MassRaqs 2010 - Part 2

I decided to cut the post, since it was getting a bit too long.  Now, where was I?  Oh yes, the final day of MassRaqs 2010.

Sunday Workshops

Sunday, September 26th

Sunday was going to be a jam-packed day with 4 workshops and a Gala show in the evening.  This day felt a lot more relaxed, interestingly.  Perhaps because we already knew what to expect for the workshops.  Also, knowing that Springstep's staff would be in charge of setting up chairs really took a lot of stress away.

Shadia - Double Cane Technique
I have very limited experience with the cane, though I have to say that doing the saiidi choreography with Meiver for Barka helped to make me feel more confident about using this prop.  But 2 canes?  Well, that's a completely new adventure.  Truth be told, this workshop was a huge wake-up call for me.  Shadia stressed practicing at least 5 minutes a day with a cane, and in both hands, would really help everyone's technique.

My favorite part of this experience was learning some new tricks with the cane.  There was one trick where we twirled the cane and caught it on the other end (hard to explain, but really cool to watch!).  I found it hilarious that everyone (including me!) was dropping our canes during the practice.  We all had a lot to learn, but we are eager to do so.

My least favorite part of this experience was that I completely forgot that I hid my canes during the Gala and I forgot them at the venue!  Luckily, dowels don't const that much, so I can easily replace them.

Shadia - Bedouin Styling
Shadia, a master in folkloric style, introduced many of us to the Levantine and Bedouin style which is a lot less hips and more hands and arms and shoulders.  We went through a combination of steps and movements that are characteristic of these folkloric styles.

Then she paired us by height and we did some debke line dancing.  This was so much fun!  First of all, it was hilarious to see how fast the tall group moved across the room, and how much slower it took for the shorter groups.  But the beat of the music and the fact that it's a group line dance just makes it feel like a party.

Boẑenka for Cassandra - Oriental Technique Tune-Up
Boẑenka took us through some modern oriental technique work, leading us across the floor with different combinations and different facial expressions.  In a way, this felt like an extension or a second part of her Arms and Hands workshop from Saturday.

It was fun to cross the room with so many of my friends, and it was nice to watch the other dancers in the room strut their stuff.  It felt like we were all really cheering each other on, and just plain enjoying ourselves.

Boẑenka - Drum Solo
Perhaps one of the most exciting parts about this workshop, aside from learning some technique from one of the most renowned dancers, was that we had a live drummer to dance with.  One of the local drummers who was performing with the band at the Gala helped us learn a little bit about how to connect with the drummer.  Boẑenka stressed that while it often feels that the dancer has to chase after whatever the drummer is doing, the dancer can do a couple of things to signify that she will be changing her movements.

She had us individually approach the drummer and signify when we would be finishing a phrasing.  It was fun to watch each person dance and learn what moves help to signal to the drummer.  Then, several of the attendees picked up some drums and each of us participated in a drum circle.  We each danced to a full drumming group, and it was fun to show what we had learned.

In total, I have to admit that Saturday's workshops felt more like a lot of hard work, whereas Sunday felt a lot more relaxed and fun.  This isn't to say that either day wasn't filled with both hard work and fun, but there was definitely more of one aspect present on one day versus the other.

Sunday Gala
Goodness.  I feel absolutely blessed to have started and ended the weekend watching such a huge variety of amazing dancers.  The performers were a mix of people I have watched several times and people I had only heard of.  The Gala really felt like a perfect bookend to an already inspiring weekend.

Let me start by talking about a little bit of trouble we ran into before the doors were even officially open.  One woman was extremely angry that we were unable to take credit or debit cards for admission.  She said that we should have advertised it, which is true, but there was no need to be extremely angry at us for not having the capability of card swiping.  That is definitely something to remember for next year's and any upcoming events.

The first set of the evening was the folkloric portion.  There was some cane action from Chantel as well as some debke line dancing from Shadia's Mirza Troupe, both of which made me sway along with the music.  Then Boẑenka performed a maleya leff, which is flirty and uses an embellished veil.  She looked like she was having such a fun time with the dance.

The second set of the evening was mainly raqs shaqi dances.  Watching Meiver and Najmat dance is always such an amazing experience.  Meiver with her amazing combinations and Najmat with her delicious gooeyness are enough to bring in a whole new group of belly dance enthusiasts.  Though Nina had performed at Baraka, I didn't get a chance to watch her move, so I was excited to get the chance during the Gala.  Local favorites Pheadra and Hanan also graced the stage, playing zills and twirling double canes, respectively.  I tried to pay attention to their technique, especially since we had worked on those two this weekend.

