Belly Basics from a Baby Belly

On Friday, October 15th, I was invited to do an Athena's Party at Girl Power Fitness in Hyde Park, MA.  The Hostess and owner of Girl Power Fitness is a friend of one of my close friends who teaches Zumba, and soon got word that I am also a belly dancer.  Since the night was also going to feature a strip tease lesson, she asked if I would be able to teach a short belly dance lesson.

Truth be told, I don't think I'm necessarily qualified for the job.  Though I've been studying for about 8 years, I've only taken my commitment further in the past 3 years.  I don't necessarily plan on becoming as professional as some of my friends who are dancing at restaurants, but I absolutely love this dance.

Luckily, I had seen a fellow dancer, Ma'isah, the night before and told her about my upcoming lesson.  At that point, I had no idea what my lesson plan was, and I was too nervous to really think about it.  I am extremely lucky that she had a clearer head than I did, and she helped me break it down and feel more prepared.

I knew I had to start with the basic history and background of belly dance, starting with the term raqs sharqi.  I explained to the room full of women that the dance was more about dancing for other women and less about dancing for a man.  I stressed the importance of why it should be more about enjoying the dance, rather than just performing.

I knew I had to go quickly through various moves, but that I wanted to touch on a lot of the basics.  After my brief history lesson, I talked about the importance of posture and demonstrated the "right" and "wrong" ways to stand.

In My Goddess and Belly Dance wear

I started with hip and rib circles, moving slowly then a bit quicker.  I made sure to give the room ample time to practice, while also being aware of the time.  I touched on horizontal figure 8's and vertical figure 8's.

Then I moved on to undulations, starting with the hip then the ribcage.  In the theme of undulations, I moved on to snake arms and noted how difficult it was for many in the room to grasp.  I tried various ways of explaining it, though I knew that the time allotted would not be enough for everyone to really hone it in.

Then we moved onto the faster movements, namely shoulder and hip accents and shimmies.  The shoulder accents gave way to shoulder shimmies, and the ladies really seemed to enjoy that.  I then moved to hip hits going up and hip hits going down, focusing on one side at a time.  I also introduced them to the Egyptian Hip Hit and the Drop Release movements.

I had index cards with notes, just like when I had my very first party as a Goddess :)

Finally, we moved on to the shimmies.  I started with the basic knee shimmy, then the hip shimmy, and finally the 3/4 shimmy.  After going through the basic moves, I put on Betwanes Beek and I led them through the various movements I taught them throughout the song.

Afterward, I thought of all the various things I didn't get to tell them.  I touched on layering, but I didn't really show them an example of it.  I talked a bit about placing your arms in a way that frames your body, but I forgot to end the final song with a pose.  I got so nervous, that I didn't even suggest that I could dance a bit for them while we were waiting for the next portion of the evening.  I didn't get to talk about level changes, smiling and facial expressions, or using the movements to move across the room.  I know it's silly, considering that I really only had enough time to go through the basics.  But I just like being thorough.

Nonetheless, the women seemed thoroughly excited and happy with my quickie lesson.  They said that they were surprised at how hard some of the movements were and how much they were sweating during the lesson.

I had created a list of teachers in the area to hand out to the girls, encouraging them to seek out lessons with some of the top performers and teachers in the area.  It felt encouraging to hear that some of them enjoyed my lesson and would have also enjoyed continuing lessons with me.

Again, while I don't think I'm necessarily qualified to teach beyond a beginner level, experiencing being a teacher was incredibly insightful.  If anything, it helps me to be a better student.

Giving Zumba a Try

Recently, a friend of mine has lost a lot of weight and looks amazing after getting heavily involved in Zumba.  I was thoroughly impressed by her efforts, and I had heard a lot about the classes.

Basically, Zumba is a high-energy dance-based class.  Though most of the elements are from Latin dances like salsa, cumbia, and merengue, there is also hip-hop, samba, and a little "belly dance" (I'll get to this in a second).

I had a Groupon coupon for the Oak Square YMCA in Brighton, and there were several Zumba classes to choose from.  So, I tried one out, and I must admit that I had a lot of fun.

