RaqsBelediSpring2013

7/30/2019 RaqsBelediSpring2013

1/6

S P R I N G 2 0 1 3

Save the Date!

the

Raqs BelediBellydance Studio Newsletter

Raqs Layali

We had a superb time joining

Raqs Layali for three sold out

shows! Meaghann, Nicole and

Kelly were featured dancers in

the show. Follow the link below

to see an article about it in The

Gilded Serpent, an international

magazine for Middle Easternmusic, dance, and bellydance.

http://www.gildedserpent.com/cms/

2013/04/18/mahsati-dance-in-

north-carolina/#axzz2Qp2t71Pz

Raqs Beledi Class

ScheduleLevel III Technique and Combinations: Monday, 5:15-6:15pmwith Meaghann

Performance Skills and Choreography, Level III: Monday, 6:15-

7:30pm with Meaghann

Level I and II Bellydance: Tuesday, 5-6pm with Meaghann

Multi-Level Bellydance: Tuesday and Thursday, 6-7pm with

Tanya

Private lessons are available in the studio or via Skype.

A Night of

Dance

Anatomy for

Bellydancers

July 7th at our

studio. Pre-

registration is

required for this

workshop

31 Party

May 30th 4-7 pm,

drop in. Nicole will be

available to show the

latest bags and help

you make choices.

June 22, 7pm,

HART Theater in

Waynesville


2/6

2

SPRING 2013RAQS BELEDI

Whole Bloomin Thing

One of our favorite places to dance is the spring Frog

Level Festival. This years audience was the best we

have ever had. Thank you to those of you out there

supporting us and sharing your beautiful smiles andcheers! The Raqs Beledi instructors, as well as The

RaqShuraka Dance Company (our award winning

student troupe), and Meaghanns Tuesday class

(making their performance debut) shimmied under the

bright spring sun and had a blast doing it!

The Womanly Art of Bellydance inWaynesville

Paul Denkenberger wrote a wonderful article about ourstudio that was featured in the new online magazine,

Western North Carolina Happenings. Our students

answer questions such as, Why do you bellydance?

and What are the benefits of bellydance?

http://westernnorthcarolina.happeningmag.com/woma

nly-art-bellydance-waynesville/

A Night of DanceOur student troupe, The RaqShuraka Dance Company,

directed by Meaghann Lynne, is hosting a benefit show

for REACH of Haywood, a local non-profit that provides

emergency services to any person who has experienced

domestic violence, sexual assault or elder abuse. Kelly

Burrell, the assistant director of The RaqShuraka Dance

Company and double survivor of domestic violence, is

the visionary behind this project. The benefit willfeature local dancers and many dance styles. A Night

of Dance will be held at HART Theater in Waynesville

on June 22 at 7pm. Tickets are $20 and can be

purchased by calling 828-456-7898. Please visit the

link below for more information.

https://www.facebook.com/events/37262794285366

8/permalink/372627949520334/


3/6

3


Students Speak, Kathy KeoghLittle Miss Perfect

She alphabetizes her cds and organizes dvds by genre. She edits her journal entries, correcting typosthat no one will ever see. She's used a thesaurus when sending an email to get just the rightword. She lives under a large umbrella of "shoulds" and "what will people think?". She's donechemical peels, laser treatments, teeth whiteners, hair dyes, wrinkle creams, personal trainers, spanxand wonder bras.... everything short of going under the knife. So when little miss perfect found bellydancing, she thought she found the "perfect" exercise to strengthen her core. She had had no ideahow glorious beingimperfect would be.

Aside from learning the Irish jig in high school PE, and a handful of adult ballet classes, I've never

"taken dance". I didn't consider myself a dancer. But when I watched some women dance at a fitnessdemonstration I thought it looked like a fun way to build core strength. My initial belly dance classeswere, in my mind, more an exercise class than a dance class. And I wanted to learn itperfectly. However, as I learned more about the performing side of belly dance, I realized that I had toput perfectionism on the shelf in order to express myself effectively through dance.

Being a perfectionist, I am easily frustrated when I am advancing my skills. Layering techniques, forexample, have proven to be quite a challenge. So much so that I've nearly quit because what I see inthe mirror looks ghastly to me. But, I have learned through the loving friendships of my fellow dancers,freedom to be imperfect and to learn from each other, encouraging each other to go to the next levelin our dance. In fact, this freedom develops us as dancers like nothing else. It also frees me

personally from the "shoulds" and "what will people think?" thoughts in my head. As a result I feelstronger both physically and mentally. I am stretched to think more creatively and thus, am betterat problem solving. I have more tenacity, courage, and patience.

