U Street Caravan.
Yillah founded the U Street Caravan dance company in 2005 at the behest of her private students who wanted to present her choreography at Rakkasah East, an annual Middle Eastern dance festival in Somerset, New Jersey. Later that same year, they appeared in a show at the Jack Guidone Theatre with the legendary Delilah.
In 2006, the group returned to the Rakkasah stage for two performances and danced at a cultural arts celebration at American University and a halftime show for the Washington Freedom women's soccer team.
U Street Caravan performed its first full repertoire revue - Farashah - at the Jack Guidone Theatre in August 2007 to two sold-out crowds. Following the success of that show, the Caravanas brought the house down as the finale to opening day of the citywide Dance DC Festival with West African dance troupe Kankouran.
In 2008, the women of the 'Van performed their second full repertoire revue - Emra'a - again to two sold-out houses at the Jack Guidone Theatre. They continued on to two Dance DC showcases, including another blowout opening night appearance with Kankouran.
The DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities invited U Street Caravan to participate in Dance DC for a third performance in 2009, opening the festival on the Atlas Performing Arts Center stage along with other world dance groups. They then performed their third annual show, Bazaar, in November 2009 once again on the Jack Guidone stage.
The members of U Street Caravan are renowned for their mixed repertoire of dances that puts a modern spin on the art of Raqs Sharqi - from spicy Spanish-Arabic fusion to emotive veil routines to hip-hop fusion and more. Please contact Yillah for booking information.
photos/graphics by Yillah © 2009
In 2006, the group returned to the Rakkasah stage for two performances and danced at a cultural arts celebration at American University and a halftime show for the Washington Freedom women's soccer team.
U Street Caravan performed its first full repertoire revue - Farashah - at the Jack Guidone Theatre in August 2007 to two sold-out crowds. Following the success of that show, the Caravanas brought the house down as the finale to opening day of the citywide Dance DC Festival with West African dance troupe Kankouran.
In 2008, the women of the 'Van performed their second full repertoire revue - Emra'a - again to two sold-out houses at the Jack Guidone Theatre. They continued on to two Dance DC showcases, including another blowout opening night appearance with Kankouran.
The DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities invited U Street Caravan to participate in Dance DC for a third performance in 2009, opening the festival on the Atlas Performing Arts Center stage along with other world dance groups. They then performed their third annual show, Bazaar, in November 2009 once again on the Jack Guidone stage.
The members of U Street Caravan are renowned for their mixed repertoire of dances that puts a modern spin on the art of Raqs Sharqi - from spicy Spanish-Arabic fusion to emotive veil routines to hip-hop fusion and more. Please contact Yillah for booking information.
photos/graphics by Yillah © 2009