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*The following are personal excerpts and rememberings I had that I'll add to over a period of time over events held at the Holiday Inn-College Park, MD, celebrating the entrance to decade #4 for WAMEDA (Washngton Mid-East Dance Association) celbrating 30 years and featuring Sadie and Kaya Star from Denver, Colorado from September 11-13, 2009.
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KAYA STAR: ADDING TO HER OWN SHINE IN THE SKIES
Imagine having the chance to meet one of your biggest idols in any genre of performing arts, how a rush runs through your body like a raging river. The rush that was felt in 2008 after meeting Sadie in WAMEDA's annual hafla (and her 1st bellydance appearance to the DC area) was only more intensified by her partner and sister-in-dance together in one venue, that being the Holiday Inn College Park, Maryland.
From the initial bearhug I got from the meet and greet to watching her dazzle the audience on Saturday night, it was visually obvious how Kaya's diversity as a soloist and a partner with Sadie stands out. She is a bellydance sensation that proudly balances her profession and motherhood, in fact making a call back home in Denver to sing ''Happy Birthday'' to her first born. And here's a scary thought, she's STILL working her way back into slowly into her regular routine, as she told me. You'd never guess she was dusting the rust off by her intimidating physical prowess. I gave her the nickname ''The Bellydancer's Raquel Welch'', for her stunning beauty and grace, attributed to her years of modeling work as well.
This weekend gave the DC area bellydance community a chance to see Kaya stand out, a chance to see her (almost literally) put her mind in her stomach and transform the feminine mystique of modern day bellydance as we currently know it. Bellydance as an art form has become secondary for Kaya, she truly loves what she does. It's more fun. The stage is her personal playground.
The flexibility and muscle control that she can distribute is breathtaking. She can offer a rapid fire display of movements in one sequence that can drop every jaw in the house. She can layer multiple moves at one time where your eyes almost freeze, because you don't know which direction her body will take them next.
Even more challenging, her musical selections has to be even more challenging to one's ears and her body to meet the high standards she commands for the best possible element of success for Kaya's audiences, a patterned method of excellence that has she and Sadie admired across the globe.
Kaya's gifts are also optioned to her love for numerous world dance forms, not limiting her associations to just Middle Eastern dance.She and Sadie co-founded Groove du Monde, a world fusion dance troupe back in the early 2000's, showcasing numerous dance forms from Brazillian Samba, Tahitian and Salsa dance. They ar epart of a growing extension of taking bellydancing to a theatrical presentation level like many others across tha nation, and has many sold out venues and shows to their credit throughout the Denver metro area.
They are in high demand and Kaya's solo works are powerful in DVDs through IAMED and Hollywood Music Center, not to mention videos by Little Egypt (TX) of their poular seminars and shows. ''That's Hot!'' (HMC) is still one of the best performance DVDs on the market today, and Kaya's input in their IAMED instructionals are a must for fans of isolations and layers (a 2nd edition of Pops, Locks and Shimmies was released earlier this summer).
Kaya's main specialties, at least to me, are her taqsims and drum solos. Her abdominals can be a statuesque admiration with a gentle touch of a breath, or a weapon of raw and undisputed physical finesse daring you to keep up and handle what physicalities she can unleash on you in a nanosecond. The only set of muscles sharper than Kaya's belly is her mind--her mindset to chorepgraph and time every movement to any beat of music with sensuality and seduction allows her to push barriers of bellydancing many wouldn;t dare try to attempt years, if not decades beforehand. She takes pride in her mental capacity for the art form, having a graduate degree in Psychology and has won awards for public speaking and accolades for her tutorial abilities, too.
Her ability to communicate with her body can create a brand new language, in fact, it already has. She can write a dictionary with her golden smile. She can script an encyclopedia with her belly, redefining the bellydancer with a text of information that will change the outlook of any bellydance student, but how future bellydance teachers approach their future students. Everyone who I talked to over the past weeeknd had as much, if not more fun in their assigned workshops, the intimate and undivided attention Kaya pays to her students was what people wanted.
