December Events in North Carolina

December is the time when classes begin to wind down and teachers take a much-needed break.

It’s also the time when holiday and winter-themed bellydance events begin to light up the cold December nights!

The best way to keep warm this month is to shimmy over to these festive bellydance events all around the state

(visit NCBellydance.org for more information on each of these events below)

Saturday, December 5: Haala and her students perform at the Ole Time Winter Festival in downtown Cary. This annual event features home-made crafts, refreshments, and performances all day, culminating in a tree lighting ceremony in the evening.

Saturday, December 5: Colorful Waves sponsor the Evening Oasis Holiday Hafla in Durham. The evening will feature holiday-themed performances, tasty refreshments, and an optional gift exchange!

Saturday, December 5: Daliana and Troupe Bellysima (pictured at the top of the page) present True Bodies, Truly Beautiful in Greensboro. Dazzling performances by women of all ages, shapes and colors weaving their diversity into a beautiful tapestry of music and movement.

Friday, December 11 - Saturday, December 12: Sharifa Asmar and Qarisma Dance perform at the World Holiday Festival in Fayetteville, which will feature performances from all over the world, foods from different countries, and cultural items will be available for purchase.

Saturday, December 12: Haala and John Price of Halo Bellydance present a Holiday Student Hafla for all the area students and teachers in Cary. This annual family-friendly afternoon event gives local students a supportive environment to perform for each other and celebrate the season together.

Sunday, December 13: Blue Fusion Tribal presents a Holiday Vending Open House in Durham, with year-end sales and specials you don’t want to miss!

The rest of the month, North Carolina bellydancers will be performing at various holiday parties, New Year’s Eve events and other occasions.

Are you planning an event this month? Consider adding the joy of bellydance to brighten any occasion!

No matter what holiday you are planning on celebrating this month, we at NCBellydance.org would like to wish you peace, love and joy!

Haala of Halo Bellydance and NCBellydance.org performing at last year's Holiday Student Hafla in Cary.

Photo Credit Megan Freeman

2009 NC Halloween Bellydance Events

Sashi and Nandana from Blue Moon Dance Company at Haflaween 2008
(Photo Credit: Megan Freeman)

Judging by the number of Halloween-themed bellydance events that have cropped up in recent years, you could almost say that Halloween is the unofficial National Bellydancer's Holiday!

It's not hard to see why -- we love to dress up, to become a different personality for a night, to try something new and different, and of course to eat sweet treats! Halloween gives dancers a chance to channel a different part of our personalities as well -- to become more spooky, more silly, or just more extreme.

No matter where you are in North Carolina, there's a Halloween bellydance event nearby:

Saturday, October 24 - the Concord Area Bellydance Meetup will be hosting Haflaween at Diversity Den Cafe, 16- Concord Commons, Suite D1, in Concord.

Saturday, October 24 - The Gypsy Sun in Surf City will be the location for Haunted Haflaween.

Saturday, October 24 - Blue Moon Dance Company presents their popular Haflaween at Extraordinary Ventures, 200 South Elliott Rd., Chapel Hill. (This event is already sold out).

Friday, October 30 - Colorful Waves Dance Troupe presents Monster Mash - a Halloween dance party and costume contest at Triangle dance studio, 2603 S. Miami Blvd. Durham (near RTP).

Saturday, October 31 - Rising Sun Tribe presents the Darkside of the Sun Hafla, Mountain View Rec. Center, 645 First St., in Morganton.

Saturday, October 31 - Bellydancers Night Out: All-Hallows Eve, Fig Cafe and Hookah Lounge, 253 Westwood Shopping Center, Fayetteville.

Sunday, November 1 - The Happy Hips childrens dance troupe will be hosting a Halloween Hafla at Barriskill Dance in Durham. I have included their ad below because I just love the image of the pumpkin with a hipscarf!



To get more information about all of these events (as well as other non-Halloween events this month), visit http://www.ncbellydance.org/upcoming.html

Please post in the comments and let me know where YOU are planning to spend your Halloween this year!

2009 NCBellydance.org Sponsors

I spend a fair bit of time working on the site each week, usually while paying to have the kids in preschool or daycare, and so I really appreciate your continued support to help keep it going! It’s really turning into its own little job at this point :)

So I’d like to take a moment to recognize everyone that has contributed to the site so far this calendar year. I just updated the NCBellydance.org sponsors page accordingly.

If you are a performer or instructor listed on the website and you are NOT listed on the 2009 Sponsors list below, please kindly consider making a donation for this calendar year to help me keep helping you. I will be sending out individual emails to you all later this week.

Ok – here they are – let’s give them all a big zaghareet!!!!

