Jawaahir Company Biographies

Cassandra Shore (Cassandra) began performing Middle Eastern dance in 1975, and her intensity, musicality and technique quickly set her apart from the average performer. She has made over a dozen research trips to the Middle East, exploring virtually all North African countries as well as Turkey and Greece in her search for cultural understanding, authentic techniques, and inspiration. In addition, she has studied with the finest teachers and choreographers of Middle Eastern dance, including Mahmoud Reda, director of the Reda Group, Cairo, Egypt, and former Under Secretary of culture; Mohammed Khalil, director of the National Folklore Group of Egypt; Vivian Hamamjian, former member of the Caracalla Ballet, Beirut; Raqia Hassan, choreographer to Egypt's top dance stars and former member of the Reda Group; Ibrahim Farrah, director of the Near Eastern Ensemble, NYC, the first professional US performing company in Middle Eastern dance.

In 1978, Cassandra opened The Cassandra School, which now offers over 15 classes weekly in Minneapolis and St. Paul, from beginning to professional levels, in technique, choreography, performance skills, dance conditioning, and Arabic language and culture studies. She formed Jawaahir Dance Company in 1989 as a vehicle for her unique choreographic vision. Since then, Jawaahir has been recognized for its groundbreaking repertory of traditional, modern, and fusion works of Middle Eastern and contemporary dance.

Today, Cassandra is known as a master teacher, star performer, and creative artist in the field of Middle Eastern dance. Her work has been rewarded with grants, commissions, and awards. She offers workshops, concerts, and master classes worldwide, teaching and performing regularly in locations such as Finland, Great Britain, Germany, Austria, New Zealand, and throughout the United States and Canada.

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Peg Deppe (Leyla al-Qamar) first danced with Jawaahir from 1996-2000, then left the company to obtain a MS in textile history (with a focus on Medieval Egyptian embroidery). She is currently pursuing a PhD in dress ethnography University of Minnesota. A student of Cassandra's since 1988 and finding her passion for dance rejuvenated in Morocco, she returned to Jawaahir in 2007.

Eileen Goren (Risha) began her modern dance education at an early age, studying with former members of the Martha Graham Company and at the Graham School for over 10 years. She also has many years of training in ballet, jazz, tap, international folk dance, ballroom, and Savoy-style Lindy Hop. She discovered Middle Eastern dance in 1987, and joined Jawaahir at its inception in 1989. She has continued her study with Cassandra as well as with internationally recognized teachers. Eileen is a member of the Board of Jawaahir.

Shari Jeziorski has explored various dance forms since childhood including ballet, modern, Latin, and hip-hop. She joined Jawaahir in 2005 and teaches at The Cassandra School. Shari has a BA in Education and is currently working towards her masters degree in Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Sarah Jones-Larson (Toha) performed internationally as a child with Philadelphia's Ballet Des Jeunes and New York's Ecos De Espana. Locally, she performed with Zorongo Flamenco and Theatre de la Jeune Lune before joining Jawaahir in 1994. A student of Arabic and a voice-over artist, Sarah made her Arabic singing debut with the Georges Lammam Orchestra in Cassandra's solo show “Orientalia.” In May, 2007, Sarah returned to Jawaahir after a year in Philadelphia hosting a radio program on WJJZ (under the name, Salina Jones.) In Philadelphia, she danced with Habiba’s ensemble.

Theresa Kane began studying Middle Eastern dance in 1998 after attending a performance of "Shoma" and being struck by the beauty of the movements. She performs regularly as a soloist, teaches, and continues to study extensively with Cassandra as well as dance instructors from around the world. She joined Jawaahir in 2004.

Kathy McCurdy (Naima) studied ballet, jazz, tap, and modern before discovering Middle Eastern dance. She studied with Tara Auringer in Madison, WI and Dahlena in Chicago, IL before moving to Minneapolis to study with Cassandra. She is a founding member of Jawaahir, teaches at The Cassandra School, and is the general manager of Jawaahir.

