!!!!!!!!!!!!

[alonewiththemoon]

I just got this from Sabrina, concerning belly dancing at the Middle East:

Dear Dancers,

I regretfully must inform you all that, effective immediately, due to the economic situation, the management has decided to discontinue belly dancing as we have had it on Sunday and Wednesday evenings and will be replacing the entertainment on those nights with other kinds, of which it seems not yet certain of what that will be.

This is my last and saddest email to you from this yahoo group, which I am now dismantling.

Thank you for being your beautiful dancing selves!

Warmly,
Sabrina

Words cannot express how awful this is. The Middle East was synonymous with continuity in the dance scene in Boston. We all had our occasional complaints and issues, but it felt like bedrock nonetheless. And I don't know where beginning dancers will get their restaurant experience. How much could the nights have cost them? Why not cut back to just one night, why cut both?

Fuck. Guess I don't have to keep working on my set for this Sunday...
.

Comments

[theblackqueen.livejournal.com]

Wow, I'm flabbergasted :(

[alonewiththemoon]

my gast is totally flabbered! My jaw literally dropped when I got Sabrina's email.

[nepenthedreams]

I had a hint last night from Susi, but I heard that Sundays was cancelled, not everything. :-/

[couplingchaos.livejournal.com]

Ugh, I'm sorry to hear it. :(

[spitcurl.livejournal.com]

WHAAT?

Grrr.

My guess is that with the death of so many club/music venues in Boston thanks to Menino's laws, that the ME has more than enough live music to bring in as often as they could manage it.

But it seems so silly -- The Middle East is such a mainstay, and they have so many other rooms/venues for other acts. What about all the regulars that come for Weds/Sun nights?

I hope they come to their senses. :(

[alonewiththemoon]

It's not like they can pack the Corner with music fans, though, plus there's nowhere for bands to set up equipment if there's more than one band in a night. There's not even room for a drum kit on that stage. And they can't really charge admission, because people come to hang out at the bar and eat dinner. I'm guessing maybe folky or jazz open mike stuff where the musicians don't get paid. Or they'll try to do a salsa night or something with recorded music.

[spitcurl.livejournal.com]

right. IOW -- LAME.

I would never try to Salsa in that crowded space, even if I could Salsa...

[rotting-orange.livejournal.com]

Sucks a lot to hear...

Could you guys start your own night somewhere...or start planning regular hafli at a studio or community center that would be somewhat comparable?

[alonewiththemoon]

I'm crazy enough to be vaguely thinking about organizing something on a monthly basis... it's just hard, because restaurants don't want to pay dancers, but dancers don't want to be used for free :-/

[rotting-orange.livejournal.com]

Right. Well, this is a total bummer nonetheless. I wish you luck!

[nepenthedreams]

was just going through my head - some kind of hafli where we could share the things we're working on with the dancer community, on a regular basis, that isn't run by a crazy. I was thinking - what would the costs be, what would it take - what would make it work....

This would be - not to replace the restaurant experience - but to replace the "make your won set and get to perform very traditonal/Egyptian stuff that doesn't go over well in other places."

[suzycat.livejournal.com]

If you're prepared to dance to recorded music, not that much; you need a room, something to sit on, a sound system and a laptop. BYO food and drink... or you might even be able to find a licenced venue with food that you could take over on a quiet night, or even better, its function room.

[alonewiththemoon]

Problem here is that rooms are expensive, even ugly ones with linoleum floors and no amenities. We have assorted haflas and workshops shows on a pretty regular basis; what people, especially new dancers, want is the restaurant performing experience. But there are indeed some plans percolating.

[christianet.livejournal.com]

That so SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The suggestion was made to have your own community hafli, but I know that's not the same thing; most hafli are not paying gigs and it's a very different atmosphere.

[alonewiththemoon]

Yeah, that's the problem with haflis. I got my beginning restaurant training at the ME--I don't know where baby dancers will get that now.

[sirendipity.livejournal.com]

I'm so sorry. That must be horribly disappointing.

:(

[fieryredhead.livejournal.com]

Wow. What a loss for the Boston bellydance community! :(

[polymexina.livejournal.com]

that's so crazy!! ME is a damn landmark.

[atalanta.livejournal.com]

I'm surprised and sorry!

[redbeka-rose.livejournal.com]

Oh no!

[akashablue.livejournal.com]

I haven't been in the restaurant scene in a long time but I was wondering if this bit of news will create more of a competitive atmosphere for gigs???

[alonewiththemoon]

With the loss of 8 paid slots per month, I imagine it will :-\

[fudjo.livejournal.com]

Ooofff. Sorry to hear it. :(

[deadwinter.livejournal.com]

I'm so, so sorry.

[suzycat.livejournal.com]

What a tragedy.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_perihelion_/]

FYI I talked to Lilly at the Middle East last night. she said that the Sater brothers didn't want to cancel belly dancing altogether. that they just wanted to cut it down to 1 night a week instead of 2. then Sabrina said if she couldn't do 2 nights a week she didn't want to do it at all. so, as I understand it, the brothers are still willing to have belly dancing 1 night a week if they had someone to run it. anyway . . . that's what I heard.

[alonewiththemoon]

thanks very much for the inside update! That's very encouraging that the Sater brothers want to keep dancing. It didn't seem entirely right that they would want to get rid of it outright. I've been talking to DJ Jean over the last couple of days, who wants to be that someone to run a night. So we'll see!

just saw this posted on facebook by Peter Franx

[erzuliedancer.livejournal.com]

Peter Franx

We never stopped having belly dancing at the Middle East and we never will. Any information to the contrary is false. We gonna try to to make it better than ever! If anyone is interested in dancing please check mideastclub.com and click the corner link :)

Re: just saw this posted on facebook by Peter Franx

[alonewiththemoon]

I've been talking with Jean, didn't want to make any announcements until things are more firm but dancing at the ME will return :-) less of it, but it will still have a presence. I did tell Jean though that they need to work to make the belly dance community aware of this, which I guess he passed along to Franx.