| November 2007 |
Dances of the Middle East...at Lotus D'Or |
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Lotus D'Or Studios
a Belly Dance Goldmine in the month of November! |
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| Greetings! |
 This time around the newsletter is focused on Middle Eastern dance here in El Dorado County! Lotus D'Or has been busy working on bringing 2 great workshops in the month of November. On the 18th, Lotus D'Or was proud to host a workshop with Elizabeth Strong. Placerville's Vahana is also bringing us a special belly dance workshop with Thea, The Art of Zils: Dancing with Finger Cymbals, as well as bringing her belly dance showcase at Annabelle's Chocolate Lounge on Dec.1st! Stay Tuned for more information on Lotus D'Or Studios' "Winter Solstice & Artisan Weekends" in December. Two weekends full of shopping & workshops! Dec. 8th & 15th form 11:00am-6:00pm.
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| Thanks to Elizabeth Strong & all the dancers who supported her fantastic workshop Nov. 18th!! |
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Lots of gratitude for all the dancers who came from Sacramento and beyond for Elizabeth's 3-hour workshop on Nov. 18th. The class was chock full of information about Turkish Rom style dance, including the counting of the complex rhythms, gestures, culture, and Liz's firsthand anecdotes from her continuous studies with true Roma dancers in Istanbul. To top it all off, Elizabth treated the students to a fusion-style choreography using modern tribal music, with hints of ATS and the polished grace & technique that Liz embodies in all her dances. I know I can't wait to study from her again, her phenomenal strength and originality are only surpassed by her kindness.
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| Casbah Lounge Dec. 1st
Brought to us by Vahana! |
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Annabelleʼs Chocolate Lounge presents:
The casbah lounge
An evening of Middle Eastern dance
Sat. Dec. 1st, 7 p.m.S.st, 7 p.m.
Featuring Vahana
& Jewels of the North
Special appearances by:
Thea of Pasadena
Monifa of Oakland
Tezrah of Sacramento
Namira of Tahoe
And many more
Benefitting Sierra Wildlife Rescue
(suggested donation $5 @ the door)
6240 Pleasant Valley Road
El Dorado
for more info or to dance
call vahana 818-326-5452
dancingesquire@yahoo.com | |
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| On-Going Schedule @ Lotus D'Or Studios! |
| Mondays
7:30-8:30
Beth Atwood-Sarpika Dancer
Introductory/Beginning
Belly Dance
Wednesdays:
6:00-7:15p
Dennis Eagan-
Vinyasa Yoga-Intermediate
Sunday Nov. 18th 11:00-3:00pm
Special workshop w/ Elizabeth Strong
Friday Nov. 30th
Special Zil workshop with Thea 7:00-9:00pm
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| The Art of Zils: Dancing with Finger Cymbals
a special workshop with Thea- - Friday Nov. 30th 7-9pm |
And yet another great workshop sponsored by Vahana, currently teaching belly dance in Placerville....
Learn to play finger cymbals w/ Thea! 7 -9 p.m. Nov. 30th, Friday. $25 in advance, $30 at the door. Thea is a mster zil player who will move beyond beledi & the basics into more complez rhythms such as 9/8's. For more info contact Vahana at dancingesquire@yahoo.com
Thea performed for four years as a member of the Jewels of the Dance and currently studies under Mesmera. She has also studied with Princess Farhana, Kristen, Kamala, Tempest and others. Known for her strong hip movements, flowing veil work, zills and sword, Thea has pleased many audiences with her natural dancing abilities. She performs often at Moun of Tunis in Hollywood. She has also performed at Dar Maghreb, El Cid Show Restaurant, Gitana, Simon's Cafe, The Sphinx Cafe, The Sensuous Woman, Cairo Carnival, and bellydance conventions as well as many other events and private parties.
With Thea's natural ability at dance coupled with her Master of Arts in Music from Cal State L.A., she is able to break down zill techniques into manageable steps so that you will walk away from her workshop knowing you can perform with confidence at your next event. |
| American Tribal Style Belly Dance |
What exactly is "American Tribal Style" belly dance, anyway?? American Tribal Style belly dance or ATS, has become a recognized genre of dance within the belly dance community in the United States.
Lotus D'Or Studios teacher Cintia began her studies of this unique format in 1995 after exploring the more glittery versions of belly dance in Egyptian-American cabaret style dance for several years.
Manasa is a performance troupe originally created by Cintia & 'Trice Norris who have danced together since 1991. American Tribal Style is a structured, group improvisational method of dance based on the influences of the Romani peoples as they migrated from Northern India over 1000 years ago, as well as other tribal cultures such as the Bedoin and Berber peoples. As the Rom people have moved through countries & cultures, so too have they imparted their own unique style and borrowed from the societies with whom they have interfaced. Thus, American Tribal style belly dance is an amalgamation of these various cultures, spreading from India, Turkey, the Middle East, North Africa & Spain. Carolena Nericcio of San Francisco, the creator of ATS, brought 2 main concepts to her stylized method of belly dance: women dancing together in harmony and the migration & movement of the Romani and tribal cultures. Rather than falling into the "drill team" look that many belly dance troupes sometimes find themselves in with a choreography-based presentation, ATS favors a flowing lead-follow method, simple & powerful movements with clean lines. As "tribal fusion" belly dance becomes a catch phrase for an "anything goes" attitude in the dance community...American Tribal Style is a stand out, adhering to an established premise & format, as originally envisioned by Carolena. The costuming and musical choices reflect the melange of the Rom people and the new freedom musicians have as they cross-polinate with different styles. Qawali singing mixed with Flamenco. Moroccan Reggae, Turkish DJ's, or Bhangra tossed with Gnawa beats...Manasa's vision of ATS meets the challenge presented by todays's world musicians. Our dance speaks the same language as their nomadic melodies...from Flamenco Trip-Hop--one of Manasa's favorites--Ojos de Brujo, to the gritty, street-wise Algerian Rai from Rachid Taha, Manasa is always elegantly costumed in beautiful, colorful, ethnic style fabrics amd jewelry, making perfect sense of the elements they choose to portray from each peice of music they select. Rather than arbitrarily throwing together bits & pieces of unrelated dance vocabularies, ATS is an intelligent, modern, dance that honors it's roots of antiquity by telling the story of our humanity and connection to each other...through rhythm, melody, and the strength of the female spirit.
You may catch a performance of the effervescent Manasa twice weekly at the opulent Kasbah Lounge in downtown Sacramento. They also perform frequently for art galleries, private events, festivals, and conferences. Sarpika is El Dorado County's first ATS troupe to perform at Rakkasah, the largest Middle Eastern Dance Festival in the world. Comprised of Cintia's students from Lotus D'Or, Sarpika has also danced at the 3rd Saturday Artwalk, the El Dorado County Fair, the 3rd annual Herb Faire, local benefits & fundraisers, as well as private events. |
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