COMPANY BIOGRAPHIES

SAMARA (Artistic Director for Dance & Choreographer) has had a life long commitment to the dances of the Near East. A protégé of the late master Ibrahim Farrah, she performed with his internationally acclaimed Near East Dance Group in some of the most prestigious concert arenas in the U.S., including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, New York’s Town Hall, Theatre of the Riverside Church, and the Spoleto Festival. As a soloist, Samara has been engaged in Middle Eastern nightclubs and theaters all over the globe. She has performed with some of the most famous singing stars of the Middle East and with American artists such as Christina Aguilera at the Radio City Music Hall (MTV Music Awards) and at the Beacon Theater with fusion pop star Alabina. Samara was a 1998 inductee into the American Academy of Middle Eastern Dance Hall of Fame. Samara has been the choreographer and Artistic Director for Dance for the Mosaic Dance Theater Company since its first production in 2003. Additional choreographic credits include several off-Broadway productions, the New York International Fringe Festival, Kamatsu Kaoru Arabia Dance Company in Tokyo Japan, and for Broadway star Robert Cuccioli in Elvis Unbound. As a seminar instructor, Samara teaches regularly throughout the United States and abroad. In New York City she teaches weekly classes and is a faculty member at the Ailey Extension. A trained actress, Samara has appeared on the New York stage, and as a professional model, she worked in the U.S. and in Europe in runway, print and fashion.

MORGIANA CELESTE VARRICCHIO (Producing Artistic Director) is a classically trained actor, a storyteller and a dancer, as well as the founder of Mosaic Dance Theater Company. Her works have been commissioned and performed internationally, in New York, and at regional and stock theaters throughout the U.S., including such venues as Lincoln Center, the Brooklyn Museum, Paper Mill Playhouse, the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, the Nashville Institute for the Arts, the New York International Fringe Festival, and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in Scotland. An accomplished writer and producer, she has adapted and/or written for the stage, produced, performed, and toured in: Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves; Gypsy Tales; Ovid’s Metamorphoses; Banat El Emir or The Dancing Princesses; and for Mosaic Dance Theater Company, Tales from The Arabian Nights, Land of The Pharaohs, The Paradise of Children, and La Lettera d’Isabella. In addition to her numerous acting credits, she worked as production assistant for several Broadway productions, was artistic consultant for the late film star Anthony Quinn, and is privileged to list on her resume the remarkable experience of working at the Dallas Theater Center (TX) during its leadership by the legendary Paul Baker. Morgiana teaches classes and workshops in Middle Eastern dance, and conducts workshops for storytelling and storytheater. She holds an MFA from Trinity University and a BA from Lehigh University.

ADRIANA ROSA (Education & Outreach Coordinator) , in her current role with the Company, works with the Mosaic directors in delivering presentations and developing and presenting programs for various educational institutions and community-based organizations. She has been with Mosaic since its inception in 2003 and is a former performing member and dance captain.  She has taught and performed Middle Eastern dance for over 30 years. She was a featured member of L’Orient Danse Troupe and has performed in a variety of venues including educational institutions, carnivals, festivals, theatres, restaurants, and television in the U.S. and the Caribbean. She has also had a lengthy business career as a trainer, consultant, and manager in human resources.  She has had extensive experience in the field including employee selection, management and leadership training, and laborrelations.  Adriana is also a student and performer of Hawaiian dance and Afro-Puerto Rican dance and holds a BA fromHunter College and an MA from Columbia University.

NINA BREWTON, a Mosaic company member since since its original production in 2003, has had extensive training in ballet, jazz, modern dance and Dunham technique, having studied at the Clark Center for Performing Arts in New York City where she was awarded a two-year full-time dance scholarship. A former member of Actors’ Equity, she performed in The King and I, with featured roles as “Topsy” and the “Fan Dancer”. As a performer of the Polynesian dances of the Pacific for many years, Nina toured professionally with three Polynesian dance companies. She aspires to be a master teacher of Hawaiian dance and culture, and travels to Hawaii each year continuing her studies in a graduate program under the guidance of Kumu Hula (master teacher) Mapuana de Silva. Nina studies Middle Eastern dance with Samara, and in addition to her theatrical performances with Mosaic, she has performed as a soloist at special events and Middle Eastern venues in the NY metropolitan area.

RAFAEL DOMENECH hails from Caracas, Venezuela, where he was a teacher of performing arts and dance and a director of plays in many festivals. The multi-talented performer was also a dance teacher and choreographer in the company CAYM in Ecuador. Now based in New York, he hascontinued his work as a theatre director, teacher, actor, dance teacher, dancer, and choreographer. His studies have included Ballet, Acting, Contemporary Dance, Jazz, Circus, Yoga and Singing! Rafael is a certified Master teacher of Yoga having studied at the renowned Yoga Works studio in NY, and is a certified Pole Dance instructor as well.  Currently Rafael directs Performing Arts Creative Theatre Group (PACT) and works as adancer, choreographer and yoga instructor at Belly Dance America Studios. He performs, dances and emcees for private events and festivals in NYC and other cities around. As a singer, Rafael performs with the Actor's Chapel Choir directed by Stephen Fraser, Capella Sur and the NY LatinoAmerican Choir, both directed by Guillermo Vaisman.