Tiraz Middle Eastern Dance Network is thrilled to name Suzana Nour as the 2011 Aliya Quinn Middle Eastern Dance Scholarship winner. 

The Aliya Quinn Middle Eastern Scholarship was created in 2008 to memorialize Janet “Aliya” Quinn.  Aliya was a lovely and talented dancer in the DC area who was a fast friend of Tiraz, as she was to many in the dance community.  She was our first Holiday Hafla headliner and she performed and vended at our first convention.  We were happy to have such an enthusiastic member, and even happier when we learned that she was not only a gift to Tiraz, but to the community as a whole.  After she passed away, we learned even more about what an amazing lady Aliya was.  She had a big heart and was always there when she was needed.  She was compassionate and caring, helpful and energetic, and very encouraging and giving.  The scholarship is funded by George Quinn, Tiraz, and anonymous donors.  The 2011 amount was the largest ever at $500. 

The award is based upon essay questions that focus on the applicants’ contributions to the dance community and their actions as a role model.  The essays are scored anonymously then the scores are collected and added together to find the winner.  This is not a dance contest and any member of the dance community, whether a beginner or a professional, may be nominated.

Suzana’s main regular teachers in recent years have been Faten Salama (Egyptian folkloric and oriental, dance pedagogy), Latifa (Egyptian, Gulf women's dance, performance dynamics, expression), and Shems (Egyptian and pan-Arabic technique, stagecraft, expression, musicality). In addition, she has spent nearly 200 hours to date in intensive workshops and private lessons with Sahra Kent (Sahra Saeeda), whom she considers a mentor.

When asked about her activities in the dance community, Suzana replied:

I have worked as a volunteer in all aspects of theatrical production over the years, in both benefit shows (for refugees in Sudan, Roma charities, women's shelters, and cancer research, among other causes) and for-profit ventures (Saffron Dance, Raqs America, and others). This work has ranged from stage-managing to wardrobe-wrangling, from writing program notes to running sound, from hanging lights to sweeping the stage, and from choreographing to – of course – dancing. I have been the videographer, the poster-hanger, the set dresser, the lunch lady, and the backstage runner. I have mentored newer troupemates and other dancers on performance makeup, costuming, business ethics, and many other aspects of professionalism. I have run rehearsals, tutored new troupe members on choreographies, costumed them, and helped integrate them into existing dances and troupe dynamics. With various local dance companies, I have organized and participated in cultural presentations at school and community events such as Adams-Morgan Day, Clarendon Day, and Art on the Avenue. I have also organized swap meets and video nights for friends and classmates and arranged road trips to faraway workshops with master teachers. I've also held many hands, given many hugs, pinned countless costumes, and helped soothe a lot of pre-performance nerves.

I do my best to be the kind of colleague and classmate I want to have. I don't pretend that I succeed at this 100% of the time, but it's important to me to keep that ideal in mind as a guiding principle. This means maintaining a positive attitude toward others and toward the hard work that goes into good dancing; refusing to participate in malicious gossip or spread damaging rumors; being honest about both the good and the bad, but not using "telling it like it is" as an excuse for cruelty; anticipating the needs of others, whether for a pep talk, a movement breakdown, or a safety pin; and being ready and willing to help out with both the glamorous and the not-so-glamorous aspects of running a studio, a workshop, or a show.

More personally, as a dancer who is not among the very youngest or slimmest, I often find myself in conversation with others who are interested in beginning or advancing in the dance but are hesitant or fearful because of their shape, size, or age. Early on, I didn't know quite how to respond when a larger lady would approach after a show, looking shy, to tell me how "brave" I was to put on a costume, get up on that stage, and put my full-figured self on show. I felt defensive about it and a little hurt, as if by focusing on my figure she had missed the point of my performance.

Years later, I welcome those approaches, because it's an opportunity to talk not about myself and my body, but about how dancing is for everybody. I talk about how our art form comes from the social dances of the Middle East, where everybody from the little boys and girls to the grandmas and grandpas will get up and move just for the joy of movement, not in a costume, not on a stage, but just to do it. I tell her that at its heart, this is a dance of joy.

When I model that joy and that freedom and talk about it afterwards, I feel it's one little push back against all the voices telling us that what's important is not what we are able to do, but how we look doing it. I'm telling that lady – and more importantly, showing her – that getting up and moving is much more rewarding and better for you than letting shame and anxiety and inhibition keep you sitting on your couch. I'm very proud of that.

