Full Weekend pass
The full weekend pass gives you all access for the entire weekend!
You'll be able to participate in all of the workshops and attend all the shows!
Lebanese Simon - Dabke Workshop
Friday, June 12th
5:30pm - 7:30pm - DABKE WORKSHOP
In this class, you will learn the history of the people who created this folk dance, the essence in the meaning behind each component that forms this folkloric dance: the footwork, the soulful upper body, the balance and lightness in transitions, the count, and the rhythm/melodies associated with it! We will drill and learn the basic six count and advance to slightly more intricate combo.
Lebanese Simon - Sharki Tech and Combos
Friday, June 12th
3:00pm - 5:00pm - SHARKI TECH AND COMBOS
To Circle the Baladi. This is a history rich class where simon will cover many stylised hip circles through the dance era dating back to the golden age. The Baladi is the Soul! Learning many styles of hip circles and combos to complement your Baladi vocab is essentials for dancers of all levels.
Workshop with Amel Tafsout
Saturday, June 13th
9:30am - 11:30am - NORTH AFRICAN SHIMMIES
Step into the pulse of North African dance, where movement becomes a living expression of culture, rhythm, and spirit. In this immersive class, Amel guides participants through a journey across the Maghreb, exploring the diverse shimmy traditions through North African communities from the Atlas Mountains to the Sahara. Students will learn the distinctive techniques and cultural roots behind each style: the hip shimmies of the Kabyle in Algeria, the chest-driven movements of the Ouled Naïl, the intricate Moroccan triplets, the grounded Hagallah shimmy of Libya, and the shoulder shimmies and hip movements of the Tuareg. Each carries centuries of history, storytelling, and emotion. Through focused instruction and short dance combinations, Amel helps participants embody these movements as both technical practice and cultural dialogue. The class blends education and embodiment, inviting dancers to connect with the music, traditions, and spirit that make North African dance a unique and powerful art form.
Thorn Trinity - Stalling the Slow
Sunday, June 14th
9:30am - 11:00am - STALLIING THE SLOW
One of the hardest challenges that a dancer faces is the lesson of slowing down. In this workshop, Thorn will give dancers strategies to create suspense without losing your audience’s attention. You’ll learn to create dramatic works of art that not only bring anticipation to your audience, but put you in the driver’s seat by commanding each movement and moment.
Join Thorn in the stillness as you milk your movements for all they’re worth.
Kaira- Silk Symphony - Advanced Veil Techniques
Sunday, June 14th
11:30am - 1:00pm - SILK SYMPHONY: ADVANCED VEIL TECHNIQUES
Join Kaira for a deep dive into advanced silk veil technique. You’ll discover how veil work fits into raqs sharqi and American Cabaret performances, get a breakdown of Kaira’s favorite high-impact moves, and finish with a short combo that brings it all together - fun, floaty, and full of wow-factor.
3:00pm - 5:00pm - SHARKI TECH AND COMBOS
To Circle the Baladi. This is a history rich class where simon will cover many stylised hip circles through the dance era dating back to the golden age. The Baladi is the Soul ! Learning many styles of hip circles and combos to complement your Baladi vocab is essentials for dancers of all levels.
5:30pm - 7:30pm - DABKE WORKSHOP
In this class, you will learn the history of the people who created this folk dance, the essence in the meaning behind each component that forms this folkloric dance: the footwork, the soulful upper body, the balance and lightness in transitions, the count, and the rhythm/melodies associated with it! We will drill and learn the basic six count and advance to slightly more intricate combo.
About Lebanese Simon
Lebanese Simon was born and raised in northern Lebanon. With a natural passion for cultural arts, he found himself drawn closer to dance. Simon has traveled internationally to teach, perform and share his passion for this art form. His style of Lebanese Folk Dabke is described as strong, captivating, and deeply heartfelt. Through raks Sharki dance, his first love, Simon reveals his personal creative approach and his passion. In workshops simon focuses on cultural importance, drilling combinations, technique and music components. Most importantly, he focuses on executing the moves yet staying emotionally connected to the melody and the story line. His versatility in dance has brought him
very close to the heart of a wide range of audience and followers around the world.
