08/15/2004:  
How has your summer been? I guess you can tell that mine has been excellent, since this is the first issue of the newsletter I have published this season! I have not been entirely idle, though - I just added a new monthly Calendar for upcoming events (there are links on the "home" page and in the newsletter).

We have had some wonderful events in Maine this summer, especially the 2004 Summer Belly Dance Festival in Brunswick (story and pictures below). And there are lots of exciting events coming up as well, 
including Jamileh's performance at the Folk Festival and workshops with Mesmera, Morocco, and Nourhan Sharif. 

This month's issue has so many mentions of American Tribal Style belly dance that I thought a little background information on the was in order - check out A Look Inside... American Tribal Style Belly Dance. 

Enjoy!

07/31/2004:
The 2004 Summer Belly Dance Festival in Brunswick was a truly wonderful event. Dancers from all over Maine (as well as a few from Vermont, New Hampshire, and Connecticut) gathered for a day of workshops and performances at the beautiful Thomas Point Beach Park. The weather was perfect and the atmosphere was relaxed and fun. Workshop themes were: Group Improvisation; From Shoulders to Fingertips; Combinations with Turns and Shimmies; Body Mechanics for Belly Dancers; Zambra Moro; and Drumming and Zilling.  

Many, many thanks to Jessica Means and the Naya's Trance troupe for all of their hard work and organizational talent. They did an amazing job! Now they are interested in feedback and suggestions for next year's festival, so please let them know what you loved about this year's event and what you wish for in the future.

Here are links to some online pictures of the festival:

Photos taken by Naya's Trance on the Naya's Trance website 

Photos taken by Julie Eason on the Aaminah website

Photos taken by Lynne Guimond Findlay in her Yahoo! Photo album. Below are a few samples of her work (there are details on ordering enlargements of her images at the bottom): 

The three images above are copyright 2004 by Lynne Guimond Findlay. 
More of her pictures of the festival can be found here. Print 
enlargements of Lynne's images are available at $5 for a 5x7 and 
$10 for an 8x12, plus postage. Email Lynne (Alinah) to place an order.

August 28, 2004: Arabic Music and Dance at the Folk Festival
Jamileh (Jeanne Handy) will be performing along with the Sharq Arabic Music Ensemble at the National Folk Festival in Bangor. Come and cheer her on!

Where: Bangor Folk Festival on the waterfront
When: Saturday, August 28, 2004 
           on the Heritage stage at 4:15 
           and on the Penobscot stage at 5:45
Cost:  Free!

September 3/4/5 2004: Kahaz' Labor Day workshop in Bangor
Kahaz Productions presents Mesmera of California demonstrating 
both cabaret and gypsy style in a two-day workshop and a gala 
evening performance... and many vendors!

Where: Union St. Brick Church in Bangor, ME
When: Friday, September 3 to Sunday, September 5, 2004
Cost: $165 for both days (includes show ticket) or
         $95 for one day (includes show ticket)
         $15 for show ticket

For more details visit the Kahaz Productions website.

September 18, 2004: Drum circle/belly dance jam in Portland:
Drum and/or dance the night away to live music!

Where: Full Circle Synergy School of Tai Chi Chuan
           500 Forest Avenue, Portland, ME
When: Saturday, September 18, 2004 from 7:30 - 11 PM
Cost:  $5 

Find out more here or email questions to Lisa Casselli here.

October 9/10 2004: Morocco and Tarik Sultan in Moncton, NB
Morocco is considered to be "one of our living legends of Middle 
Eastern dance and studies" for her dedication in collecting and preserving the history and traditions of dance in the Near East and 
North Africa. This two-day workshop and show promise to be a treat! 
Visit Morocco's website for a wealth of information.

Where: Club d'Age d'Or Notre Dame de Grace in Moncton, NB
When: October 9 and 10, 2004
           Workshops from 9 AM - 4:30 PM
           Saturday show begins at 8 PM
Cost: $160 (Canadian) for the entire weekend (includes show ticket)
         $80 (Canadian) for one day
         $25 (Canadian) for show ticket

For more details contact Studio Sephira by email
                                 Or by telephone: 1-506-383-8138

October 16, 2004: Nourhan Sharif in Woburn, MA
The Belly Dance Music Association presents Nourhan Sharif of 
New York City's Egyptian Academy of Oriental Dance in a four-hour workshop followed by a gala show. All levels welcome.
"...Explore what's new in Club Style Bellydance and Folkloric Bellydance in Egypt and Lebanon." 

