Shiri

Family rumor has it that Shiri is part gypsy on her maternal grandmother's side, thus explaining her love for gypsy dancing! Shiri is a member of the Sacred Dance Guild. She graduated from Drew University Seminary with two degrees. A Master of Divinity (cum laude) and Master of Sacred Theology. She also possesses 15 credits toward her doctorate in Spiritual Studies from Drew. Shiri has focused her ministries on helping the needy, and forming "The Champagne Girls" has been her dream come true! She is a professor of Philosophy, and Comparative Religions.

Layla

Layla is a business owner and writer for the power industry. She and her husband, Max, have lived in Sparta NJ for fourteen years. Layla decided to become a student of belly dance in 2006 after reading about the Champagne Girls in her local newspaper. She enjoys karaoke singing and acting, which she studied for two years at the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute in New York City. Layla is proud to be a part of the Champagne Girls and the wonderful work they do to help others. She is also a Trustee in the Champagne Girls.

Delilah

Delilah studied dance as a child and has always loved the mystic of Belly Dancing. Over the past year, Delilah has performed in numerous Benefit Shows and also Nursing Homes as one of The Champagne Girls' lead dancers. Delilah dances with mystery and allure. She especially loves the opportunity of putting smiles on the faces of her audience as she performs in Senior Centers. She is also a Trustee in the Champagne Girls. Delilah has two children and lives in Sussex, NJ.

Ariel

Ariel has been studying dancing in various forms since childhood with Belly Dancing becoming prominent over the last three years. By profession, she is a psychologist and a practicing energy healer and animal communicator. Her hobbies include dancing (of course), writing and environmental activism.

Nashida

Nashida is an Optometric Physician in Northwestern NJ who is aspiring to be the best Bellydancer that she can possibly be. She first started studying Bellydancing back in 2001 with Shamira who ignited the flame in her. Nashida studied for about one year before life got in the way. After a six-year hiatus, she's back and even more inspired. Nashida's husband is very supportive of her "little hobby" and doesn't mind the missed dinners. Her greyhound, Guinness, likes to watch her practice but usually gets in the way.

Artemis

Artemis has traveled extensively with her husband while he was in the Air Force.  She has lived in West Pakistan, Germany, and Greece, and she has visited Hungary, Egypt, Thailand, and many European countries.  Artemis has enjoyed a variety of careers including teaching Cross Country Skiing at Wild West City for two winters, and grooming horses when she lived in Germany. She has studied at Bryant Stratton Business Institute and Morris County College.  Artemis loves dogs, and she has raised many Yorkies. She has been studying Bellydancing for several years, and her dance name “Artemis,” means the protector of the animals.

Jeanna

Jeanna is a retired college professor of Mathematics, and she is a bilingual poet. Jeanna lives in Morris Plains, New Jersey. She is a Middle Eastern dance-enthusiastic and a choreographer. She is also a Chinese and Romany folk-dancer.

RaEm

RaEm is a member of the Polish-American Folk Dance Company in New York for the past twenty-five years. She studied Asian/Indian Dance for seven years with Kamada Narayan in New Jersey. Now she is also a Belly Dancer. She is happy to be a member of The Champagne Girls.

Hadasa

Hadasa is a Theatre Performance and English major. She has performed in many plays such as
"A Mid-Summer Night's Dream," "A Christmas Carol," "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat," "West Side Story," "Kindertransport," etc. and continues to act whenever she gets the chance. Along with acting, Hadasa also sings, draws, paints, airbrushes, and designs everything from ads to teeshirts. Due to her heritage, belly dancing was always something she kept in the back of her mind, and after seeing the 2007 show at Sussex County Fair Grounds, she soon joined the Champagne Girls and is looking forward to all their times together!

