2021 Wrap UP & Jan 2022 Belly Dance Classes

I hope that everyone is doing well this holiday season. As this year draws to a close, I’m bursting with pride over recent student performances in both my Belmont and my South San Francisco classes.

South San Francisco Class Performances

My South San Francisco Parks & Rec Intermediate/Advanced class recorded an elegant veil piece in lieu of an in-person show. Their dedication and hard work resulted in a really beautiful number and I was so thrilled to watch it as I recorded it!!

South San Francisco Parks & Rec Students Performing a veil dance, November 2021.

In addition to this wonderful ensemble performance, we were treated to a solo by one of our students. She chose the classic song Leylet Hob and did a beautiful interpretation which we all enjoyed.

Belmont Class Performances

In my Belmont classes, we were thrilled to be part of the Adult Student Showcase at Better Together Dance Theatre! This was a wonderful night for adult dance students to come together and share what they’d been working on, and it was such a supportive environment to perform in!

The Beginning class performed to a classic song and the Intermediate+ class did a fun pop song. Everyone worked so hard to bring these numbers together, and I loved seeing students help each other with movement and spacing as we got ready for showtime.

Post-performance euphoria at Better Together Dance Theatre in Belmont at the Adult Dance Showcase!

Looking forward to 2022

I’m so grateful that we were able to dance together this year, and to end the year on such a high note with these wonderful performances.

I’m already excited for next year. If you’d like to join a belly dance class January 2022 in either South San Francisco or Belmont, please see my classes page for all the details. Registration is open now. You can also contact me with any questions!

New Class Announcement

I have some exciting news this week! A new class:

The response to our new Belly Dance Basics class at Better Together Dance Theatre in Belmont has been so positive that we’re able to add an additional class. Dancers who have some beginning steps under their coin belts are welcome to join us for Intermediate Belly Dance!

This class can accommodate a wide range of experience levels, so please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about joining. We’d love to have you.

We’ll start November 1st!

The Belly Dance Basics class is ongoing and you can join that one anytime. We meet Thursdays 6-7PM.

I hope to see you in class :).

New Dance With Me Video!

Hello Dancers!

I’m excited to add a new video to my Dance With Me series. This is a choreographed routine that uses some of our basic movements that we’ve been learning in the beginning classes. I hope you enjoy dancing to it if you get a few free minutes :)

Please let me know in the comments if you find these helpful, or if there is anything you’d like to see in a future video.

Happy Dancing!

The Art of Belly Dance Improvisation

I’m honored to guest blog today over at the site of Vancouver’s lovely Ashley Rhianne. Ashley asked me to write about a subject so dear to my heart: belly dance improvisation. Click over to read why improvisation is important and relevant to dancers, and to pick up a few tips to get you started if you haven’t been taught to dance this way.

Read the post here and let us know what you think!

Improvisation is something I teach in all my classes, from beginning through professional levels. I also offer private coaching in person and via Zoom to dancers who may be experienced with choreography but aren’t sure where to start with improv. Contact me to learn more or set up a time to meet.

Virtual Belly Dance Show!

Hello Dancers,

I’ve got some exciting performance news today. I’m thrilled to be part of virtual belly dance show premiering this weekend that celebrates the belly dance scene as it developed in the United States. This style is referred to today as ‘American Cabaret’ or AmCab for short, hence the name if the show, It’s AmCab Baby!

Both my mother and my aunt were professional belly dancers in the Bay Area during this period, and so I grew up loving it and am absolutely thrilled to be part of the show.

My mom, who danced under the name Yamah.

My aunt, who danced under the name Bahiga

For the virtual show I chose a costume skirt that was made for me in the 1990s by Anna of Universal Imports, the shop where my mom bought many of her costuming supplies in the 1970s! I loved going there when I was little.

There are many gorgeous dancers in the show to celebrate this era, including Julia, the dancer featured on the cover of this classic album by John Bilezikjian. They are both legends of American belly dance and Julia will be dancing to the late John’s music for her from this album in her performance.

If you’d like to join us for the show, tickets are $10 and can be purchased on Eventbrite. You can chose to watch the premiere on Zoom, or you have a week to watch on YouTube.