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2011 -The Year of the Troupe-a-Doop

9/17/2011

Pressure. In 2009, our dance company won the Belly Dancer of the Year Competition, and we've been chasing the "1st place" title ever since. During 2010, we won awards (1st runner up, 2nd place, etc) at several events, but the winning title alluded us. Luckily, we reversed the trend in 2011 and won two big competitions -- Belly Dancer USA and Yaa Halla Y'all.

I wanted to sit down an figure out what we did differently, and here is what I think changed our trend : we had fun and really enjoyed dancing together. Okay, I'll admit it, this isn't the epiphany you were probably expecting, but I really believe that is the secret sauce for all dance groups.

I've now logged tons of hours watching performers and troupes at competitions -- the work and skill of all these dancers is always evident when they take the stage. The ones that get my attention are the ones that engage their 'hearts' and get out of their 'heads'. They also are clearly enjoying dancing together (that energy is always felt by and audience) AND you can't tell who the troupe director is which is a big plus for me. I also really like the ones that break the mold and do something unexpected.

So back to 2010 -- we had all the right stuff -- great choreography, beautiful custom-made costume, great dancers -- we performed everything exactly right, but were not dancing to have fun and entertain --we were dancing to win -- I think when you take on that type of perspective your body, your attitude and your energy changes.

As we entered 2011 -- it wasn't about the win, it was about performing our best, entertaining the audience, enjoying the dance, and sharing lots fun and laughter along the way. That attitude helped fuel the year of the Troupe-A-Doop

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The Life of a Weekend Warrior by Fatinah

10/27/2010

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*whew* The life of a Weekend Warrior!!!

Tabitha and I had the opportunity to be partners in crime this past month. Nearly every weekend in October, we partnered up to do private party gigs (in addition to our regular nights at El Morocco and El Mansour). After all was said and done, I felt like I shimmied my butt off!
The first weekend was Tabitha’s gig, but I got to tag along to get the lay of the land. It was a big birthday party full of boisterous Russians in the heart of San Francisco! Tabitha looked absolutely stunning, the energy from the music was contagious, and the birthday boy was thrilled to dance with such a charming dancer. The crowd was really caught up in the excitement, snapping pictures at every opportunity, and they “oooed” and “ahhhed” at all the right times. The kids kept following Tabitha around, and they didn’t want to miss a second of the show.   Success!
The second weekend, Tabitha and I teamed up to be the entertainment of a surprise 50th birthday party in Montclair. The event planner, birthday boy’s wife, was set to keep us a secret until the very moment we entered the room, and judging from the looks on all the guests’ faces, she succeeded! We had 45 minutes of non-stop dancing, pulling out all the props (veil, zills, fan, sword, and double veil). We also debuted a brand-new choreography that we worked on together. Both the hostess and birthday boy were such good sports, getting up to dance with us with little to no coaxing. The guests were also very enthusiastic and lovely! The restaurant’s staff members were so gracious; the compliments flowed all night ... along with the sweat down my face from all the dancing! Success!
The next day, I had to get geared up again to do my regular night at El Morocco, while Tabitha and the other Divas (Iman, Majah, and Le’Ana) had another gig in Burlingame. Giving out so much energy two nights in a row was .... exhausting. Thankfully, only two customers were at the restaurant to witness a somewhat flawed performance (my halter top decided that it wasn’t going to stay hooked for the duration of my set). Nevertheless, they were very gracious and generous with their tips. A special thank you to those two kind souls!!!

The third weekend, Tabitha and I teamed up again to be the surprise entertainment of a 40th birthday party in Sunol. The party was at a large event center, bursting at the seams with friends, family, and kids!! Per the client’s request, we were only performing two choreographed routines, and the rest of the time, our task was to get the guests up to dance. We were only supposed to stay for 30 minutes, but the “get up and dance with us” part was so successful that we ended up staying for over an hour!! People eagerly jumped up to join the dance circles, taking turns to show us their best shoulder shimmies or hip drops. The husbands were showing off their moves, the wives were very amused by their enthusiasm, and the kids couldn’t take their eyes of the sparkly costumes! Both of us kept getting pulled into picture after picture; I hoped and prayed that the sweat wasn’t making me look like a dribbly mess. When we finally escaped, Tabitha and I ran into the bathroom and literally peeled off our costumes (eww). Success!
Reflections ....

Gigging can be somewhat lonely (and potentially dangerous). With all the driving to unknown locations and waiting in random backrooms/bathrooms, I’m glad I didn’t have to go alone.

No matter the ethnicity or age group, people love belly dancers.

You have to air out your costumes as soon as possible, otherwise they’ll still be damp from sweat the next day. Grossie.

