Latifa began dancing at the age of six. She has studied Ballet, Modern Dance, Jazz Dance, Afro-Cuban, and Latin Ballroom Dance.
Latifa began performing and teaching Middle Eastern Dance in the mid-1970âs in Europe and San Francisco. In Spain she formed a dance troupe, while working in nightclubs and restaurants in Southern Spain, Ibiza and the Canary Islands. She also did some work in commercials for British television.
Upon returning to San Francisco, she danced in several clubs including the Bagdad, The Greek Taverna, Powell Station (see ãGilded Serpentä articles on North Beach in the 70âs) and The Mykonos, where she also booked the bands and hired other dancers.
In 1991, After several years away from dance to persue a graduate degree at U.C. Berkeley and to do a spiritual reevaluation, she began teaching again in Sausalito. From this group the original Dancers of DeNile was formed. At this time, she also began performing regularly at theCairo Cafe in Mill Valley.
The Dancers of DeNile, which is now an ensemble, are known for their work in restaurants and dance festivals in the Bay Area. Many of their pieces are humorous performance art with political overtones, using Middle Eastern Dance as the medium and artists from other genres such as ãCulture Clashä as the inspiration.
Original members of The Dancers of DeNile performed as solo dancers in several Bay Area Restaurants including The Hatam, The Cairo Cafe, The Byblos, Petra, Pasha, Cleopatra, and Amira.