It really is just like dancing around.  While some of the transitions need your concentration and it probably helps if you have rhythm (or if you don't care whether or not you have rhythm), it's really what you make of it, and it can be really quite fun.  I find myself smiling through most of it.

You can definitely work up quite a sweat from all the dancing around, and I can see how someone can lose quite a bit of weight if they dedicate several workouts a week to this cardio class.

Now, while there isn't a lot of Middle Eastern-style dancing in the classes, there are definitely incorporations of it.  I feel bad whenever this part of the class comes up, mainly because I get a bit critical about the moves.

I, of all people, understand and value the fusion of belly dance with other styles of dance.  I'm not forgetting that I still want to somehow fuse traditional Filipino dance with belly dance.  But I think that the fusion is more impressive when parts of the different dances are still visible, recognizable, and respecting of the different styles.  That's just my personal style and take on the whole thing.

So, when the Zumba instructor says that we're incorporating belly dance into the moves and it reminds me more of bangara or doesn't feel like belly dance, I find myself really struggling with understanding what is happening and really struggling with the specific moves themselves.

On some level, I feel proud to be able to distinguish different versions of the dance.  But on another level, I feel like a jerk because I know I'm being too critical of an already-fusion style of working out.

I should just not care, and go with the flow.  I should just not think about it too much.

But then I become really aware that a lot of the other folks in the class are not necessarily as educated about belly dance.  The little bit of exposure they have in Zumba class isn't enough for them to really understand what raqs sharqi really is.  With all the misconceptions there are about Middle Eastern dance, I personally feel wary whenever something is called "belly dance" and it doesn't feel "right" to me.

This isn't to say that Zumba instructors are in the wrong.  I do think that more education needs to be done about Middle Eastern music and dance before people just go around identifying snake arms or hip hits as the "belly dance."  Perhaps there is just a line between fusion and...not fusion?  Here is an example on youtube of a Zumba/belly dance routine.

I don't know if I'm explaining it well enough.  I don't want to come off as really snobby about it.  Hopefully the fact that I keep going to Zumba classes will mean something.

I do think it's important to be aware of your biases before you go into a Zumba class or any other dance class, for that matter.  Otherwise, just have fun with 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.

Diana Tarkhan Workshop - Hosted by Najmat

On Saturday, April 3rd, Najmat hosted Diana Tarkhan at the Green Street Studios in Central Square, Cambridge, Mass.

Diana Tarkhan is one of the premiere Egyptian-style dancers, teachers, and choreographers.  She came all the way from Cairo, Egypt, to teach a class of 27 eager and excited New England dancers.

Truth be told, I had minimal exposure to her.  I had seen a video here and there on You Tube, but I didn't know much else.  After seeing that Najmat was offering a workshop from her, I knew that I needed to sign up.  The way I see it, you want to get as much exposure and experiences from different teachers if you want to continue evolving your technique as a dancer.  And if you can learn from Masters, even better!

Saturday was a gorgeous day!  It was the warmest it had been in a long time here in Boston.  So, all the dancers present were pretty much predisposed to enjoy themselves.  But being taught by the delightful Diana Tarkhan just heightened the feeling.

Room full o'bellies

Diana led us through some techniques that were characteristic of Egyptian-style "Oriental" dance.  She focused on the "in's" and "out's" of the hip, which came more from knee movements than from the hip.  We moved around a lot, practicing the "in's" and "out's" with different variations.

In's and outs!

She also led us through some variations on entrance movements, and taught us a combination of moves.  Overall, it was pretty exhausting (not to mention that I went to pilates in the morning!)!  It was nice and warm in the room, and all us ladies were sweating quite a bit.  But Diana's energy and smiley disposition kept us all excited and motivated.

Personally, I felt super energized to be around so many wonderful dancers and teachers.  Though I've been taking classes for so many years, I know I have so much more to learn from the professionals around me.  I always feel very encouraged and new after I'm around the raqs sharqi community.

Diana Tarkhan and me!
Photo courtesy of Najmat

Beautiful (and tired) dancers!
Photo courtesy of Najmat

Shimmies for a Cure Quatro - Workshops and Hafli

I feel like I've gone through a long hiatus of belly dancing.  Though it's mainly been a time and money issue, I knew that I needed to push through some of the stress and continue dancing.  So, I've been continuing classes with Amira Jamal on Mondays, as well as with Najmat on Tuesdays.

