SHAMSI (CHARLIE PETTUS)

Shamsi www.shamsidances.com is a professional dancer with a varied background in Middle Eastern, North African and Turkish dance, Bharatanataym, Yoga and Tai Chi. In addition to being a Certified Teacher of Dancemeditation, Shamsi is also a level III Reiki practitioner. Owner and co-founder of BayouShimmy dance studio in Baton Rouge, LA she offers classes in Dancemeditation, Bellydance and general fitness. Shamsi's teaching is guided by a desire to make beautiful, healing movement accessible and possible for everyone. By cultivating constant, subtle awareness, Dancemeditation reaches in and wakes our sleeping inner Beauty. Shamsi brings these dynamic principals to her teaching.

NOURA (KAYE BUHLER)

Noura saw her first bellydancer in Denver, CO over 10 years before she began taking lessons. Noura began studying Middle Eastern dance in 1998 under Belita Karima and Zahara Kasmir, attending two classes a week. Noura flew fast and furiously from zero to nearly professional by attending workshops with Mesmera, Morocco, Suzanna Del Vecchio and Shareen El Safy (just to name a few) within the first two years of dancing. Noura and Shamsi began teaching together in the summer of 2000. Noura has never stopped learning, continuing to take workshops throughout the U.S. and even traveling once to Africa with Mesmera. Noura is a licenced massage therapist and a former student of Tai Chi, both of which allow her a unique perspective on the body and how to teach movement. Noura’s skill and poise with sword and her smooth polished Egyptian style of dance make her a joy to watch.

KATE JENSEN

Kate has always had a love for dance and music. She studied ballet in her youth with the Baton Rouge Ballet Workshop. As an adult she decided to try out tribal bellydance at a friend's suggestion. Now a co-director of Indudala Tribe, Kate has had many teachers and instructors including: N.O.Madic Tribal, Megha Gavin, Rachel Brice, and Darshan.

Kate has found that dance is a top priority of hers and wants to share the fun and interest of ATS (American Tribal Style) and its many incarnations with others. Although her dance is founded mainly in the ATS-format, she enjoys experimenting with other styles and incorporating them into her ATS repertoire.

SHELLY PLAISANCE

Shelly began playing music over 30 years ago in his school band. The consummate fusionist, Shelly's life has led him to study as much as possible about every style of music that has crossed his path so that he can have a clear understanding of what it is he's twisting out of shape. From heavy metal to western swing, African poly-rhythms to traditional Arabic music, Shelly embraces it all. As a teacher of percussion for the last ten years, Shelly has worked with adults and small children alike, helping every group and individual to achieve a better sense of rhythm, timing and musical awareness. Shelly's methods speak to everyone, allowing new perspectives on a subject that may have previously seemed out of reach for many. Born and raised in South Louisiana, Shelly's heart and soul live in music. Living on River Road, just across the street from the Mississippi River, Shelly draws on his every day life for musical inspiration, combining the sounds of nature and industry to create his unique fusions. When he's not playing music, Shelly is thinking about guitars or how to make music. When he's not thinking about guitars or music, it's because he's playing with swords in his back yard or riding dirt bikes along the levee of the Mississippi River. Shelly has self-produced two albums in the last 3 years, "Beyond the Levee" a Darkest Heart project and "Gulf Coast Bellydance" a Blue Lotus Society project. Both are available through CDBaby and online at www.darkestheart.com and www.bluelotussociety.com

Margo Brault-Shihadeh (Zena)

Has 25 years experience with Middle Eastern dancing. She took her first Belly dancing classes with Joy-Al in Canada in the 1980s but got her deeper cultural and professional experience with the Alberta Canadian Arab Cultural Club with whom she spent 5 years performing the dabkes of Lebanese choreographers Jamil and Leila Khonaisser, and Nada Chehayeb for Alberta’s large Arab community. During that time she also belly danced bi-weekly in Lebanese restaurants and at Arab weddings and hafles. She moved to the US in 1989, where she acquired 2 Master’s degrees and 2 children. In 1999 she quit her 9 year job at LSU and began her current business of teaching French and Spanish in private schools. Though she had always maintained connections to dancing informally at private hafles, and weddings she decided it was time to combine her loves of teaching and dancing, by joining the gang at Bayou Shimmy.

