Katia's 9th Annual Retreat 2011

Oh my goodness!  I'm so behind!!

Back in July, Katia of Boston hosted her 9th Annual Dance Retreat in Lakeville, MA.  This was my first time attending, though I had wanted to go in 2010.

It was a jam-packed weekend!  From Thursday to Sunday, we were dancing and learning and having a grand old time.  Over the course of 4 days, Katia taught 3 choreographies, and there was a show or gathering on every night.

Khaleegy Dance
Since I had a chance to learn some of Khaleegy through Meiver, I had already had a love for this style.  We got to learn a really fun choreography that had a couple of moves I was familiar with and some more that I was learning for the first time.

The interesting thing about khaleegy choreography is that you really have to pay attention to counting, especially if you can't hear the slightest changes in the music.  I found that I really had to keep counting the measures just to make sure I stayed on track.

But overall, it was a really fun choreography to do with a whole lot of us.

Moroccan Dance
Katia had taken a trip to Morocco earlier in the year, and we had the privileged of seeing some of her pictures and souvenirs as well as hearing about her experiences.  She even had a couple of folks model the variety of dress and style.

In the Moroccan Dance workshop, she explained the emphasis on hip movements and compared some of the movement vocabulary with ones we were already familiar with in raqs sharqi.  The emphasis in the music was also somewhat different from what we're used to.  It was interesting to see the different way of calling attention to the hips.

Classic Dance
The Classic Oriental Dance was one we worked on the most.  This dance involved a sheer chiffon fabric which we cut a large slit into and used as an entrance veil.  Having a sheer entrance veil was definitely something I had never thought of using before.  But it makes sense to dance during a long introduction, and to fill it with a little bit of drama and stage presence.

During this dance, I took it as an opportunity to practice working on my spotting during turns, as well as cleaning up my arms.  Katia talks a lot about character and carriage, both things that I need to work on.  The music she chose for this choreography really lent itself to creating a queenly persona, which seemed appropriate for working on carriage.

Friday Retrospective Show
This show featured some amazing performances from the Retreat participants, some of which were Katia's choreographies from past Retreats.  One in particular was dance 3 different times by 4 different dancers (one was a duet).  It was amazing to see the same song and dance performed in 3 different ways (to a 9 minute song, I believe).  It truly felt like a different dance every time.  The same 3 dances danced in different ways was a perfect example of exhibiting one's own character.

Saturday Show with Live Band
I had the pleasure of dancing during this show with some of the best musicians in New England.  Tony Chamoun, his father George Chamoun, and several other musicians came together to play some amazing music for the Retreat.  As we were preparing, I could tell that the other ladies were extremely excited to have those musicians play at the Retreat.  They talked about how nice they all were, and how they know how to play for dancers.

Compared to some other musicians and bands I've seen, I can honestly say that I agree.  From set up to the final notes of your performance, the band is not only considerate of the space of the dancer but also the dancer's needs.

I decided to go for a Classic Oriental piece with Akdib Aleik.  I was definitely extremely nervous about performing for my peers to live music.

It's always funny what runs through your head during a performance.  I was trying to remember all the things that Katia had taught us thus far, while also trying to sing the music in my head as a way to know when breaks might occur, while also trying to keep connected to the musicians.  I know I wasn't as good at everything as I could have been, but I did have a lot of fun dancing for everyone.

blurry but pretty picture taken by Nina

I felt honored to have spent the weekend with such an already tight knit group.  It was definitely a wonderful example of the kind of family feeling one can have in the dance community.  These ladies were true sisters, and they continue to welcome new members.

I am definitely planning to attend Katia's 10th and Final Dance Retreat in 2012.  In fact, I can hardly wait.

Amira Jamal's Student Recital 2011

I can't believe I didn't write about this already!  It's been quite a busy summer, indeed.

On May 7, 2011, Amira Jamal held her annual Student Recital at the Performing Arts Center of Metrowest.  Though her student recitals used to take up several hours, there were less performances this year so the entire recital was only about an hour.

From her advanced class in Boston, there were only 2 of us who were available to perform.  Amira has so many amazing students, and it's always been a blessing to be counted in that group.

Now that I recognize and know so many of the other dancers from other workshops and events, it's been great to see so many of them break out into solo performances.  Like me, I'm sure that they view Amira's student recitals as a wonderful place to try new things, even if that new thing is performing something on their own.

At this year's recital, I decided on dancing to "El Layali" by Nawal al Zoghbi, a more poppy tune.  Here's the music video for it.  So 90's!




It's a pretty fun song, and I chose to use the veil throughout the performance, making it more of an American Cabaret performance.  I thoroughly enjoyed this years recital, and I felt a lot more relaxed than I usually do about performances.  I hope that means that I'm also improving and growing in my dance.

2011 Goals - Mid-Year Review

Well, the 6th month of the year is upon us.   It's time to take a look at how I'm doing at my goals thus far.


Let's start from the beginning, shall we?


1.  Be better about practicing at home or outside of class.
Hmm...well, I've definitely done a little bit of practicing, but not nearly enough.  With taking on bootcamp on days when I also have dance class, it's definitely not easy to motivate to practice outside of those times.  However, I did win a bunch of DVD's in a raffle, so that is some extra motivation.

2.  Save enough money to attend all the workshops I want to attend this year.
Alright, well, I've definitely failed at this one, though for the most part it was out of my hands.  I did get a chance to go to Shimmies though I worked as  the stage manager for the show, and Faten Salema in April which was a great deal.  Mohammed Shahin's workshop was cancelled due to insufficient venue space.
Katia has a workshop in June, which I'm still a bit hesitant about because of my lack of funds.  But I know I will have enough for Katia's Retreat in July.  MassRaqs is in September, but I don't know if I'll be taking the workshops since I'll be working the event.   Since I do finally have some job opportunities, I'm hoping that I will have enough for Katia's workshop and Retreat.  But I also hope to continue with Najmat, and I plan on continuing with Amar Gamal.

3.  Technique:  Work on my spins and my shimmies.
Luckily, we have some spins in Amar Gamal's choreography, so I get to work on my spotting there.  It's tough to do it in my apartment with the kitties running around.  But I'm still working on it!
As far as my shimmies, I feel like they come and go.  I need to work on all my shimmies, from the earthier ones to the vibration.  I usually do a bit of shimmy practice before bootcamp as a way to warm up while no one is there yet.  I might also check out some more DVD's on shimmies, especially Amar Gamal's shimmy DVD.

4.  Props:  Work on fan veil and Isis wings.
I got me a pair of Isis wings! Yay!  But I just gotta practice with them.  Again, this is really dependent on me taking time to actually get out there and practice.

5.  Buy a new costume before the year is over, and take 2 dresses to Shadia to turn into dance costumes.
I'm hoping that the second half of the year will prove to be much more fruitful in terms of my cash, so that I can at least give 1 dress to Shadia.  But otherwise, this one is on hold until the finances are in better shape.


I've definitely slacked a bit on these goals.  But, it's good to get some perspective while checking in about these goals.  Now, it's time to refocus and get on it.