Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
A Window into Someone's Life...
I had some lovely performances recently, including a wonderful kitchen tea which I always love as you know someone's found their special someone and, call me sentimental, it's pretty damn awesome!
I do think anniversaries (especially the kickers like 10, 25 or 50 years) are the real magic as so many marriages struggle due to the negative influences all around us but those that love over, above and in spite of all that, show us that true love exists and brings back that little twinkle in our eye that there might be someone special for everyone.
It's so wonderful to see the bride-to-be and the friends she's made in her lifetime, you can tell what kind of a person she is from them and how much they share in her joy, how fun/relaxed the event is and her relationship with her family. Performing and participating on their special day gives you a window into someone's life. You get to be part of it for just an hour helping make a unforgettable memory for someone that you'll know they'll always treasure. That's something I love.
I do think anniversaries (especially the kickers like 10, 25 or 50 years) are the real magic as so many marriages struggle due to the negative influences all around us but those that love over, above and in spite of all that, show us that true love exists and brings back that little twinkle in our eye that there might be someone special for everyone.
It's so wonderful to see the bride-to-be and the friends she's made in her lifetime, you can tell what kind of a person she is from them and how much they share in her joy, how fun/relaxed the event is and her relationship with her family. Performing and participating on their special day gives you a window into someone's life. You get to be part of it for just an hour helping make a unforgettable memory for someone that you'll know they'll always treasure. That's something I love.
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| With the amazing Cherri Bock |
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Jump!
Friday, May 27, 2011
SAIDI
By the brilliant Karim Nagi
The southern half of Egypt, know as Upper Egypt due to its higher altitude, is called "al-Sa'id" in Arabic (pronounced iSa-yeed)". The Saidi people are famous for this semi-acrobatic stick dance called "Tahteeb" for men and "Raqs Assaya" for women. It is essentially a form of martial art where the manipulation of the stick and the demeanor of movement replicated a battle scene. The main motions with the stick include spinning, twirling, rowing, flipping and striking. Often two dancers will enact a friendly battle with synchronized sparing and coordinated strikes. But the essence of the Saidi dance is in its demeanor. The body moves heavily and confidently with a subtle pulse. Grace is more valued than aggression. This dance is done solo or in groups where the sticks are operated in unison, and men and/or women play together.
The southern half of Egypt, know as Upper Egypt due to its higher altitude, is called "al-Sa'id" in Arabic (pronounced iSa-yeed)". The Saidi people are famous for this semi-acrobatic stick dance called "Tahteeb" for men and "Raqs Assaya" for women. It is essentially a form of martial art where the manipulation of the stick and the demeanor of movement replicated a battle scene. The main motions with the stick include spinning, twirling, rowing, flipping and striking. Often two dancers will enact a friendly battle with synchronized sparing and coordinated strikes. But the essence of the Saidi dance is in its demeanor. The body moves heavily and confidently with a subtle pulse. Grace is more valued than aggression. This dance is done solo or in groups where the sticks are operated in unison, and men and/or women play together.
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
I learned something new today...
Rachel Brice’s tattoo (which I’ve always admired), which is in Sanskrit, means "Practice becomes firmly grounded when continued for a long time, without interruption and with reverent devotion."
Well said!
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Mehendhi Party
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| The beautiful bride-to-be getting the henna done. |
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| All the women were in the front half of the room and all the men in the back. Over 200 altogether. They were such a great audience which always makes performing so much better! |
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| The brilliant Bollywood Dancers who also performed. Lots of energy! We did an impromptu number together for the encore, dancing to Sheila! |
Friday, May 20, 2011
Monday, May 16, 2011
Brilliant effects...
They must have put a lot of work into setting this up. It's amazingly good and such a fun idea. Well done Bollywood!
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Collabaret's Belly Dance Spectacular
I don't think I've ever been in a room with so many beautiful women and so many beads and sparkles! It was dazzling walking into an event made up mainly of performers. It was the lovely venue of The Sheikh's Palace, and felt like a big girls' night out (although there was a smattering of a few brave male friends and family present).