Then, of course, the Gala closed with another performance by Boẑenka.  She is just amazing!  If you ever get a chance to learn from her or to watch her move in person, it is something you really want to strive for.  But, let me not forget to mention her AMAZING costume!

Boẑenka's gorgeous costume

I'm pretty sure even the band members were mesmerized by her movements.  Her costume only helped to accentuate how amazing she is.  It's always very interesting to watch dancers of such popularity live in action.  She really exudes confidence and a love for the dance - something we are all striving to naturally exude.

In Conclusion
MassRaqs was really a complete success.  Sure, there were some unhappy folks about Cassandra's absence, and I'm sure that not everyone was completely happy about the weekend.  Sure, there could have been a lot more tightness in the event implementation and organization and time management.  These are all things that we will be aware of in terms of future event planning.  Some things worked, and some things didn't.

With the New England belly dance community recently having experienced some negativity in the form of undercutting and gossip, this weekend (which also featured a tribal event organized in Boston) was really needed.  Starting the weekend with an open dialog about what makes Boston and New England such a stronghold for the belly dance community, filling in workshops that could only enhance everyone's dance, and ending with beautiful dancers just felt cohesive and inspiring.

Considering that I woke up this morning feeling like I just wanted to keep dancing and then reading about other people's feelings about the weekend on Facebook, it just means that MassRaqs 2011 (Save the Date: October 21st-23rd) is just going to be better in every way.

MassRaqs 2010 - Part 1

What an amazing weekend!  I wanted to write about my MassRaqs experience as a participant and as an assistant in the process.  I was more than happy to share my skills to help this event, and I feel like I've learned a lot about the process as well.

First of all, MassRaqs was created as a way to bring the New England belly dance community together for a weekend of discussion, learning, and performing.  In that respect, I believe that the event was a complete respect.  But, being the first year the event took place, there is definitely much for all of us to learn from.

Panel Presentation and Performances
Friday, September 24th
The first event of the weekend took place in Green Street Studios in Central Square.  It's amazing how one of the studios is able to change from a regular looking studio into a beautiful performance and show space.  One of the drawbacks, however, is the poor air circulation - when it's hot, it's hot!

As an event assistant, I knew that we had a limited amount of time to organize the space before the event could begin.  There were definitely enough hands, and we even got some help from one of the audience members.  Unfortunately, we did get started a bit later than scheduled, and we definitely ended a lot later than scheduled.

Perhaps it would have been useful to delegate exactly what needed to be done to the specific people who were going to be there to help.  That way, everyone could focus on their specific task and help anyone who might need extra help when they're done.

My approach to event organization is definitely one of multi-tasking.  Even if you were the one delegating tasks, you need to be moving around and helping with things as well.  "Floating" doesn't mean just standing around while everyone is moving.

As a participant of the event, I though the discussion and video sampler of Amy Smith and DeAnna Putnam's "Aziza!" was wonderful.  There were conversations about the changes in the New England belly dance scene throughout the years, thoughts on preserving the past as well as the present, and hopes for the future of the community.

I have to admit, I was enthralled by the conversation.  I felt proud to be part of the New England belly dance community, considering that the American belly dance scene really started in Boston.

After the panel, difference dancers from all over New England (from Connecticut to Maine, Rhode Island to Vermont, and everything in between) performed their different styles of raqs sharqi.  It was a pleasure to watch the dancers, many of whom are my friends.  I have to admit that my face hurts from the joy of watching them.

After the event was over, there was, of course, the break down part of the event.  Again, while it seemed to take less time to take everything down and put everything back, it still would be useful to have delegated tasks.  Also, the event should have been planned down to the second.  Dancers arrive at a specific time, panel ends lasts a specific amount of time, etc.  Overall, though, the first event of the weekend was a success.

Saturday Workshops
Saturday, September 25th
Saturday featured 3 workshops from 3 different teachers.  Unfortunately, Cassandra had an injury and was unable to come to Boston for the weekend.  I know that many participants were eager to learn from her, and many were disappointed that she wasn't able to teach her workshops.  However, I do think that Meiver did what she could at such short notice, and considering that Boẑenka was the replacement teacher, I think that we were lucky to still have the workshops available to us.