Giata

Giata has wanted to study Bellydancing for a number of years, so when the opportunity arose to study with Shiri, she jumped at the chance. It's so very liberating and the female camaraderie is indescribable. She has been married to the love of her life, Peter, for 30 years. They love camping, kayaking, hiking, fishing, boating, skating, and skiing. Giata has been working for a nursing agency affiliated with St. Clare's doing home care as a CHHA for 11 years. Giata and Peter have no children but might be adding a furry four-legged creature to their clan. Giata says she has so much to learn from Shiri and the girls, and she hopes her future with dancing will always be fun, exciting, and rewarding. (Namaste)

Arya

Arya is a second year college student, and she aspires to be an English teacher. She first got introduced to Belly Dancing at a friend's house, and Arya hasn't been able to stop since then. Although she has not been Belly Dancing for long, Arya moves like there's no tomorrow. She plans to keep dancing until her legs won't move anymore!

Jesse

Jesse teaches Hoop Dance, and participated in World Hoop Day. She is also a writer, and she is currently working on a project. Jesse travels extensively, and she is training with the Pachamamma Alliance. When she's in New Jersey, Jesse studies Bellydancing with Shiri.

Ieva

Ieva has been studying belly dance for the past two years, and she has performed in numerous benefit shows, dance-a-thons and at nursing homes. Ieva brings her own Latina interpretation into the Middle Eastern dance, and she enjoys veil dances the most. Ieva loves to travel and recently visited Europe with her church friends. She is a wife and mother and is currently working in the beauty business in North Jersey.

Marika

Marika has lived in Sussex County her entire life. She is the oldest of seven children, and she takes much pride in the way her mother raised her and her siblings. Marika works as a construction coordinator for a local cable company during the day and waitresses at night. Music is her pleasure, and she is active in the Franklin Community Concert and Marching Bands. Marika is fluid in her dancing, and finds Bellydancing to be a relaxing escape. She said that she is honored to be dancing with The Champagne Girls.

Azeezah

Azeezah began belly dancing in the early 80's with a wild and wonderful tribe of women in Moscow, Idaho. Life happened and Azeezah went through a long hiatus from dance. Then, in 2002, Azeezah shattered her left leg in a bicycling accident. Priorities fell into this order. Keep the leg, recover from the 4 surgeries needed to repair the leg, learn to walk again,and finally finds rhe pleasure in movement.Azeezah discovered a second group of belly dancers in Hailey, Idaho in 2004. She moved to Jersey in January of 2005 and found the Champagne Girls. Azeezah believes every hip circle and shimmy to be a miracle and hopes to share the joy of this dance with others.

Sonjirey

Sonjirey has been dancing for about eight years. She works full time while pursuing her B.S. in Accounting at Rutgers University in Newark. She has studied with many teachers in the NJ and NYC area. She has also belonged to various dance troupes, and she is also a member of The Champagne Girls. Sonjirey has a unique style, which blends various styles together. She mostly performs to what is called underground or house music, which is often played in non-commercialized clubs. This allows her to freely express herself. She feels as if bellydance is a celebration of womanhood and to see her perform with such emotion, she is truly celebrating. Sonjirey is the owner and founder of Shades of Lakshmi, LLC.A Bellydance Entertainment Company, which is geared toward hosting haflas and workshops.

Vika

Vika was born and raised in Russia. When she was a child, she performed in an acting troupe traveling from farm to farm and giving concerts to local workers. In her teenage years, she took different dancing classes and learned the joy of dance. Vika received her bachelor's and master's degrees in Environmental Science from Maykop Institute of Technology and moved to America in 1999. After being in America for more than seven years, she is happily married to a successful business man who is also a musician. Vika received her associate's degree in Web and Graphic Design in May 2007 from Sussex County Community College, Newton NJ . Vika joined "The Champagne Girls" in 2007 and is also a Trustee, who is presently on maternity leave.

NamBew(Ells)

Ells is the Head Trustee in "The Champagne Girls", the Web Master, D.J, photographer, videographer, singer, and chauffeur, He plays many roles in the troupe. He is the one and only "Champagne Boy." He is also an occasional dancer under the name of Nam Bew. Ells' has had a full career in computers, and is the owner of Castle Web Design. He has a certification in Graphic Art and Web Design from Sussex County Community College in Newton, NJ. He is also a student at Drew University Seminary in Madison. He and his wife host a cyber church
One in the Spirit