Monica
Monica is a San Francisco based performer and instructor who has been studying Near Eastern dance since her teens,
with training in San Francisco, New York and Cairo. Monica has an extensive performance history that includes
improvisational solo work and award-winning choreographed troupe experience. Her dance style is based on both vintage
American belly dance, Egyptian raqs sharqi, and raqs baladi, with a foundation of solid folkloric roots from various regions in the Near East.
Monica currently lives, teaches, and performs in San Francisco, California.
Dance Education and Background
Monica is interested in and inspired by the folk dances that are at the root of raqs sharqi (Arabic for Eastern dance).
For over fifteen years, she has followed a disciplined study that includes modern
American and Egyptian belly dance as well as folkloric Arabic and North African dances.
She has trained in San Francisco, New York, and Cairo.
Monica began dancing professionally under the stage name Zakiyya in the early 1990's and was a house dancer
at many San Francisco Bay Area restaurants and clubs, including the El Morocco, Marrakech, and Amira. Today,
Monica has the honor of dancing at many Bay Area weddings, cultural festivals, and celebrations.
Company and Troupe Work
Monica was a principal dancer
in the award winning Ya Habibi from 1993 to 1996.
Monica then formed her own troupe in August of 1997. Raks Sahibat danced together until 2004, and were crowned Belly Dance Troupe of the Year in 2000.
Currently Monica performs with the collectively run, geographically chellnged trio Raqs Habibi.
Monica's Classes
In 2002, after teacher training and support from two of her primary instructors and mentors,
several successful Bay Area workshops,
and numerous requests from private students,
Monica began teaching group classes. Teaching dance has become a central part of Monica's dance career,
and she holds several weekly multi-level classes
in San Francisco.
A proponent of the value of a cross-disciplinary education, Monica has also pursued studies in several dance and fitness
related areas to
augment her dance expression and for the health and safety of her students.
Related Studies
While receiving her bachelor's degree in
Peace and Conflict Studies and Religious Studies from the University of
California at Berkeley, Monica
studied Arabic in the Near Eastern Studies department
for two years with Nabil
Abdelfattah. She continued her Arabic language study with intensive language classes in Cairo, Egypt and with weekly classes
at San Francisco's Pacific Arabic
Resources up until 2006.
In preparation for teaching dance,
she has also studied human anatomy and physiology at City College of San Francisco in
order to understand safe movement practices,
as well as to prevent injury. Monica holds a masters degree in TESOL from San Francisco State University, with a certificate adult education.
Monica has travelled to Cairo, Egypt three times to study dance, and has done extensive personal academic
research into the regions her
dances are inspired by.
Monica is also a flamenco dance student, and has studied Middle Eastern drumming
(on the darbouka/doumbek and the tar) with
Mary Ellen Donald and Susu Pampanin. She currently takes riqq classes with Faisal Zedan.
Current Activities
Monica continues to study the traditional dances
of the Near East and North Africa, as well as
modern movement influenced by the region, with local, national and international master instructors.
She takes weekly dance classes in a variety of styles, and maintains a daily dance practice.
Monica performs regularly at select private celebrations and parties as well as at most of the major Middle
Eastern Dance festivals on the west coast.
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