Aziza Al-Tawil

Aziza Al-Tawil is an American actress, belly dancer, singer, and writer/director. She is the daughter of the late composer/singer Samir Al-Tawil and the late New York City belly dance star Johanna. Aziza's mixed heritage of Greek, Celt, Mizrahi Jewish, Armenian, Middle Eastern, Balkan Gypsy, and Native American lends to her the ability to play almost any role. The first hint of Aziza'a talent with dance came in the womb-she kicked her mother so hard during a Flamenco concert the pregnant Johanna had to leave the auditorium. Later, she would say of her daughter, "she was in perfect rhythm." As a one year old, Aziza made her debut in Houston, TX where her mother was on tour-the manager of "The Parthenon" insisted that Johanna make Aziza a costume after seeing her dance at one of the "run throughs" with the band. Johanna eventually relented and Aziza's dance career began when he put her in the show. Aziza spent her childhood on tour with her mother when not home in "Hells Kitchen" or in her mother Johanna's hometown of Charleston, WV with her grandmother. Life was great in the world of belly dancing-from the age of six through thirteen she was often a guest of "The Turkish Voice" TV show shown in New York City, New Jersey, Connecticut, and PA. She was accompanied live in nightclubs and concert by some of the top musicians and recording artists of the genre. Aziza also choreographed and performed in several incarnations of her mother's folk dance company "The Oasis Ballet" which was originally founded in the 1960's. During childhood was when she first revealed a desire to act. Her mother was struggling by now as a single parent but she managed to get Aziza into the theater program at the "Hudson Guild" in Chelsea being taught by future Academy Award winner Morgan Freeman. Morgan would leave a lasting impression on Aziza. Aziza won the "National Fire Safety Poster Contest" and a version of her slogan was used by Dick Van Dyke in a national commercial campaign. She was also discovered for child modeling by Tom Clancy of the Irish Singing group "The Clancy Brothers." Aziza's neighbors in the Henry Hudson Hotel where she grew up were actors Robert Culp, Bubba Bexley, and the comedian Nipsey Russell who was a special friend to her as a child. By age thirteen Aziza was also modeling in costume for members of "The Art Students League." Paintings of her eventually hung in the "SoHo" arts district. She was also hanging out at the "Carnegie Hall Cinema" now and the famous "O'Neal's Balloon" Restaurant owned by actor Patrick O'Neal. After her mother fell ill with narcolepsy sleeping sickness they left New York City, moved to West Virginia and Aziza spent the next few years finishing high school. By her teens she also discovered she could really sing, inspired by Judy Garland, Liza Minnelli, Donna Summer, Barbra Streisand, Eydie Gorme' and others. While in school Aziza won first place trophies and blue ribbons for her school in National Forensics and Drama Club and sang in chorus. She joined the musicians union and performed percussion, sang, and jazz danced with local Charleston area bands. During this time Aziza also began to play Middle Eastern music on the mandolin and flute. Inspired by the resurgence of "folk music" Aziza took up guitar playing, saw "Peter, Paul, and Mary" and Ravi Shankar in concert and then packed up her stuff and headed for Boston, MA with her mother in tow. After a stint belly dancing at the famed "Averof" nightclub she found herself singing big band music with some musicians out of the musicians local and doing shows for local Veterans. The "acting bug" had never really left her so she decided to move once more. This time she and her mother headed to Orlando, Fl and not long after arriving she got an agent. She managed to work as an extra at Disney, even shooting some scenes that starred Alan Alda and Carol Kane for an "industrial" celebrating the anniversary of "Steam Boat Willie" and the new "MGM Theme Park." Not being good at "waitressing," Aziza found herself sinking more into a "quagmire" continuing to work in retail which was not nearly as "flexible" for actors. Losing an agent because she told him she was "working" the day in question, when he had a "gig" for her-seemed to seal her fate for a while. Except for performing occasionally in the now "stagnent" belly dance scene, Aziza gradually became a "slave" to her talents in retail which by now had her working as a visual merchandise manager. By the mid 1990's Aziza and her mother were living in North Carolina. After a complete "burnout" with retail and feeling stifled by her surroundings, she sought to "regroup." She was a costumed historical "re-en actor" at a Moravian attraction. By 2004 she wrote and performed a one woman show about the history of show business in America focusing on Burlesque and Belly Dancing. After suffering many personal heartbreaks, Aziza was inspired once more to take a stab at an acting career. She made a bit of a mark on social media and proceeded to film videos portraying the late Elizabeth Taylor in hopes of playing her after hearing that Paramount had optioned the rights to the book "Furious Love: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, and the Marriage of the Century." During this time, Aziza was thrown another curve ball in her personal life when her mother fell ill suddenly with a mild stroke but proceeded to be mis-diagnosed and mis-treated by a "teaching hospital" in the region. Her mother eventually passed away a few months later in the Spring of 2012. During her mother's illness, Aziza was re-united with an old "flame," New Jersey stage actor Billy Jack Watkins, the cousin of "Golden Age" actor Paul Fix from TV's "The Rifleman" and film classic "To Kill a Mocking Bird." Billy Jack helped Aziza's healing process begin and it was Bill that encouraged Aziza to direct them in short horror films. Their first effort "Hallowed Eve Escape" was the film that landed Aziza the role of "The Psychic" in "The Grave Caller." Director Joseph Anderson said she was exactly as he had envisioned the character. Aziza looked for inspiration and channeled three of her favorite actresses, Shelley Winters, Holly Hunter, and Annie Potts during shooting of her scenes with the talented up and coming actor Jacob Crickenberger. In addition to short films "Hallowed Eve Escape Part 2: The Revenge of Barbara," "Jayne Mansfield and Protozoa," "Dark Gathering," and "Dark Gathering 2: The Hunt for Pristinia," there are several clips of Aziza belly dancing on "YouTube." Aziza is anxious to follow up with new roles and is also working on some screenplays of her own she wishes to direct and star in.