Do the Hula! ~Introduction to Hawaiian Hula for Belly Dancers
Saturday May 1, 2010 10am-noon
Naia will cover basic hula steps and movements. Hula is all about telling stories. Each movement has meanings. She will cover some hand motions and body movements that are essential to learn this dance form. With all the basic steps, Naia will do some hula exercises and teach a choreography for you to take the aloha home!
BIOGRAPHY: NAIA
Naia means Nay (reed flute) in classical Arabic. Just like the beautiful sound of the nay that captures every ones heart, Naia has been capturing audiences with her graceful and exciting dance styles.
Her Middle Eastern dance journey began in 1997 as a teenager in Japan, her native country. She soon moved to the United States and pursued her training with such noted instructors as Cassandra of Minneapolis and Willow Chang of Honolulu. Additionally, she has added to her expertise via workshops with renowned instructors such as Tito, Mahmoud Reda, Raqia Hassan, Aisha Ali, Jamila, Suhaila Salimpor, Eva Fleming, Sonia and Delilah. She received her dance instructor certification from Delilah’s VisionaryDanceSchool in Seattle, WA., USA
In 2004 she began her extensive studies of Middle Eastern rhythms and music with internationally acclaimed percussionist, instructor and dance coach, Souhail Kaspar, 2008 Grammy nominee. While on his 2009 Turkey tour, she received intensive training from him regarding the relationships between rhythms and dance as well as exposure to other Middle Eastern art forms. Naia currently assists Mr. Kaspar with his unique workshops, Egyptian Rhythm and Movement for Raqs al-Sharqi (often referred to as belly dance) and Drum Solos for Dancers.
Included amongst her many talents is her expertise in the dance form known as hula. Naia has received her training in Hawaii from the famous hula master, Kumu Blaine Kamalani Kia.
Her local and international performances include:
2002 Ecuador: Radio Luna Tango Event dance performance
2008 Honolulu, Hawaii: Shangri La and Ward’s Rafters dance performances
with Mr. Kaspar and Rachid Halihal, world class violinist
2009 Honolulu, Hawaii: Shangri-La and Arts at Mark’s Garage dance performances
with Mr. Kaspar and Afif Taian, world class oudist
2009 Mr. Kaspar’s Tokyo, Osaka, and KobeJapan tour as assistant dance teacher concert dance performer
From 2003 to present she has worked as an assistant dancer and interpreter for master Kumu Hula Blaine Kamalani Kia, a writer and translator for KUMU Magazine (a Japanese hula magazine), and dances and emcees for events in hotels, on cruise ships and other local and international venues.
She is currently based in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA.
This product was added to our catalog on Tuesday 19 January, 2010.