2009 Financial Sponsors of NCBellydance.org

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Almas (Diamond Level): $500 or more

The Carolina Theater (Durham)


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Yaqut (Ruby Level): $300-$499




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Zumurrud (Emerald Level): $150-$299

Sharifa Asmar (Rockingham/Sandhills/Fayetteville)
Blue Fusion Tribal (Cary)
Baraka Mundi (Asheville)


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Amber Level: $75-$149

Amara Al Amir (Raleigh)
Blue Moon Dance Company (Cary)
Gypsy (Winston-Salem)
SamiTe' (Asheville)


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Fayruz (Turquoise Level): $1-$74

Andalee (Durham)
Asali (Charlotte)
Sara Beaman of The Devoted and Blue Moon Dance Company (Chapel Hill)
Aziza Fadwa (Roxboro/Cary/Chapel Hill)
Galia Goodman (Durham)
Nahla Hamad (Greenville)
Deirdre Hilal (Carrboro)
Mahsati Janan (Asheville)
Khahari Dance Collective (Triangle Area)
Khalida (Lillington)
Mara of The Moorish Gypsy Tribe (Cary)
Asyia Mas'ouda (Raleigh)
Nandana of The Devoted and Blue Moon Dance Company (Apex)
Anush Pele (Raleigh)
Raq Mundi (Wilson)
Samra (Mt. Airy)
Shahzaadee of Colorful Waves Dance Troupe (Durham)
Shaiya of Happy Hips Dance Troupe (Cary)
Lindsey Taylor (Charleston SC)
Torque (Greensboro)


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2009 "In Kind" Donations to NCBellydance.org

Ahzsmaralda (Fayetteville)
Baraka Mundi (Asheville)
Sara Beaman of The Devoted and Blue Moon Dance Company (Triangle Area)
Audra Evans (Raleigh)
Khalida (Lillington)
Megan Freeman (Raleigh)
Galia Goodman (Durham)
Mara of The Moorish Gypsy Tribe (Cary)
Nandana of The Devoted and Blue Moon Dance Company (Apex)
John Price (Cary)
Sashi of Blue Moon Dance Company (Cary)
Shahzaadee of Colorful Waves Dance Troupe (Durham)
Hannan Sultan (Durham)
Andy Von (Raleigh)
Yasmine of Magic Hips (Charlotte)



Thank you and a big zaghareet to everyone that has made a donation so far this year! If you would like to join this illustrious list, then just click on the “donate now” buttons on the main page or sponsors page, or message me for the address to send a check. I will also be at the ACCMED meeting on Friday if you want to make your donation in person.


Regards,

Haala

http://www.ncbellydance.org

September 2009 NC Workshops & Shows

Workshop Pick of the Month:

Kalima Tribal is presenting a very exciting Tribal Sampler in Salisbury on September 12, featuring a host of familiar names from the state: Studio 318, Torque, Midnight Magnolias, and Abu Zouz. The all day workshops will feature Tribal Improv, costuming, fire, makeup and hair, swords, burlesque, poi, zills, hoops, dark fusion, zills, and how to dance to live drumming. What more could a tribal style dancer ask for?! That evening will feature Tribal Frolic, an entertaining show featuring the instructors and local performers.



Torque (one of the many performers at Tribal Frolic)

Other workshops this month:

The sold out Ava Fleming professionals intensive weekend takes place in Asheville the weekend of September 11-13.

Anush Pele’s Ancient Healing Power of Belly Dance Workshop in Raleigh, Saturday September 12

John Price presents an Arabic Drumming workshop in Durham on Saturday, Sep 26.

Aziza Fadwa returns for her popular Saturday workshops in Durham on Saturday, September 26.

To see more details on all the workshops going on this month, visit http://www.ncbellydance.org/workshop.html

Event Pick of the Month:

The Matthews Alive Festival will take place on Saturday September 5 and Sunday September 6, and will feature performances by Moonsister, Secondhand Gypsy, and members of Magic Hips and Beledi Beat!


Secondhand Gypsy

Other events this month:

Damhsa Gasra present a dancing and drum circle in Salisbury on Friday, September 4.

Asali presents An Evening in the Orient 3 in Dallas on Saturday, September 26

To see details on all the events going on this month, visit
http://www.ncbellydance.org/upcoming.html#special

Back to Bellydance School

(Zhaleh Fereshteh teaching a workshop in Raleigh NC in 2008)

There’s a different feeling in the air this month – the lazy days of summer are drawing to a close, and the pace of life is quickening as students prepare to go back to school.

Why not take advantage of this momentum and go back to bellydance school by trying something new – attending a workshop, getting back into classes if you’ve stopped studying, or trying a new teacher to get a different perspective.

Most successful dancers still consider themselves to be ‘eternal students’, and they are committed to bettering their technique and knowledge of the dance, as well as getting inspired to new heights of creativity.

