Dina Shihabi

Dina Shihabi (Arabic: دينا شهابي‎) is an Arab American actress.

Shihabi was born in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia then moved to Dubai when she was six. She started dance classes at age 6 and at 13 she began taking dance lessons from Sharmilla Kamte, a renowned dance teacher at the Dubai Community Theatre and Arts Centre Chaloub Studio. She quickly became a member of her professional dance team and performed at many venues in the UAE and the Middle East. At the Dubai American Academy, which she attended from 8th grade to graduation, Shihabi performed in numerous school plays, and was encouraged by her teacher, Nancy Mock, to pursue an Acting career. From a young age, Dina felt destined for a career in the performing Arts and was inspired by both her dance and acting teachers, and was supported by her parents.

At age 18, with her parents's blessing, she moved to New York City and began pursuing a career in acting; this became a full-time profession for her in 2010. She was accepted at both Juilliard and The graduate Acting Program at NYU Tisch School for the Arts. Although Dina did not complete a 4 year Bachelor's degree ( she attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, an Acting Conservatory from 2008 to 2010), NYU waived the requirement of a Bachelor's degree and she graduated with her MFA in 2014.[1] She is the first Middle East-born woman to be accepted to both the Juilliard and NYU Graduate Acting programs.[2]

Shihabi's native Arabic dialect is a form of Levantine Arabic.[3]

Credits

References

  1. ↑ Naidoo, Amelia. "Saudi actress paves way for women artists." Gulf News. July 30, 2011. Retrieved on November 15, 2015.
  2. ↑ Menendez, Alicia. "Middle East-born actress Dina Shihabi on proving her mother right: “Acting has taken up my life”." Fusion. January 28, 2015. Retrieved on November 15, 2015.
  3. 1 2 Barylski, Nicole (editor-in-chief). "INTERVIEW: Paul Wesley, Dina Shihabi, And Sean Mullin On "Amira & Sam" & The Beauty Of Improv." Hamptons.com. Retrieved on November 16, 2015. "While she speaks Arabic fluently, she speaks a Palestinian Arabic or Lebanese Arabic, so she had to learn a completely different dialect of Arabic."
  4. ↑ "Dina Shihabi." David (official website). Retrieved on November 15, 2015.

External links

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