Where: Radisson Hotel in Woburn, MA (1.5 hours from Portland)
When: Saturday, October 16, 2004
           Workshop from 12 - 5 PM (with a lunch break)
           Show begins at 8 PM
Cost: $55 before September 16; $65 thereafter (includes show ticket)
         $15 for show ticket

For more details or to register visit the Belly Dance Music Association website or send an email to Lisa Casselli here.

October 23, 2004: Tribal Fusion in Old Mystic, CT
AzarMaya Tribal Dance Presents Sharon Moore, co-director of inFusion Tribal Bellydance from Seattle, WA teaching "Funky Fusion Steps and Combos" and "Group Formations and Combinations".

From the Mandala Tribal website:
"Sharon Moore is a passionate tribal belly dance artist who devotes her energies to instructing, performing, and costume design. With a combined background of study in jazz, modern, ballet, theater, and gymnastics, she finds tribal belly dance to be the most rewarding performance art she has ever encountered, and has made it her life's work."

Where: Dragon's Egg Studio in Old Mystic, CT
When: Saturday, October 23, 2004
           Workshop 1 from 10:30 AM to 12:30 PM
           Workshop 2 from 1:30 to 3:30 PM
           Performance begins at 6:30 PM
Cost: $35 per workshop or $65 for both before October 1 or
         $40 per workshop at the door

For more information visit AzarMaya's gorgeous website or 
                               email AzarMaya.

October 23, 2004: Barefoot Flamenco in Portland, ME
The Woman’s Tradition: Brazeo, Marcaje y Vueltas with Helena Melone at The Center for Cultural Exchange in Portland.

From the description:
"Explore the power, beauty and strong tradition of this dance through what was traditionally the women’s' realm of the dance: "brazeo" (hand, arm, and torso work), "marcaje" (marking steps), and "vueltas" (spitfire turns). Oriented toward both those new to flamenco (ideal for belly dancers wanting to expand their repertoire and emotional range) and those who want to deepen their knowledge of the context and "aire" of this bold, sensuous art of the Gitano of southern Spain."

Where: The Center for Cultural Exchange, 1 Longfellow Sq., Portland
When: October 23 from 10 AM to noon
Cost: $25

For more information or to register, email Jamileh 
                                or call her at 207-773-2966

This month's featured link:

Image used with permission of Independent Geek Chicks

A Documentary About Becoming a Tribal-style Belly Dancer

What an exciting and ambitious project! This documentary will be 
coming out in 2005, but you can already watch some of the interviews and dancing (including clips of the inspirational Rachel Brice) in the "Sneak Peek" section of the website.

From the website:
"Tribal Style, a ninety-minute documentary, will profile a year in the life 
of a novice dancer as she goes from her first class to her first performance... Through interviews with professional belly dancers in 
the tribal community, we will draw parallels to the novice’s own stories: finding her strength, facing doubt and ultimately discovering her own inner peace and beauty. We will aim to document not only the novice, but belly dance as a whole; what it means to be a belly dancer to the person dancing, and the positive impact it has on the people dancing it."

The interview clips definitely make you want to see more. This film concentrates on American Tribal Style belly dance, but it explores themes that are universal to all styles of our beautiful dance.

      

Kahaz was a member of the original Desert Dancers troupe directed by Abira. She performs, teaches classes, and organizes events in Bangor, including the upcoming Labor Day workshop with Mesmera.

 What inspired you to begin dancing?

 Kahaz: A woman named Barbara Joy (Barena) was teaching belly dance lessons at the Y here in Bangor when I was about 22 years old. I actually went in to sign up for swimming, and when I saw her in the changing room I just had to stare - she taught in costume, and I had never seen anything like it. She took me by the hand and led me into her classroom, saying "You come with me, dear. You'll like this better than swimming". And she was right! 
I loved it right away. Later she introduced me to her teacher, Abira, with whom I took lessons for many years. Barena and I had many things in common, including left-handedness and a preference for the syncopated beat.

 What was your funniest belly dance moment?

  Kahaz: Many years ago when I still did bellygrams, my friend Carla (also a dancer) and I were hired to do performances at four different parties on one night. This was just before Christmas, and on the way from one bellygram to the next, we ended up driving through the woods behind a car with a Christmas tree strapped on top. Before long the tree got loose and slipped off the back of the car onto the road, and with no time to swerve I had to drive right over it... of course it got stuck under my car! By the time I had gathered myself enough to get out of the car, the other driver was already kneeling in front of my hood, tugging at the tree, which wasn't budging. He turned to me and said "I think it's stu..." but didn't get any further after seeing me standing there in full costume and makeup. Hearing Carla (also in performance gear) walk up on the other side, he turned to repeat his remark to her, but never managed to get the words out of his mouth. When the tree was finally extricated, it was mangled and misshapen. We laughed all the rest of the way to Waterville, trying to imagine what he was going to tell his wife and kids when he got home! 
 