Marci Armour

Marci Armour floated into her first bellydance class on a whim in 2006. Not thinking of herself as much of a dancer beforehand she was instantly drawn to the feminity and grace the dance portrayed. Following, through what seemed a whirlwind of class and eargerness to learn, she quickly developed through the ranks of student, student-teacher to now instructor. Her instruction is credited much to the Bayou Shimmy teachers, as well as being studieous in various workshops under the instructions of such dancers as Amel Tafsout, Carolena and Megha and Sonya of BDSS. From these she has pulled influence of various styles of dance, as well as her own exploration in fusing different cultural elements into her dance, creating a style crafted as a reflection of her heart.Furthering her enthusiasm she's participated in various troupe projects including Tribe Zohar of Bayou Shimmy and tribal with Kate Jensen of Indudala of Baton Rouge and also her own incarnation Las Hermanas, which she showcased a talent for "dreaming up" choreographies."Bellydance has enabled me to embrace a positive body image and awareness with confidence and gracefulness"Marci is a native of New Orleans and when she isn't dancing she's coming up a storm as a self employed caterer or cajun and creole cuisine.

Rachel Bergeron

Rachel was introduced to bellydancing at age fifteen through her mom and was instantly intrigued by the ancient movements and found dancing provided a greater sense of self and a release from the daily stresses. Her personal style is a mix of tribal fusion and cabaret with a concentration on technical precision and improvisation. She draws inspiration from the attitude and heart of Romany Gypsy and Turkish dance. She credits all of the teachers of Bayou Shimmy such as Christina Christ, Shamsi, and Ashley for so much knowledge and inspiration over the past couple of years. Rachel continues learning by attending workshops taught by internationally known dancers such as Ansuya, Moria, Unmata, and InFusion Tribal.

Ellen Peneguy

Ellen Peneguy is a mother of two, a communications and training analyst, and a life-long lover of all kinds of dance and stage performance. She began tap and ballet lessons at three years old and continued for over fifteen years. She also studied jazz and modern dance during these years. As an adult, Ellen has continued dancing through both classes and teaching, formally and informally. She has taken numerous ballroom, Latin and Cajun dance classes, and taught individual and group lessons on these couple dances. She has been belly dancing with Bayou Shimmy for three years, and is the assistant troupe leader of Jawahiir al Nour.

ASHLEY ELDRINGHOFF

Born in the jungles of Metairie, Ashley lived with a tribe of roaming wolves until she finally settled in the great city of Baton Rouge at age 4. There she began her dancing journey with her aunt at Cindy's Dance Company in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She continued to dance through highschool taking classes in ballet, tap, jazz, lyrical, and hip-hop. At the age of 18 she followed a little door that led down the rabbit hole, and then up some stairs, to discover the wonderful world of belldancing at BayouShimmy Dance Studio. After committing herself as BayouShimmy's personal slave, she took numerous classes from its wonderful teachers including Shamsi, Iona, Gia Sabine, and Kate Jensen.

Ashley currently teaches beginner's classes in bellydancing at the studio and co-directs the Bayou Shimmy Beginner's Troupe. She also performs in Baton Rouge and Lafayette. Her favorite color is green.

Christina Christ took her first bellydance class in 2005 and has been dancing nonstop ever since. She has been instructed by several members of the south Louisiana bellydance community. In New Orleans, she began her study of bellydance with Selena de la Luna at a workshop she co-taught with Dolphina of California, and attended classes taught by Sabrina and Gretchen of the Sisters of Salome. After Hurricane Katrina, Christina worked extensively with Shamsi of BayouShimmy in Baton Rouge. In April of 2007, she returned to New Orleans and now studies primarily under Kryss and Amae of the Sisters of Salome and Shannon Wolfe of Saffron Studio. She has attended workshops taught by a number of internationally known bellydancers including Morocco, Megha of Devyani as well as Sharon Kihara and Kami Liddle of the Bellydance Superstars. Christina credits her instructors for her rapid transition from beginner to performer despite having almost no previous formal dance training. Her personal style is a mixture of cabaret and tribal style bellydance, which she performs as a solo artist in New Orleans and Baton Rouge, and with the members of Indudala Tribe. She is an instructor in Baton Rouge and New Orleans.

EMILY MEYERS
At the age of three Emily started dancing with her ribbon stick and soon blossomed into a dance enthusiast. At the age of seven she choreographed her first piece to Enya's "Sail Away." Emily began bellydancing in 2003 under Marisella Ali, Angelique Jamail, and Sahira in Houston, Tx. She performed tribal style with Urban Gypsy in the student troupe and the professional troupe. She moved to Baton Rouge in 2006, and began teaching at Bayoushimmy soon after.

2006 Bayou Shimmy Dance Studio
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