about me
I started taking dance lessons in college. I took three semesters of non-credit bellydance classes. I was very fortunate to have a great teacher- Tamra Tahira (Tammie Rea). I was able to take two workshops with Angela Prato while I was in college as well!
After I graduated, I moved and took a dance class and a drumming (frame) class from Tahya.
I became even more involved in dancing when I moved to Florida in 2007. I took lessons from Na'ila (Sherry Coffey). She's great! The dance community in Florida is large and very active. Monthly Hafla's held at The House of Prime were one of my favorite activities. I also had the opportunity to choreograph and perform at the Day of the Arts Festival at Manatee Community College. It was around this time when I got my first chance to dance in Restaurants. I have danced at Zorba's Greek Restaurant and Bha! Bha! Persian Bistro.
I was lucky to live in a a great area for dancing as it's so close to Miami and has so many great teachers. I was fortunate enough to study with Ansuya through her dance certification workshops. I have completed all of her required workshops to earn her Elite Graduate Certificate in her style of dance.
During this time in Florida, I was also able to take a workshop from one of Ansuya's first teachers- Alexandra King. It was my first exposure to tribal and Turkish Rom. Shortly after this, I was able to attend a workshop instructed by Tamalyn Dallal!
Most recently, I was able to schedule and take a private class from Helena Vlahos and Ava Fleming when I visited Phoenix, AZ to see the Bellydance Superstars show- The Art of Bellydance.
I'm hoping to learn all about Tahitian sometime soon. I want to expand on Tribal and Indian. I never want to stop learning!
I'm new to the Gulf Coast region of Mississippi. I'm working on getting classes together and meeting the local dancers that are here. For information on upcoming classes, please visit
www.gulfcoastbellydance.com or email me at alyssa at gulfcoastbellydance dot com
