MEET OUR INSTRUCTORS | FOTN 2023
OMARIS
Omaris, "The Dominican Rose" will sweep you away with her Passion, Authentic Spirit, and Magical Technique. She is a Multi Award-Winning dancer, teaches all over the world, and is embraced in her local dance community. With almost two decades of Teaching and Performing, Omaris is loved by studios, students, and audiences alike. Internationally sought-after, Omaris has taught and performed in the USA, Puerto Rico, Mexico, South Korea, Brazil, Guadeloupe, Serbia, Japan, Italy, The Czech Republic, and of course in her home country, the Dominican Republic.
Omaris holds a BA in Advertising and a Technique Course Certification in Photography. She owns her own clothing line called RedButterfly by Omaris which consists of athleisure to empower and inspire women.
To watch her dance is not just a passive event; Omaris makes one feel. A true artist, Omaris is able to evoke from her audience the emotion she wants it to experience: passion, longing, pain, and joy. Omaris possesses a strong technical foundation to back up her artistry. Her classes are popular in that she fuses techniques with insights on showmanship that are priceless for any dancer. An often overlooked component of Omaris’ dance is her musicality. Her specialty is expressing the melodic lines in pieces seamlessly and with true feelings. Many say Omaris is Art in Motion.
ZHOR
Zhor, Began his studies of dance in classical ballet with accomplishments as a principle dancer for the Scottish American Ballet.
His journey into the world of Middle Eastern Belly Dance began in 1985 under the tutelage of a Turkish dance artist. Zhor continued as a Performance and workshop artist with 4 International tours. In 1992 he released his international video “Zhor’s Magical Tour of the Ancient Art of Bellydance” following performances with the Bindelstiff Circus, Belly Dance Superstars and numerous other performance showcases. Zhor left the performance stage to teach and work in 2002 after a near death experience and began dancing again and performing as dance has always been his one true passion in life. Zhor’s performances are legendarily known for his veil, flair, and vintage style.
Please visit guilfoildanceartscenter.com for more information about Ballet and Belly Dance classes, group classes, pre-professional training, and coaching from beginner, pre-professional, and professional dancers, workshops, and events.
SUSU PAMPANIN
Susu Pampanin is a dynamic percussionist of exceptional strength and sensitivity.
Daughter of prominent San Francisco belly dancer, Amina Goodyear, she was surrounded by Arabic music before she could walk or talk. At age 12, her mother suggested that she learn the drum and her obsession with drumming began. She studied under master drummers, Vince Delgado, George Dabai, Yousef Mustafa El Effendi, and Nagib Al Bahri; honing her skills by accompanying her mother’s dance classes, rehearsals, and performances with her dance troupe, the Aswan Dancers.
Having earned the respect of the Arab community, she performed regularly in various musical ensembles for celebrations such as Arab weddings, festivals, concerts, and cultural events. She continued performing and touring with other world music groups, which led to an invitation by Mickey Hart to perform with him on his Planet Drum tour.
Susu's talent and passion for percussion and rhythm enabled her to create an innovative style and sound, uniquely her own. In 1991, ‘Susu and The Cairo Cats, Dancing Drums, Live at the Giza Club’ was released. The recording featured her drum compositions and drum solos. Through this work, she became known internationally for her virtuosity in Arabic drumming.
Within the Bellydance community, she is especially recognized for her skills in collaborating with bellydancers and troupes, teaching and performing at many festivals and shows.
Her love of Arabic music, along with her quest to continue to improve her musical knowledge and drumming skills have inspired numerous trips to North Africa and the Middle East, over the years. In 2013, she went to Egypt to record, Nostalgia, Susu Pampanin, and the Cairo Cats with Safaa Farid. More recently, in January of 2020 she returned to Egypt to record with Reda Henkish on the collaborative release, Reda Henkesh Live with Susu Pampanin.
Currently, Susu enjoys performing in live concert venues while continuing to explore music theory and maqam through the study of melodic instruments, oud, and nay. She is working on an exciting new recording project and looks forward to releasing it in the near future.
ZIZI ZABANEH
ZiZi Zabaneh is the director of Fusion Gitana. She is an international instructor, performer, and choreographer, a professional dancer with over 28 years of experience.
Born in Bogota, Colombia of Lebanese descent.
