Ep 158. Yasmin Henkesh: From Zar Rituals to Discussing Music Copyright Issues

Yasmin Henkesh grew up in the Washington D.C. area but moved to Europe to work as a professional dancer after graduating from college. She first appeared in the Algerian cabaret Al Djazair, but soon was hired by "big time" nightclubs in Paris, such as Le Beirut and Le Yildizlar. There she worked with some of the most well-known Arabic stars and musicians of the time, such as Sabah, Walid Toufiq, Ahmed Adawia, Mohammad El Aizabi and Hassan Abou Saud. She then moved to London to work at The Omar Khayyam, the renowned club of Mona Said, where she worked with master percussionist, Khamis Henkesh. But the draw to work in Egypt was too great and she moved to Cairo after a year to follow her dream. She appeared for two years at The Auberge on the Sharia al Haram and at the Holiday Inn. The head of her orchestra was Sayed Henkesh, a well-known Egyptian musician. During those years Yasmin enrolled in the American University in Cairo Master's degree in Arabic and did research of her own on the Egyptian zar and other forms of Middle Eastern trance dancing. Yasmin moved back to Washington DC in the early 1990's and danced regularly at the Casablanca Restaurant in Alexandria, VA until 2001. She now teaches various classes for aspiring dancers at her own dance studio as well as online.