Let’s Dance Again

Nicolah in bellydance gypsy skirt

After a break from the world of all things bellydance, I’m pleased to be practicing my shimmies, learning new dances again and creating new choreographies to perform.  

Earlier this year I decided to take a step back from dancing due to other commitments, but as time went by, I felt that something was missing.  I eventually realised that I missed the beautiful and mysterious artform of bellydance and just how much of a great stress busting release it is for me. It’s what keeps me going.  So, by not pursuing my passion further, I was holding back the inner dancer in me who was screaming for authentic creative and artistic expression. 

The good news is that a couple of weeks ago, I joined the cast of the innovative dance theatre project, “One Day in Istanbul” (ODII) to dance as one of the harem dancers in the show.  Devised by world-renowned Master Dancer & Teacher, Ozgen, and presented by the fabulous duo Dunya Bellydance, the show is set around the bustling streets of Istanbul and is brought alive through drama and dance to showcase Turkish culture.  ODII is sure to be an A-M-A-Z-I-N-G collaboration of performances, and will profile how empowering and self-assuring the beauty of this dance is for women. Click on the flyer to the left, to see image clearly. 

With exactly one month until show time (2 December 2012 at the Cockpit Theatre London), ODII is a lovely and focussed step back into the swing of things for me with lots of fun rehearsals ahead.  It also kick starts a series of other dance workshops I’ll be attending and more performances I’ll be doing throughout the festive season and beyond.  Yaaay!

In hindsight, I’m glad I had a bit of break from dancing, because I am now able to reflect and appreciate bellydance that much more. 

To sum things up, I’ll leave you with a great quote from Hans Bos, which he words in a much better way than I ever could: "While I dance I cannot judge, I cannot hate, I cannot separate myself from life. I can only be joyful and whole. That is why I dance."

Happy Shimmies,

Nic ♥

P.S. If you'd like to read how my bellydance journey began in Egypt, go to a previous blog post of mine by clicking here: http://nicolah-raqs.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/where-shimmies-began.html.