Yes, it is imperative to master the techniques of belly dance, memorize a choreography, and rehearseto be "performance ready", as Meaghann says. But I have learned that when I also free myself to makemistakes and experiment with expression, I am no longer in an exercise class. I am a dancer. Andwhich one is more delightful to watch? More importantly, which one is more delightful to be?

I am a dancer. And I am beautifully imperfect. And I am learning to be perfectly alright with that.


4/6

4


31 Party at Raqs Beledi

Nicole will be hosing a 31 party in the newly opened Craft

and Costuming area of our studio. If you are not familiar

with 31, it's all about bag, organizers, thermal totes and

more. So if you're like us and feel like you live out of you

car, have a ton of things to bring to any performance, or

just want organize your stuff better, stop by on May 30th

between 4 and 7pm. Nicole will be on hand with the

summer catalog and sample bags to help you create your

personal solution.

Anatomy for Bellydancers:

Lecture and Movement Clinic with

Teejei Brigham

Sunday, July 7th, Raqs Beledi will host Teejei Brigham to

teach a workshop about anatomy for bellydancers. We

are so excited to bring Teejei to Waynesville! Moreinformation coming soon to our Facebook page!

The RaqShuraka Dance Company

Goes Steampunk

Raqs Beledis award winning student troupe, The

RaqShuraka Dance Company, directed by Meaghann

Lynne, has outdone themselves! They are cooking up anew science fiction performance piece that involves

steampunk music, a Victorian carousel that lives off the

souls it captures, and a story of a lost girl whose

innocent carousel ride turns frighteningly tragic. Their

new performance piece will debut at this years

Haywoods Got Talent at HART Theater in September.

We will post more information to our Facebook page as

the time gets closer.


5/6

5


Skirts - we all love them flowy and flouncy, butthey never seem to have the right style in theright color or the right size (let's face it, onesize does not fit all). So here's a basic how-toon tiered skirts.

Tiered skirts are often worn in layers by ATS dancers to create the many colors andruffles effect. Because of this, these skirts are generally made of very lightweight fabrics. There is asimple formula to create your own tiered skirt and all the seams are straight lines.1) Decide how long your skirt needs to be, the add two inches (for wide elastic and 1/2 inch hem)2) Divide this number by 3 and add 1/2 inch- this will give you the width of each tier (plus 1/2 inch extrajust in case)3) Decide how full you want the first tier. Some dancers like lots of room to move, other (like me) don'twant any extra padding beyond what nature has been so generous with already. This becomes yourbase length (L). Use a strip of scrap fabric or measuring tape to measure around the widest part of yourhips, then add to that to create the desired fullness of the top tier.4) Tier two is Lx2, tier three is Lx45) When you buy fabric, check the width of the bolt. You want to fit at least 2 tier widths- this is usuallynot a problem with 45 wide bolts and average height dancers. If you are long-legged, you may have tohunt a bit more for 54-60 wide.6) Buy fabric in the amount of Lx4

7) Lay your fabric out and mark your tier width on the width of thefabric. When you cut this, you should end with two very long and narrowstrips. Put one aside - it already measures Lx4 and is ready to go.8) Laying out the other strip, mark off Lx2 and L, and cut those. You are nowready for sewing.9) First the ruffles: thread a needle with a sturdy thread and baste (basic up-down) down the length of Lx4 on one side, going through just the one layerof fabric. As you are sewing, you can start scrunching the fabric on your thread-notice the ruffled look? Your goal is to ruffle this piece enough to make it Lx2.10) Pin the ruffled side of Lx4 to Lx2, sew.11) Repeat this process with Lx2, fitting it to L, pin and sew.

12) Finishing touches: fold over the elastic channel and sew, sew the side seam (make sure you leavethe opening for the elastic!), insert elastic and try it on. Now pin and sew your hem according to yourdesired length.

This may seem like a lot, but once you've made a tiered skirt, you'll realize how very straight- forwardthey are. In the next newsletter, I'll walk you through full circle and double circle skirts.

In the mean time,Happy Sewing!

Costuming with Nicole


6/6

Come Dance With Us!

First Class Free!

Please visit our new website (construction still in progress)www.waynesvillebellydance.com

Or Find us on Facebook

www.facebook.com/raqsbeledi

Or email [email protected]

Or call828-337-4402

Or just stop by84 N. Main St

Waynesville, NC 28786

Either way, we want to hear from you!

RAQS BELEDI SPRING 2013

If you no longer want to receive our quarterly e-newsletter, please email us and wewill take you off our mailing list.

Documents

RaqsBelediSpring2013