Spring Workshop in Kelowna 2025

Spring Workshop in Kelowna 2025

Workshop descriptions:

Saturday

Rahma – ‘Your LightYour Dance!’       Using the image of energy as light, we will explore ways that this can be used from the inside outward using exercises and techniques Rahma has developed for teaching her classes. Ending with a fun note, Drum solo choreography using body percussion!
Lynette – Ghawazee Sparkle and Turkish Curves  Explore the soul and vitality of Egyptian Ghawazee and Turkish dance. Two distinctive traditions of music and movement provide ideas and inspirations for your own improvisation and choreography.      .

Sunday

Lynette – Turkish Technique and Choreography   

Celebrate the passionate and dynamic music, movements, and spontaneity of Turkish Roman and Oryantal dance. Distinctive steps, gestures, and sinuous movements provide a base for ornamentation, layering, and dramatic expression in an Oryantal choreography.

Rahma – “Taxim (Taqsim) Balady AKA Balady Progression”       Building on what Rahma did 2 years ago, we will listen to and dance to different tracks to solidify the progression then explore some slightly out-of-the-box ways of dancing to it. We will apply some of the ideas from the Saturday workshop. This musical form works well for sword dance, so if that’s your thing, bring one along.


Notes on Lynette’s dance interests:

Lynette has studied Ghawazee dance since the 1980s with luminaries Aisha Ali, Jalilah, Khyriyya, and others, and through archival research. Her troupe Ghawazee choreographies have been staged in Vancouver theatres, Toronto (International Belly Dance Conference of Canada), Seattle (Mediterranean Fantasy Festival), Courtenay, Nanaimo, and many other BC venues. 
Lynette became entranced by Turkish Roman dance in the 1990s, and has developed a distinctive personal style for teaching and performing both Turkish Oryantal and Roman dance based on studies with Reyhan Tuzsuz, Gigi Dilsah, Artemis Mourat, Ferda Bayazit, Sema Yildiz, Ozgen, and others. 
In recent decades Lynette has led weekend dance intensives and 5 day retreats in spectacular locations eg. Dance Vallarta (Puerto Vallarta), DanceAway Mexico (La Manzanilla), Hollyhock Retreat Centre (Cortes Island), Oasis de la Dance – Studio Denise Enan (Quebec), Denman Island Dance Retreats, Smithers Dance Camp, and other BC locations (eg.Victoria, Tofino, Thetis Island, Quadra Island, Gabriola Island, Cumberland). She regularly presents classes and workshops on and around Vancouver Island.

Funkadelic Turkish Lounge 2014

Another amazing Turkish Lounge at The Abbey in  Cumberland!  Saturday Oct. 25, 7:30 pm  This time there will be just a few performances (including me, Edith Jacob and our host Cathy Stoyko), plus lots of music and dancing for everyone, with a funkadelic dance set by DJ StIzmir Smyrna and live music jamming to wrap… Read more…

Fall 2013 workshops with Lynette

Fall 2013 workshops with Lynette

Belly dance! in downtown Nanaimo Basics   Thursdays  Sept. 26, Oct. 3 & 10   *  Moves, music & dances of Egypt, Lebanon & Turkey. For beginners & a refresher for more experienced dancers Art & artistry   Thursdays starting October 17    *   All experience levels welcome – contemporary dance from the Middle East and exciting fusions.… Read more…

Dance Vallarta 2013

Dance Vallarta 2013

Five days of dance and sun in the Yoga Vallarta studio of Puerto Vallarta, February 5 – 9 2013. Thanks to my co-instructor Debra Shields of Saidi Sisters, the beautiful dancers who attended, Alma our studio host, and the restaurants that welcomed our evening dance parties!   See our Facebook site Dance Vallarta 2013 for… Read more…

Turkish Roman music/video

Music from my past workshops All cd’s listed here are available on Amazon.com, some through Chapters Indigo, and one from iTunes.  All of them are terrific! Performed by Turkish Roman (gypsy) musicians: Selim Sesler  – Road to Kesan: Turkish ROM & Regional Music Thrace       track: Tulum 5:01 Selim Sesler and Brenda MacCrimmon – Karsılama… Read more…

Vancouver Island Bellydance Showcase

Vancouver Island Bellydance Showcase

Saturday September 22, 2012 – Victoria-based OPA society celebrated the very best in our Island bellydance community!  Among the 6 mini-workshops, I taught a session on Turkish Roman dance.  I’ve listed some of my music resources and video inspirations in the Resources page “Turkish Roman workshop music and videos” Workshop Descriptions: 10am -‘Layering Drills for… Read more…

Penceresi yola karsi

Penceresi yola karsi

Her window faces the street”, presented in Belly for the Beast, Malaspina Theatre, Nanaimo BC. This structured improvisation explores the public and private feelings of a Turkish girl, set to the Turkish Roman music of Karsilama (with Selim Sesler & Brenda MacCrimmon). Read more…

Red Apple

Red Apple

Excerpt from Red Apple, presented in Errington, BC. This choreography was inspired by the resilience of Afghani village women.  The structured improvisation blends eastern and western traditions and contemporary dance styles to music by Ashkabad and Yuldiz Usmanova.   Read more…

Turkish music for dancers

Turkish music for dancers

Gypsies of Turkey with Ahmet Kusgoz Ve Arkadaslari Karsilema until you drop! This album is chock full of 9/8 rhythms played at different tempos (mostly fast), alternating with ciftitelli and other regional instrumentals. I regularly recommend this energetic and passionate album for dancers who want “real Turkish Rom” music, as it is readily available from… Read more…

Turkish dance workshops

Turkish dance workshops

Turkish Roma (gypsy) dance Celebrate the passionate and dynamic rhythms, movements, and spontaneity of Turkish Roman/Gypsy dance. Distinctive steps and sinuous movements will provide a base for exploring ornamentation, layering, and expression. Learn the meanings and role of gestures, experiment with a wide range of musical moods, and develop some powerful gypsy “attitude”.  Teaching level:… Read more…

Romani dance workshops

Romani dance workshops

Ghawazee Sparkle & Turkish Soul A short introduction to movement in two distinctive Roma styles. Strengthen your dance vocabulary, skills, and knowledge in a session contrasting the sinuous embellishments of Turkish dance styles with the quivers, shimmies and “earthquake tremors” of Egyptian Ghawazee dance. Read review. Teaching level: Multilevel (beginner through advanced) Length: 1 1/2 hours Read more…

Lynette Harper Workshop Review

Lynette Harper Workshop Review

  OPA! News, Victoria Spring 2008 by BOBBIE BARRY Lynette is the quintessential teacher. After 30 years of teaching and performing this art form, she knows her stuff! My first meeting and experience of Lynette Harper as a teacher was back in July 2003.  At that point I had been studying Middle Eastern belly dance… Read more…

Interview with Lynette Harper

Interview with Lynette Harper

Sahda,  June 2007 By NILA  What attracted you to bellydance, and made you stick to it? Dance is life! Returning home from a Middle East journey in 1976, I discovered the bellydance craze had hit Vancouver – and knew I’d become part of it. Sometimes I wonder if I would have stuck to Middle Eastern… Read more…