cameronese President's wife in Yaounde, Cameroun. In 2003, she performed at the Grand Rex during the opening of the 'Night of the Ad Eaters' in Paris and Lille. In 2005, she trained a group of 11 dancers to perform at the Palais de Congres. In 2006, Anasma moved to New York City to join Bellyqueen and PURE ! Since then, she is performing, touring and teaching internationally (America, Europe).
anasma@bellyqueen.com | www.anasmadance.com

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ELISHEVA
Queen Elisheva is a 2nd generation bellydancer who started her studies as a young artist in Musical Theatre, Drama, and Dance. She began performing jazz, tap, modern and lyrical dance with a children's touring dance troupe located in NY's Catskill mountains for 7 years. She focused on modern dance intensively in Performing Arts H.S. under the direction of original ‘Alvin Ailey 2' Artistic Director Tyrone Aikens and other noted teachers, at NYSSSA, ADF, then went on to finish her dance studies at The Ohio State University where she earned her BFA degree in Dance Performance under the direction of Susan Hadley (Mark Morris Co.), Bebe Miller (Bebe Miller Co.), Rosalind Pierson (Charles Weidman Co.), and Karen Elliot (Merce Cunnigham Co.), all of whom are part of the many important teachers who have influenced her abilities and talent. It was during those years that she challenged her art with an extensive program that allowed her to master choreography and Dance Labanotation©, creative work such as lighting design and extensive music studies, and Movement Theories such as the Alexander Technique©, Pilates©, and Bartinieff Fundamentals©. At the age of 15, she began her professional bellydance career at Lincoln Center's Damrosh Park leading Serena Wilson's and Renate Wallasch's collaborative summer show. She now performs as member and as the Dance Captain of NYC's world-renoun bellydance company "Bellyqueen". Elisheva has studied under the likes of many acclaimed teachers, including Yousry Sharif, Sahra Seeda, Dalia Carella, Aziza (C.A.), Amir Taleb, Amar Gamal, Kaeshi Chai, and is Level 1 Certified in the Suhalia Salimpour format. Her passionate performances have allowed her to dance on stages with international powerhouses such as Oojami, and Elisheva's extensive dance training has given her opportunity to tour and perform at National Geographic's Performance Theatre and off-Broadway with Hip-Hop, Jazz and modern dance. Her talents have been featured on television series (FOX), news broadcasts, commercials, and award-winning Independent Films, as well as cabaret/dinner clubs all over the N.Y.C. and Long Island area for over 13 years. elishevadance.com | elisheva@bellyqueen.com

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KAESHI CHAI
Kaeshi Chai was born in Brunei and brought up in New Zealand and Australia. She co-founded the New York-based dance company Bellyqueen with Amar Gamal in 1998 and is its artistic director. In 2004, Kaeshi also co-founded PURE (Public Urban Ritual Experiment) [www.puredance.org], a healing dance and music community, which has rapidly spread into many branches all over the US and internationally. Kaeshi has performed and taught all over the world, including the US, Canada, Europe, Mexico, Carribean, Australia, South America and throughout Asia. In 2003-2004, she performed with the first professional touring bellydance company in the world, the Bellydance Superstars and held the position of dance captain for the 2004 US & Canadian Spring tour. She can be seen in the following DVDs: "American Bellydancer"; "Bellydance Jam" by Bellyqueen; "Live in Paris at the Folies Begere"; and "Crazed: The Bellydance". In her spare time, Kaeshi studies Mandarin, enjoys traveling, and drinking Soy Chai Lattes.. kaeshi@bellyqueen.com

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SANDRALIS
A professional bellydancer from the enchanted island of Puerto Rico, Queen Sandralis has over 10 years of diverse dance experience and training, which includes Ballet, Jazz, Modern, Improvisation, African, African-Caribbean, Salsa, and Merengue. Sandralis ' dance experience is versatile and her dynamic performances have captivated an array of audiences in the thriving travel and tourism industry throughout Puerto Rico. Beyond her extensive experience as a performer, Sandralis ' is also a highly regarded, charismatic and dedicated instructor who has taught with several dance companies in Puerto Rico including Oriental Dancers, Ballet Concierto de Puerto Rico and Hincapie. Sandralis has also developed and taught numerous classes and workshops through a wide range of school- and community-based dance programs in Puerto Rico and later Western New York, where she moved to pursue graduate studies in Modern Dance in 2004.  Sandralis has been the recipients of several recognitions for her bellydance performances including First Runner Up and Troupe of the Year in the 2001 Bellydancer of the Year Pageant.
sandralis@bellyqueen.com


back to the top | Queens | Princesses | Guest Dancers | Alumni

Introducing the new members of the Royal Family, the "Princesses" (Queens-in-Training.)

CARA WEST
Princess Cara developed a strong foundation in bellydance under the direction of Jane Archer and the Circle Dance Company, Aziza and Magidah of Portland Oregon. Since relocating to NYC in 2004, she has continued to study the many styles of bellydance including Cabaret, Egyptian, Tribal, Tribal Fusion and Folkloric with many world-renowned instructors. Cara is a former member of Mosaic Dance Theatre Company where she performed traditional dances from the Middle East and Mediterranean regions under the direction of Samara and Morgiana Celeste Varricchio. She was also a dancer in the 2006-2007 off-broadway theatrical dance production, “The Fisherman and The Djinni”. Cara has been performing with Bellyqueen Dance Theatre since 2006. She has toured with Bellyqueen in the U.S., Canada, throughout Europe and will be performing in several Japanese cities this spring. cara@bellyqueen.com

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CRISTINA RUBIO
Princess Cristina was born in Bogota, Colombia and started jazz and african dance lessons with Karim Noak at age 17. While studying photography and cinematography at a local college, she danced with local groups from Bogota. Cristina moved to NYC in 2002 and started bellydance lessons with Kaeshi and Jenna. They both inspired her to pursue dance more seriously.

