Dancers in the Washington D.C. and surrounding Northern Virginia and Maryland area are so lucky to have many opportunities to study with fantastic local and guest instructors. It can be overwhelming to keep track of all of them.
Faten Salama - Local favorite Faten, Egyptian born master instructor, offers her own expertise through regular oriental and folkloric classes. She will be sponsored by Little Egypt to teach live music workshops March 6-7 in Dulles.
Saffron Dance - Located in Arlington, VA, Saffron's upcoming workshop teachers include Nourhan Sharif and Carolena Nerriccio.
Sahara Dance - Based in Washington D.C., Sahara's 2010 workshop line-up includes Bozenka, Karim Nagi, Sahra Saeeda, and Unmata.
Bellydance star Randa Kamel of Egypt is coming to the USA in March!Presented by Little Egypt of Texas, Randa will teach “Modern Belly Dance
Choreography” on March 6 and “Oriental Techniques” on March 7.All workshops and both gala shows
(Friday and Saturday nights) will be held at the Washington-Dulles
International Airport Holiday Inn.
Looking for some last-minute holiday gift ideas for your belly dancing girlfriend, wife, or friend? Kiyaana to the rescue! (Men can do this dance, too, but my suggestions are geared more towards the ladies.)
A'Kai Silk Veils - Gorgeous one-of-a-kind veils made by Jesennia.
With at least a week to go: Scheherezade Imports gift certificate - Lucy (Scheherezade) carries a wide variety of CDs, DVDs, hipscarves, costume patterns, and more.
Bellydance DVDs, CDs, and books from Amazon.com - This link will take you to a short list of recommendations. If at all possible, check her existing collection so you don't chose something she already has.
LAST MINUTE (night before!!!!): Amazon gift card - Send her to BellydanceDownloads.com to find music recommendations or direct her to the list I linked above.
Sephora eCertificate - All of that performance make-up has to come from somewhere. :) (Note: eCertificates may only work when ordering on the site. If you have a store nearby, stop in to pick up a regular gift card.)
BellydanceStore.com gift certificate - Unless your dancer ONLY does Tribal style, I'm sure she can find something here. (But the Tribal girls may prove me wrong.)
A night out to see a bellydance show - You'll need to be a little creative with this one. Make a certificate for a night out and tuck it in a special card. If you live near a major city, you probably have several Middle Eastern restaurants that regularly feature bellydance, at least on the weekends. She may already have one picked out that she'd like to visit. Is she a Bellydance Superstars fan? Check their schedule and buy advance tickets. You get the idea.
Note: If you really want to get her a costume, resist the urge to pick out one yourself. (Sizing and styles can be tricky.) Instead, get her a gift certificate for her favorite belly dance costume store or website. If she doesn't have a favorite (as far as you know, anyway) make your own "Costume Gift Certificate" on the computer and put it in a lovely card. Believe me, I am thrilled with a gift of costume cash. :)
Happy shopping! If you are reading this, that's already a good sign that you care and will pick out something your dancer will love.
What's in store for you in 2010? I haven't been one to make a big list of resolutions on January 1st, but in the past couple of years I've started making mental note of some goals for my dancing. "In the next year I want to . . ." is where I started. 365 days is plenty of time to make progress!
For 2009, I decided to expand my knowlege of folkloric Middle Eastern dances, seek out opportunities for performing with live music, and begin teaching regularly. Everything fell into place in January 2009 to take Journey Through Egypt 1 and 2 with Sahra Saeeda, helping me with my first goal. (If you have the chance to take these workshops with her, DO IT. Sahra is amazing and the information she shares is inspiring.) Then in March and again this past September, the owner at Laziza brought in a wonderful band for the haflas I hosted and the dancers were given the opportunity to dance with them. Dancing to the classics with the live music all around us was an amazing experience! I was then invited in October to dance with a band at a private party. The opportunities for goal #2 had practically fallen in my lap. After SharQui™ training in April followed by AFAA certification in May, I took on a couple of regular bellydance teaching jobs and have been having a great time with them.
With those experiences in mind, I'm excited about selecting my dance goals for 2010. I've started learning to dance with a Shamadan (candelabra balanced on your head) and would like to become proficient in it by this summer, if not sooner. That takes care of one goal, I'll have to get back to you on the rest!
Ask five bellydancers what they wear on their feet for practice and performance and you will get five different answers. Barefoot, ballet slippers, jazz shoes, lyrical sandals, hermes sandals, ballroom heels, and the list goes on! Part of the decision is based on personal preference and part on what is recommended by dance instructors.
What do I recommend for a SharQui™ class or a regular bellydance class? I tell students they can go barefoot or wear dance slippers. Socks will work if you are adverse to barefoot and don't yet have dance slippers, however they may not "stick" as well. Why barefoot? If you are able to trust the floor, which should be the case in a fitness or dance class setting, bare feet allow your toes to properly spread for optimal balance. If you have preexisting foot issues, I recommend reading the section on feet in Pain Free: A Revolutionary Method for Stopping Chronic Pain. An in-between option is the half-sole or lyrical sandal, pictured with this article. It gives full coverage for the ball of your foot, but allows your toes to spread properly. A more recent addition to dance footwear that I have not yet tried, but am curious about is Capezio Women's Full Body Footundeez Lyrical/Modern Shoe.
Performance footwear is another matter. Again, if I can trust the floor, I prefer barefoot, but unless you are on a theater stage, that is rarely the case. For restaurant shows, I usually wear Very Fine Ballroom Dance shoes, but sometimes opt for a Split Sole Canvas Ballet Slipper, depending on the look I want for my costume. Different shoes affect how your turns, spins, and shimmies feel, so it's important to regularly practice in the shoes that you choose for performance.
How to choose? Read recommendations and visit a dance supply store, if possible. In the Fredericksburg, VA area, Dancer's Wardrobe has a great supply of slippers, jazz shoes, half-soles, and Foot Undeez. Visit them to see what feels best for you.
This Sunday afternoon Laziza Lebanese Restaurant is hosting
a Bellydance Hafla (party).Local
dancers and bellydance enthusiasts will be shimmying their way through the
afternoon and into the early evening.Laziza’s owner, Ghazi Aboudaya, is bringing in a Lebanese band for the
event, a real treat for the both the dancers and the audience.
The party starts at 4 p.m. and we’ll be dancing up a pretty, sparkly storm until
at least 6 p.m.Local performers include
fundraising group “Team Bellies for Breasts”, always entertaining for a good
cause, and Nashida and Solana as a duet.Laziza’s weekend show regular dancers, Nimeera, Noor-Jihan, Kiyaana, and
Francesca as well as guest Suzana Nour will perform with the band. The show also includes out-of-towners Belladonna
from Front Royal, Jasara of Northern Virginia, and Tanyeli from Blacksburg.
Join us for an afternoon of great food and fun dancing!Reservations are highly recommended, as
Laziza is usually completely booked for these events.
Ask five bellydancers what they wear on their feet for practice and performance and you will get five different answers. Barefoot, ballet slippers, jazz shoes, lyrical sandals, hermes sandals, ballroom heels, and the list goes on! Part of the decision is based on personal preference and part on what is recommended by dance instructors.
. An in-between option is the half-sole or lyrical sandal, pictured with this article. It gives full coverage for the ball of your foot, but allows your toes to spread properly. A more recent addition to dance footwear that I have not yet tried, but am curious about is 
.
, depending on the look I want for my costume. Different shoes affect how your turns, spins, and shimmies feel, so it's important to regularly practice in the shoes that you choose for performance.