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Elana

Elana's Blog (38)

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Belly dance "rehab"

Head on over to my main blog to read about my belly dance rehab in 2009! http://lanicraft.blogspot.com/ Continue

Added by Elana on January 2, 2009 at 11:30am — No Comments

Ultra Gypsy video

I love the staging for this tribal style piece! Keep your eyes peeled for Arbee... Info from youtube: Choreographer Jill Parker leads the Ultra Gypsy tribal belly dancing troupe, including Rachel Brice, for "the cutting edge" a visionary cable TV show produced by Jerry B in Berkeley, CA in 2001. Directed and edited by D. Sosnoski Continue

Added by Elana on December 10, 2008 at 2:31pm — 1 Comment

Crochet zyll mufflers

Last night I made some zyll mufflers, and I don't know why I waited so long to do so! Wow!! They really work. There is hardly any sound at all, just a nice cushy thud of zyll hitting fibre (which might be wool or acrylic, not sure). I don't have to worry about bothering the neighbours, or my cats, or even giving myself a headache LOL. If anyone else wants some, I'd be happy to make more!… Continue

Added by Elana on November 8, 2008 at 1:26pm — No Comments

Funkabelly tonight!

I'm getting my costume ready for Funkabelly tonight! Woo hoo! Continue

Added by Elana on September 13, 2008 at 1:17pm — No Comments

FUNKaBELLY - May edition

Funkabelly review for May 2008 Forest nymphs and Nature spirits The Funkabellians unleashed their earthy spirits on May 10! We had a substitute DJ, David Dax, and he got the dancefloor shimmying and shaking. Watch out Medicineman - you have some competition! (just kidding - we still love you Medicineman) I missed the beginning of the night due to a gig with the Om Laila Troupe in Burlington, but we arrived in plenty of time to get our funky bellies on! The woodsy decorations created a l… Continue

Added by Elana on June 13, 2008 at 9:30pm — No Comments

Suheir Zaki and her glorious down hips

Continue

Added by Elana on May 25, 2008 at 12:27pm — 1 Comment

Practice this week...

This week I am not going to focus on specific movements, but instead will work on my basic drills and try to make them a habit. It doesn't take very long to go through the list, so there's no reason that I can't do them every day. (except that I'm lazy and would rather sit on the couch! ha ha) I'm going to add hip slides, head circles, chest shimmy and 3/4 shimmy to the list. If I want it to be mor… Continue

Added by Elana on May 14, 2008 at 9:48am — No Comments

To practice this week...

  • upper body movements: chest lifts, slides, circles in all directions, increase range of motion, stretch and stay relaxed, especially around the neck and jaw
  • twisting shimmy: keep the movement in the lower body (no swinging arms! lol)
  • 3/4 shimmy: speed it up, slow it down, keep the movement clear and defined
  • choreographies: Nubian, Ya Shok with cane, Sabri Aleel
Continue

Added by Elana on May 3, 2008 at 1:54pm — No Comments

FUNKaBELLY - April edition

Birds of a Feather: An Homage to Plumage The April Funkabelly party was soooooo much fun! The bellydance community shook off their winter coats and emerged in full force, ready to shimmy their way into spring. There were feathers galore - costumes, hair adornments, fans, and boas upon boas! This was the perfect event for Wings of Isis, and not only did we have two fabulous performances with Isis wings, there was an impromptu "battle of the Isis wings" early on in the night! Two dancers,… Continue

Added by Elana on April 21, 2008 at 3:30pm — No Comments

Dancing with a live drummer

Back in November, my partner and I were visiting family in the States and staying at his aunt & uncle's house. They have a few different drums around, mostly for decoration, and the little kids like to play with them. (OK, me too! I can play a decent baladi rhythm.) My 5 year old niece was banging away, and I danced a little improv....

… Continue

Added by Elana on March 28, 2008 at 11:08am — No Comments

Upcoming Funkabelly...