The three organizers of the event, all belly dance performers and teachers of very different styles did a silk fan choreography together which I really loved, the way they interpreted the beats was so good it looked like at times the music moved the silk. It was captivating. They did their solos as well with a drum solo, Isis wings and tribal. I have to say it was the first time I really 'got' tribal dancing. It's beautiful! I think I had mainly seen beginners perform it in the past so never really felt it was as good as it could be.
I think there were 7 schools participating in this event so there was a lovely mix of performances by Dancing Divinty, Gypsy Rhythms, Dancers of the Desert, Tarryn and the Hizi Hizi girls and Oriental Fire (whoop whoop!) . We did our Bollywood thang and because some of the kids from Reach for a Dream were there we decided to go with 'Jai Ho' which they really seemed to enjoy. I was so proud of my girls, I could feel the energy bounding off stage! We're at the stage where I don't worry about making mistakes so much and we just have fun. That's when it gets good! :)
After all the shows we had the 'shimmython' which was all of us dancing together and I got to teach the kids some belly dance moves. They were great dancers and very fast learners! It was so nice to see the belly dance community as a whole doing something like this and I felt very proud to know so many great ladies who share a passion for dance and for doing something positive with their talents. I hope it's the start of many more wonderful collaborations! Thanks Natalie, Bhana and Marion for all you put into it, I know the positive effects will go a lot farther than you realize.
The three organizers of the event, all belly dance performers and teachers of very different styles did a silk fan choreography together which I really loved, the way they interpreted the beats was so good it looked like at times the music moved the silk. It was captivating. They did their solos as well with a drum solo, Isis wings and tribal. I have to say it was the first time I really 'got' tribal dancing. It's beautiful! I think I had mainly seen beginners perform it in the past so never really felt it was as good as it could be.
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After all the shows we had the 'shimmython' which was all of us dancing together and I got to teach the kids some belly dance moves. They were great dancers and very fast learners! It was so nice to see the belly dance community as a whole doing something like this and I felt very proud to know so many great ladies who share a passion for dance and for doing something positive with their talents. I hope it's the start of many more wonderful collaborations! Thanks Natalie, Bhana and Marion for all you put into it, I know the positive effects will go a lot farther than you realize.
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
New Personal Record
Inspired by the Shimmython coming up for World Belly Dance Day I thought it would be fun to try shimmying for 30 minutes straight as a nice variety to my exercise plans. I put on all my favorite club/techno/dance music and shimmied away, I stuck to the Egyptian shimmy unless I had to get my phone or water and then I switched to a choo choo shimmy. I got distracted with all the great music and when I checked my phone I had been shimmying away for 45 minutes so I decided to do an hour. (I like round numbers) I succeeded!...and I discovered I favor my left leg and half my left foot goes numb after 15 minutes. Interesting.
The longest record I found online at the Shimmy-a-thon website for Cystic Fibrosis was 2 hours and 1 minute. Not too shabby.
If you want to join us this Saturday at The Sheikh's Palace for the Shimmython see details below on the Collabaret's Belly Dance Spectacular! R120 Rand includes entrance, the great show and some delicious mezze!
The longest record I found online at the Shimmy-a-thon website for Cystic Fibrosis was 2 hours and 1 minute. Not too shabby.
If you want to join us this Saturday at The Sheikh's Palace for the Shimmython see details below on the Collabaret's Belly Dance Spectacular! R120 Rand includes entrance, the great show and some delicious mezze!
Sunday, May 8, 2011
To Dancing Moms
I'm sending my best wishes to mom's who didn't listen when people told them they were too old to dance, who still love to have fun no matter what level of skill they have. Whether you're a professional dancer or someone who never says no to a night out with the girls, loving every chance to show their moves and burn up the dance floor (yes mom, I'm talking about you), I want to encourage you to keep on dancing. You're never too old, too pleasantly plump or too mature. That's rubbish. :)
I've decided you only get too old for something when you stop doing it. Enjoy life and live it to the full, you're a mother, you deserve it!
Happy Mother's Day!
