dance stuff, By Dancers for Dancers review

[alonewiththemoon]

My name is now in the list of performers for the Faten Salama workshop show.  I am starting to become very nervous about it, given all the fabulous awe-inspiring people who will be in attendance.  Eep!  Trying to decide what to wear--if I'm doing the Diva Pageant, I'll want to save the snake costume for that.  Then again, that's like three months away.  Hm.  No, I think I should save it.

Back when I took Sardis' skirt-swishing workshop in I think it was March, I had a sudden inspiration about a Nick Cave song as I saw myself flourishing and flouncing away in my big black skirt.  Typically, I do not think Nick Cave songs are at all good for belly dancing.  Too much testosterone or something, it just doesn't quite feel right even though it's some of the music I love the best in all the world.  But this is a song about a passionate and powerful woman who spreads chaos and destruction all about her by means of her sexuality, so I thought, hm, maybe...  Yesterday I put on my big skirt and gave it a run-through, and as soon as I finished it once I knew I had a keeper.  I'm pretty excited about this and will be performing it at Shimmy in the Shadows.  I will have a crimson carnation between my teeth, there's your hint as to what song.

I watched the By Dancers for Dancers DVD last night and was very impressed.  Maybe it's just the hype, but I thought you could really see the difference in the dancers' liveliness compared to the usual Hollywood/Peko, etc DVDs.  For those who don't know, this was a DVD produced by (largely raqs sharqi with some AmCab) dancers from Northern California as a collaborative effort.  They had control over the song choices, the editing, etc and all share in the residuals, unlike most other DVD productions where the dancers do not get anything once they are done dancing.  One of the dancers, Zari, has been writing about the production of the DVD over at Gilded Serpent.  And the "for dancers" part means there's no crazy camera angles or "artistic" shots that obscure what the dancer is actually doing.  There's some variation in the background too, which is nice.  All of the dancers were high quality, but I especially liked Mira Betz, and Zari totally knocked my socks off.  She dances like the real deal, I wouldn't think she was out of place if the clip was in the middle of an Egyptian compilation.  She comes to Boston every now and then and offers private lessons while she is here, and the next time she's in town I should set something up with her, though she intimidates me no end.  Anyway, I really recommend this DVD--not only is it a very worthy project, but it is also an exciting and dynamic performance video.  My only criticisms are that I wish it were longer (it's about 40 minutes) and that in the outtakes at the end (great idea!), there is some footage of Zari with a cane in her Ghawazee outfit but the DVD does not contain that performance--I want to see it!  I think it's on YouTube though.

I was a little mollified to see in the outtakes one dancer, Mira if I recall correctly, gets her veil all caught up in her headband while flipping the veil over her head--it's nice to know that these things happen to everybody.  I should let up on myself about Saturday :-)

My office is freezing today.  I think my brain is numb.

Comments

[cassel.livejournal.com]

Will the dancers writhe and squirm?

[alonewiththemoon]

and writhe again, in the heat and in the din

[kinadancer.livejournal.com]

In re: Zari, she's lovely and more afraid of others than they are of her, although I too am intimidated. She also remembers you and thinks you did a nice job in whatever that thing we did with Joharra was (can't remember the title right this minute).

[alonewiththemoon]

more afraid of others than they are of her

That's kind of what I got from her, but then it makes me all the more afraid that I'll say or do the wrong thing, whatever the wrong thing would be. I'm flattered that she remembers me!

[meddevi.livejournal.com]

Hehe, Zari's the kind of gal you knock a few drinks back with, and have a good bitch session about West Coast vs. East Coast. We both have crazy schedules, so we couldn't meet up much really, but I definitely enjoyed our chats ;)

[nepenthedreams]

Oh is that what you were worried about on Saturday? That happens to everyone. In fact, I saw [very good and experienced local dancer's name here] get caught in her veil six ways to Sunday one night - what marked her as a professional was that no one else knew because she handled it so well.

I would love to see this DVD sometime. Aren't Zaheea and Sandra on it, or at least Zaheea?

[alonewiththemoon]

That, plus a couple of other dissatisfying moments. I'm trying to move past it all now :)

Zaheea and Sandra are both on it--I'd say Sandra was my third favorite after Zari and Mira. I'd be happy to host a viewing, if we can just figure out the time!

[nepenthedreams]

As you should, nothing to worry about.
And no agonizing over the video either.

I love Sandra's version of "My Music Intro" on the Exotic Art of Bellydance. Have you seen that video? It's pretty good.

Well...are ya free on Wednesday by any chance?

[alonewiththemoon]

Nope, Seven Sunless Days have a show at Great Scott's that night.

[nepenthedreams]

This reminds me.
I remember M. saying they would be playing the Sky Bar soon.
I want to put it in my calendar but I never hear about it when I'm near a calendar.

[alonewiththemoon]

I checked with him last night--it's June 30, the day before Shimmy in the Shadows.