At the door, Nilat invites you in. Her house is filled with pictures of Asian silk, Moroccan spices and ancient African movements. As you settle in as she tells of her travels and her learnings—how wise sages have honorably bestowed their insight of the spiritual thread that connects us to the divine and the divine to us. But her stories are no longer being spoken. Instead the story unfolds in the world of rolling hips, extended bodies and intricate footwork.

Her story enraptures you. You see the ancient as new and the new as ancient. And then, in an instant your world is gone. Colorful silk sleeves lunge toward you and envelope you. You have no time to be afraid. You have become a part of Nilat’s story.

Nilat has been studying dance, in her native state of Maryland, since she was a child, and has performed with dance and theater companies since 14. Her background includes modern, ballet, tap, and jazz. 10 years ago she started pursuing world dance, such as African, Asian, Egyptian Cabaret, ATS, and Tribal Fusion, to add to her repertoire.

Nilat has been choreographing and performing many flavors of bellydance full-time since 1999 with troupes Sultan’s Treasures, Gypsy Fusion, Tum Fuzsion, Al-Bahira, and Afsana.

Nilat joined Afsana in the summer of 2008.  Nilat has performed all over the east coast and midwest, such as First Night Annapolis, DC Tribal Café, Arab World Festival, Darkon Feast, Northern Lights Bellydance Festival, Sestraluna Showcase and more.