Last weekend I performed at my first hafla. What is a hafla I hear you say? A hafla is a belly dance party. And why was I performing at a belly dance party? Let me start from the beginning.
Once bitten by the belly dance bug, any notions I had of silky harems and drooling sultans quickly disappeared to be replaced by a million* questions: What is tribal fusion? Coin belt or hip scarf? How do I shimmy? How do I layer my shimmies? How long until I can do anything that vaguely resembles this? Should I learn to play zills (finger cymbals)? Dance with the veil? Assaya (stick dancing)? All three? And where can I get an amazing costume?
Raqs Sharqi ( the Arabic name for Oriental dance) is a world unto itself that encompasses everything from pure dance beauty to intense athleticism. (With a myriad of rhythms,stylistic variations, aesthetic interpretations, and moods in between.)You try contracting your lower abs, upper abs and upper back for a body wave, now travel!
I believe belly dance can be widely/loosely categorised into two main categories: traditional oriental style, originating in the Middle East and Modern Fusion, developed the world over which takes inspiration from everything from Bollywood to Ballet to the Biblical. These inspirations only serve to make the art form stronger and multi-faceted. And belly dance, although typified by feminine grace and energy (and all things sparkly and jangly) is not reserved for women only! There is a long tradition of men belly dancing, which is fabulous, and still continues today.
I have no qualms with crediting Shakira originally for this obsession. The video for Whenever,Wherever in 2001 planted the seed which finally came to fruition (10 years later!!) on taking classes this year. And it was worth the wait because I got a Fabulous teacher. In class each move is broken down technically, so you learn that an undulation is executed by contracting your upper back, then upper abs, then lower abs, then releasing. At first I pondered, what does my upper back have to do with belly dance? But on seeing my teacher demonstrate a perfect undulation I was like, if that’s what it takes, hello upper back!
Twelve months of classes and practise sessions later ( and youtubing drum solos, stalking ebay for costumes and not a few sit-ups) my belly dance idols now include Sharon Kihara, Sadie, Rachel Brice, Meher Malik, Samia, Didem, Ansuya, Sonia, Jillina….
It all climaxed in a hafla thrown by my teacher in November. A hafla is a fabulous belly dance party/festival where dancers perform for each other and audience members, either to live or taped music. I performed in two student dances and loved every second of it. The atmosphere was beautiful, the audience really enjoyed themselves and each dancer was awe-inspiring. The hafla marked a first milestone in my belly dance journey and I can’t wait for the next step!**
Some of my favourites:
*Samia belly dance * Maria - Drum Solo *Samantha Emmanuel- Belly dance *
*Rachel Brice- Drum Solo * Meher Malik- Odissi Fusion * Sharon Kihara- Drum Solo *
More links:
- Vintage belly dance here and here
- Mother of modern belly dance technique Suhaila Salimpour (I'm taking a workshop with her next year!)
- The Belly Dance Superstars
*Or thereabouts