I recently put out a call to the NCBellydance.org community about this topic, and this is what Anna Maria Sophia from the Coastal area of NC had to say:

I'm a terminal student of belly dance, so for me continuing education is essential. I'm not a professional, I perform for the love and thrill of the dance, and I will not be entering the realm of instructing, so ongoing classes and workshops are my passion and a necessity for me.

Shahzaadee of Durham also places an importance on continuing education:

I feel no one could ever learn all there is to know about bellydance. There are so many styles and then on top of that, within different Countries, there are different stylizings, you could never get bored with bellydance education.

Sure a professional may go to a workshop and feel like ‘I know this move and that cultural tidbit’ but also, most likely, leave with at least one new (or renewed) move, combo, idea. It is wonderfully refreshing to go back to bellydance school.

Kalima of Salisbury explains the difficulty of balancing teaching and personal growth:

I think that ongoing training is very important as a teacher and a dancer... I started teaching within the last year and find that preparing for and teaching my own classes leaves me little time for attending regular weekly classes. But if I stop learning I stop being a good teacher. As a result I try to find at least one workshop a month so I am always bringing new things to my students, or improving on old things.

Luckily, there are a large number of workshops and classes taking place all over North Carolina this Fall, so teachers, professional performers, and regular students will all have plenty of opportunities to learn something new!

Your own ncbellydance.org webmistress will be taking Karim “Turbo Tabla” Nagi’s dance and drum workshops in Charlotte (sponsored by Yasmine), and Mohamed Shahin’s dance workshop in Durham (sponsored by Hannan Sultan). I can’t wait to learn Egyptian dancing directly from the source!

Meanwhile, Kalima looks forward to Triboriginal in Asheville every year:

Because lodging and food are provided there on site you can be totally immersed in the dance round the clock without worrying about finding food, or getting back to the hotel... And besides actual dance classes there are business classes, costuming classes, music classes, and hard to get classes such as fire performance. I often wish there were two of me so I could attend more classes while I’m there. I’ve been every year since the first and hope I don’t ever have to miss.

If you're looking for inspiration to continue your dance education, just visit NCBellydance.org's workshops calendar or view class schedules for your area.

Enjoy the last few weeks of your summer – it’s time to go back to school!

NCBellydance.org August 2009 Newsletter

Hello everyone,

I thought it might be helpful to do a monthly newsletter highlighting the best upcoming workshops and events in North Carolina, as well as filling you in on any site developments. Let me know what you think!

August 2009 Workshop Highlights

There are twelve workshops taking place all over the state of North Carolina this month! Topics include moves and combos, drum solos, introductions to bellydance, props like sword and veil, and even learning how to play Middle Eastern percussion. There is definitely something for everyone!

There are two workshops I'd like to spotlight this month:

The first is a Veil Creation Workshop with Beth and Vicky in Concord on Saturday, August 22. It's not often that we get a chance to learn how to make these beautiful props!

And also on Saturday, August 22 in Asheville, Baraka Mundi presents Rakadu Gypsy from Lexington Kentucky for a weekend of workshops for every style of dancer and musician.



You can find out more information about all the upcoming August 2009 NC workshops here:
http://www.ncbellydance.org/workshop.html


August 2009 Events Highlights

August brings several area showcases, haflas, an open-mic event and other happenings all over the state.

The spotlight for this month focuses on one busy weekend, August 21-23:

Moonlight Diva Emporium will be vending in Fayetteville, The Association of Central Carolina Middle Eastern Dancers (ACCMED) will present Carolina Casbah in the Triangle area, and the coastal bellydancers will be having a fun Beach Belly Bash in Topsail Beach.

You can see a list of all the upcoming August 2009 events in NC here:
http://ncbellydance.org/upcoming.html#special


August 2009 NCBellydance.org News & Notes

Today we implemented the first part in our year-long project to upgrade and improve the website.

This was a "behind the scenes" re-organization and cleanup of the code, so the site should not look outwardly different when you visit it (But please contact me if you notice any broken links or other bugs).

We have a small team of dedicated volunteers currently working on creating some pleasing new templates and photos to improve the look of the site, as well as some significant code changes to improve the functionality. This will roll out gradually over the rest of the year.

In the meantime, I'll continue to update content each week, so send in your class schedules, calendar listings, and bio updates to haala@ncbellydance.org!

Teachers - remember that the Back to School fever applies to your classes too, so take a moment to review your instructor profile and class schedule listings to make sure they are up to date. Also consider taking out an ad in the Class Schedules page to really make yourself stand out from the crowd!

You can see an example here:
http://www.ncbellydance.org/class.html#class_tri

Triangle Area students - if you visit the link above, you will see a new ad for the Triangle Bellydance Scholarship fund! Click on the ad to apply for a need-based scholarship.

That's all for this month!

Thanks for your support of the site -- tell the NC teachers, performers and advertisers you heard about them on NCBellydance.org!

- Haala, your NCBellydance.org webmistress