Once upon a time, a boy named Steven was born in a little desert town in the middle of nowhere, called Ridgecrest. His connection with drama and the performing arts drew him reluctantly towards English country dancing in a Renaissance dance class. One day when he arrived early, he happened upon the magic of Tribal belly dance for the very first time. He knew right away that he was hooked. Studying doumbek rhythms to drum for Troupe Kandahar, he was eventually coaxed into dancing instead. In just three months of nurturing his natural ability, he was ready to perform with the troupe at Cairo Carnivale 2001. Powerful motivation drove him to every class, workshop, and festival performance possible, eventually leading him to branch off to form his own troupe – Isidis – and win the Ultimate Troupe Competition at Hips of Fury 2005.
His passion and confidence made him a perfect match for Atash Maya when he moved to San Diego in 2005. Here he has mastered brilliant fire performance, American Tribal Style, and fusing Tribal with dance forms as varied as Indian Classical, Hip-Hop, Jazz, Breakdance, Salsa, Modern, and Pop Locking. Steven is especially intuitive about connecting with students in classes and workshops, making sure they really grasp each lesson. His unconventional thinking shines through in his teaching, encouraging everyone to try a new perspective. Whether you study with him or see him perform, you will agree with those who have dubbed him otherworldly and “the most beautiful boy in bellydance”.
THE SLOW AND SUBTLE
This workshop will focus on slowing down and integrating the core to initiate those slow, gooey movements. The warm-up is yogalates based and will concentrate on core, balance, and strengthening exercises that will be applied to the dance form. In the workshop students will drill various slow movements focusing on the core and learn how making subtle changes to the simple movements translates to noticeable beauty. Students will also learn Steven’s Atash Mayan stylized gooey combinations that can be used in an improvisational situation or in choreography.