Introducing Raqqesat Soheir, a New Student Company

We’re thrilled to announce the launch of Raqqesat Soheir, our newest performance company! Raqqesat Soheir is an Advanced Level 2 company, offered to bridge the gap between the Advanced 1 and 3 curricula and provide additional advanced performance training as the overall levels of dancer technique has improved within the student body.

 

The student companies are thriving and performing at higher levels than ever before. This is fantastic! Dancers are developing within their companies, and the company levels needed to be recalibrated to match this accelerated improvement, as well as the recently revised curricula.

 

Raqqesat Soheir company membership is by invitation only through the company director (Chiaki), with minimum 80% live attendance required. As with all upper level dance companies, recommendations for membership come through other company directors and teachers. Chiaki and the team of Advanced curriculum teachers will collectively select students to begin the company with a small group. If you’ve not received an invitation and would like to express interest in this newest company we recommend the following steps:

 

  1. Review the Advanced Skills Level document on the curriculum page to self-assess your mastery of the Advanced movement repertoire
  2. Inquire with your current company director(s) and curriculum technique teacher(s) for informal feedback on your dance progression
  3. Participate in a full Technique Assessment for in depth feedback on your dance level from two teachers, and their recommendations on the best path for leveling up
Congratulations to all the teachers and students who’ve practiced so diligently. All of our companies are performing at higher levels, just as the level of artistry is rising within the international belly dance community.  We’re delighted to be able to create more opportunities for learning, artistic development, growth, and teamwork within Sahara Dance! I look forward to seeing more inspiration and creativity from our dance companies, and the newest expression of the dance from Raqqesat Soheir!
by Rachel

Rachel Kay Brookmire is the founder and director of Sahara Dance. Since 2000, she has taught belly dance to thousands of students throughout the Washington DC area. She is also the creator of Sahara Dance Foundations, an intensive program for training belly dance teachers.

Rachel specializes in Egyptian raqs sharqi for stage. She has performed extensively at theaters, embassies, weddings, and with live bands as a headliner in Arabic nightclubs. Her playful performance style is shimmy-rich and lyrical. She directs Raqs Sahara, Sahara Dance’s professional performance ensemble, and Raqs Caravan East, a student company in residence at Sahara Dance. Seeking to elevate and develop belly dance as a theater performance art, Rachel produces and directs several annual theater productions highlighting both traditional and experimental belly dance.

Recognized for her detailed, structured teaching approach, Rachel’s classes focus on community, quality movement execution, musicality, and individual expression. Her teaching style emphasizes postural alignment, contextual awareness of Arabic music and culture and a celebration of femininity. As a student of mindfulness practices and meditation, she seeks to integrate relaxation, body awareness and the cultivation of joyfulness into her dance offerings. Rachel is currently enrolled in Jack Kornfield & Tara Brach’s Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program.

Before launching a full time dance career, Rachel completed a two-year course of intensive training with Autumn Ward. She has also studied extensively with Yousry Sharif, Sahra Saeeda, Yasmina Ramzy, Hadia, Faten Salama, Aida Nour, Jillina and many other Egyptian dance masters. Shawkat Sayyed, Karim Nagi, George Sawa and Hicham El Anmari have each deeply influenced her understanding of Arab music. Rachel continues training and has traveled several times to Egypt and other Mediterranean and Arab countries. During her apprenticeship with Autumn Ward she was also a member of the Silk Road Dance Company. Prior to discovering Middle Eastern dance, Rachel practiced yoga and trained in modern and West African dance. She received her B.A. in Cultural Anthropology from Boston University and was a member of the Dance Theatre Group.

Learn more about Rachel and Sahara Dance through her interview on Belly Dance Life: How Performing on Stage Contributes To Your Personal Growth