Twilight of the Empress

Banafsheh Sayyad

Fared Shafinury

Shila Ommi

Twilight of the Empress is a multimedia mythological musical convergence of 4 artists: Choreographer, Banafsheh Sayyad | Composer, Fared Shafinury | Actress, Shila Ommi | Mythologist, Maryam Sayyad which premiered at Cal State Northridge in May 2024.

Twilight of the Empress transports audiences into a mystical realm where storytelling, poetry, music, and dance converge to illuminate the eternal battle between light and darkness. Featuring 7 dancers, a powerful orator, and 6 musicians, this performance is a gateway to an otherworldly experience, transcending time and space.

The choreography by Banafsheh Sayyad is a fusion of contemporary Persian dance and Sufi whirling, intertwining grounded fluidity with ecstatic yet meditative spins. The dancers move with precision and grace, channeling the ancient yet timeless struggle mirrored both in the world and within ourselves. Their gestures, at once delicate and powerful, evoke the forces of creation and destruction, guiding the audience on an inner journey of witnessing, understanding, and healing.

The orator, Shila Ommi, weaves through this ethereal tapestry, carrying words that resonate with the soul, urging us to recognize our role in restoring balance in our world.

The music, a seamless blend of classical and contemporary Persian compositions by Fared Shafinury, deepens the immersive experience. Traditional melodies intertwine with innovative arrangements, creating a soundscape that is both contemplative and visionary. Music and dance work in harmony, dissolving the barriers between performer and spectator, reality and myth.

Twilight of the Empress is more than a performance; it is a ritual, an invitation to become agents of healing for ourselves, our polarized world, and our precious Mother Earth that will linger in spirit, a mystical imprint, long after the final bow.

This first iteration of Twilight of the Empress has been possible by a generous grant from Take Action LA.

Based on Ahmed Hilmi’s “Field of Justice”

Presented by Namah Ensemble

Conceived by

Banafsheh Sayyad & Maryam Sayyad

Creative Directors
Banafsheh Sayyad
Fared Shafinury

Adpated for the stage by
Fared Shafinury & Shila Ommi

Co-Writers
Maryam Sayyad & Banafsheh Sayyad

Choreography
Banafsheh Sayyad

Musical Composition & Arrangement
Fared Shafinury

Narration
Shila Ommi

Executive Producer
Maryam Sayyad

Film
Hitoshi Inoue

Graphic Designer
Kourosh Beigpour

Banafsheh Sayyad

Iranian sacred dancer, choreographer, teacher, activist, and founder of Dance of Oneness®, Banafsheh Sayyad performs and teaches her award-winning work internationally, initiating people into the wisdom of their bodies. With a Masters of Fine Arts in Dance and Choreography from UCLA and a Masters in Chinese Medicine, she is dedicated to individual and collective healing through conscious dance and movement. Read more about Banafsheh.

Fared Shafinury

Fared Shafinury is a renowned contemporary Iranian-American artist, singer/songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist, lyricist, setâr virtuoso, and educator. Starting his music career at an early age, he completed his studies of the Radif with master of classical persian music, Ostad Shoari, Ostad Zolghadr and Ostad Lotfi. He first gained global recognition in 2010 with the release of his first full length album, Behind the Seas. Fared is the director of the Radif Retreat Institute of Classical Persian music, an online school and database for music theory. Read more about Fared.

Shila Ommi

Shila Vosough Ommi is an Iranian born actor/director. She plays leading roles on Apple TV’s Tehran, Netflix’ KAOS, and Disney/Pixar’s Oscar nominated feature, Elemental. She has directed and produced award winning plays in Los Angeles, and toured internationally for over a decade performing plays for Iranians in exile. Shila directed the feature film, Wake up Sleeping Beauty, produced by the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health in association with Cross Cultural Expressions. Read more about Shila.

Hitoshi Inoue

Japanese born Hitoshi Inoue is an award winning visual effects artist, cinematographer, and editor. He has worked with James Cameron on Titanic, Cameron Crowe on Jerry Maguire, Barry Sonnenfeld on Men in Black, and Paul Verhoeven in Starship Troopers. Hitoshi has won several awards for his visual effects and editing on the film, Wake Up Sleeping Beauty that he co-created with Shila Ommi. He is also an independent filmmaker and director with several projects in pre-production.

Maryam Sayyad

With a PhD in Mythological Studies, Maryam researches, writes, lectures, and creates theatrical and academic events centering on mythology and meaning. She is the co-founder of Kosmos Institute of Mythology Esotericism & Archetypes (KIMEA), Director of Art and Education at Cross Cultural Expressions (CCE), and Event Director for Namah Ensemble Inc. Maryam is a 2024 Contributing Scholar at the Philosophical Research Society where she organized and hosted the first Mythos of Iran Conference in May 2023. Read more about Maryam.

Kourosh Beigpour

Kourosh Beigpour is an LA-based award-winning graphic artist and type designer. He received his BFA from the Tehran University of Art, one of Asia’s oldest and most prestigious art schools, and an MFA in International Contemporary Art and Design from Limkokwing University. Kourosh has designed for a wide range of clientele including Google, The Broad, Getty and Powerhouse Museums, Canada Type, UCI, UCLA, NEIU, and OSU. LACMA acquired 6 limited edition silk screens from Kourosh’s Mandal Series earlier this year. Read more about Kourosh.