Professional bellydancer and instructor
Ozel Turkbas, arguably the most famous Turkish bellydancer of old is a personal favorite of mine. My own dance style tends towards the arabic stylings of the dance, but I have always appreciated her fluidity, grace, and contributions to the art. Not only was she a dancer, but she was an accomplished singer and author. You can read more about her here…
But in the meantime, enjoy one of my favorite clips of her dancing when she was still quite young! I promise you this tune is wickedly catchy!
I am looking forward to this weekend! Starting Saturday morning off with class at the Pittsburgh Dance Center at 10am. We are still working through our choreography which we hope to premiere in January and again in February at our first Hafla of 2013. We have been working hard and it really is coming together!
Sunday afternoon we have our workshop series continuing at 12:30-2 pm. We will feature the first hour with zills and veils followed by adjustments using the Alexander Technique. After class, it is time to get our things together for the Shimmy Holiday Party and Swap Meet! This time, our holiday party/ hafla is for dancers and students only. I think this will give us all a level of comfort and intimacy not normally present when we entertain! It is also a chance for the community to raise any issues or concerns for 2013!
I know I need to gather my goodies for sale as well. If anyone is interested, I will be bringing a few inexpensive costumes, skirts, and veils 🙂
Hope you all can make it!!!
Our featured dancer of the day is Lalita of Maryland, our Entertainer of the Year! She will be one of our guest judges next year as well as a guest instructor at the Pittsburgh Bellydance Festival 2013.
Laura Dark is amazing! From her facebook fan page, Dark Beauty and Fashion Photographer Biography
Part 2 of our Belly-Off in review features Angela Alam, runner up in our Headliner category!
How long have you been dancing?
I was a late belly-bloomer. I began taking classes in 2006 at the age of 35 with Amira Nagi in Hurricane, WV.
Maybe I should give you some back story on how I got into this… It might be more interesting than just the static question and answer…or not. ha
I found belly dance sort of by accident. I had bariatric surgery in 2005 and ended up losing a total of 100lbs. My Dr was really after me to find a way to be active and maintain my weight loss. I found belly dance at an art fair in Charleston, WV. A group called “Rom Neve” performed, and to tell the truth I cant remember if they were part of the scheduled entertainment or just busking, but I was hooked on the music and the beautiful dancer that “moved like smoke” (to quote a band member). I set out on an internet search to see if she offered dance classes locally. I didnt find that particular dancer, but I found videos of Rachel Brice and “Fat Chance Bellydance” and finally information on a local teacher, Amira Nagi. I was hooked. I took classes for a few years with Amira and danced with in her student troupe. When Amira took a break from teaching, she turned her classes over to Jenna Brooke Swanson. (fyi, Jenna was the Rom Neve dancer…YAY)
I danced with Jenna’s student troupes in its many evolutions; Bella Dames and the Nitty Gritty Gypsies, Bal aBlonde (funny story) and Raqs Shakti. Jenna has since moved to the west coast to further her career and I have sort of been on my own since. I travel to as many workshops and intensives as financially possible. I have studied with Moria Chappel, Sherena and Tiffani Ahdia from Project Bellydance. I began as a fusion dancer and only recently discovered the more traditional forms of bellydance. Teachers of Oriental dance are scarce here in my little part of the world. I have made it my goal to learn all that I can so that I can share it with others some day.
Over the next few weeks, I would like to highlight this year’s Belly-Off Competition! We have been conducting interviews with our winners and judges and have much to report on!
JANIM 