Since 2010, Simon has served as artistic director and manager for the Al Awtar Zaffa folklore group based in Houston, Texas. Settled in Houston, Simon organizes yearly cultural tours to Egypt and Lebanon; attend his workshops to learn more.
9:30am - 11:30am - NORTH AFRICAN SHIMMIES
Step into the pulse of North African dance, where movement becomes a living expression of culture, rhythm, and spirit. In this immersive class, Amel guides participants through a journey across the Maghreb, exploring the diverse shimmy traditions through North African communities from the Atlas Mountains to the Sahara.
Students will learn the distinctive techniques and cultural roots behind each style: the hip shimmies of the Kabyle in Algeria, the chest-driven movements of the Ouled Naïl, the intricate Moroccan triplets, the grounded Hagallah shimmy of Libya, and the shoulder shimmies and hip movements of the Tuareg. Each carries centuries of history, storytelling, and emotion.
Through focused instruction and short dance combinations, Amel helps participants embody these movements as both technical practice and cultural dialogue. The class blends education and embodiment, inviting dancers to connect with the music, traditions, and spirit that make North African dance a unique and powerful art form.
About Amel Tafsout
Born in Algeria, Amel Tafsout dances with memory in her bones and rhythm in her breath. A cultural bridge between North Africa and the Western world, Amel weaves dance, scholarship, and storytelling into a single tapestry of transformation. Her presence is magnetic, her knowledge profound, her spirit unwavering. Fluent in five languages, she lectures, teaches, performs, and researches across continents. A published author and poet, her writings on dance, culture, and the women of the Maghreb appear in both academic and popular publications.
Internationally celebrated as one of the foremost artists and scholars of North African Maghreb dance, her work transcends movement; it becomes poetry, resistance, and remembrance. Amel carries the lineage of her ancestors with reverence. Every step she takes is an offering, every gesture, a story reborn. Her art is a living archive of women’s strength, a song of survival and grace. Through her, tradition breathes anew.
9:30am - 11:00am - STALLIING THE SLOW
One of the hardest challenges that a dancer faces is the lesson of slowing down. In this workshop, Thorn will give dancers strategies to create suspense without losing your audience’s attention. You’ll learn to create dramatic works of art that not only bring anticipation to your audience, but put you in the driver’s seat by commanding each movement and moment.
Join Thorn in the stillness as you milk your movements for all they’re worth.
About Thorn Trinity
Thorn has been immersed in multiple styles of dance since her teenage years and is a lifelong devotee of all things dance. In 2019, she became a certified Datura Style®️ instructor after completing four years of intensive study under the mentorship of Rachel Brice in the 8 Elements™️ Programs. Thorn is now the Datura style instructor at Northwest Bellydance Academy, and a member of their professional ensemble, performing regionally throughout the Northwest and Canada. In 2025, she had back-to-back first place wins in the Fusion Professional categories at both Belly Dancer USA and The Wild Rose Competition. She looks forward to returning as a judge and gala performer at both these prestigious events.
11:30am - 1:00pm - SILK SYMPHONY: ADVANCED VEIL TECHNIQUES
Join Kaira for a deep dive into advanced silk veil technique. You’ll discover how veil work fits into raqs sharqi and American Cabaret performances, get a breakdown of Kaira’s favorite high-impact moves, and finish with a short combo that brings it all together - fun, floaty, and full of wow-factor.
About Kaira
Kaira is a bellydancer based in Northern California known for dynamic artistry, musicality, and a deep respect for the diverse roots of bellydance. A life-long student of movement, she has also trained in ballet, contemporary, ballroom, color guard, and other Western dance styles, alongside extensive study of Middle Eastern folkloric forms. She is an alumna of Jillina’s Bellydance Evolution and Amanda Rose’s Belly Lab, and she has studied with master instructors including Mohamed Ghareb, Zara of Cairo, Sara Al-Hadithi, Arielle of Cairo, Aziza Williams, and Aubre Hill.
She performs regularly at venues throughout the Bay Area and Sacramento, where her audience engagement and sense of humor shine alongside her technical skills. In addition to her performance work, she is a dedicated competitor who has finaled in several prestigious events before ultimately taking first place at Belly Dancer USA.
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All purchases are non-refundable and
non-transferrable. |
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