The dancer, the student:

AL: Tell us a little bit about your beginnings as a dancer.

A: My mom introduced me to belly dancing (1988). She was taking a class and just loved it and tried to get me to join. I was already very busy with classes and rehearsals for the dance company I was with. We were performing jazz, tap, musical theatre, etc. She brought me to see her teacher, (Tasha, who later became my teacher) perform at a Greek night. I didn't know what to expect, this was like nothing I had ever experienced. Tasha performed with a Greek band and I was mesmerized. I could see that there was technique, improvisation, planning and intuition that went into her performance. All of these things appealed to me. I think the fact that she made her living doing what she was passionate about helped me to realize it was possible for me too. This experience was the beginning of me shedding conventional thinking about how life was "supposed to go".

AL: You have been trained in various dance disciplines and still do it to this day, what drives you to keep exploring in other dance and art forms in general?

A: Lack of focus…? I don't know. There is so much I don't know. The world is a big place and if dance and music can be my travel guide, I guess I continue on this really exciting journey! Oriental dance was the thing that opened up the possibility of exploring other dance forms. Creativity in general is a driving force for me, so really all art forms inspire me in some way.

AL: On the same note, how have other dance forms enriched your Oriental Dance?

A: Cross training in different forms of dance can only keep you moving forward. Really each form feeds off of the other. Specifically, ballet has helped me with balance, turning, posture and form. Jazz provided me with foot patterns, agility, dynamics, and stylization. Tap helped me with timing, syncopation, foot patterns and layering rhythmic ideas. Yoga developed balance, flexibility and breathing for me. Somehow dancers forget to breathe until after the show is over! I'm definitely guilty of that! Afro-Caribbean dance has helped me find an inner pulse and fluidity in movement. Going beyond movement, the more I search for the differences in things, the more I find similarities. Dance is a valuable conduit for understanding cultures, understanding people and inevitably learning more about myself. Those lessons learned and the emotions that go along with the process of learning eventually get conveyed in my dance, Oriental or otherwise.

AL: In your opinion, what are things to avoid when fusing?

A: Dig deep into the individual elements you are fusing. Be careful not call everything that is fused "Tribal". Overall, avoid labels and jamming things into categories. Labels are limiting.

AL: How do you see the future of fusion in Oriental dance?

A: I think creativity and exploration are essential for an art form to grow and evolve. I think it's very important to immerse yourself in all aspects of Oriental dance if that is what you intend to fuse. It is critical to have an understanding of local, national and international aspects of the dance both in contemporary and historical terms. This dance covers a great deal of geography and an even broader span of time. As long as we keep learning and digging deeper, the fusion will be rich and have significant meaning.

AL: Speaking about innovations, how was it discovering Suhaila Salimpour?

A: Well, like most dancers who don't live in California, I first saw Suhaila on a video. Her dance really grabbed me. She had an amazing command of her body and her choreography was as complex as the music. She put together sequences, as a musician would, it was very compelling. I got her Stretch & Tone video that was a dance warm up similar to those that I experienced in other dance forms. It addressed preparing your body for movement through awareness, flexibility, strength and building stamina.
Nagwa Said brought Suhaila to Philadelphia for a workshop. This was my first exposure to her format in action. I felt like I got to take a small peek at a box full of tools that I had never seen before. And man, did I want to know how to use those tools! I was so upset that we lived on two different coasts.
My prayers were answered in 2000 when Suhaila opened her own studio and officially began her format certification program. I knew that being a part of the certification program would give me the "inside look" at Suhaila's format that I wanted. The format is limitless in possibilities and I continue to learn every day.

AL: How was the experience of performing at Princeton University's Frist Theatre where the audience was not necessarily dancers?

A: The whole feeling of dancing within the dance community is awesome. The vibe of "you go girl!" makes me really happy. I mean you just can't beat having the whole room on your side. Although; it's always good to step out beyond the safety of the dance community.
My student group at Princeton University, Raks Odalisque, puts together an annual spring dance concert.
We perform a four show run at Frist Theatre at the university and the audience is very diverse. Of course there are all the on campus friends, a good representation from our dance community from off campus and a large contingency of non-belly dance folks. I have to say that the shows have been well received. We get some really great feed back from the audience members who are not involved in dance. The unsettling thing is when you know members of the university dance & theatre department and American Repertory Company are in the audience. Oy! They've had nice things to say about the shows and continue to buy tickets; I guess that means they like us?
My group, Groove Merchant Drum & Dance Ensemble performs primarily at events open to the general public. We always wonder how the crowd is going to react to our show, and we've been fortunate that so far, they like us! We have a lot of fun doing what we do and I think the audience appreciates that.