From her eclctic attire to her amazing talents, the world is a kingdom to Kaya and it will continue to be paved in solid gold, a path that many ladies in the Dc area will gladly follow along....and bellydance fans, appreciators and one afficianado in particular can't get enough of. If watching a bellydance could be medicinal, kaya is a woman who can doctor a sense of artistic and visual healing that will make th world, not just bellydance, abetter place to be in just by her presence. Sadie desn;t know how lucky to have her as a partner. Denver doesn't realize how lucky it is to have them as a duet. But hundreds of folks were luckier as ever to have Kaya to themselves for three days in September of 2009.
From this point n, a pop, a lock, a layer, a combination, or a roll and flutter will never be looked at the same ever again. It's been said of that by me of a lot of elite bellydance talents. I'm glad to add one more to that exclusive sorority of bellydance sisterhood.
BFJ 9/12/09.
www.kayastar.com
www.hollywoodmusiccenter.com (That's Hot!)
shop.bellydance.org (Pops, Locks & Shimmies 1 & 2)
www.littleegypt.com (Fall Fantasia & Welcome to Miami, Dina)
==========================================================================
KAYA STAR: ADDING TO HER OWN SHINE IN THE SKIES
Imagine having the chance to meet one of your biggest idols in any genre of performing arts, how a rush runs through your body like a raging river. The rush that was felt in 2008 after meeting Sadie in WAMEDA's annual hafla (and her 1st bellydance appearance to the DC area) was only more intensified by her partner and sister-in-dance together in one venue, that being the Holiday Inn College Park, Maryland.
From the initial bearhug I got from the meet and greet to watching her dazzle the audience on Saturday night, it was visually obvious how Kaya's diversity as a soloist and a partner with Sadie stands out. She is a bellydance sensation that proudly balances her profession and motherhood, in fact making a call back home in Denver to sing ''Happy Birthday'' to her first born. And here's a scary thought, she's STILL working her way back into slowly into her regular routine, as she told me. You'd never guess she was dusting the rust off by her intimidating physical prowess. I gave her the nickname ''The Bellydancer's Raquel Welch'', for her stunning beauty and grace, attributed to her years of modeling work as well.
This weekend gave the DC area bellydance community a chance to see Kaya stand out, a chance to see her (almost literally) put her mind in her stomach and transform the feminine mystique of modern day bellydance as we currently know it. Bellydance as an art form has become secondary for Kaya, she truly loves what she does. It's more fun. The stage is her personal playground.
The flexibility and muscle control that she can distribute is breathtaking. She can offer a rapid fire display of movements in one sequence that can drop every jaw in the house. She can layer multiple moves at one time where your eyes almost freeze, because you don't know which direction her body will take them next.
Even more challenging, her musical selections has to be even more challenging to one's ears and her body to meet the high standards she commands for the best possible element of success for Kaya's audiences, a patterned method of excellence that has she and Sadie admired across the globe.
Kaya's gifts are also optioned to her love for numerous world dance forms, not limiting her associations to just Middle Eastern dance.She and Sadie co-founded Groove du Monde, a world fusion dance troupe back in the early 2000's, showcasing numerous dance forms from Brazillian Samba, Tahitian and Salsa dance. They ar epart of a growing extension of taking bellydancing to a theatrical presentation level like many others across tha nation, and has many sold out venues and shows to their credit throughout the Denver metro area.
They are in high demand and Kaya's solo works are powerful in DVDs through IAMED and Hollywood Music Center, not to mention videos by Little Egypt (TX) of their poular seminars and shows. ''That's Hot!'' (HMC) is still one of the best performance DVDs on the market today, and Kaya's input in their IAMED instructionals are a must for fans of isolations and layers (a 2nd edition of Pops, Locks and Shimmies was released earlier this summer).
Kaya's main specialties, at least to me, are her taqsims and drum solos. Her abdominals can be a statuesque admiration with a gentle touch of a breath, or a weapon of raw and undisputed physical finesse daring you to keep up and handle what physicalities she can unleash on you in a nanosecond. The only set of muscles sharper than Kaya's belly is her mind--her mindset to chorepgraph and time every movement to any beat of music with sensuality and seduction allows her to push barriers of bellydancing many wouldn;t dare try to attempt years, if not decades beforehand. She takes pride in her mental capacity for the art form, having a graduate degree in Psychology and has won awards for public speaking and accolades for her tutorial abilities, too.