ZiZi has provided entertainment for celebrities including Tom Arnold, Elizabeth Shue, Chris Evert, Alonzo Mourning, Dwyane Wade, Alan Thicke, and many more.
Her international performances and workshops include Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, Italy, Dubai, and Puerto Rico to name a few.
Currently, ZiZi teaches locally in Central Florida (Winter Park) and via Zoom. She teaches workshops nationally and internationally. She is the producer of Caravan of Dancers, the only Flamenco and Middle Eastern dance festival in the United States.
Precision, strength, and stamina characterize her dance style and make her a favorite amongst audiences of all ages.
GINA MARIE
Gina Marie is Founder and Director of Blue Lotus World Dance.
Gina is fluent in many genres including;
Rom Gypsy, Turkish, Tunisian, Folkloric, American Cabaret and more.
She loves to work with a variety of props such as cane, veil, candles, Isis wings, and her favorite, swords.
Gina is a certified FCBD® Instructor as created by Carolena Nericcio.
She is honored to be a sister studio to the originator of this enchanting dance style and has created many of her own dialects.
Gina provides a warm, supportive environment for her students to grow and learn. She has provided multiple, weekly classes since 2008. Gina and her troupes have performed at countless shows and events.
Gina produces an annual 3 day Bellydance festival, The Sweetheart Gala, in which she hosts many of the most sought-after master instructors in the world. She considers herself a forever student and loves to learn and grow alongside other dancers.
TERRIANNE GUTIERREZ
TerriAnne Gutierrez has been the featured performer at many prestigious San Francisco Clubs and restaurants, as well as performing frequently at Middle Eastern weddings and events. She has made several television appearances and had the honor of being asked by the San Francisco Egyptian community to dance for their Egyptian Consulate to the United States on his visit to San Francisco.
TerriAnne is the director of award-winning, international dance company, Troupe Joweh R.A.W. who has been voted, “Best Performing Dance Company”, (Sonoma County) for the last three years in a row and the producer of Sirens Fest and the owner of Sirens Studio in Sebastopol, CA.
She has been playing music since a young age and is accomplished on a number of instruments. She enjoys playing Deff and Riq with Susu Pampanin, and other musicians, and is well known for her Zill playing. She put out a book and DVD on the subject called, ZILL DRILLS.
KAMRAN AL KARIM
Kamran is a 26 year old performer, born in downtown Chicago to a family of entertainers and creatives. As a child Kam spent much of his time following in the footsteps of his father and aunt - a professional keyboard player and lead singer, and a theatre actress and cabaret singer/guitarist. Kam's mother also had a hand in his interest in world music and dance with her experience as a foreign-language teacher. Between participating in performances and expanding his vocabulary with his mother, Kamran began to take interest in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean Art Forms, studying the greats of BellyDance and Egyptian Golden Era Film on YouTube into the night, and learning the basics of Theatre, Chorus, Band & Orchestra, Set and Costume Design during the day.
In 2017, Kamran began work at Chicago's most popular Middle Eastern Hookah/Dinner/Show venue, Alhambra Palace. Kamran fell in love with the Moorish style of the building and the rich Mediterranean cultures represented by the guests. Kam was able to begin studying with the esteemed Chicago dancer Surayah and her troupe of student dancers, and was shortly invited to join the troupe. Over the next several years, Kamran was able to immerse himself daily in MidEastern tradition and music until he eventually found himself not only managing the restaurant, but having been placed in charge of Alhambra's troupe of dancers. Kamran continued until late 2019, when closures and job inconsistencies drove Kam and his family to move south to sunny Jacksonville, Florida.
Since then, Kamran has joined the ranks of Florida's working belly dancers, as well as offering bi-monthly workshops and weekend shows at The Casbah Cafe, the first and only venue so far in Jacksonville to book a male belly dancer. Kamran extends a huge thank you to Firestorm Productions Inc.'s executive producers Dr. Melinda Patrick Cowen and Vann Patacxil for hosting him at Festival on the Nile International and looks forward to a future of representing male belly dancers and the beauty that Middle Eastern culture has to offer.
FADI EL-SABEH
Born in Beirut, Lebanon Moved to Miami in 2008.
Has been performing in Belly Dance Shows, and live music events accompanying Tony Tahan for 12 years. Fadi El-Sabeh, drummer and musician. Experience the dynamic power of the dumbek that drives Middle Eastern music.
