Home About Classes Gallery Videos Schedule Links Contact Booking Store
kabuki

Grace always loved to dance. She choreographed solo interpretive dances and began learning yoga at the age of three. Fred Astaire and Busby Berkeley's movies delighted her as a child, and she chose tap over ballet. In high school she was taught modern dances and choreography in the style of Martha Graham. College offered the opportunity for lessons in Afro-Haitian and West African dance.

Grace took her first belly dance lesson in 1990, but it wasn't till 1996 that the venerable Tatseena found her and provided the perfect learning environment. Grace studied under Tatseena until her relocation to Portland. The passion and originality attributed to Grace's work were coaxed into the open and nurtured by Tatseena's fantastic heart.

aya

Grace contributed to the troupes Good Vibrations, Four Elements, and Morada Raks, and continues to dance in the popular Dreams of Cleopatra show with her Bay Area dance sisters.

Until her move to Portland, Grace continued beginning belly dance lessons, in addition to advanced classes and workshops, so she would not lose sight of basic techniques. This also afforded time to study Tatseena's teaching style that so effectively encourages students to thrive. To keep her form and teaching skills honed, Grace studies and practices yoga in addition to her continuing dance studies. Some inspirational teachers Grace has studied with are Najia El Mouzayan, Bert Balladine, Natica Angilly, Amaya, Naheda, Jamilla Salimpour, Jamilla al Wahid, Malia DeFelice, & Dhyanis.

Grace is creating new stories, and teaching a new crop of deviant dancers at her weekly classes in Portland, and at workshops elsewhere. She also teaches an after-school program for the fabulous young people at the Renaissance Arts Academy in Portland, Oregon.

in the woods

Over the years, Grace formed a deep and silly kinship with her troupe-mates, but none more so than with the beautiful, talented, and unusual Qamar. They needed an outlet for their shared love of fables, dark sense of humor, and deep-seated urge to make puppets. Comedic acting, strange costumes, and body paint soon descended unmercifully into their belly dance community. Thank goodness, everyone laughed! Their collaboration was named Deviant Dance Temple. Continually questioned about what her dance style was, Grace finally decided to call all her work Deviant Dance. Qamar is busy with her new daughter, but she will dance deviantly again.

saved

Some Local Venues and Events Grace has danced for:

~ Portland Area ~
Portland Expo Center
Beautiful Pizza
Blue Dragonfly
Showcase Festival
Someday Lounge
Hipbone Studio
Woodstock Festival

~ Washington State ~
Moonraker

~ SF Bay Area ~
Belly Dance Fantasy Festival
TribalFest
Renaissance Fair
Desert Dance
Summer Caravan
Goddess Festival
Rakkasah
Tanjia
El Morrocco
Marrakech
San Leandro Cherry Festival
Mediterranean City
Blue Star

Some Musicians Grace has danced for:

Light Rain
Helm
Reda Darwish
Mary Ellen Donald
Walking Maqsoom
Tufan
Flowers of the Nile
Rajab Juma & Omar Tarek
Mediterranean Raqsband
Brothers of the Baladi
Krebsic Orkestar

postcard

Tatseena