Her ability to communicate with her body can create a brand new language, in fact, it already has. She can write a dictionary with her golden smile. She can script an encyclopedia with her belly, redefining the bellydancer with a text of information that will change the outlook of any bellydance student, but how future bellydance teachers approach their future students. Everyone who I talked to over the past weeeknd had as much, if not more fun in their assigned workshops, the intimate and undivided attention Kaya pays to her students was what people wanted.
From her eclctic attire to her amazing talents, the world is a kingdom to Kaya and it will continue to be paved in solid gold, a path that many ladies in the Dc area will gladly follow along....and bellydance fans, appreciators and one afficianado in particular can't get enough of. If watching a bellydance could be medicinal, kaya is a woman who can doctor a sense of artistic and visual healing that will make th world, not just bellydance, abetter place to be in just by her presence. Sadie desn;t know how lucky to have her as a partner. Denver doesn't realize how lucky it is to have them as a duet. But hundreds of folks were luckier as ever to have Kaya to themselves for three days in September of 2009.
From this point n, a pop, a lock, a layer, a combination, or a roll and flutter will never be looked at the same ever again. It's been said of that by me of a lot of elite bellydance talents. I'm glad to add one more to that exclusive sorority of bellydance sisterhood.
BFJ 9/12/09.
www.kayastar.com
www.hollywoodmusiccenter.com (That's Hot!)
shop.bellydance.org (Pops, Locks & Shimmies 1 & 2)
www.littleegypt.com (Fall Fantasia & Welcome to Miami, Dina)
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Re: Brandon's 2009 WAMEDA 30th Anniversary Hafla Blog :)
Sun, September 13, 2009 - 4:53 PMSADIE: THE BELLY BEAUTIFUL...AND PLENTY MORE
Dynamic. Masterful. Power. Grace. Raw Energy. Giddy. Joyful. Playful. Peaceful. In The Zone.
Her physique is jaw-dropping. Her grin is tempting. Her embraces are motherly. And, her heart of devotion is owed to bellydance, and wants to use the blood that flows from it to expand its horizons. She's traveled to so many countries in the past couple of years that she's almost lost count. She in fact recently hired a personal manager to help her affairs out. She admits she has to catch up to many e-mails folks have sent her (and she does read them all, she just doesn't have as much time in the past to respond to them all). For her, that's a good thing. A very good thing. because it means that it'll keep her in hgh demand across Planet Earth, a demand for her talents more than any bellydancer going today.
If it is possible for her to do so, Sadie is more a complete bellydancer today than her initial appearance last year. Every curve and every muscle beams back at you with pinpoint precision, a 5'7'' powerhouse, a long journey from her early days from Wisconsin that would take her to the Denver area. She is amazed of how fast stardom in this art form can come to one, the lucky stick has hit her with galactic force. It was only as far back as 2004 where many in the bellydance world learned of her as a Rising Star on the inaugural volume of BD-TV. her ''Cat's Meow'' solo on Belly dance Rocks! (IAMED) has become a YouTube sensation still to this day, and will most likely (referring to the original clip aired) become the 1st bellydance clip to crack the 10,000,000 view plateau. Wow! :)
Sadie dances with feel as much as she does planned out mental prepping. She was always fascinated by the movement of the female body, from head-to-toe. In her teens and 20s, she spent many years as a swimnmer and a gymnast, her athletic frame and persona helps her to ontake a personal tenacity that has infected her dance partner, Kaya, and thousands of bellydancing hopefuls across the planet. Her 1st love, Turkish Oryantal, led her not just to dance it, but learn, study and understand it. She has one of the most dedicated learning demeanors of any bellydancer I have met or known. She dances and teaches with purpose. She has also learned to play the doumbek and has learned musical interests from Souhail Kaspar, one of the more popular musicians today. Music and dance goes together. Sadie makes them both come together.