AL: You have a great list of people who have both ‘influenced and inspired' you. Tell us a little bit about SaZ Theater.

A: SaZ Dance Theatre is, I believe, an unsung hero of oriental dance and dance theatre. The company is co-directed by Roberta Koch and Azsmara. I had the honor to work with these amazingly talented ladies. The synergy of their ideas and experience created some of the most thought-provoking and creative dance vignettes I have ever seen. They assembled a cast of dancers who all had experience in more than one dance form and/or art form. The cast included: Aszmara, Roberta Koch, Sabah Nissan, Andrea Beeman, Vikki Webberly, Roberta Jones and Shauna Grey. The subject matter initially (to me) seemed to be about the range of life experiences that women in the Middle East live and endure. But after seeing the breadth of their works and works in progress it was clear to me that the themes were universal to all women.
I was with SaZ Dance Theatre from approximately 1994 – 1999; I felt then and feel even more so now that this was an amazing opportunity and I will forever be grateful for it. In age and experience I was the youngest member in the group. I was completely awestruck by the collective life and creative experience of the other members of the company, and at the same time I was thrilled to be learning all that I could from them. In my own creative process I was too young to get some of the lessons, and I'm slightly embarrassed now about some of my perceptions and ideals then, but that is where I was then. Today the lesson keep coming, and again I am grateful.

AL: As an artist, what have you learned in your travels?

A: I went to Turkey to study with everyone I could. I was trying to figure out how much Turkish dance had changed with Western stylization. I studied with a woman who had her doctorate in dance as well as with a Turkish dance club icon who learned just by "doing". I was really happy to see that in the movement and emotion of these Turkish women I could see strong similarities with other dancers I admire: Anahid Sofian, Dalia Carella, Artemis Mourat and Eva Cernik. My question was answered!

AL: Sometimes artists and people in general can get worn-out, even when pursuing their passion. How do you combat this?

A: You said it, combat! I struggle with this every day. I actually need to schedule in more down time so I can just chill. Also, cross training is key. When I have breaks from teaching I make sure I switch up my physical routines. I may not dance at all, but will do yoga, swim or even just meditate. Athletes do this sort of thing in the off-season and then come back fresh and ready to work hard at their chosen sport. I figure if it works for athletes it must have the same value for dancers. Now I need to figure out how to negotiate a "big league" salary for myself!

The teacher:

AL: Was it difficult at the beginning to teach our dance form in such a prestigious institution such as Princeton University?

A: Actually, I had no idea if people would sign up for classes. To my surprise we had to turn people away. I started with one class in the fall of 1998. I now run 4 classes weekly. Raks Odalisque formed as a student organization out of my classes and I spend a considerable amount of time with them weekly working on technique and choreography. The one thing I impress upon my students in the troupe is that belly dance already gets a bad rap. So it's up to us to do everything as professionally as possible to dispel the negative images and impressions that people may have about this dance. They are students and are still learning so we stumble occasionally and hopefully learn something useful as a result.

AL: And how are the Princeton students different from the students in your regular classes?

A: As a student organization the troupe has access to studios for rehearsals and practice and professional theatre facilities. Even though they have heavy academic loads, they manage to make time a few times a week to get to dance class, practices and rehearsals. The more times a week you dance, the better your dance is going to be. These students are very fortunate to have this available to them. Because this has been their only belly dance experience, I don't think they know how lucky they are.
Now that I have my own school, dancing multiple times a week is available to all of my students.

AL: You are a very active artist with lots of projects, how do you prioritize and divide your time within your various ventures in order to reach your goals?

A: I have lots of ideas and things I want to accomplish. Time is the challenge. Basically, I just write my ideas down and eventually pick something to work on. I try to make sure the work of one project doesn't overlap too much with another. I don't know that I feel completely successful managing it all. I can't imaging that the challenge will ever really go away.

AL: What is your main concern as an educator (dance and music as well)?

A: To make sure each student has their own voice and taps into their own creativity.

AL: In your opinion, what do you think is needed for serious dance students to achieve success in their dancing?

A: Leave ego and other issue outside the studio door.
Understand your body on a muscular level.
Understand that training for dance should prepare you for any "style" you wish to dance.
Set goals and work toward them, step by step.
Always train outside of your comfort zone.
I love this quote….
"Growth demands a temporary surrender of security." – Gail Sheehy (Passages)
Be prepared to surrender often!