But this past weekend, on March 27th, I was able to participate in the Shimmies for a Cure Quatro workshops and hafli.

Shimmies!

Baseema Moirae and *Samantha* are an organizing super team!  It was truly an eventful and awesome day, and really a great way to get more fully involved in the art form.  All of the funds went toward one of the organizer's involvement in the PanMass Challenge, which is a cycling event that benefits the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

I had the pleasure to take part in 4 fabulous workshops from 4 master teachers.

Lots of ladies taking workshops!

Bolly Bellies with Jesi
Jesi is awesome!  Super high energy and funny, she lead us through an intro course in Bollywood style dance. It was a great way to warm up in a somewhat chilly room.  We all sported our flounciest skirts and tried to keep up with her fast-paced choreography.  Though we were only given an hour with her, Jesi was able to teach us all of the steps.  Granted, it was difficult to get every step perfect, but she really helped us feel the energy and drama that's associated with the popular Bollywood movies.

Raq Like and Egyptian with Najmat
Oh, Najmat.  I love this woman!  As one of my current belly dance teachers, she really knows how to help you hone in your technique.  We worked on a set of moves that really worked on our posture and muscle control, as Egyptian style is generally more controlled.  We worked on large hip circles, figure 8's, and pops.  And just when your body is starting to feel pain from all the repetition, she switches to the other side.  And then she puts a shimmy on top of it!  She really proves that practice makes perfect.

Balkan Beat Box à la Melina with Melina
Melina, from the Daughters of Rhea, got us to be silly and have fun with her choreography.  A mix of Turkish, Greek, and plain old good times, the choreography had us all laughing and enjoying ourselves.  Though we weren't able to get through all of the choreography she had planned for us, she seemed to mainly focus on feeling ownership over our bodies and our style, no matter how silly it may look to others.  I must admit that I had a really fun time during her workshop, and finished the workshop with a little bounce in my step.

Techniques for Stage Presence and Performance with Ela Rogers
Ela is one of the premiere tribal performers in New England.  She asked us to stand in a circle, and for each of us to walk around the inside and make eye contact with every other person.  Then, we were to stand in the middle, turn our head to look at one person then follow with turning our bodies.  Eye contact is so important in performance.  So it was interesting to see who really made eye contact with every single person, who skipped people, who took really quick glances, and who was able to linger.  We also worked on a short combination that helped us use what we learned about eye contact.

Goodness!   I would most definitely love to take a class or workshop with all of those fabulous ladies again!  Four hours worth of workshops later, I'm feeling pumped to do some shopping (which I did...a LOT of!) and watch some of my favorites light up the dance floor.

Sidebar:  Oh, the shopping!  But the one item I do want to highlight is the new Sassy Sparkles Eye Kandy color created in honor of this event.  With a name created by one of the dancers and voted on by the guests, "I Dream of Gaia" (gold, green, and brown) premiered at the Shimmies for a Cure Quatro.

I Dream of Gaia

Below are the "good" shots that I got of the performances.  It was difficult, I must say, without a fancy schmancy camera.  I tried not to use my flash so as not to blind the dancers, but I unfortunately didn't get the best pictures possible nor was I able to get decent pictures of all the performances.

Nepenthe, dancing to Mashaal

*Samantha*, tribal hip-hop fusion

Jemileh Nour, my gorgeous friend dancing for the first time in 2 years

Jesi, bringing down the house with her bhangra

Badriya al-Badi'a, an ode to the OG Egyptian dancers

Najmat, her moves and beautiful costume speaks for itself

Nikki, one of Boston's Best balancing a sword

Troupe Moirae, jazzy fusion

Melina, balancing a sword on a dagger in her mouth, yo!

Aepril Schaile, the Snow Queen graces us with her presence

Ela Rogers, closing the evening with a memorable performance

I feel absolutely blessed to have been a part of the Shimmies for a Cure day.  I'm feeling inspired not only by the wonderful talent I was surrounded by, but by the amazing community that was able to raise close to $4000 for the PanMass Challenge!

Congratulations to Baseema and *Samantha* for another top notch Shimmies for a Cure!