Obviously, it would only benefit us to be exposed to a variety of teachers.  Though, on the other hand, I think it would have also been awesome to extend Boẑenka's already assigned workshops.  I mean, who couldn't use more work on their Hands and Arms?

As a event assistant, I was mainly charged with preparing registration sign-in forms and making sure the vendors had all they needed.  I definitely went into event mode the second I stepped off the bus.  The vendors were one of the first to arrive, and I helped to get them set up on their tables.  I also helped to set up the registration table, prepared with signage and tons of pens.

Throughout the day, I stayed relatively vigilant about who was coming in through the doors and elevators, even though I tried to focus on participating in the workshops.

Meiver - Exciting Combinations for Modern Oriental Style
Having studied and learned some Modern Oriental style with Meiver for the Baraka event, I was proud to know that I was probably a little more advanced than some of the others who were new to Meiver's style.  Considering that I found the Modern Oriental to be the most challenging, I knew it would only benefit me more to take this workshop.

Part of the combination was similar to the choreography we learned for Baraka, but the changed in the choreography were just as challenging as learning it the entire choreography the first time.  Honestly, I think Meiver's choreography and combinations are beautiful and exciting.  It takes some serious skill to produce choreography in the graceful way that she does.

Boẑenka - Arms and Hands: Technique for Fluid Arm Movement and Emotive Gesturing
I think that part of what made me fall in love with belly dance was the snake arms.  I know, however, that it's something I need a lot of work on.  Boẑenka worked us all very hard!  There was definitely a lot of movement repetition and keeping our arms up.  I was scared I was going to be extremely sore the next day, but I wasn't.

You definitely need some serious arm and shoulder strength to help you get to the point of having gorgeous arms and hands.  But Boẑenka's stretching suggestions were also extremely helpful.  I know that I don't really think about stretching my hands and wrists very often, but now I will be more conscious of doing so.  Watching her move her arms and hands really made me feel inspired to keep working on my own technique.

Boẑenka for Cassandra - Beledi Stylings
I heart the beledi.  It's so earthy and fun.  Boẑenka reminded us, however, that while it is an earthy dance style, it is still a very proud dance style.  Earthy does not mean that technique gets lost, but that it is a different feeling added onto the technique.  She taught us a bit of combinations and then took us through some zill/zagat work.

It was interesting to see how she taught the finger cymbals.  Most of my instructors have focused on alternating the hands, so that both hands are used.  But Boẑenka stressed that the right hand (or your dominant hand) kept the beat while the left hand inserted little accents.  I have to admit that it was difficult to change to that way of playing after having played a different way for so long.  But it was an interesting way to think about the zills.

By this final workshop of the day, my feet were achy and I was tired from getting very little sleep the night before.  I was excited to go home and rest for the final day of MassRaqs.

Coming Up Next:  Sunday Workshops, Gala, and Final Thoughts

BARAKA: A Benefit for MataHari

Remember back at the end of May when I spoke about Meiver's Intensive Repertoire Class?  Well, there was a total of 3.5 months of intense work, learning, dancing, and feet aches.  It all culminated on Wednesday, August 18th, at the Multicultural Arts Center.

The ceiling of the MCAC

The stage, Pre-Show

Meiver has been working her tail off, with the help of some of her students, to organize an extremely successful event to benefit MataHari: Eye of the Day, a great social justice organization that works towards immigrant, refugee, and workers rights.

In my previous post about the choreographies, I talked about all the things I was learning and all the things that I could do better.  In this post, I want to talk more about the choreographies and about the experience of being in the show.

Being A-Part
To be honest, in the beginning, I didn't really know how major the show was going to be.  But as the months passed and more was revealed, I got more and more excited.  To be even more honest, a lot of my fellow dancers were extremely anxious about the show, but I felt more excited to be part of the show.

With at least 10 different people with at least 10 different schedules to coordinate, it was difficult to try to keep steady progress on learning all the choreographies.  Also, it being summer, there was a lot of summer traveling (as was the case with me).

As August 18th drew closer, there were many things we all needed to work on in terms of the choreography and details.  But I truly believed that we would rock the show.  I believed that my classmates would do their best.  I believe that all of Meiver's and our hard work would pay off.

I know that I haven't been part of a show of this level since my undergrad days and the Queer Fashion Show.  There was perhaps less makeup back then, but there was definitely more glitter now.  But the stress seemed to be about the same.

Glitter provided by Sassy Sparkles.

