Venus Uprising Bellydance New York City

BIG PARTY REPORT!!!! :: neon

Blanca's birthday party was big, lush and overflowing with the beautiful people of NYC's bellydance and world music demimonde. Even though Blanca commanded the spotlight as the birthday girl, I seized some attention by hosting her party at my place. OMG, it was so incredibly cool to see all our fancy and gorgeous bellydance friends circulate around a table laden with wines and hors-d-oeuvres on a late Tuesday night - all of them in one place.
Actually, it was not one place, but two places: My place consists of two lofts in a Garment District department store converted into a residential building. We've been talking about breaking down the wall between the two lofts for over a year, but on one side the wall is mirrored, and it's my rehearsal studio, so....we keep postponing the merger of the two apartments until I can live without the mirrors for some days or weeks, and it never happens.
So, space #1, candle-lit and unfurnished featured Blanca greeting our friends, pouring them wine under branches of cherry blossoms and relieving them of the birthday gifts they brought for her. Meanwhile, in the dark red-and-black kitchen of space #2 a clique of absintheurs presided over by Jeniviva indulged in absinthe rites and rituals, and watched "Honey & Spice," a new World Dance New York burlesque instructional DVD by Jo Weldon.
The photo report follows. You can see more photos here!

Elsa Leandros, Sherene, Cindy Dunaway, Blanca. Blanca is wearing a crown Cindy created for her.

Amy Staub, Neon, Pete List, Hanna Nour

Tanna Valentine, Blanca

Absinthe

Blanca makes a speech before destroying the birthday cake!

Jeniviva & Neon in the absinthe den

Ranya decorates her famous Groundhog Day cookies; Richard, Dennis Danaway, Frank

Richard, Blanca, Elisheva, Dennis Dunaway, Anasma

Sarah Skinner and Darshan

Tanna Valentine & Andy Troy

Amy Staub, Mariyah, Darshan, Hanna Nour, Sarah Skinner

Caught gossipping!!!! Anasma, Blanca, Richard

Frank & Anasma

Fayzah & Richard

Not fair!!!! Someone is having fun at my expense! They extracted my octopus cans from the refrigerator to count them! What's wrong with eating octopus for breakfast, lunch and dinner?!! And btw I am TIRED of all these jokes about my growing tentacles! Gimme a break already.

Brenna, Neon

THINNING THE (COSTUME) HERD :: tanna

Beautiful costuming was absolutely the element that initially attracted me to bellydance, and costuming is still my favorite part of the process.  I love designing unique, new costumes for every single possible event.  My costumes, especially those that I made myself, are very special to me, and it is incredibly hard to make the decision to let them go. 

Unfortunately though, while my love of costuming is endless, my available storage space for said costumes is regrettably finite.  Costumes and costume items now live in all three of my closets, under and around my queen-size bed, in a huge cedar chest, and in several drawers.    Really, it is just too much, yet, costume-addict that I am, I still crave more!

So, last year, with grim resolution, I determined that I had to sort through my costume wardrobe and pull out the items that I really could live without.  It was easiest to start with the miscellaneous items - skirts, veils, pants, etc. that were not part of specific costumes.  Some of my outfits from prior DVDs (Floorwork and Total Body) were culled, as was a lovely "Persian Princess" costume that had been fashioned for a long-ago duet.  It was painstaking and painful, but I ended up with a shopping bag full of items which I took to Spring Caravan & Rakkasah to sell.  Lady Luck smiled on me, and I sold everything except one bright pink ombre skirt set, (if I accepted credit cards I could have sold that too!)  It made me happy to see my beauties going to new owners that would enjoy them and get use out of them.

Now I am turning my attention to my prizes - my bra and belt sets that represent hours and hours - no - actually YEARS of labor.  I think that is part of the problem - knowing how much hand labor went into these totally unique costumes makes it so difficult to put a realistic price on them.  Unfortunately though, the market for second-hand costumes is the tiniest fraction of what it once was.  When I started in this field, most dancers made their own costumes, or paid a costumer to make them.  The vast array of costumes now available on the Internet was not even a figment of anyone's imagination.  I still remember the active professional dancers coming to our locker room before class and selling their wares - fraying skirts, veils with cigarette burns in them, well-worn costumes that need tons of TLC, etc., yet the students scurried to buy whatever was suitable.  It was like a bellydance Santa Claus was visiting!

Today, dancers can purchase all types and styles of costumes, and for a wide range of prices.  On the whole, I would say the professional standards of costuming have gone up, even though the individuality of costuming has declined somewhat. 

My paisley costume (featured here) was originally one of three, which I made for a trio under the direction of Samara at least ten years ago.  Over the years I greatly augmented my own set with additional beadwork, enhancing the paisley pattern in the base metallic brocade and adding multi-layer fringe.  The initial design came from a costume worn by one of my favorite dancers - Samia Gamal.   It is an elegant, classic costume which I've worn for private gigs, club gigs, live music shows, and most recently in the Bellydance Show Basics DVD.  Still, I'm ready now to let it travel to a new home, and indeed a new potential owner is already at my door.   If I can let go of this one, perhaps the next one will be easier.

(b&w photo by Kristin Reimer, color photo by Ania Bibulowicz)