Amar Gamal (born Teresa Infante c. 1975) is a
Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
n
bellydancer who grew up in Florida.
Early life and education
Gamal, born Teresa Infante,
grew up in Miami where she learned to bellydance
at the age of thirteen.
At thirteen, she began performing with the
Mid-Eastern Dance Exchange company, based in
Miami Beach
Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida. It was incorporated on March 26, 1915. The municipality is located on natural and man-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean and Biscayne Bay, the latter of which sep ...
. One of her directors at the time was the well-known dancer,
Tamalyn Dallal, who had inspired her when she was younger.
Gamal went on to become the first dancer to audition with bellydancing techniques and be accepted at the
New World School of the Arts' Performing Arts School. While a senior at the New World School of Arts, Gamal also taught dancing to young children. She trained in other types of dancing, such as ballet, jazz, tap, flamenco and modern, while at that school.
Gamal graduated with a degree in
psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...
at
Bridgewater State College in
.
Career
After graduation Gamal performed during the
NFL
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...
's
Super Bowl XXIX
Super Bowl XXIX was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion San Diego Chargers and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion San Francisco 49ers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champio ...
in 1995, and participated in the Miss World of Bellydancing contest of 1996, before dancing for five different dance companies.
In 1997, she performed at the
Gianni Versace fashion show. In 1998, she participated at the
Oriental Dance Production, in
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...
. During the late 1990s she has performed in
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...
,
Haiti
Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...
and
Costa Rica
Costa Rica (, ; ; literally "Rich Coast"), officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( es, República de Costa Rica), is a country in the Central American region of North America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, the Caribbean Sea to the no ...
.
In 2002 Gamal earned first place in the Mondo Melodia Bellydance Breakbeats competition and was chosen to participate in the release tour of a
CD — ''
Bellydance Superstars
Bellydance Superstars is a professional American bellydance troupe formed in 2002 by producer and manager Miles Copeland. (quotes ''The Sunday Times'', London.) In its first six years of touring, it presented 700 shows in 22 countries.
The line-u ...
'' — released on November 12.
Gamal was a member of the
Bellydance Superstars
Bellydance Superstars is a professional American bellydance troupe formed in 2002 by producer and manager Miles Copeland. (quotes ''The Sunday Times'', London.) In its first six years of touring, it presented 700 shows in 22 countries.
The line-u ...
, a professional dance company that was founded in 2003
and toured the United States in 2004. She founded the group BellyQueen with another dancer named Kaeshi Chai,
and Jenna Rosenberg was also a member of the group.
Gamar has taught belly dancing in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
and
San Francisco, California
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
, in
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
and in
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
.
She appeared as herself in the 2005 documentary, "American Bellydancer". In 2002, she had appeared in a concert DVD, "Bellydance Superstars". On 11 March, 2008, Gamal released a video titled "Mastering the Dance: Amar Gamal".
References
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gamal, Amar
1970s births
Belly dancers
Living people
People from Miami Beach, Florida
Cuban female dancers
Cuban dancers
Bridgewater State University alumni
Cuban emigrants to the United States