Yudelka "SAHARI" Nunez


Biography

Sahari was born in the Dominican Republic, the Latin country that gave birth to rhythms such as Merengue, Bachata and Son, so music and dance are an integral part of her life. She was raised in New York City, where she first experienced many different cultures and developed a great interest in learning and implementing different aspects of these cultures into her own life.

Her interest in Middle Eastern culture started in late 2001, when a unique Brazilian soap opera, “El Clon”, became a hit on a Spanish TV station back in NYC. With the main topic of the program being Middle Eastern culture, bellydancing was a prominent feature. Sahari saw the dance for the first time and was completely captivated. Immediately, she researched bellydance classes offered in NYC and started taking lessons at Serena Studios. Her first classes were taught by the legendary Serena Wilson and other instructors, such as Zenaide and Dorit, who encouraged her to get deeper into the dance. But because of school and other responsibilities, she was only able to study the art for about 6 months. It wasn’t until after she moved to Hawaii in 2004 that she resumed her studies. During her residence in Hawaii, Sahari studied exclusively under the mentorship of Shamira Nawal, veteran dancer/instructor/choreographer with great knowledge of the Near and Middle Eastern cultures and founder of Amara Kismet Near & Middle Eastern Dance Ensemble. Being a member of this dance company gave Sahari the opportunity to perform for the first time and to develop her technique and style.

Since then, Sahari has performed at many festivals, fundraisers, recitals, and special events, such as birthday parties and weddings, throughout Hawaii and Connecticut. Sahari has been a main dancer and actress for Shamira’s Bellydance & Beyond and Jasmina & The Jansher theatrical productions. Because of her exotic and unique look, Sahari was chosen to promote both theatrical shows and was featured in Hawaii’s main newspapers, The Honolulu Advertiser and Star Bulletin as well as on TV and radio (KHON Morning News Channel 2 and Tiny TV Oceanic Channel 16/95.5 FM radio). Recently, Sahari has been featured in Connecticut’s newspapers The Middletown Press, The Thames River Press and The Groton Times.

Sahari started teaching the art of bellydance at different locations throughout Hawaii in 2005. She continues perfecting her technique and developing her unique style by taking workshops from well-known and experienced dancers, such as Suhaila Salimpour, Rashid, Tarik, Amaya, Amira, Bellydance Superstar Sonia, and Shareen El Safy. Her style leans more towards what is known as American Cabaret, but she is also known as a fusion dancer, mixing different Latin rhythms and dance steps with bellydance.

Sahari is truly multicultural, being fluent in Spanish, Italian, and English. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Multilingual Journalism and Italian Language from Lehman H. College, CUNY. She has also worked in television and radio in New York City (BronxNet, CUNY TV, and Metro TV) both as a talent and off-air production crewmember.

Her community leadership is evident in her work as president of the Italian Club at Lehman College, volunteer tutor and translator for extra-curricular programs in community schools in New York, volunteer at the Army Community Center and Family Readiness Group at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, and team leader and production assistant for Amara Kismet Near & Middle Eastern Dance Ensemble's Bellydance and Beyond production series.

Sahari currently resides in Groton, Connecticut, where she performs and teaches in various towns around the area. She is well on her way in expanding her knowledge of the art and becoming one of a kind.


“Revive the goddess within you — let out that inner fire.” — Sahari
 

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