Filipino Fusing with Middle Eastern?

Before I started belly dance classes, I decided that I needed to learn a bit about my own cultural dance first.  Though I was involved with the Filipino Student Association at my undergrad, I never made it in time to join the dance troupes.  However, there was a one-semester class for Filipino Dance.

As the class fulfilled a graduation credit, two of my friends joined me in the class.  Though it was a small group, it was quite an enjoyable class.  I learned a lot about the regional differences in the dances, and how most of the traditional dances are choreographed for specific stories or purposes.

For example, as the music and dance reflects the culture, there are Christian, Muslim, and Indigenous dances.  The Christian-style dances reflect the Spanish colonization, featuring a lot of 3/4 beat music and socializing dances.  Muslim-style dances reflect the influences from Indonesia and other Southeast Asian cultures, and mainly tells stories.  The Indigenous dances are more drum and kulintang-based, and are more ritualistic.

My favorite part about the dances was the focus on the hand and arm movements.  While it was so many years ago, I remember the teacher talking about the importance of grace in the arm movements.  However, there wasn't necessarily much room for improvisation.

Nonetheless, I'm suddenly struck with the idea of fusing traditional Filipino dance movements with Middle Eastern dance. 

I feel that I have to brush up a bit on the movements in Filipino dance.  I know there is a Fhilippine Dance Company in Boston, but it doesn't seem very easy to get in touch with someone who could point me in the direction of classes.  I might try to go through Boston University's Filipino Student Association, perhaps use my powers as an alum - no matter how minuscule they might be.

In the meantime, here are some clips I found on YouTube:

Traditional Southern/Muslim Filipino Dance:



Tribal Filipino Fusion with Belly Dance Fusion:

Dancing to Live (Music)

When I first moved to Boston 5 years ago, I knew that I wanted to continue taking belly dance lessons.  Since I considered belly dance a hobby, I didn''t realize that I would feel as passionate about the art as I do now.  While I don't consider myself a professional yet, I think it's something I'm considering more and more with every new experience.

I've had the pleasure to interact and learn from fabulous dancers, and I look forward to continuing my dance and music education. Through the different teachers, I've been exposed to opportunities that I've never thought I would be a part of.

Well...let me backtrack for a second.

I've done some performing for most of my life - from piano recitals to orchestra and band concerts in high school.  Perhaps because of my being trained classically, I've always been freaked out by improvisation.  Even in jazz band, I was so unsure of my abilities that I didn't think that I could possibly pull off something as musically awesome as some of the old songs I love.

When I was in undergrad, I participated (performed and directed pieces) in the Queer Fashion Show.  I loved that whole experience!  Working with large groups of people and putting together an entertaining peice...oh, then the performance!  I loved it.  But I never performed on my own.  I felt that the people who I performed with were like my backbone, giving me strength to go on through my anxiety.

When I began to belly dance, I anticipated a lot more troupe performances.  When recitals would come around, I would get extremely nervous.  I had to psych myself up, just saying to myself that I've done this before, there's nothing to worry about.  

Four recitals later (in 2008), I gathered enough courage to perform at a casual talent show in Vermont.  It was the first time I had sought out dancing alone for a group.  I was so nervous!  I couldn't even tell you about the massive amounts of butterflies in my stomach and the bullets I was sweating afterwards.  But throughout the weekend, I received so many complements.  People I didn't even know were watching came up to me in the days following my performance, complementing me and asking me about my dance background.  It was an exciting feeling.

(Celebration of Expression, Photo taken by Cat O.)

Later that year, my fellow social workers and friends organized an event that created a safe space for women to express themselves.  One friend read erotic poetry, another friend shared her baking wisdom, and I danced.  It was my first time performing a full routine (though broken into sections) for a live audience.
 
2008 seemed to be the year I finally had enough "belly dance balls."  Prior to the last two shows I wrote about, I was given the chance to dance with the Jewels of Jamal at the Athenian Corner in Lowell, MA.  This time was different.  This time, I danced to live music.  Amira Jamal had been preparing us for this experience through all her classes, encouraging us to dance to songs we weren't familiar with.