Speaking purely from my own personal experiences, I know how difficult it can be to coordinate so many people, regardless of availability, regardless or experience, regardless of commitment.  From the talents shows with 3rd through 8th graders to coordinating a single dance with 20 members, there's a lot of work that needs to be done.  I couldn't help but feel empathetic to Meiver's workload.  But still, I had confidence about the show.

On some level, I felt bad that I wasn't able to connect with some of my fellow dancers on how stressed they were feeling about the dances.  I was more concerned about the costuming, as I had already spent so much money that I didn't have, and there were some unforeseen last minute changes.  But overall, I was feeling really positive about the show itself and our abilities to produce a great one.

Modern Oriental
As the opening number to the entire show, it was fabulous.  Personally, the technique was perhaps the most challenging to me.  Aside from remembering my posture, I had to remember how to hold my hands a different way then I'm used to, point my toes to hide my heel, and remember the various transitions.  It was a challenging piece.  But even though I wasn't in the audience, I'm sure it was such a glorious way to open the show.

"Sahra" by Bassil Moubayyed

This dance is a perfect example of how an ensemble of dancers should look on the stage.  Though some of the aspects of the dance are influenced by the ballet, I felt like this choreography was something you would see the Bellydance Superstars performing.

There were times when I would practice the choreography in my head and I would get distracted by wondering how one even designs something like that dance.  Making sure the right groups of people or even one person would end up in the correct spot, going from point A to point B, who turns in which direction.  The dance-math is making my head hurt!  But kudos to Meiver for such a gem of a piece.

My Solo
Holy quick costume change, Batman!  Thank you to Ma'isah, Aleksie, and my other classmates for helping me with my super fast costume change!  My solo was the 3rd act of the evening, and I had to get my outfit and my zills ready.

I was sweating so much from the first piece and from changing, that I carried a little napkin with me backstage and behind the wings, and left it in a corner where I would be able to grab it later.  But I continued to sweat throughout my entire performance!  Later, the boyfriend told me that he couldn't tell that I was sweating, which was a relief.

I look so at ease for sweating so much!

Actually, the boyfriend told me that I looked so comfortable and confident during this performance, and later Meiver tells me that her roommates and boyfriend said I make it look so pleasant.  I honestly feel speechless about those compliments.

I know that I was happy to see some of my fellow Amira Jamal classmates and my boyfriend in the audience. In a way, I was dancing for them, in true balady fashion (this was the "Balady ala Accordion" that I danced to during Amira Jamal's student recital in May).  Perhaps this was why I felt so confident even through my sweating.

Fan Veil
Well, I'll be honest here.  I felt like I was a sausage being squeezed into its casing, but it was just that I was so hot and sticky and trying to fit into a body suit that my butt was too big for.  Don't get me wrong.  I think in the end we all looked pretty darn awesome!  But I did have my doubts, and I was just nervous that I would make this piece not look good.  But hot damn, did we look awesome.

Hot Fan Veil Action

I absolutely loved this piece.  The music, the fan veils, the choreography.  I don't know if anyone was tripping out in the audience from the beauty of the veils, but I know I was having my own personal hallucinogenic trip being part of it.  I can't wait to see it on video.

I realized, however, that the choreography and the technique went hand in hand.  If you were unfamiliar with the fan veils, the choreography would not be as strong.  It was somewhat impinging on us as the dancers to really get comfortable with fan veils.

As I have already loved the veil, loving the fan veils was just too easy.  Whenever the kitties were asleep, I would sneak in a practice session with my fan veils.  Learning the technique felt more like play than anything else.  I'm eager to find some fan veil tutorial DVD's to further my education.

Khaleegy
The most difficult thing about this piece was trying to slip bracelets on my wrists.  I have huge hands, so I don't ever wear bracelets since it hurts to put them on and take them off.  There were many hilarious jokes about using lube to make it easier on me when I was getting ready.  I just braved getting my hands scraped by the bracelets, and in the end it was fine.

I was really nervous about all the spinning.  I didn't know how my body would react.  Originally, this was going to be the final piece, but the acts were moved around a bit, and this was our second to last dance.  I was hoping that if something were to go wrong, I would at least not need to dance again.

I thoroughly enjoyed this dance.  I felt like my timing had been off during all of the practices, but during the show I knew what I was doing.  This was another song I would play over and over on my Zune while riding the T.  My neck wasn't sore the next day, nor was I ridiculously dizzy after all the hair spinning.

Photo by Jonathan Williams

In that picture above, that's the moment we've just concluded all the hair spinning, dropping down to the floor, and picking our hair back up.  I was definitely sending messages to my brain and my inner ears to chill.  Again, this is another video I can't wait to watch.

