Growing, Changing, Moving On...

From my folkloric days with Banat el Sharq

One of the best things about bellydance is how it continues to evolve and change. While there are a range of traditional styles to explore - including all the different types of folk - modern fusion, tribal and Gothic bellydance have taken the art in new directions.

When I started out, all I really knew was cabaret - which I have been doing for years - and tribal fusion a la Rachel Brice. I had no real understanding of what was in between, and since I was intimidated by Rachel's gooey, sinuous grace, I became a cabaret dancer.

Several years ago I went on a quest. Feeling the mad urge to take my dance to another level, I left my first teacher and began to explore. At that time I was trying classes at a number of studios and gave tribal fusion a shot. It didn't come easily or naturally to me which I found frustrating, so I stuck with cabaret.

Then I fell in love with folk. That led me to become a member of Banat el Sharq for four years, immersing myself in Saidi, Ghawazi, Beladi and Nubian styles. I loved the costumes, the bouncy, flirty steps and the amazing ladies who were part of my troupe.

Last year was one of major change. After doing Mayada's Pro Bellydancer Course, I found I wanted to work on some specific areas of my technique and that took me travelling again to studying with a few new teachers at new studios.

Yet one other thing I noticed was that the kind of music I wanted to dance to was less than traditional Arabic and the dancers I wanted to watch were less than traditional cabaret dancers. I was finding that the technique I had was in need of some refinement and development to go with the music I wanted to create to, and so I opted to go back to fusion at The Dark Side Studio. No, the moves did not suddenly coming any easier, but I did find I was more interested this time around and really willing to focus and do the work needed to bring the movements into my body.

Very much like the habits I had to break going from ballet to bellydance, so too did I have habits to break going from folk and cabaret to fusion. New muscles, new ways of thinking of how I made my body move and new ideas came flooding in. In many ways I am starting over again but at the same time I'm simply adding new stock to my repertoire of movements for creating new dances.

It's hard to start again as a beginner, and I admit that there is some frustration when I can't nail a move right away. "I've been doing this for over 10 years," I whine to myself, "I should be able to do this without a problem!" Yet no matter how many years one has danced, when going to a new style you do become in many ways a beginner again.

I explained it to my mother by saying it would be like having been with The National Ballet of Canada for many years, and suddenly moving to the Alvin Ailey Dance Theater and expecting to just jump right in.

I'm starting an exploration of a new side of me and it is scary and exciting at the same time. There will always be a place in my world for cabaret and I will continue to do more traditional bellydance when the venue and the spirit moves me there, and want to continue improving my comfort with props such as veil, fan veil cane and zylls, but I am also eager for this new journey into another side of my bellydance self. She is a little darker, a little more expressive, and looking for different stories to tell. It should be an interesting time!