Check out the teachers at Synthesis Fusion Dance Festival 2026!
Adara
Adara (Alana Radcliffe) is a versatile and experienced dancer whose career spans classical ballet, competitive ballroom, Modern Jive, and Street Latin styles including Salsa, Zouk, and Bachata. She has over 20 years of experience in Middle Eastern dance as a performer, teacher, and choreographer. A dedicated mentor and community leader, Alana has served as a Shimmy Mob Team Leader for 14 years, using dance to empower and raise awareness for domestic violence survivors. Her work reflects a deep commitment to movement, teaching, and meaningful impact through dance.
Adara is also a proud recipient of the New Teacher Scholarship Award at the Synthesis Fusion Dance Festival 2026.
Amanda Jane
Former student of Underbelly Dance in Melbourne. Teacher and performer with Saffron Sunrise Troupe in the mid 2000s. Current advanced student of Thais Carvalho. Also regarding my workshops: I’ve got tertiary qualifications and 20 years experience in psychology, neuroscience and mental health - including education in schools and psychoeducation in the public media. And I’ve been a goddess devotee/witch who has mentored under the Temple of the Winds (Melbourne) and public UK priestess Demelza Fox.
Amanda is also a proud recipient of the New Teacher Scholarship Award at the Synthesis Fusion Dance Festival 2026.
Amanda PB
Amanda is the brains behind APB Dance in Melbourne. She counts herself as a dance nerd, studying across many different performance related front from cross training in different dance styles to learning Arabic language and history to deepen her knowledge and connection to the beautiful cultures that are behind this dance form. She is also a part of the team that produce the Australian Belly Dance Convention, is a certified Salimpour School Instructor (Fundamentals), a Bal Anat cast member (2023 and 2025) and last year became Australia's first Advanced Performer certified dancer in the Salimpour School.
Astha
Movement and expression have been intertwined in my life from a young age, beginning from early classical Indian and Western ballet dance training to performing in Bollywood movies and teaching at large festivals. I am a lifelong student of all forms of movement expressions including South Indian Bharatanatyam, North Indian Kalbelia Gypsy and Bellydance. As a Human Rights lawyers to inspire change and bring wider justice and balance to humanity.
Becky English
Becky is an experienced sound therapist, mentor, healer, and passionate dancer with over 15 years of shimmying through life. As the founder of a sound studio, she leads transformative journeys using crystal singing bowls and meditation, guiding individuals to connect with their higher selves, unlock their full potential, and heal from past traumas and limiting beliefs.
Her workshops seamlessly blend sound healing, meditation, and subconscious techniques to cultivate confidence, creativity, and emotional healing. Becky’s holistic approach encourages participants to harmonise their body, mind, and spirit, fostering a deeper, more intuitive experience.
Dedicated to empowerment, Becky offers both private and group sessions, providing a nurturing space where individuals can explore their authentic selves, heal, and achieve meaningful personal growth.
Bronwyn Buasavanh
Canberra-based Bronwyn has more than two decades of experience performing and teaching folkloric and FatChanceBellyDance® style, captivating audiences with a powerful and elegant stage presence. Bronwyn is especially known for her proficiency in that most dangerous and hypnotic dance, Raqs al-saïf―the Sword Dance―and is a crowd favourite wherever she goes. As a teacher brings a characteristically light-hearted and supportive teaching style and a wealth of practical instruction, teaching regular FCBD®, sword and contemporary belly dance classes as well as being a regular at the Newcastle Bellydance Festival.
Cara Griffin
Cara Griffin is a celebrated belly dance and Cuban dance artist, choreographer, and instructor. Since 1998, she has studied dance styles from Egypt, Lebanon, Turkey, India, Brazil, Cuba, and Spain. Cara has toured nationally and internationally, known for her captivating classical, sword, and flamenco fusion performances. She is the founder of the Global Dance Collective, which recently celebrated 30 years of classes, and directs events such as Salon La La, Afrekete Afro-Cuban Festival, Day of the Dead Festival Townsville, and the popular GDC Silent Disco Tours. Her warm, inclusive teaching style inspires dancers of all levels to connect with rhythm, movement, and community.
Deanna Meraki
Deanna Meraki shares her love for belly dance with heart, soul and creativity. As a teacher and performer, she strives to capture and embody the essence of belly dance with authentic interpretation, sincere connection and sheer delight. Her love for culture and music has her exploring other dance styles where she is now also trained in Bollywood, Ori Tahiti and West African dance. Deanna has been teaching for almost a decade, sharing her knowledge and passion for dance both nationally and internationally. She has recently returned from living and working in Cairo for two years, on a mission to further her studies in Egyptian dance, culture and language from the source.
Elena
Elena began her dance journey at the young age of 5, training for 13 years in Jazz, Hip Hop, and Lyrical. At 18, she transitioned away from these styles, exploring Ballroom, Salsa, and Square Dancing before ultimately discovering her true passion - Bellydance.
