About the Team
Artistic Director: Melieka Fathi
Melieka Fathi is a choreographer and performer of Classical and Contemporary Iranian dance. Her unique choreography style is defined as a blend of historic roots and diasporic inspirations. As the daughter of Iranian immigrants, her passion for dance was paved through a sacred connection to Iranian arts, and by the exploration of her identity as an Iranian-American woman. She is the founder and artistic director of the Melieka Fathi Dance Company based in Los Angeles, California. The company was founded in 2017 with a desire to bridge the gap between tradition and modernity through dance. All company dancers are trained in Classical Iranian dance as well as varying Western and Eastern styles. The company’s primary focus is to foster collaborations with world-renowned artists and organizations in an effort to preserve and expand upon Iranian arts within diaspora communities.
Principal Dancer & Assistant Choreographer: Lilia Kazerooni
Lilia Kazerooni has been trained in various styles of Iranian Dance beginning when she was 7 years old. She specializes in Classical Iranian Dance and incorporates these foundations and shapes into her modern choreographies. As she was born in the United States and has never been to Iran, being an Iranian dancer has served as a way for her to connect with her cultural identity. Apart from dancing, Lilia is an undergraduate premedical student majoring in Human Biology with a minor in Spanish at the University of Southern California.
Principal Dancer: Anusha Entezari
Anusha Entezari is a Dance and Sociology undergraduate student at UCLA. She has the most dance training in contemporary, but she’s now exploring Afro-Latin dance styles in addition to Classical and Contemporary Iranian Dance. She uses dance to explore and connect with her identity, culture, and community as an Iranian-Mexican woman. She is currently pre-law and hopes to become a Human Rights Lawyer in addition to pursuing dance in the intersections of human rights, resistance, liberation, and revolution.