Next weekend: Saturday, March 8 Belly-quarium: A Wondrous Watery World

Mermaids, Sirens, Slither-things Jellyfish and Octopi Dark Creatures of the Deep Sing a distant lullaby dream your own watery dreams I'm looking forward to this! The Om Laila student troupe will be making their debut!!! Go to www.funkabelly.com for full details… Continue

Added by Elana on March 1, 2008 at 9:57am — No Comments

FUNKaBELLY - February edition

This post has been a long time coming! The photos and video from the fabulous February edition of Funkabelly are now up on the Om Laila site - that encouraged me to get going on this post. :) Our first Saturday night Funkabelly was hot hot HOT! Moving to Saturday nights was a great idea and brought out a lot more people. The energy level was different than our former Tuesday night editions - in a very g… Continue

Added by Elana on February 22, 2008 at 1:00pm — No Comments

Music and Lyrics for Thania's Saturday Choreography

Translation of the lyrics on Shira.net

Adventures in YouTube... I had a bit of trouble finding the version of the song that we're using in class.

This one is a video mash-up: Bollywood dancing with French sub-titles! (If you search for "Dayya Dayya" you can watch it with the original music.) But it's the right song.



Here's a funny one... it's a drag queen doing a tribute video!
… Continue

Added by Elana on February 9, 2008 at 6:41pm — No Comments

This week...

- write up notes from Ioana's choreo workshop (still outstanding)
- shimmy drills
- omi's in BOTH directions
- zylls - I should take advantage of the empty apartments on each side of me. No need to worry about disturbing the neighbours!
- take photos of my costumes so I can share them with y'all

- get hyped for FUNKABELLY!!!


Continue

Added by Elana on January 30, 2008 at 10:27am — No Comments

Tuesday class with Roula, Jan. 29

- vocalization
- zylls: we worked with the 3 3 7 pattern, gathered in a circle and came up with some improv moves to the zylls. E.g. step, touch, undulation; hip drop, drop, circle; step, touch, turn around; step, shoulder accent, turn around. The pattern was "sharp, sharp, gooey".
- veil: step RLR (arms 2nd), touch L (arms come up to temple), turn to the L (arms lower to 2nd). Repeat on other side: step LRL, touch R, turn to the R. On relevé, step RLR (arms 2nd), lift L knee (arms come… Continue

Added by Elana on January 30, 2008 at 10:06am — No Comments

To practice this week

- zylls! I haven't looked at them in weeks!!
- 3/4 shimmy and shimmy walk
- walking undulations, 2 undulations per step
- write up notes from Ioana's choreo workshop
- improv
Continue

Added by Elana on January 22, 2008 at 2:35pm — No Comments

Tuesday class with Roula, Jan. 8

I'm a little late posting this.... sorry!

Down hips on the "X" (instead of reaching the hip down and in toward your body, reach it out and down. Kind of like a hip slide and and down hip.)
- To drill: alternate regular down hips with reaching down hips, one side at a time
- or just practice hip slides with a down on the end to work on your range
- don't slip any mayas in there!

Shimmy walk

Randa Kamel down butt (like a down hip but dow… Continue

Added by Elana on January 22, 2008 at 2:30pm — No Comments

Dance resolutions for 2008?

Anyone making bellydance-related New Year's resolutions? What do you want to accomplish in 2008?

I want to perform a solo piece, and to work on my improv skills. I also want to put together a 20 minute set, y'know, just for fun and to have ready in case a performance opportunity arises... :)

What are your goals for this year?

Continue

Added by Elana on January 1, 2008 at 2:47pm — 2 Comments

Saturday class with Thania, December 8

- snake arms: send energy from your heart all the way to your fingertips

- 3/4 shimmy
regular: out, up, down. Accent the up and down, not just the out.
shimmy walk: down, out, up.
For both: Keep upper body quiet. Loosen up the hips. Keep practicing it slowly and then speed it up. Practice on releve too!

- combos:
1) undulate, maya LR, omi (around the back), into reverse undulation
2) sharkey step RLRL, sharkey with hip circle RLRL, 3-step turn to the… Continue

Added by Elana on December 17, 2007 at 10:56am — No Comments

Something old, something new

Some videos for your amusement...

Amar Gamal




Taheya Carioca

… Continue

Added by Elana on November 27, 2007 at 11:04am — No Comments

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