Board members
Photo by Aubre Hill
Aubre Hill (Artistic Director, Los Angeles Chapter Director)
Aubre Hill is an international dance artist, choreographer, educator, and event producer. Aubre has been a professional dance artist for over twenty five years including touring with the Bellydance Super Stars, headlining numerous international festivals, featured in her own FitTV show, highlighted in many films and videos, and a mover & shaker of the dance community. She has directed numerous dance companies in full theater productions as well as cultural events. She has trained and taught a generation of dancers, some of whom have moved into full professional dance careers. She was on faculty at California State University, Los Angeles teaching accredited courses in pilates, fitness, and dance for over 10 years. She owned and directed Movement Art Space, a dance and fitness studio in Los Angeles offering education for all ages and levels for three successful years.
Aubre has choreographed full dance theatrical productions including “The Nutcracker,” “Sketches of Arabia,” “Nights of Arabe,” and more as well as is the artistic director and choreographer for the Qabila Foundation, Lumina Dance Co, and the Beyajja Dance Theater.
Over her career Aubre have been a part of various collaboratives to bring creativity, culture, and community together in new ways. Additionally, she has produced a wide range of events and performances bringing the community together in celebration of Middle Eastern Dance including monthly haflas, dance festivals, long running showcases, workshops, intensives, lectures, and more.
Aubre earned her Master's in Arts Management at Claremont Graduate University in 2022. She teaches a full online education program on Patreon including somatic practice and dance education as well as select in person classes in the Los Angeles area. Her teaching is known for her deep understanding of anatomy & kinesiology while embedding cultural context, history, and artistic expression for a rich educational and inclusive experience.
When not teaching, she can be found enjoying time with her partner, playing with her two cats, hiking with her puppy, sipping coffee, researching and writing, and creating new dance work in her home of Long Beach.
Stefanie Fatooh (seattle chapter director, COMMUNITY MANAGER)
Stefanie Fatooh, a Los Angeles native, began her dance training at an early age with a variety of western dance forms, including ballet, tap, jazz and modern dance. This love of dance eventually continued into her academic studies when she earned a dual degree from the University of San Francisco in Performing Arts & Social Justice (Dance), and African History.
Upon returning to Southern California in 2007, she was accidentally introduced to Modern Egyptian Bellydance. The more she learned about bellydance, the more she started to feel like she had finally found the dance form that she was meant to call “home.” Stefanie’s new found love of Middle Eastern dance also inspired her to start to study the folk dances of the region and seek more professional opportunities with local dance companies.
More than 10 years later, Stefanie has continued to dedicate herself to growing as a dancer. Most notably, she has completed Aubre Hill’s Raqs Artist Project twice and has attended programs such as the Arab Dance Festival, Journey Through Egypt and Middle East Music and Dance Camp to help further her artistic and cultural work.
She is proud to have worked closely with Aubre Hill on many projects: as a former Contemporary Dance teacher at Movement Art Space in Los Angeles, an assistant director & producer for stage shows such as “The Nutcracker~ a bellydance tale”, the co-director of Los Angeles Raqs, and as a dancer in duet performances and with both Lumina Dance Co. and Qabila Folkdance Co. As one of the original members of Qabila, Stefanie continues to be dedicated to the company both onstage and behind the scenes, and currently is serving on the Executive Board as the Community Manager.
Stefanie’s solo career has continued to bloom as well and she currently performs professionally as both a Raqs Sharqi and Contemporary Bellydance Fusion/Transnational Dance soloist. She enjoys the duality of these experiences and is endlessly inspired by both learning more about the deep cultural roots of Middle Eastern dance and by the creation of unique movement ideas. A recent transplant from Los Angeles to Seattle, Stefanie also earned her MFA in Arts Leadership from Seattle University in 2022 and is currently the Director of Arts Programming at Seattle U. She is excited to continue growing the artistic expression of her dance, as well as deepening her understanding of its cultural context and roots.
Alia (Bay Area chapter director, WARDROBE Director)
Alia Gamal grew up in Orange County, California surrounded by her Arabic family, as well as other Arabic immigrant families. This influence created a love for history, art and music and inspired her to study Arabic music, dance, and cultural anthropology as an adult. Through her studies, Alia continues to find Arabic dance connecting her back to her roots and heritage. This connection has been further fostered by studying and working with Aubre Hill and the Qabila Folkdance Company. She is inspired to share the Arabic art that helped her explore her own identity in ways that can also represent the culture to others.