 (Athenian Corner, Photo by Albert Ma)


All of her lessons were flooding into my head at that moment.  Don't forget to smile, make sure your hands are "alive," move around the floor.  I'm surprised I didn't fall over from all the thoughts in my head.  In the end, I survived.  I knew that dancing to live music was another goal to add to my list of accomplishments.




On October 1st, a Boston Bellydance Meet Up occurred.  One of my dance teachers and friend Najmat leads the Meet Ups, and I was eager to meet more dancers in the community.  This was the first Meet Up event in almost a year, and it was held in the Basha Cafe in Cambridge. 

Mitchell Kaltsounas and Aboud Ghazi were playing that night.  I don't know much about the musicians in the area, but if my classmates and teachers like their music I figure there's something for me to learn.  Mitchell and Aboud were awesome!  The music was fabulous, and I was surprised to recognize as many of the songs that I did.  I'd have to credit Amira Jamal for making sure that we exposed ourselves to the classical Arabic tunes.

As a Meet Up event, I had a blast.  It's unfortunate that not a lot of people, including much of whom RSVPed, attended.  But it was great to be there with dancers old and new.  We were all wondering if there would be a featured dancer, but realized that we were the only dancers there.

Now, generally speaking, others danced.  It was almost similar to being at a club, but with live music.  Someone was celebrating their 30th birthday, so there was much dancing and celebrating to be had.  But the Middle Eastern dancers were the first ones to get up there.  At first, I stayed behind the other dancers.  I danced to the music, and sang along when I knew the words.  While I started using my fellow dancers as a crutch, I grew more and more comfortable with myself.

It was a liberating experience.  I'm still a student, no doubt.  There were rhythms and movements I was still unfamiliar with, and I know I still need to grow in my stage presence.  But dancing to live music adds to this other dimension of interaction between movement and sound.  It gives me more items to add to my checklist of becoming a more professional and educated and comfortable in my own abilities.

Viva La Diva Weekend Part 3 - Zambra Mora and Conclusion

Zambra Mora
Sunday's workshop had a smaller group in it, but I think that was for the best! With all the skirt-whooshing, we probably would have hurt ourselves and each other if the workshop was packed.

Though I've included a link about Zambra Mora, I was hesitant about posting more about it. The link I provided, however, repeats what we learned this past weekend about the style. Dondi and Titanya stressed that there's nothing conclusive about what they or anyone else has learned about the style. They know that it preceded Flamenco, and that it most likely was not an actual dance. But even in their travels to Andalusia and Southern Spain, they found minimal information. I found it fascinating that Zambra Mora was once outlawed and is such an underground style, almost to the point of denying all the cross-over and intermingling that is generally important in the birth of creativity.

Zambra Mora, which translates to "Moorish party," seems to be both fiery and earthy, often danced barefoot and proclaiming emotions. There's a focus on duende, or feeling a passion in the body and soul, and those emotions are expressed in the powerful movements and the noises that is often made during the movement. One interesting tidbit we learned was that "Olé" is derived from the Arabic "wa'Allah" ("by Allah" or "by God"). It might seem silly, but that information blew my mind!!! Though the more I think about it, the less I'm surprised, especially coming from a culture that has 300 years of Spanish rule behind it. I think it's just one of those things you don't really think about until someone points it out.

Another way to think about Zambra Mora is "Spanish Fusion." A lot of the power and movement in Flamenco comes from this style, and the moves and choreography we learned echoed it. At first, we learned a variety of ways to twirl our skirts around. Moving in a circle around the room was somewhat exhilarating. You could almost feel the energy swirling around with us. Then Titanya showed us some beautiful hand movements. That was definitely a highlight for me! I know I need to work some more on my hands, and like I've said before her hands are a great example to follow.

The choreography was definitely a little more difficult on this day. Much of the routine was with a partner, at times moving opposite them. There was also a lot of turning from one side to another quickly. A lot of time was spent on moves that involved turning around our partners, and then speeding it up. We luckily kept each other balanced, though. I also had to keep from tripping on my skirt! They have so much fabric on them, I had to roll up the top a little.

