About   Booking Information   Calendar   Class Schedule  Hot Topics  Links  Location   Pictures   Rates  Space Rental  Staff  Home

• Sarin (Cheryl) 

• Shakira Massood-Ali (Debbie Scheel) 

• Patricia M. Davis 

• Ahliana 

• Cynthia

• Jenna Ali

• Linda

• Lokelani/Shiraz

• Mike

• Moya

• Sal

"We are the keepers of this dance. Its past and its roots are in the Middle East, but its future is in our hands...always, always treat it with the respect it deserves."

Shakira Massood-Ali, whose maternal grandparents were from Syria, was attracted to the dance as a way of keeping her heritage. She began her career in 1977 in Kansas City, Mo., studying with Zaina Ali for 7 years and started teaching in 1984. Throughout her dance career, Shakira has also studied with Ibrahim Farrah, Cassandra, Leila Gamal, Judy Reda, Bert Baladine, Zahra Zuhair, Morocco, Dahlena, Dunya, Vasthi, Beata Zardo-Cifentus and Horacio Cifentus, and Rayah Hassan to name only a few. 

Her weekly inspiration comes from the students and teachers at Sirrom who she loves to watch dance (and borrow from) and grow. 

"The most important thing is to be able to feel the music and dance from the heart."

Sarin begin her career in middle eastern dance when a couple of friends signed her up and drug her, kicking and screaming, to her first belly dancing class in the early 1990's.  And she hasn't stopped dancing since, to the benefit of Sirrom students and staff. 

Her inspiration for the dance comes from Suhaila Salimpour from California, and Karen Barbee and Vashti from Texas. 

As one of the owners of Sirrom Studio, it is important to me that everyone that comes through our door be made to feel welcome and also that they have arrived at the right place to learn how to dance.  

My current dance passion is flamenco.  I am learning something new about flamenco every day.  Flamenco is a dramatic form of expression and I am able to incorporate some of my dance training in other areas in my flamenco dancing.

And I also love Bollywood class as it is fun, high energy and full of spirit !

"We are sisters in the dance that keeps us young and strong." 

Lokelani is the director of Sirrom's Aloha Polynesia troupe. She also teaches the beginner's Hawaiian and Tahitian dance class each Monday night. Students enjoy this form of exercise as they learn the various dance steps to beautiful music from the islands, as well as the culture of the islands. Lokelani has traveled to the Hawaiian Islands and has attended various workshops from the Polynesia Culture Center and others.

In addition to Polynesian dance, she is also the belly dancer known as "Shiraz." She appeared as the carnival belly dancer in the movie "Liar's Moon" back in the mid-1980's starring Matt Dillion.