Nadra Assaf

Artistic Director – Founder | Al Sarab Dance Company

Nadra Majeed Assaf is the founder/artistic director of Al-Sarab Dance Foundation which houses Al-Sarab Dance School as well as Al-Sarab Dance Company. She is also a full-time academic (Lebanese American University) and a well-known researcher in dance in the Middle East. 

She is best known for her work in dance in the Middle East as she has lived in Lebanon for the past 30+years.  In 2016, she started an A-typical collaboration with American dancer, professor, and choreographer Heather Harrington. This collaboration has led to numerous performances and conferences in Sweden, Beirut, Malta, San Diego, CA, and Geneva, New York

Assaf is an advocate for the arts in Lebanon and the Region. She is also an avid researcher; among her publications: (Re)positioning, (re)ordering, (re)connecting: A choreographic process of mind and body convergence (2022);Audience/performer re-action: an investigation into audience/performer reciprocity via a touring site-specific performance in Lebanon (2020) Not Without My Body: The Struggle of Dancers and Choreographers in the Middle East (2015) and “I Matter”: An Interactive Exploration of Audience-Performer Connections (2012).For more information: https://nadraassaf.com/