On Saturday 11/1 I’m performing at Al Masri Egyptian Restaurant in San Francisco! The show starts and 7PM and there will be live music with the Arabian Passion Band. A couple of my students will also be performing to live music for the first time so I am very excited! Join us for a wonderful night of belly dance at Al Masri!
Free Virtual Belly Dance Classes!
In celebration of National Parks & Recreation Month, the South San Francisco Parks and Rec is offering three of my Intro to Belly Dance classes for free!
Free Virtual Belly Dance Classes from Alisa Greer Belly Dance through the SSF Parks and Rec!
These are live classes via Zoom, and they’re perfect if you are new to belly dance or returning after not dancing for a while. I’m teaching each class as an individual capsule, so you can take one, two or all three.
There is no charge for the classes but you do need to register via the SSF Parks & Rec online catalog. Once there, click on the green ‘Free in July’ tab and then click ‘Belly Dancing- Beginners’ and follow the instructions to register.
Please feel free to contact me with any questions!
Happy Dancing xo
Performance Video - SirensFest
Last week in virtual belly dance class we danced to the song Zay el Assal (زي العسل). It is one of my favorites and coincidentally I was cleaning out a cupboard over the weekend and found a DVD recording of a performance I did using this song in 2016 at the North Bay Belly Dance Bazaar! I thought I would share it here:
I am slowly adding more performance footage to my YouTube channel, please subscribe if you you’d like to see more.
The North Bay Belly Dance Bazaar has been renamed and is now called SirensFest. It is a wonderful, positive event that truly celebrates bellydance! I had such a great time there. The festival is scheduled to go on this year, October 3 -4, 2020, and the organizer, TerriAnne Gutierrez, is planning to build a stage outside, so I feel very hopeful about this and I will keep everyone posted as I learn more.
The song Zay el Assal is one of my favorites. It was originally sung by the Lebanese singer and actress Sabah. She is considered one of the greats. Here is a clip of her singing it complied with some gorgeous photos of her throughout her lifetime. She was a glamorous figure until the end! There are many belly dance versions of this song today.
In other news, I am working on the schedule for my Virtual Summer Belly Dance Classes. Please sign up to be notified of these and future classes as soon as the information is available. Thanks so much for your support and happy dancing.
Autumn 2019 Bay Area Belly Dance Festivals!
This week I wanted to highlight three upcoming Bay Area Belly Dance Festivals for Autumn 2019. I am still so happy and inspired from my memories of Carnival of Stars the weekend before last, and I can’t help looking forward to more ways to immerse myself in belly dance for a day or two! I hope this helps students plan ahead if you’d like to go.
BABDAMA’s Fabulous Fall Belly Dance Festival on Nov. 9, 2019
First up, the 2019 Fabulous Fall Belly Dance Festival put on by the Bay Area Belly Dance and Music Association (BABDAMA). This happens annually in Los Altos and it is always a wonderful afternoon of dance, music and of course belly dance related shopping.
This festival takes place on November 9, 2019 this year. But it’s the closest on to us on the Peninsula so that’s why I am putting it first.
BABDAMA’s Fabulous Fall Belly Dance Festival 2019 in Los Altos
Coastal Belly Fest on Sep 21, 2019
Just a little under 2 months away is Coastal Belly Fest in Santa Cruz on September 21, 2019. I have never been to this one because it always falls on the birthday weekend of one of my children, but I wish I could go!! I have known the dancer who produces it, Setareh, for many years and she is a beautiful dancer, amazing artist and a nice person too and I am sure this will be a great day celebrating belly dance!
Coastal Belly Fest in Santa Cruz on Sep 21, 2019
Sirens Fest Oct 3 -6, 2019 in Sebastopol, CA
Sirens Fest is a bit further away for us to drive to, but I felt it was SO WORTH IT when I went! If there is any way that you can make a day or a weekend of it, you will not regret it. This festival is produced by TerryAnne Guitierez who is am amazing dancer, choreographer and percussionist, and she also really knows how to throw a belly dance party!
It looks like Oct 3rd and 4th are workshops and one of the teachers is Leila Farid, whose Saidi clip we looked at last week. I’ve been lucky enough to take a class with her and she is an amazing, fun teacher, and really kind and down-to-earth despite her star status. My teacher Amina is teaching as well and she is also an incredible instructor with such a wealth of information to share. So I recommend that if you’re interested and can get up there during the week!
SirensFest Belly Dance Festival in Sebastopol, CA October 3 - 6, 2019
I hope that’s helpful for any of my students interested in attending a belly dance festival. I will share information about upcoming live music belly dance events in a future posts, because that is another great way to experience belly dance!
Happy Dancing,
Alisa
Summer 2019 Belly Dance Classes in South San Francisco
Hello Dancers!
Registration is open for my Summer Belly Dance Classes in South San Francisco!
Click here to register online! It’s simple to register using the South San Francisco Parks and Rec online system. If you type “belly” in the “Filter” box at the left-hand side of the page both classes come up. Register today and you’ll be ready to dance your way through the summer :)