Hailing from Casablanca, Morocco, Nawarra studied Arts and Drama at University before coming to the UK in 1996 to continue her studies in Leeds. In Morocco she was a member of various theatre and also worked with some of the top Moroccan comedians. The traditional music and folk dances which had so fascinated her as a child began to be a way of expressing herself and of forming friendships. She found that Leeds had an emerging interest in Middle Eastern Dance, and began to share what she knew. From these small beginnings Nawarra has gone on to become one of the UK’s most recognised teachers and performers with a growing International reputation. After realising her dream in 2012 of staging a theatre show dedicated entirely to the folkloric dances of the Middle East, Nawarra co-founded Funoon –a new venture spreading access to traditional ME dance.
This has drawn a high interest from the Arab Media like BBC Arabic , Aljazeera Alarabiya as well as Al Ghad Alarabi Channel. Nawarra hopes that Funoon will go on to become an inspiration and ongoing resource for British dancers as well as a source of pleasure and pride for people of Arabian descent coming or growing up in the UK.
Nawarra will be teaching the following workshops at Celebrating Dance 2020:
Fifi Abdou Ma’alima style- Fifi Abdou blends the characteristics of “baladi” dance, earthy, grounded, spirited and playful, with her strong ma’alima persona or “boss woman” personality to create her own unforgettable style. Learn Fifis signature steps and have fun injecting some Fifi attitude into your own dancing.
Bedouin- The Bedouin are an Arab semi nomadic group descended from nomads who have historically inhabited the Arabian and Syrian deserts. Their name means desert dwellers in the Arabic language. The dance is a form of earthy grounded style, with lots of hip moves, circles and shimmies
