World Rhythm and Motion Studio

Amanda Brown

Amanda Brown started dancing as a youth at Pat Jacksons American Dance. As an adult, she started the first Burlesque performance group, here on the Central Coast, called EnV. EnV has performed at various local establishments and was hired by Harlem Shots Liquor to perform several times for their promotional events. Amanda loves to teach and to give other woman the opportunity to feel sexy, so that is why she has begun to teach Burlesque. Amanda also teaches pole dancing, but realized she could be able to reach out to more women with Burlesque.

Gigi Ballinger

Gigi has spent her life flying. She started with 15 years of dance then moved on to pole vault for 8 year- though high school and college. After graduating from Univ of Southern Mississippi, she decided it was time to find something that engulfed her passions- athleticism, dance and flight. Aerial arts was the long awaited answer. Spending most of her time in silk, she has also found grace and strength in lira and static trapeze. She has a passion for flow arts- focusing mainly on hoop, but learning staff and poi as well. As a founding member of Suspended Motion, she hopes to pass along her passions to anyone who walks through the doors.

Gina Cinardo

In December of 2004 she became a member of Boom Boom Bollywood and performed in the Boom Boom Bollywood Production of Bollywood Love Rules held at the Scottsdale Center for the Arts in Scottsdale, AZ.

Over the last several years Gina has performed and taught Bollywood and Belly Dance classes and workshops in Arizona and California.

Jenna Mitchell

Keeth "CrowHawk" Hershman plays and teaches percussion and didjeridoo. He has performed locally with Inga Swearingen, Rudolf Budginas, and Cafe Musique at venues including the Live Oak Music Festival, the Clark Center, and the Performing Arts Center. Having focused his percussion studies to Middle Eastern drumming, in the past 8 years he has studied privately and in classes and workshops with Armando "Uncle" Mafufo, Raquy Danziger, Jeremiah Soto, Karim Nagi, Faisal Zedan, and Reda Darwish. While visiting Egypt in 2009, he had the opportunity of a lifetime to meet and study privately with master Egyptian percussionist Khamis Henkish. Keeth is the lead percussionist of the Cal Poly Arabic Music Ensemble and he performs regularly with SaJa Middle Eastern Dance Co. and other local belly dance troupes and collectives. He also performs and has recently recorded with a small Arabic Ensemble of professional musicians led by the director of the Cal Poly AME, Dr. Ken Habib.

Laura Garcia

Laura Garcia Haas is the owner and director of the Garcia Dance Studio based in Lompoc CA. Laura was the 1986 Spirit of Fiesta and has been teaching flamenco & salsa for the past 15 years. The studio has over 120 students has won many awards and trophies and performs all over the central coast including Old Spanish Days Fiesta in Santa
Barbara.

Leslie Thompson

Leslie has been a classroom teacher for a number of years, so it was a smooth transition to become certified to teach American Tribal Style belly dance. She is proud to have become a Sister Studio to Fat Chance Belly Dance, founded by Carolena Nereccio, in August of 2010. Leslie has performed for over 8 years both locally and across the state, having been a member of several belly dance troupes. She is the director and owner of troupe TRIBE ELATION (find us on Facebook).

Leslie’s many years of studying yoga and biology provide a background to her approach to instruction founded in body work that makes sense and prevents injuries. Her goals, aside from teaching the over 70 ATS moves, is to build a sisterhood of dancers who learn, play and even perform together joyfully, honoring some of the traditions and art that we call “belly dancing.” She offers classes both in SLO and Morro Bay—please call if you have any questions: (805) 550–6944.

Liz has been very active all her life, starting with dance at the age of four then switching to sports. Where ever she is, she finds time to play and stay active. All through high school, as well as college, she has played various sports. She graduated from Cal Poly in Kinesiology with a concentration in teaching. She has been teaching and coaching for many years in all different forms of activity. She fell in love with Aerial when she saw a few stage performances and knew she needed to learn the art of silks. She found a local teacher, Rebekah Leach to take a workshop and has continued playing in the silks and teaching ever since. She has a great passion for teaching and coaching. Co-founding Suspended Motion has given her the opportunity to share that passion of aerial arts and teaching with others.

Stephanie is one of the co-owners of Suspended Motion and rounds out the dynamic combination with her contortion skills. She was born limber but continuously pushed her flexi-limits from the time she was young through dance, gymnastics, and yoga. Years of soccer and volleyball added strength and athleticism to her grace and rhythm, which aligned perfectly with the skills most necessary within aerial arts. After moving to the Central Coast, Stephanie joined forces with a fire arts crew where she began developing her skills with other flow arts such as hoop and poi. Now she focuses on sharing her love of the arts with the community, whether its through teaching or performing. She approaches teaching with compassion and perspective to build confidence for her students.

Saundra Sarrouf

Saundra has danced throughout California, and overseas in Spain, London, and Canada. Currently living in San Luis Obispo, Saundra teaches and performs regularly. She is co-director of SaJa Middle Eastern Dance Troupe, and teaches beginning through advanced classes at Cal Poly State University and at independent locations in San Luis Obispo County. Saundra continues her study of Middle Eastern Dance through her travels domestically and overseas. Saundra is also studying West African Dance and is part of the The Higher Movement Drum and Dance Ensemble in San Luis Obispo County. Arabic music is in her soul and with her diverse background, Saundra dances with feeling, energy, skill, talent and sincerity. You can visit her site at http://www.sousoudance.com/. Saundra teaches Bellydancing.