Belly Dancing
Thursday night I went to Grand Rapids to see Katie perform in a belly dancing group at Mezze Cafe & Cabaret, a tapas restaurant/cafe. I ended up hooking up with Chris, a friend of mine, for dinner before the show and the two of us went over there together. I didn't really know what to expect from a belly dancing performance. The limit of my belly dancing experience was watching Katie do an impromptu performance at a party at my place. Having seen the performance I'm really impressed.
The group consisted of four individuals including Katie and her instructor. Though Katie has been performing for far less time than the other dancers I thought her performance was at least as good, possibly better, than the other dancers. Admittedly, I'm biased and inexperienced in judging dancing but I still think Katie was the best of the bunch. The show consisted of quite a few dances involving anywhere from one to four dancers. One of my personal favorites was the first of the dances which used large silken scarves. The scarves made for a very flowing, graceful, imaginative dance. I also greatly enjoyed Katie's solo performance and after discussion with Chris after the show we decided it was our overall favorite.
One of the dances involved dancing with swords (seriously, they had swords... it was cool). The dancers balanced the swords lengthwise on their heads and managed to move their bodies while keeping their heads still such that the swords didn't fall. It was an impressive display to say the least.
From what I'm told the show is more a "Vegas-style" performance. It used some modern music, the dancers seemed to be enjoying themselves, and there was quite a bit of audience involvement (yes, I attempted to dance... it was not pretty but it was fun). Though I haven't seen any of the more traditional performances I can say this way of doing things kept it fun, lively, and interesting.
About halfway through the performance I remember thinking, "wow, I'm glad this is a life experience I've had". It was really great to see Katie perform and I'm glad that I've seen a real belly dancing performance. The whole thing was a very energizing, very fun experience and I had an absolutely fabulous time.
The group consisted of four individuals including Katie and her instructor. Though Katie has been performing for far less time than the other dancers I thought her performance was at least as good, possibly better, than the other dancers. Admittedly, I'm biased and inexperienced in judging dancing but I still think Katie was the best of the bunch. The show consisted of quite a few dances involving anywhere from one to four dancers. One of my personal favorites was the first of the dances which used large silken scarves. The scarves made for a very flowing, graceful, imaginative dance. I also greatly enjoyed Katie's solo performance and after discussion with Chris after the show we decided it was our overall favorite.
One of the dances involved dancing with swords (seriously, they had swords... it was cool). The dancers balanced the swords lengthwise on their heads and managed to move their bodies while keeping their heads still such that the swords didn't fall. It was an impressive display to say the least.
From what I'm told the show is more a "Vegas-style" performance. It used some modern music, the dancers seemed to be enjoying themselves, and there was quite a bit of audience involvement (yes, I attempted to dance... it was not pretty but it was fun). Though I haven't seen any of the more traditional performances I can say this way of doing things kept it fun, lively, and interesting.
About halfway through the performance I remember thinking, "wow, I'm glad this is a life experience I've had". It was really great to see Katie perform and I'm glad that I've seen a real belly dancing performance. The whole thing was a very energizing, very fun experience and I had an absolutely fabulous time.
posted by KzooJason at 6:10 PM
3 Comments:
I'm so glad that you and Chris took the time to come, and on a school night! Your praise is welcome and will comfort me for the nest 9+ months of non-dancing.
Also, you showed some natural talent with hip drops- perhaps you could take it up?! I won't be using my sword for some time...
I wish I could have been there, it sounds like it was fun.
Yes, that is a life experience I'd like to have (the watching, not the dancing), too. Thanks for writing about it for those of us unable to attend.
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