We danced to "Qadukka-I-Mayyas" by Jesse Cook

Like I mentioned before, making noises is part of the dance. Zaghareets, yips, and clapping all get incorporated into the moves - but when you feel it naturally, not actually choreographed into a routine. I like all the yipping and shouting that's part of the dance. I think that we were all concentrating so much on getting the moves down that we did a lot less exclaiming, though. It makes me think a bit about technique vs. feeling. The essence of both Middle Eastern Dance and Zambra Mora seems to be in the emotions and feeling the music enough to express it in our bodies. I think it's a powerful message - one I plan to carry with me in my future lessons.

Another lesson we learned was the difference in clapping styles between the Arabic and the Spanish. In Arabic, the clapping style is called a qaf, and it's with fingers open and somewhat separated. Qaf wounds more high pitched. In Spanish, the clapping style is called a palma, which is with cupped hands. Palma sounds deeper and more muffled. It was fun to compare the two.

Aside from their teaching styles and friendly nature, I thoroughly enjoyed their history lessons!!! They spoke a lot about their own histories as well as the origins of some of the movements. Through their personal stories, they taught us a lot about what works for different people's bodies and main Element, as well as what is appropriate in the various dance settings (from country to country or from club to wedding). For example, if you're dancing in an Arabic country, DO NOT accept a drink from a server (probably bought by one of the guests), because it means you'll be sleeping with one of the guests! Also, if tips are thrown in your direction, you have to avoid stepping on the bills - it's considered disrespectful because the Sheiks pictures are on the bills! Basically, Dondi and Titanya are a wealth of knowledge! There's so much more that they shared with us, that it's hard to remember everything as I write about it. If you get an opportunity to learn from them, it's worth it!

We barely got a taste on Saturday of what each of the Five Elements were about. None of us can say that we've become experts on it. If I ever get the chance (and the funds! Read more on that below), I would love to take the 5-day workshop with Dondi and Titanya! I think the workshops would really help a person gain some insight about themselves, their surroundings, and the people around them. Plus, they are both just fabulous people! I'm going to credit their warm and welcoming nature to them having grown up in the South Pacific (yay!). But, it was great to meet two fabulous and well known dancers, and to learn that they are so grounded and humbled. Perhaps when I travel to the West Coast again, I will ask them about any happenings in the community. I think many people always say that they welcome emails and keeping in touch. But when they said it this weekend, it's the first time I felt it was nothing less than sincere.

The Reason Why I'm Broke (but Happy) Now
The danger of attending a weekend-long workshop is that there will always be shopping. Oh, glorious, exhilarating shopping. This weekend, Viva La Diva and the vendors basically took over an entire section of the Courtyard Marriott. An entire hallway was full of sparklies and flouncies and swooshies. I spent WAY too much money.

Though I now need to really sell some things just to not be broke (wait....did you click on that link? Go ahead...do it....I'll wait..............ok...be sure to email me, okay? :D), I walked away with two new veils, a cover up/shawl, two silver rings, and a gypsy skirt pictured below. Ay...my bank account will be hurting...but I had such a fabulous weekend! I feel like a different dancer, more educated and armed with my arsenal of costumage.

I feel so blessed to have been a part of that whole weekend, and I look forward to next year's workshop!

Gorgeous skirts and veils and women!!!

Viva La Diva Weekend Part 2 - Show and Competition

Viva La Diva Competition and Show
On my way to the Courtyard Marriott in Woburn that morning, I didn't think I would stay the whole day. With my weekends being so busy, I haven't had a lot of time to relax and spend time with my boyfriend and friends. But after Saturday's workshop, I had made some wonderful connections, and after telling my boyfriend about all the fun I was having he encouraged me to stay and get inspired.

I'm so glad that I did! It was my first Viva La Diva show, so I had no idea that it was going to go on for more than 5 hours!! But I love watching other dancers and hearing songs that I'm not familiar with yet.

Once Za-Beth posts up information about who the winners are, I'll update this blog with more of my impressions.

I was excited to see that one of my classmates with Amira Jamal was part of the competition! I was so proud to be there to cheer on Shakima Laila. She had performed some of her competition pieces to us in class, so it was exciting to see her in full regalia! She started up the night' festivities with one of her graceful routines.

