Interview with Eliza

November 10, 2009 10:52 AM

Name: Eliza

What is your role within the Sahara Dance community? student, member of Intermediate Repertoire

Childhood ambition: To be a ballerina and a writer.

First job: The first job I had outside of babysitting was at the American Embassy in Paris- it wasn’t as important as it might sound.

What’s playing on your iPod or CD player? I don’t yet have an iPod, perhaps when I do I’ll listen to a greater variety of music, but really all I listen to is belly dance and related, or Middle Eastern music. Sometimes I branch out into something like Balkan Beatbox or Cheb i Sabbah. I’m really sensitive to sound and really particular about what I listen to- TV, radio and commercials usually bother me a lot. The music or noise or sound is the first thing I notice about a place- like when I walk into CVS and hear “Everybody plays the fool..” exactly like the last time I walked into CVS.

Indulgence: Dark chocolate, pedicures and the like, beautiful things (even just looking at them), travel when I can.

What’s your favorite belly dance moment or experience? It probably was a recent experience I had performing for a group outside of Kansas City about a month ago. I am a Magdalene- a term for High Priestess, and the group were all people of the same ilk. I got to wear this awesome costume I have for the first time, and I performed Colleen’s beautiful choreography for Intermediate Rep from the last UDM- Ancient Memories with a veil, and the De Anna drum solo. I was able to really stretch out the moves and not worry about bumping into anybody, and I may have actually smiled for most of it. People say that you put on a persona or mask when you perform, but I felt like I was being seen for who I really am. I did have a great audience, it’s true.

Current inspirations: All my current and past teachers, especially Elysa, Catarina, Rachel and Colleen. I’m inspired by the Egyptian dancers of the past, as well as the music from those times. Any dancer who’s really in her body, if you know what I mean, is inspiring to me- no matter what type of dance it is.

What is your dance background? I took some ballet as a child, but wasn’t able to seriously pursue it because we moved around a lot (I grew up in Italy, Somalia, Norway and France). I felt very deprived! I learned the samba a bit when I traveled in Brazil, and other than dancing my butt off to the Grateful Dead for many years- which of course was nothing formal but I learned that dancing was my favorite thing to do- that was it.

How did you get interested in belly dance? I’m not sure how I first learned of it, but I for a while I knew I wanted to do it. Ten years ago I took my first classes with Angel, who advertised “Spiritual Belly Dance”. She was really encouraging and really nice, but I couldn’t get it together at the time to keep up with it, because her studio was way out in the hinterlands of Rockville and I lived in DC. I know how far many people commute to Sahara’s various locations, and if I had stuck with it then I would be a lot farther along than I am now! Years later I moved to right near Sahara Central, and finally started taking classes again.

Finally, what do you love most about Sahara Dance (other than Hip Talk, of course!)? I love that Central is so close to my house! I think the calibre of teachers, the choreographies they create and the shows they put on is awesome, I feel very fortunate to be a part of it. I also really appreciate that my daughter Maria, who is seven and often accompanies me to class, is welcome, and that she gets to see all these women doing something they really love- she sees the process of learning the choreography and all that goes along with that, the shared commitment and the way it totally works despite all our differences.

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