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Johara
Johara, which means Jewel in Arabic, is a passionate and innovative
dancer, choreographer and instructor in the Boston area. She has
performed professionally in Istanbul Turkey, Baiia Brazil, New
York City, and throughout New England. Besides club and restaurant
shows, she has performed at numerous university cultural events
and at festivals including the Cambridge River Festival, the opening
for the Boston Revels 2005 and 2006, and a 2-Day International
Folk Dance Festival in Inegol, Turkey before an audience of 5000.
She has been featured on “Fernando’s Hide-away”
(WBNN) a television program highlighting Boston’s top entertainment,
interviewed on several Turkish Television stations and written
about in the Boston Globe.
As the director, producer, and choreographer of Snakedance
Theater Company, she has produced four large-scale shows for
Boston stages: Celestial Bodies:2001 Belly Dance Odyssey; East
Meets West: Arabia American Style(2003); Gypsy in Cairio(2005);
and Fools For the Dance(2007). Her dance troupe has also performed
at numerous Universities, Belly Dance events,
and fundraisers. Some highlights include Visions of the Eas, Choreographed
by Katia Nordgren at Cresgee Theater MIT, the Stuart Street Theater
in Boston, and Fernando’s Hide-away, live Boston television
show.
Johara has also organized the Boston Annual
Belly Dance Awards which she began in 2004 as well as numerous
dance events including her Serpentine Nights series, a gala show
with dancer/choreographer AmirThaleb from Argentina and workshop
with famed dancer Clara Ramona of Spain. Her 2006 Awards featured
both Amar Gamal (Bellydance Superstars) and workshop and show
with Virginia Mendez of Miami. In addition, her events always
feature local talent from the Boston area.
In 2006 Johara joined the Mavi International Dance Company which
has further expanded her dance knowledge. Mavi has a diverse repertoire
combining folk movements from Turkish (Black Sea, chiftitelli,
Rom/Gyspy), Georgian, Russian, to name some along with elements
of ballet, modern, and jazz. Johara has been featured as a soloist
and troupe member in many prestigious events: International dance
festival in Inegol Turkey; Turkish festival at the Daily Center
in Chicago; Turkish festival in Patterson New Jersey; and at a
political event at the Hyatt Regency in New York City. In Boston
Johara and Mavi performed to the music of Turkish composer Mehmet
Sanliko at the prestigious Jordan Hall of New England Conservatory,
and Cresgee Hall of MIT.
Johara's diverse background in dance includes 15 years of study
in Middle Eastern dance (Egyptian and Turkish) along with five
of study in West African and several years of Afro-Caribbean and
Latin dance styles. Beyond folk dance, she has taken courses in
Modern, Jazz, Hip-Hop, Ballroom, and Pilates. Johara also has
a background in music. She studied Jazz vocals at Berklee College
of Music and holds an Associates degree in jazz and Contemporary
Music from the University of Maine at Augusta. World percussion
extensively influenced her studies as she recorded and performed
(congas/doumbek) with bands: Cosmos Factor, Ibrahima’s World
Beat, and Casablanca band. This diverse knowledge of music and
dance has enriched Johara in presenting exciting
shows and choreographies.
Johara is a compassionate and committed dance instructor and workshop
leader with over 11 years teaching experience. Johara holds a
Masters degree in Teaching English as a second language. In 2007,
she became a certified Yoga instructor in both Vinyasa flow and
Hatha styles. As a dance instructor, she has trained some of Boston's
top bellydancers and two of her students passed auditions to join
the Bellydance Superstars
International performing company produced by Miles Copeland. Many
of her students have performed in her professional theater productions,
Serpentine Nights events, and recitals. Her students were winners
in the 2004 and 2005 Boston Bellydance Awards. She is a full-time
instructor in the greater Boston area.
For
more information email Johara at johara@joharasnakedamce.com
or call 617.780.8890.
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