Tiraz Dance Network is proud to claim Suzana Nour as a member and the 2011 Aliya Quinn Middle Eastern Dance Scholarship winner.
                                                                                                  Aliya Quinn, Holiday Hafla, 2007

Tiraz Dance Network News

Greetings! 

We are happy to announce that the 5th Annual Tiraz Dance Network Convention was a huge success! We had over one hundred people in attendance this year with several new members joining us from as far as West Virginia. This was one of our largest conventions and we could not have done this without the support of our members.

One big highlight of the event was the change in entertainment. This year we added many more dancing opportunities for a much longer show. Next year we plan to be even bigger! More dancing! More shopping! More fun!

On the stage was some of our local favorites, Miramar and the Palace Pearls performed a folkloric routine, and the ever so lovely Amustela perform a classic veil and drum solo routine.  She surprised us all when she came off the stage and danced through the crowd! 

Washington DC's own Tribal Fusion gem, Belladonna, perform a darkly dramatic double sword routine and Alay'nya graced the stage with a veil performance fitting for her new book: Unveiling, an Inner Journey.

We also saw some great performances from Francesca, Zarifa, Faerima and new to the dance scene, Susan!  They performed the styles of American Cabaret, Egyptian and Turkish belly dance.

There were three troupes performing this year. Masmoudi performed an American Tribal Style duet while Whirling Skirts graced the stage with four of their ATS advanced level students. A delightful twist was added when Masmoudi joined in for group zilling with Whirling Skirts.  Diva Hips, a student ensemble directed by Ravena performed a very graceful veil routine.

As always, we were thrilled to have The Fitness Pharaoh, Shimmy Sista, Cleopatra’s Closet, and Mima back as our yearly supporting vendors!

Our new vendors this year were The Sands of Time and Scheherazade’s Imports as well as representatives from Born 2 Dance and Sahara Dance studios.

This year was the last year of vending for Ravena Designs.  She had some excellent close-out sales and we will miss her store.  However, Ravena is gearing up for a very successful year focusing on other exciting areas of dance.

Our beautiful Turkish style belly dancer, Zarifa, was on hand for henna tattoos. Upstairs in the loft we had Joshua and Carrie Hoover of JM Hoover Photography offering professional portfolio shots for dancers at a convention-only price! If you managed to get your photos done, you got a great bargain and fantastic photos! If you missed out and still want to get in touch with him, please visit our resources page.

Tiraz would like to thank all of our vendors for their time at the convention as well as the generous door prizes!

We were very happy to have our newest board member, Kelly Armstrong, at the convention.  Kelly brings years of business and marketing experience to Tiraz. Besides belly dancing, Kelly is also a certified yoga instructor. 

Tiraz is already planning the 6th convention.  Look out for more exciting news coming soon from Tiraz!

pictured from left to right: Sandra, Ravena, Kelly, Ellen, Ayperi

                                                                                       Ravena         Johara        Najlah      Sandra

Tiraz Dance Network, a Middle Eastern Dance Collaborative, announced the third winner of the annual “Aliya Quinn Middle Eastern Dance Scholarship” on December 6, 2010.

The $350 dance scholarship for the Tiraz member who best embodies the qualities that Aliya was well known for was awarded to Najlah, aka Keely Fahoum.

Janet “Aliya” Quinn was a performer, instructor and Tiraz charter member and was the featured performer at the Tiraz 2007 Holiday Hafla and the Tiraz Convention in 2008.

The scholarship was created in her memory to honor her and to reward and encourage Tiraz members who possess:

* A professional attitude and commitment to Raks Sharqi while welcoming innovations.

* A generosity of spirit, genuine warmth and the desire to encourage others.

* A willingness to learn, try new techniques, and to explore new genres.

Najlah, one of nominees for the award, was honored at the end of the Tiraz 2010 Holiday Hafla at the Mediterrean Breeze Restaurant in Ashburn, Virginia.

Some highlights of her application include:

*Najlah has tried hard to become a “dance ambassador,”-- to share and educate audiences and prospective students about Middle Eastern dance.

* Najlah is a student of the Middle East, having studied the region academically (Master of Arts in Middle East studies and Arabic language) and also learning the dances of the region which has brought a different and richer dimension to her knowledge of the region.

* Najlah is passionate about sharing her love of the Middle East through dance and treasures the fact that dance is one of several areas that builds bridges between cultures.