Juat as with Kaya, Sadie is also well versed in Samba, Tahitian/Polynesian, Modern and fundamental origins of bellydance.She has a smile that enchants. She has hip and legwork that dazzles and disects the human eye. Her abdominals are solid mass of slow moving muscle yet in an instant can become a liquifying ripple of pleasure and hypnotic delight commanded by any note of music and rythyms that engages them. Her performance and instructional library has helped to redefine what to learn from a bellydancer in the prvacy of your home and your DVD player. Sadie has a way to make you take ntice of her. Focusing on her numerous isolations of any part of her body is a must. if you dare.
Both she and Kaya this past weekend made viewing flutters an art form of itself. Sadie's upper body isolations, with pops and locks are a workout itself. She even admitted that while she enjys the responses she gets from her videographies, she can't watch any of them, it doesn;t have the same feel. No problem, the mental power she can display, especially with improvisational dancing at any given moment, provides more thrills than a roller coaster and more pleasures than a Super Bowl. WAMEDA members proudly referred to Saturday night as ''The Greatest Show on Earth''...at least for one night, and Sadie didn't disappoint. She never has. She is dedicated to never disappointing, especially herself. Still to this day, just as last year, critical of improving her craft. Only fitting that the ''hot continent'' of the moment, Asia, is craving her presence, of which she'll grace later this year and in to 2010.
When is bellydance not bellydance, but still is? From the second Sadie enters a stage until she walks off of it. Sadie needs a challenge. She wants a challenge. She wants to push that envelope and any boundary still standing that makes room for a new experimental genre of the art form that betters its craft and widens its visions. Sadie will make you take the blinders off and stand in attention. She will take the dance form where it needs to go, not just embrace where it came from and where it is.
One of her greatest works was the ''Temptation of Bellydance'' DVD, held in Denver a couple of years back. She 1st offered many versions of herself, shedding her skin while retaining the powerful muscle control and divine sculpting of breath and proved that she will be one f the leaders of a new generation of Generation X bellydancers that will not do an injustice to the thusands of years all forms of Middle eastern and bellydance (and its many forms) has been in existence.
Sadie the young woman is a giddy and goofy behind the scenes as ever. She is on the ultimate ''Cloud 9''., as playful as a little girl. She wants to expand her horizons of what she's learned from her visits to Turkey and she's been almost everywhere...except Australia and Egypt, bellydance's homebase to so many. Her ime, as well with Kaya's, will come. (Kaya has been to India, where bellydance is sloely catching on.) She treats all of her sudents as if they are her 2nd sisters and parents, a 2nd family, an extended family. Only fitting for a woman who has entertained many families in the Denver area at the premier restaraunts and cafes. This is Sadie's world. And we are a constellation of stars that evolve and revolve around her physical dimensions, a universe of tranquil essence that still has many barriers to beat down and journeys to travel.
Every head slide. Every upper body isolation. Every roll and flutter. Every pop and lock. Every shimmy. Every maya and umi. Every gentl step and glide on her feet. Every move she makes, every breath she takes, a step advanced well beyond her age and years. She is a special woman. Sadie is a special bellydancer, with special skills and a special human being to match. And I and DC are so thankful.
Again. :D
BFJ 9/13/09.
www.sadiebellydancer.com
www.hollywoodmusiccenter.com
shop.bellydance.org
www.littleegypt.com -
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Re: Brandon's 2009 WAMEDA 30th Anniversary Hafla Blog :)
Tue, September 15, 2009 - 7:11 PMA round of applause and celebrations to those who had a chance to perform in a magical evening held at the hafla on Saturday night: (in performing order):
Kaya & Sadie, Tribe MiaNaja Amustela, Cyra Khurren, Ashaki, Bella Harpies, Candice, Dreamdancer, Frankee Sunshine, Raqs Divas, Kaya (solo).
Sadie (solo), M.O.D.E., Mansura, Nissa Elon, Pameyla, Tears of Aset, Positive Pat, Queen Zayla, Sitamun, Sadie & Kaya (samba finale).
