IB Diploma: United world College of the American West, NM

B.A. Psychology & Fine Arts, The George Washington, DC

M.A. Consciousness Studies /Dream studies concentration, CA

Performing artist - writer - workshop facilitator

Biography

"Who are you" said the caterpillar,...."I--I hardly know, sir, just at present--at least I knew who I was when I got up this morning, but I think I must have changed several times since then." (Lewis Carroll. Alice in Wonderland)

She grew up in Jordan, the youngest of two, looking at herself upside down in the bedroom mirror, imagining she were Alice. She read Khalil Jibran's Prophet, and grew up watching Japanese animations about the French revolution.

But why talk in the third?

At 16, I left to New Mexico (AHUWC), where I saw women made of soft flames playing the piano in the Montezuma trees. My imagination was re-awakened ... Through the gates of psychology and Art I went to DC; there, my love for acting was renewed. After graduating from GWU (Cum Laude, I must add) I decided 'to hell with it, I'm going to NYC to become an actress.' Bette Midler in Beaches was my inspiration, but my timing was off, July 2001... my last name proved to be a challenge! And yet, amidst it all, I found the silence, practicing yoga, walking in Central Park, imagining all kinds of romantic scenarios, and writing dialogue. I got myself into some plays and films (and waitressing ofcourse), but acting was just not enough, I missed the inquiry into Self and Psyche. I went back to school to study Consciousness Studies and Dreams (JFKU); and where else but in California could one find such a major. The Bay Area became my second home. Its landscape and its smell, its dates and citrus reminded me of my first home (if only we had that much green and water...) I wrote my thesis on the Jinn from Arabic lore (an ethnographic study); I found them to be a motif--an archetype for the fire of creativity, the muse that inspires poetry, but also the shadow that takes possession if voice is silenced. My studies inspired me to write and perform, choreograph and dance, sing and create live installations with bird wings and feathers, performing on subways and streets, and making artistic films. After 38 days of a solo retreat in the mountains of Inverness (I never made the 40 and didn't meet the flaming bush, so I made up stories about the banana slugs and the lettuce, and ate many apples off the trees) and after two years of translating the news, which is mainly sad news (at Link TV), I shipped my things back to Amman, splitting my heart into two places 7000+ miles apart.

What do I do?

I tell stories; I create solo pieces and collaborate with other artists. I act and dance, combining styles; I sing at times. I write and choreograph, I whirl. I write and have published several articles--academic and creative. I'm working on my first screenplay (very slowwwwwly). I suppose I could be called a multi-disciplinary artist, though I'd rather find something shorter to describe 'it.'

"of course you know what 'it' means."

"I know what 'it' means well enough when I find the thing." said the Duck; "it's generally a frog or a worm. The question is, What did the archbishop find?" (Lewis Carroll. Alice in Wonderland)

I perform and give workshops internationally, in cities, deserts, and sacred sites, combining storytelling, movement, sound, and visualization to release blocks and allow creativity to flow. My aim is to awaken imagination, to be a bridge between the Middle East and the West, to transcend boundaries of language and culture (and punctuation), to challenge stereotypes, to restore the sacred feminine, to be good to the Earth, and to simply be free.

I travel to find new stories, and I monitor ArabWomenTalking: A platform for women to voice their thoughts. In November 2009, and with the help of a group of artists, I founded آت ... to be launched on International Women's Day 2010 in Jordan, and from there, the world.