In 2016, Elena began sharing her love of dance through teaching. She started with children's classes and expanded to include adult instruction in 2021. With a deep belief that everyone has the ability to dance, Elena is known for her intuitive teaching style—knowing just how far to challenge each student to help them reach their full potential.
Em Lea
Em Lea is a dedicated fusion and Raqs Sharqi (traditional Egyptian belly dance) artist based in Townsville, Queensland. With over a decade of experience, she brings a deep passion for movement, storytelling, and cultural expression to every performance. Em has trained under internationally acclaimed instructors such as Rachel Brice and Shahrzad, and has developed her craft through extensive local study with respected mentors Cara Griffin and Jordan Galliot.
As a core member of the Global Dance Collective, Em is experienced in both solo and ensemble work. Her performance strengths include the use of silk veil, fan veil, and innovative choreographic composition. Known for her dynamic stage presence and expressive style, Em aims to captivate audiences while honoring the rich traditions of Middle Eastern dance.
Esha
Esha (Bec) is based on the Sunshine Coast, and she’s known for her powerful hip work and gooey isolations. Her bellydance journey began in her mid-teens because of an obsession with Egypt and Middle Eastern music. Bellydance gave her two things she craved at the time: strong female role models and a better relationship with her body. She has trained in oriental, folkloric, and fusion styles with many teachers both in Australia and while she was living abroad in Europe, and completed teacher training with Dr. Mo Geddawi of Egypt in 2016. She’s one of the leading performers on the Sunshine Coast and currently teaches regular classes at Embellyment.
Fotini Koklas
Fotini Koklas is an Intuitive Reader and Holistic Psychologist with a passion for blending ancient wisdom and modern psychology. With years of experience guiding individuals through life’s challenges, she weaves intuition, symbolism, and therapeutic insight to help others uncover the messages hidden within themselves. In her psychology practice, Fotini focuses on supporting women in perimenopause and menopause as they navigate this portal of potent change, offering a soulful yet grounded approach to self-discovery and transformation.
Jen Shedden
Jen is a seasoned performer and dedicated dance instructor whose belly dance journey began over 15 years ago at Amera’s Palace in Sydney. Her training has taken her across Australia and the UK, working with renowned artists including Amy Sigil (USA) and Catherine Taylor (UK), and exploring styles from Unmata ITS to Turkish Romani. She has performed on stages across continents and now shares her expertise in Newcastle (NSW), where her troupe, Ace of Cups, brings colour and energy to markets and festivals throughout the Hunter region. As Open Stage Manager for Gothla AU, Australia’s first and only multi-day festival dedicated to the dark side of dance, Jen helps showcase talent from across the country. Known for her vibrant personality, inclusive teaching style, and passion for storytelling through movement, she specialises in FCBD®Style, guiding students with warmth, precision, and infectious enthusiasm so that every dancer feels welcome and inspired.
Jessyka
Jessyka is a modern fusion dancer based in the beautiful Blue Mountains in Sydney. As well as teaching bellydance and yoga since 2019, Jessyka is also a certified Karma Echoes Format and Trauma Conscious Yoga teacher. She loves sharing her knowledge from her expertise as a counsellor, and is constantly learning and teaching how psychology and neurobiology interweaves with dance. As well as her regular classes, she has taught for Synthesis Fusion Festival, Newcastle Bellydance Festival, Gothla UK, and the Australian Bellydance Convention. She is also the founder of Gothla AU, a multi-day dark fusion festival in Sydney each year.
Julie Orchid
Julie Orchid is a devoted explorer of fusion belly dance, with over 15 years of dedication to the form. Through performance, teaching, and movement exploration, she builds mythic intent into dance—bridging symbolism, storytelling, and embodied artistry. Julie is a Certified DanceCraft teacher, drawing on foundational training from Zoe Jakes to support her teaching approach.
Laurie & Lisa
Laurie is a Certified Global Caravan Tribal Bellydance® Teacher, has studied to achieve certification in the Global Caravan Collective Soul Levels 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and Advanced Master. Laurie also achieved Certification in FCBD® General Skills -
Classic & Modern Certificates.
Laurie continues to expand and explore her dance form and attends workshops & intensives, these have included world renown Australian and US dancers : Paulette Rees-Denis (USA); Carolena Nericcio-Bohlman (USA) and Megha (USA); Nina Martinez (Aus), Sabine (USA); Hilary Cinis (Aus); Jill Parker (USA), Madonna Teitzel (Aus), Oliver Kissel (USA), Devi Mamak (Aus), and Sian Bhala (Aus).
Lisa has been dancing Global Caravan since her first Collective Soul with Paulette Rees-Denis in 2009. Lisa has studied with Paulette and Nina and been exploring and evolving alongside many other dancers and their tribes across Australia and the world. Lisa has built dance communities initially with Kuranda Dance and is now Director of Tree Temple Dance in Meanjin Brisbane, offering monthly classes and Tribal Grooves dance classes at Arcana Dance Studios
Magharita Galal
Margaret holds degrees in Education (BTch) and in Community and Leadership (GradDip) and has been teaching and learning Romani and Egyptian dances for 25 years. She is based in Brisbane, Australia where she established her popular dance school, Soul Dance School of Romani and Middle Eastern Dance, in 2002. Over this time Margaret has gained the reputation of a teacher who comes informed and prepared and has exceptional teaching skills.
