Kamala Chaand Dance Company
Meet Our Troupe!
This is the part where you get to meet us and learn about what makes us who we are, and what it is that we do within the troupe!
Tasha Rose!
Troupe Director & Instructor
General Skills and Teacher Certified by FatChanceBellyDance®
I have been dancing my whole life. I began my journey in belly dance when I was 23 at the Cassandra School in Minneapolis but knew that Cabaret was not what I was looking for. I continued to study while researching belly dance history and evolution. I came across Rachel Brice in 2005 and thought, 'this is more like it' but it still wasn't what I was craving.
When I was reading Rachel Brice's bio one day I learned about FatChanceBellyDance® and American Tribal Style® belly dance. I did a youtube and google search. I fell instantly in love with everything I saw and began to learn absolutely everything I could about ATS®. The very next video I found was the 'Who We Are?' video about FCBD® and knew I had found my heart's content for the rest of my dance life.
I studied alone for a few years, honing my ability the best I was able without a teacher anywhere near. I also received feedback instruction from Jen Nolan of Tamarind Tribal in Milwaukee.
After a few years and realizing I was confident enough in my knowledge of ATS® to perform, I formed Minnesota's first pure ATS® troupe Mystic Caravan ATS® and performed with my students Noelle Anderson(Vespertine Tribal) Amber Hunt until my relocation to Minneapolis in August 2010.
Kamala Chaand Dance Company was founded in October 2010 and featured Alana Mari, Zingara Velluta, Mystic Siren and Crystal Welle. We went through a metamorphasis and now I am pleased to dance with my amazing troupe.
I blog at ATSisReligion.blogspot.com and have contributed my writing to Fuse Tribal Magazine.
I live in St. Paul with my Fella Travis and my five children.
Remedy!
Director of Marketing & Promotions
Logo Designer, Professional Weirdo
I started hoop dancing 7 years ago in Portland, OR.
I also studied performance art, printing, painting, and drawing at Pacific Northwest College of Art, and upon my exit of that fine city, I traveled by bicycle for a summer as part of a small traveling circus act. I started learning various movement arts including poi, fire performance, and juggling over the next few years, and found belly dance in Arizona. I immediately fell in love with the art form, and bit by bit, I've been learning various forms of dance. Currently, I am head over heels for American Tribal Style® dance and the community it builds, and I cannot wait to learn more and be certified to teach others!
I am also co-founder of the Switchblade Side Show, where I perform dangerous feats of derring-do, and Ragnarok Fire Supplies: a fire toy company.
Becky!
Accountant & Helper Extraordinaire
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LaDonna Bartol!
Assistant Director & Instructor
General Skills and Teacher Certified by FatChanceBellyDance®
Donna has done a little bit of everything - from running an art gallery to advocating good animal husbandry to developing a distinguished drinks palate. She digs cats with captions, video games, local music, and is an avid student of belly dance.
When her best friend started dancing in college, she wanted to learn more, and was immediately smitten with the art. Donna began her dance training with the Aalim School of Dance in 2007, and had been a devoted student of Middle Eastern and American Tribal Style® dance ever since.
After several years of American- and Egyptian- cabaret classes, Donna connected with Tasha-Rose, proprietor of Minnesota’s first FCBD® sister studio, Kamala Chaand Dance Company. She began attending weekly classes, but felt that once a week was not enough, so she started taking two classes a week and; after many sessions of levels one and two, she was asked to join the student troupe, Sohalia Tribal.
Working with Tasha-Rose, taking up to four classes a week, watching videos, and going to workshops, Donna gained confidence in her dance abilities. She was asked to join KCDC’s performance troupe, and is now the Assistant Director of Kamala Chaand Dance Company and director of its student troupe, Sohalia Tribal.
Donna has gained an immense amount of self-confidence since she began dancing, and finds little else that brings her as much joy as sharing ATS® with others. Her love of the dance, the music, and the friendships she has gained within the local and global dance community inspired her to teach.
Donna completed FCBD® General Skills (Classic & Modern) and Teacher Training certifications in August 2014, and currently holds Sister Studio status.
Breana!
Dance Instructor
General Skills and Teacher Certified by FatChanceBellyDance®
I got my first glimpse of American Tribal Style® belly dance in 2009 with Tasha Rose in the small town of Pine River, MN when I was 16. I was attending the Perpich Center for Arts Education in Golden Valley (for literary arts) at the time, and took a class or two while I was home. As a child I dabbled noncommittally in various styles of dance, but nothing really struck me until I found ATS®. When I moved back home after graduating in 2010, I began taking classes regularly with Amber Hunt and Noelle Anderson.
I continued to study with Amber in between my classes at the Rolf Institute of Structural Integration in Boulder, CO and working at Camp Buckskin in Ely, MN. In April-May of 2012, I attended FatChanceBellyDance® General Skills and Teacher Training in Eau Claire, WI and became a Sister Studio.
When I first signed up for Teacher Training, I was still a relatively new dancer and had no plans to start teaching right away. As I was travelling frequently for school and work and couldn’t attend classes during that time, I wanted a deeper foundation in dance that I could take with me. So from 2012-early 2014 I continued to further my practice on my own and through workshops, performing sporadically as an ATS®-based soloist.
In April 2014, Tasha asked me to come teach with KCDC and I have been happily dancing with these lovely ladies since. I am also a certified Rolfer™ and run my business, Rolfing St. Paul, in the Awaken for Wellness center in the Mac-Groveland neighborhood of St. Paul.
Anez!
Graphic Designer
Illustrator and Cat Lover
I moved here from faraway Poland, with curiosity and joy, looking for a group of women with the same "dance-love craziness" in their hearts and minds.
I've started dancing 7 years ago, just after the first time I saw a belly dance performance - I knew immediately that I wanted to try it.
I started from traditional raqs sharki, but after 4 months I found a video with Rachel Brice, and totally fell in love with Tribal Fusion.
Because there were no tribal classes in my city, I had to go to various workshops throughout the whole country to learn this dance that I love.
I learned Tribal Fusion from best Polish teachers: Anna Redlin, Yolanda Sejfried, Dominika Suchecka, & Iza Logonowicz.
I also learned from amazing foreign dancers Manca Pavli, Bri Hurley, Silviah, Ariellah, Morgana, Zoe Jakes, and I am still looking for new opportunities to learn.
I took a part in the ƎXPERYMENTARIUM - a one year unique educational stage-project, designed for the young generation of tribal dancers. ƎXPERYMENTARIUM was created by Anna Redlin and Yolanda and in this program, I took intensive weekend trainings which included theoretical knowledge, basics of ballet, playing zills, ATS® vocabluary and movements, and fusion bellydance technique and choreography in various styles.
The projects prepared me and the group for the practical exam - a one hour tribal bellydance show on the stage of Cracov's theater.
ATS® appeared in my life at the same time as fusion, and it is still my second big love - one that I can gladly cultivate here in St Paul, thanks to Kamala Chaand Dance Company. Classes and performances with the group are an amazing opportunity for me to improve my skills, while dancing this beautiful dance style - as I always wanted to.