Saiidi
This dance, perhaps the most polished one, was the finale of the show.  We had our nicely spray-painted canes, our bedlahs, and our smiles.  No one dropped a cane, no one hurt someone else with a cane, no one got left behind.

This was the choreography that I felt very confident about, though my can twirling needed some practice in the beginning.  Whenever I would walk to practice with my cane, I would twirl down the street, of course making sure that no bystanders would be affected.

Working together in our pod

For me, ending with the saiidi made me feel like we owned that stage.  We had been working so hard in the past several months that we deserved to wave our big sticks in victory.  Of course, this isn't to say that the other performers hadn't worked as hard.  But some of us had 4 or 5 costume changes!

We had an amazing show, and each and every one of us danced our hearts out.  Backstage, amidst all the chaos, there was a lot of conversation and a lot of laughter.  On stage, we tried our best to bring Meiver's vision to an audience in awe.

I'm a true believe that you make your situations what you want them to be.  This particular situation was just exhilaratingly inspiring, and I'm proud to have been part of it.

Meiver's Intense Intensive Repertoire Classes

For the past month, I have participated in an intense set of classes that have pushed my skill level and my bank account.  But it's been completely worth it.

Meiver, one of the top teachers/performers sent out the word in late April about a set of intensive repertoire classes in which we would learn 4 different choreographies, with the possibility of performing them in different events.  I knew I needed to participate.  While I'm feeling quite overwhelmed by my schedule, I wanted to push myself to try new styles and teachers.

The 4 choreographies we were learning were Saiidi, Khaleegy, Modern Oriental, and Fan Veil.  I want to talk about my personal challenges and strengths in these choreographies, and hope that I will improve by the time we will be performing.

Saiidi
Challenges:  With the Saiidi, I have to really practice my can twirling skills.  Though I've learned a little bit about how to use the cane, I haven't tried to do an entire dance with it.  In the tiny space we were practicing in, it was somewhat difficult to feel confident about twirling, and there were definitely a few bumps that happened along the way.  I've also needed to work on perfecting the details in the dance.

Strenghts:  I feel fairly confident about this choreography.  I've manged to pick up the steps relatively quickly.  I even bought my first ever Saidi dress!

Saidi habibi

Khaleegy
Challenges:  The Khaleegy is probably going to be a bit challenging for me overall.  Though I was able to purchase a thobe, it's not one of the best qualities and I'm finding myself tripping a bit on the beads.  But the most challenging part is the spinning.  Oh my goodness...the spinning.  I know that I need to practice my spotting, and then I really need to understand the mechanics of head spinning.

Strengths:  I really want to do well at this dance, or at least survive the spinning, mainly because then I know that I've reached a higher level. Also, the dance is so fun!  Regardless of the spinning, the dance with the thobes is beautiful!  It's really fun just to watch the costume move.

Modern Oriental
Challenges:  I need to work on the transitions between sections. I know that I've focused so much on the choreography and less on the little details, like pointing my toes or how my hands are.  I'm also working on getting a costume for this dance as well.

Strengths:  The high-paced Modern Oriental is another beautiful dance.  With so many of us in the room at times, I still feel that I'm able to appreciate the look of it while we're practicing.  Again, this is another dance where I feel like I've been able to grasp the choreography.

Fan Veil
Challenges:  In general, we need to really work on the actual choreography.  I definitely need to practice using them, as it's a completely new tool for me.  Specifically, I need to work on my left arm.

Strengths:  It's so PRETTY!  I mean, I can't get over how amazingly gorgeous the fan veils themselves are.  But then you make them move along with the dancers, and it just blows my mind!  It took me a while to get a hold of my own personal fan veils from Fairy Cove Silks, as there was some problem getting a hold of my information.  But, I love them!

Prettyyyy!

Though the month has gone by, we haven't finished learning all of the choreography, since we're all comprised of different levels and need to work a bit on the finer details.  Luckily, we all want to work on perfecting the dances as this is such a great opportunity.  Groups of us are working together, with lots of help from one of the students, and are hopeful that we will be ready to learn more when practice sessions with Meiver resume.

The whole month, I've felt like I'm learning so much about myself as a dancer.  I know I have so much more to learn, but I'm feeling very proud of myself for stretching out of my comfort zone and getting more involved in the dance.  I will hopefully be doing more with this group and performing at larger shows as a troupe.