August 2010 Community Belly Dance

August 16, 2010: This month's Community Dance brought many new suprises, including a new drummer joining the stage and a surprise from Zarifa which brought many of the spectators to the floor to participate in in the festivities - and all of them men!

Belly Dance Lesson at Zarifa's Community Dance

Zarifa gives a belly dance lesson

Although it came after the second dance-around, Zarifa's second dance was clearly the highlight of the evening. Zarifa started with six veils at her hips, then slowly danced her way around the tables, drawing them out and one by one and wrapping them around the necks of some of the spectators. When she completed the circle and returned to the dance floor, she stopped the music and called all the men to the floor to . . . return the veils.

Or so they thought, but no, Zarifa had participation in mind. As they came to the floor they traded the veils for coined hip scarves and lined up for their first lesson in belly dance! As I looked around the room I don't think I've ever seen so many cameras pointed toward the floor. The participants were all good sports and once again, brought the spirit of community participation to Zarifa's Community Dance.

The evening started off with live drumming by Anubis and a new drummer, Cat, who is an active participant in the SCA and an awesome Middle Eastern drummer. The first round opened with Zarifa and Devi Safir, followed by the Gypsy Dancers, a troupe of eight of Zarifa's students in a beautifully choreographed troupe dance. The first round closed with Suzy Delatorre in a graceful and tantalizing sword dance to a chiftitelli based rhythm.

After the second dance-around to a long set of live drumming, the Cobra Lilies took to the floor, followed by Devi Safir, Zarifa's "dance lesson," and and you'll see in the pictures, Suzy Delatorre - and company. Looking forward to seeing you all in October, be sure to get your RSVP in early if you'd like to dance a solo or troupe performance.