Sabah is a professional dance artist. Her dance career has ranged from performing in professional dance companies and folkloric troupes, to choreographing and educating new generations of dancers on the different styles of ballet and belly dance through classes, lecture demonstrations and workshops, both locally, nationally, and world-wide. In 2006, Sabah auditioned and was asked to join the Bellydance Superstars and became featured in her unique combination of belly dance en pointe. She also received the title Dance Master of BDSS. This comes from Sabah's 20 years of classical dance training mixed with her passion for belly dance. She is a former member of several prestigious dance companies including Momenta, Chicago's Festival Ballet Company, and the Alabama Ballet before discovering her passion for world dance and belly dance specifically. Besides her physical training, Sabah has a degree in cultural studies from Columbia College Chicago including a year of study abroad at the American University in Cairo. During that time she studied belly dance with master teachers of Egypt, performed in AUC's Folkloric Troupe, and as a solo raqs sharqi dancer for the Oberi Company. Sabah still travels regularly to North Africa and the Middle East to perform and study new trends and dance techniques. She has performed and traveled around Morocco in 2004, 2008 and 2009 performing at the largest theaters in Casablanca, Marrakech, and Rabat.
Saeed, a Moroccan native, comes from a long line of musicians and entertainers. By the age of 14, Saeed was the youngest member of Mamy, a popular wedding band Casablanca, Morocco which frequently appeared on Moroccan television. Saeed was also a member (1989-1997) of the Orchestra Nojoume, the house band at the Hyatt Regency, Morocco's top hotel. Saeed was soon asked to join the prestigious Moroccan folkloric band and dance troupe, Taitmatine, which performed in Morocco and toured around the United Arab Emirates, Portugal, Egypt, and the United States of America. For more information please visit www.sabahsaeed.com

Sabah and Saeed are combining their talents to share the experience of dancing to the beat of the live drum. In this workshop we will break down various North African (also know as the Maghreb) rhythmical patterns, basic steps, and unique stylizations. For the first half of this workshop we will work on warm-up and basic dance movements unique to the Maghreb. Learn how to clap along and use intricate footwork to follow the various layers of North African rhythms. We will also address different styles and regional dances focusing on Moroccan Shikhat and Tunisian Raqs Shaabi elements. In the second half of the workshop we will explore Chaabi "popular" and Rai "opinion" styles of modern North African music. Music by artists such as Cheb Memi and Cheb Khaled lead dancers to add world dance and fusion elements to their dance styles to reflect this eclectic music.