A R T I C L E S
Belly dance Idol Feature 2009"Lena Astrid of Denmark winner of Belly dance Idol - Professional Category. Lena Astrid has studied and performed oriental dance for more than 20 years, with prior training in classical and modern ballet. Lena has performed professionally and taught for over 14 years..."
Tribal Idol Feature 2009"Isidora Bushkovski of Pueblo, Colorado, USA winner of Tribal Idol - Professional Category.Isidora Bushkovski has been a dancer all her life and fell in love with belly dance in 1992. Her degrees through the University of Minnesota are in History and Dance, and she has studied..."
Performing Rights Laws"First, unless a music composition is in public domain, it is considered protected by copyright. A musician/composer copyrights the score/composition he or she creates and can give permission to another person to use his or her score or lyrics for..."
A Homemade Promotional Picture"Lighting makes all the difference in the world! Your local cable access station is a great resource. They should have some type of lighting equipment and I suggest utilizing it. If that's not possible - go for the best diffused and even lighting you can get. Your best bet is to shoot..."
A Professional - Primer"That may seem overwhelming but one does not take a year of once a week classes and then join the Bolshoi Ballet Company or a Broadway show. It takes years of dedicated application to become a professional. If developing said traits doesn't particularly speak to you..."
A Professional - Dance"Unexpected incidents will occur in your performance; the CD skips, you lose part of your costume, the sword falls off your head... I recall such an incident in the performance of a well known dancer. Her skirt was long and full, she was gracefully stepping backward (accidentally on her skirt) slipped and fell..."
A Professional - Music"When two entities create simultaneously and together the magic is palpable. As my teacher said - live music breathes its own life into a dance. As a professional it is a skill you should posses and as an artist one that you will treasure. I was fortunate enough to grow up with musicians in my family..."
A Professional - Culture"Learning about the culture relating to Oriental and other folk dances from the Near and Middle East is nothing less than a life long pursuit. A definite obstacle in this journey is misinformation. Fiction abounds sold as hard facts. Consider the source before accepting something as a truth..."
A Professional - Style/Terminology"the mystical poet Mevlana Jalal-al-Din Rumi, commonly known as Rumi, founded the Order of the Whirling Dervishes in the 13th century Ottoman Empire. The order is a branch of the Sufi tradition of Islam. The ritual whirling is done to empty the dervish dancer..."
A Professional - Style/History"The dancers (those on stage and in the audience) were also of varying ethnicities; Armenians, Lebanese, Turks, Egyptians, Persians, each with the distinct dance styling of their respective countries. At that time there were no Belly dance schools, the early non Middle Eastern dancers..."
A Belly dancer's cover letter"A promotional package is comprised of articles that, essentially, demonstrate the desirability of an artist to clients. The cover letter is one of many such articles. If you have yet to prepare a promotional package, you may have questions that I hope to address in this series of articles..."
Dancing Abroad - The Players"the client is the entity that has a venue and need. The client procures an agent. The agent has a roster of acts, some of whom fit the specifications of the client. The agent offers the client those acts for consideration. The client chooses the dancer that interests him..."
Dancing Abroad - The Dangers"Consummation contracts are common and prevalent in nightclubs and lower star hotels. A woman performs several short dance routines throughout the night. During the lengthy intervals of her 'show' she sits with the guests and encourages them to buy her cocktails. For every cocktail a guest buys..."
Dancing Abroad - The Bare Minimum"The client pays for all necessary domestic travel in the country of destination. This includes but is not exclusive to; transport from the airport to accommodation upon arrival and departure. Transport to your place of performance and back to accommodation. All round trip long distance domestic..."