Teachers

SYDNEY: Sarah Hamilton, Hilal Dance Diploma,
BA Dance Victorian College of the Arts, BAS Physiotherapy

Sarah is a graduate of the VCA where she trained in Contemporary and Classical dance  and was a dance teacher in the Melbourne community for several years. Sarah has  been a professional member of the international Hilal Dance School since 2000.  Sarah’s work in Hilal Dance includes performances at the Gallery of NSW & the National Art Gallery, performances & workshops at the Azeviche Percussion Festivals and the Steps in Time music festival. Sarah has presented two full  length dance programs in Sydney, Mizmar in 2007 and Imago in 2008. In 2010 she  directed Hilal Dance Australia performances at the Illawarra Folk Festival and at the National Folk Festival in Canberra. Sarah performed with the Hilal Dance Company’s Oscillations in the UK and Germany 2008 Tanzhous, Dusseldorf in 2009 and Casula Powerhouse Sydney in May 2009. Sarah currently facilitates the
training for Hilal Dance Professionals in Australia and gives workshops.

CANBERRA, Rachael Hilton, Hilal Dance Diploma
Certificate in Dance Teaching, QLD University of Technology.

Rachael studied dance teaching through Queensland University of Technology and has been teaching in Canberra for over a decade. Rachael began her training in Hilal  Dance in 1996, was invited to become an Associate of the Hilal Dance  organisation in 2003, joined the professional program in 2007 and was awarded  the Hilal Dance Diploma in 2010. Rachael coordinates, manages and participates in events throughout Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne, including workshops and performances presented by Suraya Hilal, Alessandro el Bascioni and Sarah Hamilton and continues her own training in the dance nationally and internationally. In addition to her Hilal Dance activities Rachael actively supports the Canberra dance community as a board member and volunteer for the Canberra Dance Theatre.  Rachael teaches weekly classes in the heart of Canberra and private classes can
be arranged upon request.

CANBERRA: Danielle Cook, Hilal Dance Professional Trainee
Danielle’s dance training has encompassed classical ballet, jazz and contemporary dance.
Danielle began studying Egyptian dance in 1993 and over the last 13 years has
specifically focused on Hilal Dance. Danielle continues her dance training by
working with Australian colleagues and by attending annual workshops with
master artist Suraya Hilal. Danielle teaches weekly classes in the city.

CANBERRA: Melissa Lee, Hilal Dance Professional Trainee

Melissa is a qualified Occupational Therapist based in Canberra and has worked for many
years in the area of mental health recovery. Melissa has studied a variety of
dance forms as well as the use of dance in therapy and has always been
passionate about dance, both as an art form and a medium for creative
expression. Melissa began Hilal Dance classes with Rachael Hilton in Canberra
in 2003. Since this time, regular classes with Rachael have been complemented
by workshops and training with Sarah Hamilton. Melissa has attended many of the
workshops offered by Suraya Hilal or Alessandro Bascioni in Australia since
2003 and attended Hilal Dance Week in Dusseldorf in 2005. Melissa was invited
to join the Hilal Dance professional course in 2008. Melissa assists with
training in Canberra and is particularly interested in the expressive potential
of Hilal Dance through choreography and improvisation. “Suraya Hilal has
created a framework and dance vocabulary that is easy to access as a beginner
but offers layers of complexity to explore. I have found many forms of dance to
be overly constrained by convention and taxing on the body but Hilal Dance
incorporates bodywork to train the body in an integrated flow of movement and
breathing that strengthens the body. Hilal Dance draws on beautiful traditions
and exciting contemporary ideas and I am inspired by the continual evolution of
the dance by Suraya and others.”

CANBERRA: Julie Hiscock, joined the professional trainees in Oct 2010.

MELBOURNE: Natalie Poole, Hilal Dance Professional Trainee, BA Bachelor Teaching, Grad Cert in Dance Therapy.

Natalie teaches weekly classes in Brunswick, Melbourne. She also teaches private classes for students wanting a sound introduction to Hilal Dance, or who would
like to intensify their learning. Natalie has danced since she was a young child in ballet and contemporary and showed a particular strength in national character dances including Spanish, Hungarian and Asian dances. “I really feel I have come full circle, expressing the earthiness and poise of Egyptian dance.” Natalie works as dance therapist with mothers and babies, and
supporting women through pregnancy and birth. She brings this knowledge and
curiosity for the body – its alignment, and the mind – its expression, into her
learning and teaching of Hilal dance. Natalie has taught dance in schools,
TAFEs and university and at several Melbourne dance studios. Natalie’s most
recent Hilal Dance performance was for the guests of the International Dance
Therapy Conference in Melbourne.

WOLLONGONG: Marianthe Loucataris, Hilal Dance Professional Trainee

Marianthe Loucataris is a multi instrumentalist, composer, percussionist and recording
artist who specialises in creating live and recorded work for dance, theatre,
film and multimedia works. Her dance training includes Egyptian Dance 1992-1994
with Helen Way, Kuchipudi (South Indian Classical) dance and rhythm-training,
performing and composing music for Nikki Shephard (1994-1998); movement
physical theatre 1988- 91. In 1999 Marianthe met Ibrahim el Minyawi and began
to focus on learning rhythm and drumming, receiving an Ian Potter Foundation
grant in 2001 to study with him in London. She has been training in Hilal Dance
with Sarah Hamilton in Sydney and at yearly workshops with Suraya Hilal since
2005. Sarah Hamilton (choreographer/dancer) and Marianthe (musician/dancer)
work together as Mozaic Dance Company and have created 2 programs, Mizmar
(2007) and Imago (2008). In 2009 Marianthe performed drum, piano and piano
accordion works live in a short season of Oscillations/Imago, performing with
Suraya Hilal and Sarah Hamilton in Sydney. She became a professional in May
2009 and is currently working towards obtaining her Hilal Dance Diploma. She is
currently teaching both the drum and dance in Wollongong Australia as well as
developing her song work (Mahri Autumn) and instrumental works. She believes
dance and music are vital cultural practices which maintain the health and well
being of individuals and communities. www.mariantheloucataris.com

NEWCASTLE: Megan Bakewell, Hilal Dance Professional Trainee

Megan has been studying Hilal Dance since 2000 attending both national and international workshops. Megan was invited to become a trainee in 2007. Megan holds weekly classes.