Eva Cernik

Eva Cernik entered Oriental dance at nineteen after extensive training in gymnastics and ballet. She first studied belly dance with Anahid Sofian in New York and subsequently pursued an unusually international professional career. Eva worked as an Oriental dancer in cities including London, Paris, Istanbul and Cairo and also performed with companies in Baghdad and Spain. She returned to Egypt many times and developed close relationships with Upper Egyptian communities, including study with Khyria and So'ad Mazin. Her research also included Turkish and North African traditions, giving her a broad perspective rarely available to dancers of her generation. Decades of performance, travel and direct study make Eva an important bridge between early American belly dance and source-based research into regional Middle Eastern traditions.