Warda is a choreographer, instructor, and performer of oriental dance and folklore styles with 13 years of experience. She has organized over 15 international events and excursions to the Middle East, making her a key figure in Bulgaria's belly dance events. With performance experience in both Bulgaria and Egypt, she is deeply connected to Oriental culture, speaks Arabic, and offers workshops across the world. In 2017, Warda launched the international festival HEZZ YA WEZZ in Sofia. She established her dance school in 2018 and has taught and judged at various international festivals. In 2021 ..read more

Roula Said is a multifaceted artist of Palestinian heritage based in Toronto, Canada. She is a singer, dancer, musician, actor, and poet, renowned for her distinctive contributions to the world and fusion music scenes. As an Arabic musician, Roula sings and plays the qanun. One of her notable projects is "Om Laila: Bellydance for Body and Soul," a holistic system for bellydance instruction. After more than 30 years of teaching Middle Eastern dance, she has distilled her extensive experience into a suite of offerings rooted in tradition and focused on what she calls Embodied Soul Attunement. In ..read more

Sometimes it is beneficial to step aside, and dive into a different dance genre. Let’s discuss how exploring variety of dance forms can enrich and improve your belly dance. Show Notes to this episode: Follow Iana on Instagram, FB, and Youtube . Join the Iana Dance Club to have access to the Apsara Dream intensive mentioned in the episode. Details and training materials for the BDE castings are available at www.JoinBDE.com Find information on how you can support Ukraine and Ukrainian belly dancers HERE. Podcast: www.ianadance.com/podcast ..read more

André Elbing, a renowned belly dance photographer from Germany, developed an interest in oriental dance in 1989 when he began organizing and producing shows with his long-time friend, Shahrazad. As he started photographing these events, his passion evolved into a thriving business with an impressive collection of approximately 4.5 million photos to this date. André has collaborated with the most prominent stars in the world of oriental dance, both past and present. His work has been featured in numerous dance magazines, including Halima, Orient Magazine, Tanz Oriental, Bazar Oriental, Bastet ..read more

Pierre Khoury, a Syrian-Canadian male belly dancer from Montreal, is renowned for his expertise in Syrian/Lebanese Dabke, Raqs Sharqi, and Whirling. His talents have graced prestigious stages, including the Theatrical Bellydance Conference of New York and the International Bellydance Conference of Canada in Toronto. He recently was a guest master instructor in several venues including Hot Raqs and Cairo Shimmy Quake in California, and his workshops were acclaimed for the quality of their content. Beyond the realm of dance, Pierre brings his unique perspective as a psychology teacher at the Uni ..read more

Nath Keo is the artistic director and choreographer of the Sacred Centre Dance Company based in Victoria, B.C., Canada. Nath is a belly dancer who has performed in over 51 cities with more than 1,000 performances during his career. Along with releasing a few music albums, a book and instructional dance DVDs, his resume includes serving as a featured instructor and performer at the International Bellydance Conference of Canada, alongside the legendary Farida Fahmy, and as a judge at the World Bellydance Championship hosted in Seoul, South Korea. In this episode you will learn about: - Nath expe ..read more

This is a best of episode! You will hear a collection of tips and practices from the belly dance stars regarding their experience of creating fusion between belly dance and other dance genres. You will hear from Meher Malik, Anjelica Scannura, Soraia Zaied and Diana Gnatchenko. Check these full interviews with the podcast guests: Ep 27. Meher Malik: Fusion, Confusion and Female Objectification Ep 79. Anjelica Scannura: From Flamenco to Belly Dance to Stand-Up Comedy Ep 128. Soraia Zaied: Never Give Up On Your Dreams! Ep 200. Diana Gnatchenko: Life Before & After Show Notes to this episode ..read more

Heather (Henna) Louise is a performer, teacher, and life long student of Middle Eastern music and dance based in Portland, Oregon. After studying belly dance for five years, life took Heather to Asia where she began her performing career in the restaurant gig scene of Tokyo, Japan. Along with her dance partners, she worked with the live band Alladeen and co-founded the Tokyo International Bellydance Competition. Since returning to Portland in 2008, Heather has taught and performed at Jamballah NW Festival, The Hawaii Bellydance Convention, competed and placed in Bellydance of the Year Competit ..read more

In order to find emotional connection with Baladi, you need to understand its cultural environment, and typical archetypes that are often associated with Baladi women. Let’s dive into this topic in this solo episode with Iana! Show Notes to this episode: Follow Iana on Instagram, FB, and Youtube . Join the Iana Dance Club to have access to the Baladi intensive mentioned in the episode. Details and training materials for the BDE castings are available at www.JoinBDE.com Find information on how you can support Ukraine and Ukrainian belly dancers HERE. Podcast: www.ianadance.com/podcast ..read more

Randa Kamel is one of the most famous Egyptian dancers with her own unique style full of energy, as well as a teacher who has shared her knowledge with thousand of students all around the world. At the age of 15, she began studying folklore with the famous Reda group. After 7 years Randa transitioned into her solo career as a professional oriental dancer in Alexandria. Later moved on to Cairo, and quickly became a performer at the Meridien hotel, sharing the stage with legendary Fifi Abdou. Today Randa appears in weddings, parties and in the Nile Maxim cruise when she is in Egypt. Her own orch ..read more