In 2003 she returned to Colombia and continued studying bellydance with Mariu (Najla) and participated in a show called "Arabian Nights"; which helped to increase the interest for bellydance in Columbia. Around this same time, Cristina started to teach.

She returned to NY at the end of 2004 and studied under Tamalyn Dallal, Gamila El Masri, Dalia Carella, Mariano Parra and Kaeshi. In September 2005 she travelled to Istanbul with Folk tours (directed by Tayyar and Artemis Mourat), to learn Egyptian technique with Nourhan Sharif, and Turkish technique from Eva Cernik as well as native dancers from Turkey.

Cristina currently teaches at the Jyioty Yoga & Wellness Center located in Stamford - Connecticut and is trained in Reiki and reflexology. She wishes to combine dance and the healing arts to help women in the future. cristina@bellyqueen.com

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DARIYA
Of Russian descent, Princess Dariya is the youngest member of the Bellyqueen royal family. She has a background in ballet and studies Middle Eastern dance with Kaeshi. When Dariya is not bellydancing, she is busy completing a degree in physics and biochemistry.

dariya@bellyqueen.com

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IRINA AKULENKO
Princess Irina is a performer, teacher and choreographer with a wild imagination and a burning passion for the arts of all genres. Although she discovered Middle Eastern dance purely by chance, her interest in expression started at an early age and was channeled into ballet training, in addition to piano lessons, chorus and drawing. However, belly dance became her main addiction which she sustained by seeking instruction with numerous New York-based teachers. For the last 7 years, she explored both Egyptian Cabaret and American Tribal belly dance and now enjoys fusing these styles as well as everything in between. Today, Irina is a member of two professional dance companies - BellyQueen and Alchemy Dance Theater, and is dedicated to continuing her dance education, always looking for new ways to be inspired. She is also a member of Public Urban Ritual Experiment (P.U.R.E.) and enjoys collaborating with other local artists. Furthermore, Irina holds a Bachelors degree in Political Science, and has a strong interest in women's issues and visual arts.
irina@bellyqueen.com

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MALAYA
Of Filipino and Italian descent, Princess Malaya has been studying many styles of dance for over fifteen years including bellydance, tap, jazz, ballet, and Filipino folk dance. In addition to having performed in recitals, competitions, parades, cultural events, and weddings, Malaya has also been part of a major performance at Avery Fisher Hall, Lincoln Center and has appeared on the WB11 Morning News with Folkorico Filipino Dance Company of New York. Malaya discovered her love for bellydance under the instruction of Shoshana and continued her training under Kaeshi Chai. Malaya joined Bellyqueen in June 2008 and looks forward to sharing the beauty, power, and magic of bellydance with many audiences. Malaya also has a bachelor’s degree in English from Fordham University. malaya@bellyqueen.com

LENA MARTI
Princess Lena is of Italian and Puerto Rican descent and grew up in New York city. She has been dancing since she was 8 and she is trained in jazz, tap, hip hop and bellydance. She also has a degree in business management and is a personal trainer at Lucille Roberts. She has a deep passion for dance and wishes to consistantly grow and learn. lena@bellyqueen.com

Back to the top | Queens | Princesses | Alumni

SUSAN FRANKOVICH
Susan studied many different styles of dance, in addition to martial arts, as she was growing up.  She credits Arianne Monti, her former teacher and dance partner from Apsara Tribal Bellydance Ensemble, for her strong foundation in American Tribal Style.  Over the past several years she
has developed her own unique "tribal stylings" and has traveled the world as a Tribal Fusion Bellydance performer and teacher, most notably throughout the US and Croatia.  In 2002, she was coined "the biggest attraction on the Adriatic Coast," by Amsterdam's Elle Magazine in regards to her nightly gig at the famous Troubadour Live Jazz Cafe in Dubrovnik, Croatia.  During her time in NYC, Susan was a dancer in the original PURE (Public Urban Ritual Experiment) branch and co-founded Alchemy Dance Theater with Sarah J. Locke. In 2005, she joined Bellyqueen.  She is currently based in the San Francisco Bay Area and remains a long distance member of the company. Susan
has also begun working on an exciting new collaboration, The Barbary Coast
Shakedown, with solo artist Mira Betz and Jill Parker, Rose Harden, and
Sarah White from Ultra Gypsy. susan@bellyqueen.com | www.susanfrankovich.com

FAYZAH
Fayzah has had a life long love affair with dance. Her dance background includes training in Ballet, Jazz, Modern, Indian (Bharatnatyam), African, Capoeira, Argentine Tango, Fusion Dance, Fire Performance, and traditional Middle Eastern Dances (Bellydance). She has lived in Europe, California, the Caribbean, and Arizona. She fell in love with music from Egypt, North Africa, and Turkey, and studied many classical and folkloric styles, with many distinguished teachers.
Her travels throughout Egypt, gave her an added perspective, and cultural understanding. She is a diverse dancer who's repertoire includes Tribal-Fusion and Tango/Bellydance Fusion. Being a DJ, has
driven her adoration of beats, breaks, and a wide variety of music.
She has performed throughout the world and in the US. She is currently
based out of New York where she continues to study dance and music
from various parts of the world, perform and teach classes.
www.dancespiral.com


JENNA
Jenna helped to co-found Bellyqueen in 1998 and was an active member until July 2002. She now lives in Los Angeles, CA. www.beyondbellydance.com

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SERA
Sera joined Bellyqueen in May 2005 and was an active member until April 2006. www.seradance.com
Congratulations Sera on becoming a new Mom!

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