Hired for a Birthday Party

On December 4th, after being part of Raks Nativity, I drove down to Jamaica Plain because I was hired by a friend to dance for her birthday party.

I was honored to be asked to be part of her birthday party in this way, and I was excited to have an opportunity to dance more that evening.

This is my first ever dance gig that I was hired for, and I was excited that they even considered me.

I had prepared about a 15 minute long performance, and wanted to make sure that I got the birthday girl up there as well.  Considering that I hadn't had a lot of time to prepare for the gig since they had just asked me the previous Wednesday, I chose songs that I was already quite familiar with.

My playlist featured:  "Samra Ya Samra" by The Morgador Band, "Khawet Serena (Serena's Step)" by Hossam Ramzy, and "Enzal ya Gameel" by Walid Toufic.

There's always this little voice inside that causes me to get a bit nervous.  It usually says, "What if you mess up? What if you don't keep their interest long enough? What if what if what if...?"

I do have to remind myself that I was the belly dancer hired or chosen or whatever to be dancing there.  There's really quite a possibility that no one else knows how to do what I do, and not just concerning the dance style but also knowing the music and knowing how to improvise and work a room.

The guests stood in a circle around me, and I danced around in the middle of that circle.  There were definitely some things I became keenly aware of during my performance. 

I was suddenly very aware of the men in the room.  It felt very different from any recital, where there are also men.  But, it definitely felt that I was being watched almost a little too closely for my own comfort.  I made it a point to mainly make eye contact with the women in the room.

After my performance, I ran back into the bathroom, and changed back into street clothes.  When I returned, a lot of the guests were complementing me on my dancing.  It was nice to hear so many positive things.

At one point, one of the guests who was leaving asked me if I was Middle Eastern.  I must say that that is the first time I've ever been asked that!  The woman, who was Palestinian, said that I looked a lot like her cousin, but that she thought I might have been mixed with another Asian background.  But she said that I danced really wonderfully.

I have to admit that having someone Middle Eastern complement my dancing is a true highlight.

I'm really proud of myself for having just completed an amazing night with tons of highlights.  It felt great to be acknowledged as good enough to deserve a fee.  Truly, this experience will be a reminder to help me build my confidence as a dancer.