Margaret has researched endlessly, educated intensively and travelled to source countries to learn directly from the artists of various Romani and Egyptian communities. She has studied Spanish, Macedonian, North Indian, Egyptian, Turkish and Russian Romani dance traditions and directed three successful Romani & Fusion dance troupes featuring both male and female dancers.
Her career highlights (so far) have been her time spent in the Roma neighbourhoods in Turkey and Macedonia, her renowned Soul Of Egypt cultural tours (est 2007), Shuvani Re-enactment Tribute Troupe and the founding of the Chrysalis Dancers Retreat.
The further development of Mozaik GF and the honor of introducing it to Australian dancers promises to be one of biggest highlights for her so far.
Michel
Hailing from Cuba, Michel Concepción-Mullings is a distinguished Cuban soloist and acclaimed performer celebrated for his mastery of traditional Afro-Cuban dance. A former principal artist with the iconic Afro-Cuban music and dance ensemble, Ban Rra Rra, Michel brings deep cultural authenticity and dynamic artistry to every performance. He is highly regarded for his expertise in Cuba’s most revered dance forms and regularly travels across Australia, collaborating with Cara Griffin and the Global Dance Collective to teach and inspire dancers in Townsville and beyond.
Neleh
Helen has been dancing and soaking up the atmosphere at dance events for 20 years. She loves all things Egyptian and is a bit of a bellydance geek. She loves learning and sharing her knowledge and also runs the Bellydancers of Australia Facebook page.
Sarah Moulton
Sarah, the director of Alyasati Fusion Bellydance School (Melbourne) is a dedicated lifelong dancer who trained intensively in Classical Ballet and Contemporary dance before she found her love in Fusion Bellydance.
Over the last 11 years of devoted practice, she has found Fusion Bellydance has naturally become the platform for her soul and artistic expression, allowing her to explore emotions and archetypes within herself. Sarah also is passionate about Classical Indian dance and how the artistic nuances can be integrated into Fusion Bellydance which sees her regularly travelling to India for intensive training in both classical and folk dances.
She performs and teaches workshops and intensives in New Caledonia, India & various Bellydance Festivals around Australia, as well as at live music events and transformational festivals locally and internationally.
Thais Carvalho
Thais is a Brazilian dancer, choreographer, DJ, and music curator who has called Brisbane home for the past eight years. With a background spanning Classical Ballet, Contemporary, urban dance,Afro, Afro-Brazilian, Flamenco, Folk Dance, and 14 years dedicated to Fusion Belly Dance, she is known for her mastery of muscle isolations, micro-movements, and soft serpentine flow. Her journey through diverse styles - from stage to underwater dance - has shaped her into a versatile, collaborative artist with a deep understanding of how the body moves.
As the creator and director of NUMA Fest, the founder of Queensland Fusion Belly Dance, and the mind behind the WAVEFORMOVE.™ method, Thais brings a unique perspective that merges dance and sound, community, culture and production. She also trains teenagers for university auditions in Musical Theatre and Dance Degrees and curates immersive experiences where dancers don’t just follow rhythms — they become them.
Traysi Ewayan
Traysi is a passionate cultural advocate based in Cairo, Egypt. She works closely with women artisans who create Tulle bi Telli—also known as Assuit—a centuries-old Egyptian textile art that combines delicate mesh with shimmering metal embroidery. As a custodian of this heritage craft, Traysi champions fair-trade practices and tirelessly supports the traditional Tally houses of Egypt, ensuring their artistry and history are preserved for future generations.
Through her workshops, Traysi educates artists, fashion designers, and dancers worldwide about the intricate process and cultural significance of Assuit. Her mission is to bridge tradition and modern creativity, empowering makers while inspiring global appreciation for Egypt’s textile legacy. This coming May, Traysi is thrilled to host her first workshop series in Australia at the Synthesis Fusion Dance Festival, bringing the elegance and heritage of Assuit to a new audience.
Valerie Curtis
Hello beautiful souls, my name is Valerie Curtis, and I am one of two certified Divine Chaos Dance teachers in Australia (the other being Larissa in Tasmania). Created by Shannon Bowers from Phoenix Arizona, Divine Chaos is an improvisational tribal technique that uses skirt as a move, rather than a mere prop.
I have been teaching Divine Chaos for 3 years now, with regular weekly classes on Saturday, and online classes on Thursdays. I have previously taught workshops at bellydance festivals in Sydney NSW, Newcastle NSW, and Freemantle WA.
Right now, I am currently studying the Siren Fan Dialect, and hope to merge the two dance formats together one day - skirt and fan