SABA ALEMAYEHU ASFAW

African, Hip Hop & Belly Dancer

sabasabina@gmail.com
www.SabaSabina.com

Height: 5’3” - Weight: 123lb - Hair: Curly Black - Eyes: Brown 

Saba was moved by the beauty of music, dance, and culture since her childhood in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. This led her to focus on exploring dance especially in preserving, creating, and fusing African and related dance forms. Her background being Ethiopian dance, Saba has further training and performing experience in styles such as Congolese Soukous, West African, Hip Hop and Belly Dance. Other than spending ample time teaching herself and practicing on her own, Saba studied and performed West African dance with Franklin & Marshall College African Dance Group (USA) and Imani Edu-tainers (USA). She studied Belly Dance with Yasmina Ramzy and Denise Mireau of Arabesque Academy. Teachers of DLM, National Dance of Canada, and DoDat have shaped her Hip Hop skills. Saba currently teaches Belly Dance at Arabesque Academy and is a dancer with Arabesque Dance Company. She is also a teacher, dancer and choreographer for Nouvel Exposé Dance Troupe, shaping this young company's aspirations.

FILM & TELEVISION
Be Easy by Massari – Capital Prophet Records – Belly Dancer
Yambie Yo by Maisara Gandi – Independent – African Dancer
Njacko Backo DVD – Independent – African Dancer
bpm.tv: Canada’s Dance Channel – African Dancer
Ishq by Channi – Bombay Films Ltd. – Belly Dancer
Toronto One Show Opening: First Episode – Belly Dancer

STAGE
Mick Jagger’s (Rolling Stones) Birthday 2005 – Belly Dance
fFida 2004, 2005 – Belly Dance
Afrofest 2001, 2004, 2005 – African
Toronto African Dance Festival 2003, 2004, 2005 – African
Planet Africa TV Awards 2004 – African
Royal Ontario Museum Egypt Exhibition 2004 – Belly Dance
danceImmersion Showcase 2004 – African
Papa Wemba Concert Opening at Festival Bana y’Africa 2004 – African
Harbourfront Centre 2003, 2004 – African
Dance Ontario Dance Weekend 2003, 2004 - Premier Dance Theatre – Hip Hop & Belly Dance
Aster Aweke & Dawit Mellesse Concert 2003 – African
Caribanna 2003 – Belly Dance
Arabesque Descent of Ishtar Tour 2003 – Belly Dance
Choreographers’ Ball 2003 – Hip Hop
Various DLM Showcases – Hip Hop and more…

COMPANY
Nouvel Exposé Dance Troupe, Toronto (Nov 2000 – Present) – African, Hip Hop & Belly Dancer
Arabesque Dance Company, Toronto (Jul 2002 – Present) – Belly / Middle Eastern dancer
DLM, Toronto (Oct 2003 – Jun 2004) – Hip Hop & Belly dancer
Cottage Dancers, Toronto (Sep 2002 – Feb 2003) – African and Hip Hop dancer
Franklin & Marshall African Dance Group, PA, USA (Aug 1996 – May 2000) – African dancer
International Community School, Ethiopia (Aug 1995 – May 1996) – African dancer

CHOREOGRAPHY
Nouvel Exposé Dance Troupe, Toronto (Nov 2000 – Present)
Miss AfriCanada Pageant, Toronto (Fall 2001 & 2002)
Franklin & Marshall African Dance Group, PA, USA (Spring 2000)

TEACHING
Arabesque Academy, Toronto (Feb 2004 – Present): Belly Dance & fusion Hip Hop, African
Harbourfront Centre World’s Fare Workshop, Toronto (Jul 2004) – Ethiopian
Nouvel Exposé Dance Troupe, Toronto (Nov 2003 – Present) – Ethiopian & Congolese Dance Classes
Bishop Morocco High School, Toronto (Feb 2002) – Ethiopian and Guinean

TRAINING
African
M’Bemba Bengoura, Toronto (Various since May 2001)
Ronald Brown, Toronto (Mar 2001)
Imani Edu-Tainers, PA, USA (Aug 1996 – May 2000)
Sankofa Dancers (of Washington, DC), PA, USA (2000)
National Ballet of Ivory Coast, PA, USA (Sep 1997, Fall 2000)

Belly Dance
Momo Kodus, Toronto (May 2005)
Aziza, Toronto (Oct 2004)
Arabesque Academy, Toronto (Nov 2001 – Present)
Magdy El Leisy, Toronto (Apr 2003, May 2004)
Arabesque Middle Eastern Dance Pro Course, Toronto (Jul 2003)

Hip Hop
DLM Dance & Entertainment Co., Toronto (Jul 2002 – Jun 2004)
K-Dub & Tuch of DoDat, Toronto (Various since Feb 2004)
Luther Brown of DoDat, Toronto (Various since Nov 2002)
National Dance of Canada, Toronto (Aug 2001 – Jul 2002)