Middle Eastern dance competition


PRESS
RELEASE
For
immediate
release
FESTIVAL
ACCÈS
ASIE
Middle
Eastern
Dance
Competition
Saturday
May
16,
2015
9
:00
PM
(doors
open
at
8
:00
PM)
Sala
Rossa
4848,
Saint‐Laurent
Laurier
metro
station
$10
in
pre‐sale
$15
at
the
door
Montreal,
March
1st,
2015
‐
After
its
success
in
its
2014
edition,
Festival
Accès
Asie
is
once
again
pleased
to
present
the
Middle‐Eastern
Dance
Competition.
La
Sala
Rossa
will
welcome
this
flagship
event
featuring
sixteen
dancers
from
Montreal.
On
Saturday,
May
16
at
9:00
pm,
a
jury
of
three
professional
dancers
will
judge
solo
performances.
After
a
pre‐selection
of
candidates
who
responded
to
the
Festival’s
call
for
submissions,
sixteen
amateur
and
semi‐professional
dancers
were
chosen
to
perform
a
solo
oriental
dance
at
La
Sala
Rossa.
Six
dance
styles
will
be
presented:
Saidi,
Baladi,
Raqs
sharqi,
Shaabi,
Eskandarani
and
Khaleeji.
Performances
will
be
judged
according
to
specific
artistic
and
technical
criteria
by
three
renowned
professional
dancers
Khadija
Jabiry,
Pierre
Khoury
and
Florence
Leclerc.
The
jury
will
award
three
prizes
to
outstanding
dancers.
The
audience
will
also
have
a
say
as
they
vote
for
the
best
solo
performance
for
the
Audience
Choice
Award.
Last
year’s
winner,
Jacynthe
Longpré,
will
perform
during
the
jury’s
deliberation.
The
competition
will
be
presented
in
French
and
English
by
dancer
and
spokesperson
of
this
second
edition
of
the
competition,
Diane
Labelle.
In
what
is
sure
to
be
one
of
the
highlights
of
the
Festival,
you
are
invited
to
join
this
celebration
of
dance,
let
your
body
move
to
the
music
and
dance
the
night
away!
‐30‐
Event
presented
by
th
20 edition
of
Festival
Accès
Asie
st
th
May
1 to
24 ,
2015
www.accesasie.com
Media
relations
|
Amélie
Poirier‐Aubry
|
438.402.8963
|
[email protected]
©
Pierre
Filteau
©
Gilda
Boffa
©
Yves
Nadeau
©
Robert
Geoffrion
Khadija
Jabiry
‐
Teacher
and
choreographer
An
artist
of
Moroccan
origin,
Khadija
Jabiry
comes
from
a
family
where
dancing
and
singing
are
part
of
everyday
life.
Her
passion
for
Egyptian
dance
took
her
to
Egypt
to
learn
from
master
dancers
such
as
Mahmoud
Reda
and
Farouk
Mustafa.
In
Quebec,
Jabiry
established
Tywaline
(1999),
a
professional
Baladi
and
oriental
dance
troupe.
Tywaline
has
since
become
known
for
its
diverse
folkloric
repertoire.
Jabiry
teaches
North
African
dance
in
the
United
States
and
Canada,
and
is
a
member
of
the
Board
of
directors
of
the
Association
Québecoise
de
danse
orientale
(AQDO).
Pierre
Khoury
‐
Dancer
A
Montrealer
from
Syria,
Pierre
Khoury
has
established
a
prominent
position
for
himself
in
the
world
of
oriental
dance
in
Quebec
and
North
America.
Since
finishing
classical
oriental
dance
studies
with
Khadija
Jabiry,
he
has
been
working
as
a
dancer
and
choreographer.
He
performed
at
the
International
Bellydance
Conference
of
Canada
in
Toronto,
and
at
the
New
York
Theatrical
Bellydance
Conference
(2010).
Khoury
was
artistic
director
for
Bellydance
with
a
Twist
in
Montreal,
choreographer
for
several
local
artists
and
an
AQDO
solo
dance
medalist
(2013).
He
has
been
a
jury
member
on
many
occasions
for
Cégeps
en
Spectacle.
Diane
Labelle
‐
Dancer
and
teacher
Born
in
Montreal,
Diane
Labelle
(www.labellebaladi.com)
has
been
dancing
since
the
age
of
12
in
classical
ballet,
jazz
and
modern
dance.
In
2003,
she
expanded
her
repertoire
to
include
Baladi
which
she
continues
to
study
with
masters
of
this
art
form
from
Egypt,
Morocco
and
Montreal.
She
combines
Baladi
and
raqs
sharqi
with
classical
and
modern
dance
in
creating
her
own
unique
dance
style.
Florence
Leclerc
‐
Dancer
and
teacher
Florence
Leclerc
has
a
DCS
in
dancing
and
is
an
experienced
ballroom
dancer.
She
has
been
a
member
of
Denise
and
Ahmed
Enan’s
folkloric
group
and
the
professional
Oriental
Ballet
of
Canada,
which
has
been
awarded
gold
medals
from
AQDO
and
the
Bellydancer
of
the
World
Competition.
Leclerc
(www.florencedanse.com)
very
quickly
made
a
place
for
herself
in
the
oriental
dance
world.
She
has
won
national
and
international
oriental
dance
competitions
such
as
the
noted
Rakstar
(2014).
In
addition
to
dancing
in
a
number
of
productions,
she
has
her
own
amateur
troupe
Mesk
El
Leil.
She
is
currently
a
choreographer,
and
teaches
at
the
Louise
Lapierre
Dance
School.
Media
relations
|
Amélie
Poirier‐Aubry
|
438.402.8963
|
[email protected]