I like that the belly dance community is so tightly knit. I'm sure that not everyone gets along swimmingly, but you can count on the fact that you will always see some familiar faces at an event. I asked Dondi a little about the differences between the communities on the coasts. She said it's a lot more competitive on the Westside, maybe because there's a higher concentration of them within a given radius and it seems like they're all trying to make it big. I definitely got the feeling of being "larger than life" from my small exposure to the Los Angeles bellydance community.

After Shakima Laila, the troupes performed. They were all so different from each other, but a lot of fun to watch! At one point, I whispered to Najmat who cam for the show, "God, I love bellydance." The costumes were just amazing! It seemed like a great thing to be part of a troupe, since you can learn so much from the other people you work with.

In general, the routines were super cute! Some involved tambourines (I mean, how can you go wrong with tambourines??), veil work, switching positions with other troupe members, and just having fun dancing with each other. For me, I feel like being in a troupe is much more reminiscent of how Middle Eastern Dance historically began, mainly since the moves - choreographed or not - center around sharing a space with other women.

Three performers I was fortunate to meet this weekend were Jenny Cohen, MiaNaja al Sephira, and Almasa Durriyah. After the competition portion of the evening, these three lovelies graced the stage with their performances, as well as other amazing dancers. It's pretty neat that these three came from outside of Massachusetts (New York, Maryland, and Rhode Island, respectively) to perform at the Viva La Diva Pageant. With varying degrees of life experiences and styles, I was inspired by these three lovelies. They were all graceful and really held themselves with a confidence that I'm trying to achieve, both off and on the stage - not to mention that they're all super sweethearts!

I also met Johara, who wasn't performing that night, but she encouraged me to think about dancing at the Middle East Restaurant - which, I'll have to confess, scares the bujeezus out of me! But, I'm working on it!!!

After the performance, the awards were given out. I thought it was super sweet that Za-Beth presented an award to all the participants. She stressed how important it was to have the memories, regardless of the outcomes. I think that message can get so lost in the world of competition. It was refreshing to see and hear a professional dancer with that mindset.

Me with Shakima Laila and her 2 awards!

At one point, she even played the zills for one of the performers! She has amazing skills at the zills (that's fun to say out loud!) making it look like she's barely breaking a sweat. All you see are her hands fluttering about, and you hear the ringing.

Finally, Titanya graced the stage. She danced a Spanish Fusion piece, complete with veils and zills. It was such a treat to watch her dance! You could really see her theater background when she is performing. I don't know how to explain it, but there's a certain way that the theater folks behave and carry themselves.

To conclude the show, Dondi performed a wonderful upbeat dance. It's always a little strange, I think, to watch someone live when you're used to seeing them on a DVD. She recently had an adorable baby boy, who was present, and you could see her glowing from it. Both her and Titanya moved up and down the middle aisle, and really engaged and livened up the audience after such a long evening.

I truly felt inspired by all the beautiful women who danced their hearts out. Though I'm not one for competition, maybe by this time next year, I'll not be as nervous about performing at a venue such as this.

To be continued...
Part 3 - Zambra Mora and Conclusion

Viva La Diva Weekend Part 1- Dondi & Titanya's Five Elements and Middle Eastern Dance

It's been a really busy August.

It's been a really expensive August.

It's been a really wonderful August...so far.

In my decision to expand my raqs sharqi education, I signed up for the Viva La Diva workshops hosted by Za-Beth. I had been looking forward to this weekend for a while. Since August has been so busy - and expensive! - I've been too broke to take a month's worth of Najmat's classes (and they're not even that expensive!). All I could do was rely on my Netflix queue. But I do so much better in a classroom. I've missed a lot of the interaction with classmates.
 
This past weekend, however, was exactly what I've been craving all month.

Za-Beth was hosting Dondi and Titanya Dahlin, two fabulous dancers who I've only recently discovered but fell in love with their stylings immediately.
 
I discovered Dondi through the Bellydance Superstars, which seems to be how many students have found her. She has this amazingly infectious smile and is a mesmerizing dancer. After watching her (and the other Supah Stahs) on the DVD, I Googled and YouTubed like crazy. I loved how relaxed she seems while she's dancing, like it just took no energy at all.

Through the powers of Google, I discovered Titanya. I wasn't sure what it was, but I felt a sort of simpatico with her style. Oh wait...it's because the first thing YouTube led me to was Titanya as a mermaid. I mean, really. Is there anything else I need to say kids? Alrighty then.