Tina Nagy began studying Middle Eastern dance in 1995 and joined Jawaahir in 2000. Since then, she has also become a student of aerial/circus arts and looks for creative ways to integrate her passion for both. She performs regularly in the metro area.

Tina has taken her skill with a bull whip to New York and appeared on Late Night With Conan. She has been travelling around the country as half of The Great Throwdini.

Jenny Piper (Jemorah) began her dance career in ballet, contemporary, and pointe at the age of seven. During these years she learned from Frank Bourman, Loyce Houlton, Lise Houlton, Marcia Chapman, and Bonnie Mathis, and performed in Loyce Houlton’s Nutcracker Fantasy. She has studied Middle Eastern dance with teachers including Margo Abdo O’Dell and Cassandra Shore since 1995, becoming a member of Jawaahir in 2000. She now performs locally, tours with Jawaahir, and teaches at The Cassandra School in St. Paul.

Helen Voelker (Elena) has been a member of Jawaahir since 1990. She has performed with the Nancy Hauser Dance Company and the Continental Dance Theatre. Helen is a medical researcher at the University of Minnesota.

Tamara Borchardt (Samira) studied gymnastics as a child and performed regularly in musical theater productions throughout high school. While working as a street character at the Minnesota Renaissance Festival in 1993, a friend suggested she take belly dance lessons. She enjoys teaching dance to newcomers, singing, and commuting by bicycle year-round. Tamara became a Jawaahir apprentice in 2004.

Tatyana Butkova started studying Middle Eastern Dance with Tina Shokri while visiting her home city of Minsk, Belarus in 2002. In 2004 she started classes at The Cassandra School and fell in love with spectacular performances by Jawaahir Dance Company. Tatyana performs at the Guild of Oriental Dance Festivals, Pratt Haflas, and the Renaissance Festival.

Laura Crocker was lucky enough to wander into her first Middle Eastern dance class with Cassandra while studying linguistics at the University of Minnesota. She was immediately captivated by the music and movements of the dance, and found that the interplay between the two was her new favorite language. Laura has been involved in dance and music in many different ways since childhood. She began studying Middle Eastern dance in 2005 and became an apprentice with Jawaahir in 2007.

Nadilia Gomez started dance classes at the age of six. She has taken ballet, modern, folkloric, and Latin dance classes, as well as theater classes, from several instructors from around the world. She took her first Middle Eastern dance class in 2004 and became a Jawaahir apprentice in 2006.

Renee Szudy began studying under Cassandra in 1996 and became an apprentice with Jawaahir in 2006. She was drawn to Middle Eastern dance after attending the UN Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing, 1995) where she saw Arabic women perform social dances. She liked how they took their scarves off their heads and wrapped them around their hips in order to accent their movements; she was particularly inspired by their shimmies. Renee has a 12-year background in gymnastics. 

Heidi Waldron (Zahirah) began dancing with Nadia Sahar in Milwaukee, WI in 1995. Relocating to Minneapolis in 1998, she continued her studies at The Cassandra School and, in 2004, became a Jawaahir apprentice. Heidi currently performs at several Twin Cities restaurants and is an active member of the Guild of Oriental Dance. Her performance highlights include Milwaukee’s Symphony Ball and annual Arabian Fest.

Jenna Washnieski began studying Middle Eastern dance in 2003 at The Cassandra School. She never passes an opportunity to learn new types of dance and has dabbled in jazz, hip-hop and salsa. In addition to being an apprentice with Jawaahir, Jenna currently dances and plays trumpet with Le Cirque Rouge Cabaret.

Kay Hardy Campbell is a writer and musician with a long-time interest in the music and folk dance arts of the Gulf region. She learned the folk dances while an eight year resident in Saudi Arabia, and has been teaching American women the folk dances of the Gulf for thirty years. She co-founded and directs the Arabic Music Retreat at Mount Holyoke College. Kay has been on the Jawaahir board for 10 years.
 

Salah Abdel Fattah, Eileen Goren, Melanie Meyer, Eileen O'Shaughnessy

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