New York Performing
Artist Company presents:
Caravan to Cairo was
presented as part of the New York
International Fringe Festival in Manhattan during August 2003.
To read the Village Voice review, please
click here.
From the exotic lands of the Arabian Nights, Caravan To Cairo features the traditional folkloric and contemporary dances of the lands which stretch from the Magreb (the North African countries of Morocco and Tunisia) across the vastness of the Sahara (Egypt, Algeria) touching the richness of the Mediterranean coast (Lebanon, Jordan) to the Muscat (the Arabian Gulf of Saudi Arabia, Iran and Iraq).
Designed to bring cultural awareness of the dances and the music of North Africa and the Middle East to school and family audiences, Caravan to Cario offers a diversity of styles, rhythms, costumes and interactive dance workshops. It is choreographed and directed by Samara, one of today's finest international performers of Middle Eastern dance, and is performed by 4 professional Middle Eastern dancers. In addition to the dance pieces, Caravan To Cairo features a story-theater adaptation of a charming Arabic folktale. Interactive workshops and artist in residence programs are also available to schools.
Samara
began
dancing professionally in her teens, and has become one of the most
celebrated and sought after Arabic dancers of today. A protégé of the
late master Ibrahim Farrah, she performed with his internationally
acclaimed Near East Dance Group at Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the
Kennedy Center, New York’s Town Hall,
and the Spoleto Festival. In addition, she has performed with some of
the most famous singing stars of the Middle East. Samara was a 1998
inductee into the American Academy of Middle Eastern Dance Hall of Fame.
She is engaged regularly as a soloist in Middle Eastern nightclubs
and special events in New York City and throughout the US, and is a
popular seminar leader, conducting dance workshops across the US and
abroad. As special guest artist, she has performed in Mexico, the
Caribbean, Paris, London, China, West Africa, Jordan, Greece, Turkey,
Russia, and throughout the Middle East. 
Morgiana has performed
in New York City, at regional and
stock theaters throughout the US, in roles of all types of theater
ranging from classical drama to musical comedy. She
has worked as production assistant for several Broadway productions and
as artistic consultant for film star Anthony Quinn. As
a storyteller, she tours her one-person show of classical mythology, Ovid's
Metmorphoses, and has taken it to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in
Scotland. Her acclaimed story theater presentation of Ali Baba and the
Forty Thieves has been presented by Lincoln Center Institute in New York
City, other major art institutes in the US, and is currently presented
by Arts Horizon for school tours throughout the NY/NJ/CT tri-state area.
A long time student of Samara's, Morgiana dances at clubs and
special events in the NY/NJ/PA area. Her dance background also includes
training in Polynesian, tap and jazz. Additionally she has studied mime
and the Laban movement style. She has trained extensively in the
Shotokan style of karate with Master Sensei Masataka Mori.
Andrea performs a unique
interpretation of Middle Eastern dance, grounded strongly in the Arabic,
Turkish and North African traditions, and has been seen stateside at
cabarets, clubs and cultural events in New York City, Boston,
Providence, and Buffalo, and internationally in Germany, Sweden and
Puerto Rico. Andrea’s choreography, into which she infuses her studies
of butoh, flamenco, ballet, yoga and Odissi classical Indian dance, has
most recently been presented at New York's Town Hall, New York's Gene
Frankel Theatre, the Rhode Island Philharmonic, and Buffalo's Pfeiffer
Theatre. She has taught weekly dance classes since 1993, and has
performed Middle Eastern dance as a soloist and company member with
Elena Lentini's Caravanserai, Anahid Sofian & Dancers, Jehan Kamal’s
Ballet Exotiqa, Judy Myers' Davka!, Ghassan Fadlallah, the Yousry Sharif
Dance Ensemble, and Gamila el Masri's Benat Nessma. Andrea has been
making dance related films and videos since 1987. She holds a BA in
Studio Art and Art History from Georgetown University and an MA in
Painting from New York University.
Nina has an
extensive background in dance, studying tap, Korean folkdance and Tae
Kwan Do from childhood. She was awarded a two-year full time dance
scholarship from Clark Center for Performing Arts where she trained
intensively in Ballet, Jazz, Modern and Dunham (African) dance. She also
studied acting and performed in Equity musical stage productions such as
the King and I and appeared in several videos. Additionally, she
has studied Polynesian dance for many years, touring professionally with
three companies to Atlantic City casinos, museums and colleges as well
as at corporate functions for PepsiCo, Colgate Palmolive, Bristol Meyers
and People Magazine. Nina continues her studies in Hawaiian dance and
recently participated in master classes in Hawaii. Nina studies Middle
Eastern dance with Samara, and has performed at special events, in
theatrical productions and Middle Eastern restaurants in the New York
area.