Dondi and Titanya's workshops focused on The Five Elements on Saturday and Zambra Mora on Sunday. It looked like the weekend was not only going to be a busy one, but an inspiring one.

Titanya, me, and Dondi - Smiles all around!

The Five Elements and Middle Eastern Dance
Being Asian/Pacific Islander, Chinese philosophy is something I've been exposed to as a child. I've always had a respect for it, but I've only really started learning more about it in the past couple of years (thanks to the boyfriend!). I've been able to learn a lot more about qi/ch'i and how it helps to explain so many things where Western medicine fails. It seemed like an appropriate way to learn more about Middle Eastern dance.

Dondi and Titanya introduced the Five Elements to us, stating that we each carry all 5 within us but will sometimes utilize one or two elements more so than others. In their explanations, they also broke down the way Water, Wood, Fire, Earth, and Metal play into personality types. I must say, I recognized many people in their explanations.

Concerning a 5-part Middle Eastern Dance Routine, Fire would represent the entrance, Water would represent the Veil and Taxim, Earth would represent the middle and grounding piece, Wood would represent the drum solo, and Metal would represent the ending piece. The Dahlin's mother, Donna Eden is an internationally respected author and practitioner of the Five Elements and Energy Medicine. So, with their understanding of the Elements ingrained in them since childhood, they've really come to understand how to use that energy towards their goals. I could go into more detail, but I why reinvent the Element Wheel?

Check out Titanya's article about movement and the Five Elements!

I thought it was really interesting, actually. After listening to their descriptions, I can say that I am mainly an Earth-Water person. Even my astrological signs point to that (I'm an Aries-Taurus Cusp and a Water Dog)! I am eternally a mother - and even considered that to be my answer to "What do you want to be when you grow up?" I definitely like to be closer to the ground, and prefer walking in my flip flops or barefoot if I can get away with it (as I type this, I've already walked around my office barefoot several times today!). Also, I feel like water has played a huge role in my life - from being born on an island to insisting on moving to Boston because it's by an ocean. When I first moved to Boston, I was so turned around! Generally, I'm pretty good at maps, but I kept confusing myself! For some reason, I could point to where the ocean was from any point of the city, but I couldn't tell you if I was North or South or East or West! It's like my body knew where the water was...but my brain was so used to it being to the West of me!

After their explanation of the Five Elements, they started breaking down some choreography for us that utilized all 5 elements. The workshop was attended by 20-25 people, and we mainly moved in a circle for the first part. As the room was longer than it was wider, there was a little bit of trouble in getting all the moves down. There were several times when I knocked into the woman in front of me! After the lunch break, we partnered up. I think putting the group into partners was a great way to get to know more of the women in the workshop and helped us learn the moves better.

The routine was beautiful and really fun! Definitely some challenges along the way, but I think I would be able to add some of the moves to my own repertoire. Titanya has a very energetic style (Fire, indeed!), and she reminded me a lot of my younger sister in the way she spoke. Her moves were definitely more "Here I am!" and flowy. She has absolutely GORGEOUS hand moves, which she credits to Polynesian Dance (another reason she reminds me of my sister..I'll probably be asking my sister to help me with hand movements the next time I see her!). Titanya was a lot more of a visual and physical teacher.

But when we thought the challenge would be over, Dondi handed us a drum solo! Though it was a quick piece, it definitely got a lot of us energized. Dondi's style definitely leans a lot more towards putting things into a concise explanation (soooo Wood!). But she also urged us to keep moving forward in the choreography. For myself, I don't think I felt like I was behind in any way, but I do wonder about those that take more time to learn. Dondi is much more of a "practice makes perfect" type teacher.

We danced to "Fe Yom Welaila" from the album "Tabel Ya Issam" for the first piece, and one of the drum solos from "The Dancing Drum by Issam" for the Drum Solo.

I enjoyed Dondi and Titanya teaching together! After their explanation of the Five Elements, you could really see where their strengths and challenges were. They seem to balance each other very well. Dondi would help to better explain movements, while Titanya was conscious of making sure everyone could see the movements.

To be continued...
Part 2 - Show and Competition