 
 What music do you most enjoy?

 Kahaz: Non-belly dance groups I like at the moment are Afro Celt Sound System, Peat Bog Fairies, and Maine's own Zulu Leprechauns ("afro-Appalachian psychedelia").

For belly dance music, I really love Tarkan - he's so danceable!  Besides, he's beautiful. I was "introduced" to him by daughter Amanda. While backpacking around the world last year, she sent me CDs of the latest music from Istanbul, including his latest album, "Dudu". He's kind of a Turkish Ricky Martin, complete with looks, charisma, talent, and hysterical screaming fans.

 What motivated you to begin sponsoring workshops?

 Kahaz:  Some years ago the Desert Dancers were hired to dance at the opening of a Turkish exhibit at the Hudson Museum at UMaine's Maine Center for the Arts. We wanted to present something authentic, and as I did some research into the style, one name kept coming up: Artemis Mourat. She has done extensive original field research into the Turkish Rom culture, and I hoped to get some idea from her of what we should be doing. She offered to come up to Maine to teach a workshop with us, and that launched my career as a sponsor. Every year during the organizing phase I tell myself I'll never do it again, but by the end of the workshop it's all worth it!
 

Tell us about this year's workshop.

 Kahaz:  Mesmera is going to be a treat! Her style is full-out American cabaret. It's kind of a twist on the "Gypsy" theme - we have had Artemis with authentic Turkish Rom, Amaya with Spanish-Arabic Rom, and now Mesmera will be teaching us Fantasy Gypsy fusion. If you can't make the workshop, come join us on Friday evening for the potluck and on Saturday evening for the show... and of course to visit the vendors!

 Thank you for the interview, Kahaz!

Check out the online forum for all Maine dancers:

MEDiM.org Message Board 

It includes a ride board, a flea market, news about upcoming events, recommendations about online vendors, class cancellation notices, rehearsal information, and whatever else you choose to post!

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MEDiM.org Message Board

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... American Tribal Style Belly Dance
Imagine a group of dancers dressed in ornately decorated choli tops and wide skirts of colorful natural fabrics, with bright tassels at their hips, tattoo markings on their faces, heavy ethnic jewelry at their wrists and throats, and regal turbans adorning their heads. The dancers radiate strength and unity as they move together in what looks like an intricate choreography but is actually an on-the-spot improvisation. 

It’s a pretty stirring image, isn’t it? You have been visualizing American Tribal Style belly dance (ATS), a fusion of dance steps and costuming elements drawn from many of the same Near Eastern, Middle Eastern, and North African cultures that have shaped belly dance as a whole. 

Image used with generous permission of inFusion Tribal

ATS “… does not represent an authentic ethnic style of costume or dance from any one specific culture or people,¹” instead taking the favored American tack of mixing and matching to create something new and exciting. Even the music is often a blend of traditional rhythms and techno beats.  

Next to the costuming, the major difference between ATS and Raqs Sharqi (“cabaret”-style belly dance) is the element of group improvisation. While Raqs Sharqi is mainly an improvised solo dance, in ATS the group's the thing. The troupe builds a common dance vocabulary including subtle cues (such as arm positions) that telegraph to the group what move is coming next and in what direction it will travel. One dancer gives the signals, and the rest of the group reacts so smoothly that the audience does not see a “leader” and “followers”.  

The roots of ATS lie in groups such as Jamila Salimpour’s “Bal Anat” troupe, Masha Archer’s San Francisco Classic Dance Troupe, and one of the first and best-known ATS troupes, FatChance BellyDance (directed by Carolena Nericcio), which developed and solidified the style as it is seen today. Other influential troupes have been Gypsy Caravan (led by Paulette Rees-Denis) and Black Sheep Belly Dance (formerly United We Dance – led by Kajira Djoumahna).  

Image used with generous permission of inFusion Tribal

Of course there are many directions and styles within the style, including groups that wear Tribal-style costuming, but perform choreographed pieces. Some other exciting Tribal or Tribal Fusion troupes are:
Domba!
Read My Hips
Urban Tribal Dance Company
inFusion Tribal (co-director Sharon Moore is teaching a workshop in CT this fall).

Some online video clips of Tribal and Tribal Fusion:
Devyani
inFusion Tribal
WeiberWirbel (of Switzerland)
Urban Ghawazee (trailer for a documentary)

Image used with generous permission of AzarMaya

 ¹ From American Tribal Style Belly Dance, an article by Zenuba in The Belly Dance Book