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Sydney Latin Dance Festival

Phoenix Belly Dance

Suraya

Wow! Wow! Wow! The 9 dancers arrived in Sydney on Thursday night. We arrived late, tired yet excited. After a day of shopping, sight-seeing and workshops we got dressed up to go and watch the opening show of the Sydney Latin Dance Festival. WOW! International dancers, champion dancers and students made up an exciting and exhilarating show. Dancers were twisted, pulled and thrown into wondeful poses and moves. Seeing the other performers and their standards of course made me excited (to be part of such a show) and ever so slightly nervous (what if I mess up!) but ultimately I couldn't wait to get up there and show them what we have.

Saturday was spent preparing, rehearsing and more preparing. When getting ready for a full show such as this one it is even more important to ensure that your har and makeup is absolutely perfect and prepared for the bleaching lights, hot temperatures and over enthusiastic movements! So much time was spent preparing and ensuring that I was ready for it.

The tech/dress rehearsal was at 4.30pm and all went well. Unfortunately we didn't have much time for touchups before we were back on stage opening the show for the fantastic performers that were to follow. This was due to a rather unfortunate eating issue that I shall not go into here ;) This left little time for mental preparation for going onto the stage. There are pros and cons for this. Pros being no time to get nervous cons being no time to get your head into the right space to feel you can perfom your best. However, luckily, all was fine and we got out there and really showed themwhat we've got!

And what we've got consists of a stunning array of silk, latin fusions, smooth moves and hair flicking! Want to see it? Check out Nina Gastreich's page where you will find photographs of the event.

https://www.facebook.com/#!/NinaGastreichPhotography/photos_albums

However, here is another stunning photo to get you interested...

So our preparations are fully underway for Sydney. Next week we perform at the Olympic Stadium at the Latin dance festival! It's truly an honour to be performing at this event and I am very excited to be part of it.

However, in order to look truly fabulous whilst there we are rehearsing intensively (especially the new props), checking our costumes and making those little alterations and improvements that seem to ALWAYS need to be made, as well as making all of those important decisions in regards to our stay in Sydney. I am always surprised at how much needs organising and preparing in order to make these events.....even more so with ten people!

The exciting bit is not only performing at the festival and attending what I expect to be wonderful workshops but having the whole dance troupe all together in one house! It's going to be intense, incredible and tiring no doubt! This will truly be a new experience for me. Communal living is something I haven't done since I was at University, and that was only with three others....not 9! Let's hope those ladies don't spend too long in the shower ;)

If you would like to check out the details of this event you may access them here: http://www.sydneysalsacongress.com.au/

Wish us luck! Pictures to follow .......

Locking, popping, shimmying, veiling, no matter what we were working on, Belladonna held nothing back. A wonderfully enthusiastic and giving teacher. Throughout all of the workshops she gave us all that she had....even if it wasn't fully completed yet! These kinds of teachers and instructors are hard to find and it was a privilege to discover this wealthy teacher. Her wealth of knowledge and enthusiasm was inspiring. 

She is currently available for individual lessons as she is in Auckland for another week or so before flying back to Australia. 

I attended two workshops over this weekend: Shimmy drills and sword/triple veil. My hope for these workshops was to pick up new tricks and ideas....I certainly got that! Throughout the first workshop she moved constantly through different ideas to layer up those shimmies that we all love. She also gave us ideas of interesting travelling moves. 

The second workshop, which was my favourite, was the one I was initially sceptical about. I couldn't understand how you could turn and move holding three veils, or why you would want to. But whilst being in the workshop it became clear very quickly that the idea was not to be holding those three veils but to be tucking them and placing them beautifully and carefully for easy access throughout a performance. At carefully chosen moments you can reach for those veils and dance with them like an extension of your skirt. I love this idea and fully intend to work on this for a new choreography. 

I would recommend anyone to try Belladonna workshops if there are any near you. You are guaranteed to walk away with a new idea or concept that you will be desperate to master and use straight away!

Nubian dance is a dance style I haven't danced before. Because of this, I loved it! I am always seeking new opportunities to expand my experiences and this was fabulous. I loved the looseness, the fun element and the shoulder bounce. It all felt so earthy and natural. We were taught a simple Reda choreography by the lovely Dallia. In this dance were many repetitions, which meant really listening to the music to find the cues in the music that reminded me of what came next.

She also showed us the costumes for this dance form and it struck me how similar it was to other dance forms. It's fascinating how the costume elements may carry across many different dance styles.

Overall though it was a fantastic workshop ad=nd I can't wait for the next folkloric workshop with Dallia! Check out her website: http://www.oasisfordance.com/ to keep up to date with upcoming events.

Coca Cola Xmas in the Park!

A musical, magical extravaganza based right here in Auckland. Tonight Phoenix belly dance performed with the fantastic RIA who beautifully performed the song 'When Love Takes Over'. Throughtout the song we danced with fan veils designed to show her off (whilst looking fabulous ourselves!). 

The lights were dazzling, the music pumping and the atmosphere electric. There really is no better feeling than performing on a huge stage to thousands of people. Even better when it is televised!

Click here for a youtube link to our performance on TV.

Tonight was the wonderful Phoenix Belly dance Student Show. You absolutely MUST visit Nina Gastreich's facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/NinaGastreichPhotography?ref=ts&fref=ts and find Phoenix Belly Dance Showcase. Here you will find photographs from the show. The show was performed by dancers of all levels and experience.

See below for a sneak peek of Lynette and I performing a cheeky belly dance.