Thursday, May 5, 2011
The Sword Dance
Did you know: There is no widespread dance in the Middle East today involving balancing of a sword on the dancer's head. The primary historical evidence that has led modern-day dancers to treat the sword as a folkloric prop comes from a wonderful painting by the Orientalist artist named Jean-Léon Gérôme, dating to the 19th century.
I think it’s fabulous and definitely adds a lot of drama to your show. I love it when kids watch wide eyed, since I think they're your toughest critics. Swords just command respect and apparently so does dancing around with one. J Gotta love it.
Here’s a sword dance I did recently:
Monday, May 2, 2011
You Win Some...
We didn't make it to the finals this time which was a shame but I have to say for representing Bollywood, a dance form that isn't very common here, we did pretty well. The only dance groups that made it through were all African so that's to be expected. The audience and the organisers were great and that made it very worth it. I was also happy we got so far with 2 of our dancers missing, Steph and Blossom were phenomenal in having to learn new formations to adjust to 3 dancers, not an easy task.
I find I'm not a good loser. I don't rant and rave, get upset or obviously make a big deal of it but I do mentally berate myself for days after not winning or succeeding at something that way I would like to. I replay every detail, try to find the faults and angles of what went wrong. I'm trying not to do that so much. It's great to learn from mistakes and try to get positive criticism to grow from as an artist but there are also some facts that every competition is different. What some people love is not as appreciated by others.
I love watching shows like 'Americal Idol' or 'Britains got Talent' but I don't always agree with the judges' selections. So sometimes it's just hit or miss and you can't let it derail you. Granted, if no one ever seems to think you're very good at something that should probably serve as a heads up that you shouldn't quit your day job and maybe stick to some things as a hobby. However, if the majority love what you do and you see positive reactions then go for it and try not to beat yourself up about it. Just add it to your list of experiences that serve to make you even better. :)
Here are some great quotes I love on what makes a winner:
"History has demonstrated that the most notable winners usually encountered heartbreaking obstacles before they triumphed. They won because they refused to become discouraged by their defeats."
-- B.C. Forbes
Defeat is not the worst of failures. Not to have tried is the true failure.
"The minute you start talking about what you are going to do if you lose, you have lost."
-- George Shultz
Sometimes a winner is just a dreamer who never gave up.
"Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure...than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat."
-- Theodore Roosevelt
"It's easy to have faith in yourself and discipline when you're a winner, when you're Number 1. What you've got to have is faith and discipline when you are not yet a winner."
-- Vince Lombardi
I find I'm not a good loser. I don't rant and rave, get upset or obviously make a big deal of it but I do mentally berate myself for days after not winning or succeeding at something that way I would like to. I replay every detail, try to find the faults and angles of what went wrong. I'm trying not to do that so much. It's great to learn from mistakes and try to get positive criticism to grow from as an artist but there are also some facts that every competition is different. What some people love is not as appreciated by others.
I love watching shows like 'Americal Idol' or 'Britains got Talent' but I don't always agree with the judges' selections. So sometimes it's just hit or miss and you can't let it derail you. Granted, if no one ever seems to think you're very good at something that should probably serve as a heads up that you shouldn't quit your day job and maybe stick to some things as a hobby. However, if the majority love what you do and you see positive reactions then go for it and try not to beat yourself up about it. Just add it to your list of experiences that serve to make you even better. :)
Here are some great quotes I love on what makes a winner:
"History has demonstrated that the most notable winners usually encountered heartbreaking obstacles before they triumphed. They won because they refused to become discouraged by their defeats."
-- B.C. Forbes
Defeat is not the worst of failures. Not to have tried is the true failure.
"The minute you start talking about what you are going to do if you lose, you have lost."
-- George Shultz
Sometimes a winner is just a dreamer who never gave up.
"Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure...than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat."
-- Theodore Roosevelt
"It's easy to have faith in yourself and discipline when you're a winner, when you're Number 1. What you've got to have is faith and discipline when you are not yet a winner."
-- Vince Lombardi
Shimmython and Bellydance Spectacular
Oriental Fire will be performing at this lovely event in celebration of World Bellydance Day. The Shimmython is open to ANYone – belly dancers, friends, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles…& any enthusiastic fans alike!
Come & support this exciting event!!!
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