Professional Oriental Dance Set Primer
Elements of a Professional Dancer’s Set The Magency – Oriental Entrance Taksim Egyptian Baladi and the Baladi Taksim Cane Dance – Saidi, Baladi or Lebanese Veil and Double Veil dance Sword Dance and Balancing Dances Floor Work in Oriental Dance Middle Eastern Pop, Al Jeel and Shaabi Sagat (Finger Cymbals) The Classics and Om Koulthum …
Swords and Finger Cymbals – buying advice
Swords and Finger Cymbals – you need them, where do you find them? What do you look for? Finger Cymbals Also known as zills in Turkey and sagat in Egypt. They are a beautiful and traditional part of a belly dancer’s show. The most important thing when you are buying finger cymbals is to make …
Things to Consider when Hiring a Belly Dancer
What to expect from the Belly Dancer’s Show A belly dancer’s show will usually last between 15 to 30 minutes, depending on what the event requires. She will enter to a dramatic piece of music either wrapped in a veil or she will have a veil, shimmering wings, or cape floating behind her. Her first …
About Oriental Dance (aka Belly Dance)
In Arabic it is called “raqs sharqi” which translates literally to Eastern Dance or Oriental Dance: raqs- dance, sharqi- Eastern, Oriental. In Turkish it is called Oryantal Dansı. It originates from the Middle East and it is believed to be called Raqs Sharqi to differentiate it from Raqs Beledi*, it’s more common dance relation. Beledi …
Learning the Language of Belly Dance
“Learning to belly dance is like learning a new language. Just like a baby learns how to shape her mouth to create new words, a dance student learns how to shape her body to express herself through dance. A child masters language as she grows and as she matures to adulthood eventually uses language to …
Behind the Rates – Why Belly Dancers Charge What They Do
Everyone wants their event to be a grand success. You’ve chosen the most delicious food, you’ve put great attention into your guest list, you’ve selected the right location and now you are thinking about entertainment. Although most of us would love every thing as grand and wonderful as possible, we also have to consider our …
Different Styles of Oriental Dance
Dance is a living and evolving art form. It evolves as cultures evolve and as it is adopted by new cultures. Because of this there are many different styles of “belly dance”. The following is a primer to help you recognize some of the different styles and where they came from. Egyptian Style Oriental Dance …
The Origins of our Modern Style Costuming
In the 1930s a dancer of Lebanese origin named Badia Masabny opened up a night club in Cairo. Influenced by European cabarets, “Casino Badia” which was later renamed “Casino Opera” was a cabaret with Middle Eastern and European entertainment. The dance went through some changes at this time. Having been traditionally performed in small spaces, …
Picking a Dance Name
Picking a name is a personal thing. I think it is smart to choose a name, a little anonymity can increase your safety somewhat, and it can add to the mysterious appeal of your dance character. Many pick a name that means something in another language, usually Arabic or Turkish, but sometimes Farsi, Greek, Hebrew, …
Things for the Belly Dancer to know about Middle Eastern Music
In the Middle East you will hear music used for entertainment as well as for religious worship. When choosing music to dance to it is very important to understand the origin and content of your music, so you can avoid potentially offending your audience or just looking foolish. This is a general guide for things …
Tribe
