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Amanda ~ Dance Projects ...some of the projects keeping Amanda busy in dance.... Amanda offers classes in Bellydance and Near Eastern Dance
at Roundhill Studios in San Jose, CA. Classes
cover traditional Oriental and Folk Dance from the Near East, with
emphasis on rhythms and musical interpretation. Please find more
information on the Classes page. Amanda's Karavansaray Dance Company
made its
debut in July 2008. The performance repertoire brings together
wide-ranging cultural influences from
regions across the Near East: Turkey, Egypt, the Levant, Armenia,
North Africa, and more. Dancers
who wish to learn and perform these dances may join us in rehearsals on Monday nights - please visit the troupe page or contact Amanda for more information.
Since 2011, Amanda has hosted and/or participated in the ANAR DANA San Francisco Bay Area Training Project, under direction of international dance ethnologist and master teacher Helene Eriksen. In this project, participants choose seven dance styles -- ranging from North Africa to the Balkans to Central Asia -- and spend nine intensive weekends, spaced across several months, learning these styles in depth. Each Project culminates with a weekend of performances to present the styles the participants have learned. The first Project ended in April 2013, the second in May 2015, and the third in November 2016. Project #4 will hold its final recitals on June 9 and 10, 2018 in Hayward, CA. Project #5 is set to begin in October 2018 - details to come. Any interested dancers are welcome to attend the introductory weekends -- even if they don't wish to join the Project, as these weekends offer a wonderful "survey course" of dances from North Africa, the Middle East, the Balkans, Anatolia, the Caucasus, Iran, and Central Asia. During each Project, the general public is also welcome at associated Cultural Evenings with Helene, who presents a lecture with slides and videos on each of the regions the Project chooses to study. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Past Projects:
Known for its stunning costumes, energetic performances,
live music, and larger-than-life leaders, John Compton and Rita
"Rebaba" Alderucci, Northern California's renowned Hahbi'Ru Dance
Ensemble presented folkloric dances from throughout the Middle East.
Based in San Francisco,
Hahbi'Ru was a staple of Northern (and sometimes Southern) California
historical faires and busy at dance events throughout the state --
including the 2006 San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival.
Amanda became a member of Hahbi'Ru in 1999 and was often featured as a
solo
sword dancer in their shows. In 2012, Hahbi'Ru sadly had to say a final
farewell to
its beloved co-director John Compton, and the troupe honored his memory
with a series of farewell performances during 2013. Rita still teaches
classes and workshops in the Hahbi'Ru style, so the legacy
continues!
Amanda and Hala
opened Halanda Studio at 1062 Lincoln Avenue, San Jose, CA in May
2006. The studio was dedicated to offering a wide range
of dance styles and fitness techniques and hosted dance and musical
performances and parties for the whole community. In order to spend more time on her career and other projects, Amanda
opted to leave the business partnership at the end of 2013,
while fully supporting Hala as sole proprietor of Halanda Studio.
Amanda continued to teach at Halanda until its closing on March 31,
2017.
Based at Stanford University in Palo Alto, CA, Yore has become the premier Turkish folk dance troupe in Northern California.
Comprised mostly of Turkish natives and Turkish-Americans, Yore presents
authentic Turkish regional folk dances and performs throughout the Bay
Area, including at the 2004 San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival. Amanda was a member of Yore from 2003 to 2006, and has been an ardent fan of the group ever since.
Perhaps the only dance troupe in California dedicated primarily to presenting
dances of Algeria, including Kabyle (berber) and Ouled Nail styles. Founded by Janine Ryle and Jasmyn
Mabalatan in 2003. Dances frequently with Algerian/Kabyle Moh Alileche and
his Ensemble. Amanda performed with Danse Maghreb in 2005 and 2006.
Under direction of Vikashni, Naach
Duniya presented Bollywood-style dance representing many regions of
India. Amanda was a member
from 2006 through 2008. |