The Salimpours
The Suhaila Salimpour School of Belly Dance can be traced back to 1949. Pioneer Dancer and Instructor Jamila Salimpour began teaching her unique method which included detailed breakdowns and standard terminology for her movements. Every dancer knowingly or not has been exposed to the indelible mark Jamila Salimpour made in the world of Middle Eastern dance. Jamila's original phrases and names for dance movements such as Turkish Drop, Maya, and Basic Egyptian were the beginning of a long process to add structure and definition to the art.
Jamila's daughter, the incomparable Suhaila Salimpour, began her dance training at the young age of 2. In addition to training with her mother, Suhaila studied ballet, jazz, and tap from an early age, and soon added modern and hip-hop to her repertoire. She began teaching at the age of 14 and has worked as a professional performer and master instructor ever since.
Through years of performing and training, Suhaila realized the necessity to create an organized system for teaching and training. Rather than trying to integrate Middle Eastern Dance with Ballet or Jazz, she wanted to create the respect, knowledge, mentorship and training methodology she experienced in her studies to preserve the quality and longevity of the dance form.
Suhaila's unique vision began to take shape when she embarked on rewriting her mothers book "Jamila Salimpour's Dance Manual", the first ever text which systematically categorizes Middle Eastern Dance movement. The result is an evolution which maintains the purity of her mother's original work and adds the systematic and progressive teaching methods found in the classical dance forms.
Now, the Suhaila Salimpour Format and School of Belly Dance enjoy worldwide success. Dancers who train with The Salimpours quickly realize Suhaila's method of teaching allows them to excel in their art beyond any other training they have received.