Facts and Theories Toward Understanding How I Came to be a Belly Dancer (bell'E-danzz'-R)

As many of you know, I am the founder and owner of Moon Belly Dance Studio. I have been studying belly dance for 11 years and am currently working toward my Level 3 Certification with the Suhaila Salimpour School of Dance. I teach 9+ classes a week at my studio. I have been teaching for more than 5 years now. I am also the founder of The DragonFlies Belly Dance Company, which started nearly 4 years ago. The DragonFlies practice approximately 3-5 hours per week and perform large pieces 2-3 times per year. I also perform solo for various events such as artistic venues, birthday parties and charitable benefits. Overall, between marketing, rehearsing, teaching and performing I spend an average of 30 hours per week immersed in some aspect of belly dance. I am continuously amazed by this reality. I often laugh out loud when I reflect on my life and chosen career. I cannot believe I am a 31-year old mother of two and a professional belly dancer.
How the hell did this glorious happenstance come about?

The Infamous Butt Shake
There's the undeniable physical reality of the evidence: you shake your butt in belly dance. I have always loved to shake my butt. My little sister and I used to stand for very long periods of time after our baths, naked, in front of the mirror, shaking our butt cheeks as fast as possible. We would shimmy and shake like dogs shaking water from our fur until our butt cheeks tingled and turned red. This was my first belly dance experience for sure...and I didn't even know it.

Early Dance Experience
Besides shaking my butt often, I exhibited other various dance talents as a child. Our neighborhood friends, the Starks, were a huge influence. The Starks consisted of Jill (mom), Gary (dad) and Afton (daughter). Jill was in love with Patrick Swayze and introduced me to the classic film, Dirty Dancing. Having the only VCR on the street we would flock to their living room for movies as often as possible. Oh! How I loved Baby! Being short and petite with brown curly hair and a Jewish heritage--I deamed of being her. I memorized her lines and learned her dance moves. Gary, being a musician and artist, would often have us perform dance contests, inspired by Star Search and the repitious viewing of Dirty Dancing, while he played the piano and judged. Of course, we would all win equally, but I knew deep down in my gut, I had the best coordination and was by far the most talented dancer on the block.

Of course, I also took ballet lessons. I will never forget those glorious Saturday mornings in leotard and tights with Miss Grace. I loved stretching and the barre work the most. Oooh, and the music! My teacher told my mother that I was gifted. Sadly, my mother couldn't afford lessons after only a few years. My resentment about this was later channelled into the practice of belly dance. The anger transformed itself into an intense devotion and eager desire to train to make up of for years lost.

Love of Beautiful, Pretty Things
Many of us are drawn to belly dance, especially children, by the irresistable and charming costumes. A belly dancer in full costume is so beautiful to look at! As early as age 8, I used to ride my bike up to the local antique shop that sat on our town square. I would spend hours toiling around the basement--in the antique clothing section. I ran my fingers along the intricate bead work of the Victorian blouses and held the laces up to my eyes to admire each curling strand of thread. My favorite was the hats. Over a period of four years, I managed to buy, with saved birthday money and discovered coins, more than 25 hats that I proceeded to hang on the walls of my bedroom. It is no surprise I was drawn to the detailed, delicate costumes of this art form.

Obsession with the Vietnam War
To be continued....