Grabbing a drink after a gig in full hair and make-up will bring you attention .... in the form of free drinks. :)

Grabbing a drink after a gig in full hair and make-up will also make you look like a woman of the night. :(

Belly dancers have to be cool, confident, and full of life – there is no room for fear or uncertainty.

With the right enthusiasm (and delusion), it is possible to choreograph a routine from scratch, and get it gig-ready, in two weeks time.

From Tabitha: If you’re a barefoot dancer, make sure you have cheap shoes specially designated to wear to and from gigs. You never know what you’re going to trek home …

Taryn and Tina = TNT = dynamite! And I felt dynamite after performing with Tabitha – she’s an amazing dancer, a great teacher, and a wonderful friend!

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Diva-alert -- The customer has taken over !

10/12/2010

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Last night, my dance partner and I had a rather interesting adventure. We had a great first set, got everyone up to dance and danced forever-- a grand and sweaty time and finished around 8:20. The proprietor got a call about 8:45 for a party of six who would arrive in 10 minutes....so we waited, and waited and waited. Around 9:25 two women arrived with two kids in tow (7 & 5) and said their husbands were due in....by 9:40 everyone was there....little did we know we know a belly dance wanna-be DIVA was about to take-over....

Three signs of trouble brewing.
1. When you see a customers start rolling up their tank top while seated...
2. When you invite kids up to dance, and up leaps uninvited company
3. When the tank-top rolled, belly-exposed, belly-dance wanna goes to the middle of the dance floor and marks her territory --and proceeds to stay there for 20 minutes.

This type of thing has happened to me before -- someone who wants to show off in front of a boy friend, etc. I asked members of our dance company for their recommendations on how to handle:

Tip One: have the lady follow the leader, and then make her spin, bow, applaud and point to her seat.... unfortunately, I tried that technique and she stayed right in the middle of the dance floor.

Tip Two: go and entertain other guests or try to get them up to dance.... (we did all that too -- the Diva kept dancing in the middle of the floor).

Tip Three: Go sit down and wait her out with arms crossed so she gets the hint (we didn't do that....thought it wasn't fair to the other customers).

I ended up doing my drum solo in circles around her...she was lost because the drum solo has huge variation in the music and she just stood there watching and doing hits in the air. The group never ordered dinner, and just split one bottle of wine so it was much ado over not much.

Urk Deluxe !

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Dancing Adventures by Iman

7/11/2009

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Set One: 7:15pm   Full of energy and having a great time with three little kids who were having a marvelous time dancing too.   My favorite memories are the little two year old boy kept delivering one dollar bills and then somersaulting back to his dad, and a three year old practicing her snake arms and spins. Dancing time: 25 minutes

Set Two: 8:30 Holy cow, got to dance again because 1 new couple has come in (and the girl is a bellydancer).    I do a new set, (Zamon joins me for one song) get people up to dance and complete my set....only to have Fadil come up and ask me to get the bellydancer up to dance....he turns my music back on and the 6' bellydancer proceeds to show off her shimmys for 4 minutes, as I tried to keep the sweat on my face from splashing on the customers.     Dancing time: 28 minutes

Set Three 9:00pm   Crapitola-khomeini !     I'm walking out the door, and Fadil comes up to me and says he has a problem. Another bellydancer and boyfriend have come in, and have demanded to see a set and she will leave if I don't dance. After giving me the mournful eye, I ask him if I can just do three dances. He says of course, but the bellydancer overhears and says she wants a full set......anyway, I go to do my third twirl around the floor -- (note to self: do not use a silk veil when you are sweaty --really sticks to you like glue) .   A gay couple wave at me that they want to dance, and I pull up one of the guys and he and I begin waltzing up to the front, when the other guy fails in his attempt find my waistband...... I stop dead in my tracks, and turn around glaring at the offending male thinking about how to deck him gracefully in a way that Leea would approve ... in the meantime the happy Sidi Monsoor music is playing and I've got to keep dancing.    My drum solo begins, and up come both bellydancers (uninvited) to dance to my drum solo. Amazing !   Dancing time: 20 minutes

I grumbled to myself all the way home --my hip a quivering lump of shooting stars.   I get home and I'm recounting the tale of the hip diving hand to my husband as I'm pulling off my wet costume. My husband says "hold on there", proceeds to pull a sopping wet bill that was stuck in my underwear, and holds it up and says "at least it was a ten dollar bill".

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2011 -The Year of the Troupe-a-Doop

The Life of a Weekend Warrior by Fatinah

Diva-alert -- The customer has taken over !

Dancing Adventures by Iman

Iman

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