Multiple award winning international burlesque artist Shir Madness is a hoop dancer, costumier, model, and performer hailing from exotic distant lands. Shortly after her debut in Galway in 2012 she twirled her way through Ireland and Europe performing her special brand of hoop dance and sexy strip tease. She has entertained crowds at events such as Electric Picnic, Longitude, The Manchester Tattoo Tea Party and has appeared at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the Belfast, Dublin, Toulouse, Hebden Bridge, and London Burlesque Festivals. She is Miss Burlesque Dublin 2015, and Best Overall winner at Dublin Burlesque Festival 2016.Shir Madness has been called a pioneer of wild underwear in Irish burlesque, and some believe that she lives in a nest made of glitter and rhinestones.
But really she’s just a curvy, fiery circus freak who likes to tease…
Guitarist Arash Kazemi will be lending his sound to the DCAF Christmas Market!
Arash Kazemi was born in 1990 in Barcelona to a Franco-Spanish mother and an Iranian father. When he was eight the family moved to Dublin, Ireland, where his talent for music soon became apparent and he began his musical education.In the course of his young career he has won various prizes, among them the Flood Trophy for Guitar Performance (2013) and, at sixteen, an RTE (national Irish broadcaster) competition to attend a master class with the great flamenco guitarist Paco Peña and renowned classical guitarist John Williams. Arash was also nominated for The Irish Freemasons Young Musician of the Year (2013 Competition). In 2013 he completed a Bachelors degree in Music Performance with First class Honours. In 2016 he completed his Masters in Music Performance at the DIT Conservatory of Music in Dublin. In 2012, Arash performed for President Michael D Higgins at the UN International Day, in Kilmainham, Dublin.
Arash founded the group Kazemi and Sandoval with the guitarist Javier Sandoval. From 2009 to 2016, they performed playing tangos, boleros, rumbas and flamenco to audiences at numerous venues in Dublin, London, Madrid and Munich.
In 2015 Arash moved to Munich, where he continued his guitar studies and earned his living performing and teaching classical guitar.
Arash continues performing as a solo classical guitarist. He has also developed an intriguing and unique fusion of classical/ flamenco / bossa nova with guitarist Alan Byrne that has thrilled audiences throughout Ireland.
Arash also works as a part-time guitar teacher in Dublin.