Listed but did not dance: Rashid.
STANDOUTS FOR ME:
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*Kaya & Sadie's opening number, similar to that of the ''That's Hot'' DVD showed their sister-like trust in synchronization of each other's abilities like never before and got the night off to a perfect start.
*MiaNaja (MD) who wasn't there this year, was well represented by her students, showing a branching out into new groups (Tribe MiaNaja and Raqs Divas) joing M.O.D.E. to her award-winning resume'.
*Dreamdancer's love for Spanish/Flamenco fusion with the art form scored big again for a 2nd straight
hafla and was the ''Sleeper Hit'' of the night hands down.
*Mansura packed a punch with her dazzling blue/green attire and sultry slides across the stage.
*Pameyla had the itch of 007's ''Goldfinger'' for her solo piece and got the night off to an inspirational uplift by reading ''I Rise'', a poem by Maya Angelou.
*With a funky Latin/Afro-Cuban feel to the ears, Nissa Elon was channeling the Caribbean and beyond. She
had good reason, considering the efforts she put into the graphic designs for the hafla programs.
*Positive Pat expanded on her positivities by doing a nice tribal fusion number. It's strange not to see her with Isis Wings for a change. :)
*Sadie & Kaya's expansion of pushing the envelope wound up the night convincingly with a powerful samba number, inviting all to join them...including Sadie, who for the 2nd year in a row stared me down with that giddy grin and led me to dance with her in the center of the floor (BLUSH!).
*Kaya's solo 3-set to wrap up Act I left many folks speechless. Including me. Her isolations move in fast forward while everything seems to be going at normal pace. During the intermission, I was fumbling my words to her in my appreciation for what I saw, more than Jason Campbell did against the N.Y. Giants. :)~
(But, there's no bigger reward to hear a bellydancer say that a compliment from yourself means so much to her, and this was my 1st live show featuring the darling. She's not just a bellydancer, she's an entertainer, too. And, it shows).
*Never fails. Sadie's 2nd piece during her killer solo number was so hot....it knocked out the PC that had the listing of songs she was dancing to. (Shocker!) She gets better with each second on the dance floor. I can honestly said she put a hurting on the dance floor (and left her mark along with Kaya on those who took their weekend workshops). During the dealy and PC reboot, folks decided to clap along and helped show off James the Music Man did his best to hold down the fort all night long.Sadie's girly side to stay limber and active.. She physically communicated her appreciation for the entire weekend spent here in the area.
*Frankee Sunshine delighted painting the lighting with shades of blue and showing off her zill skills amongst a sea of happiness.
*Queen Zayla helped fan the flames in a fiery dan veiled piece, showing off magnificent curves as well. Only fitting, since she was seen grooving and shimmying with every dancer from her vantage post taking pics all night until it was time for her to strutt her own stuff. :)
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As expected, many of those who performed participated in a workshop, or seen and/or owned one of Sadie & Kaya's many DVDs. They did their best to emmulate and offer a version from their to incorporate in some manner this night and for fututre performances on their own, and did an excellent job. You could tell there was a surreal, laid-back and relaxed feeling in the atmosphere. If you get a chance to view this hafla in WAMEDA's soon-to-be updated digitized library (coming soon, hopefully before the end of the year), check out Kaya & Sadie's solo efforts and watch the attire they wore...and keep your jaws from crashing through the floor. The two are not just world-accrdited bellydancers, they are bellydancing atheletes--it takes tons of stamina, control, discipline and positive enrgies to keep up the paces they challenge each other to set with their personal schedules. They helped share in to a glimpse of humanity and a sisterhood, frming a bond that was made solid by Sadie and only reinforced by Kaya's added presence for three days on a September weekend. Hugs and embraces all around to the hafla staff and WAMEDA board, who looks forward to taking on the hard task of entering a 4th decade continuing the passions and traditions set before them the previous 3 decades, led by Cha L'Mar (Verna Thompson) and her husband, Jerry.
Back in 1992, when I 1st learned about WAMEDA after writing Miraj (PA) and ordering one of her videos, she informed me of their existence and attended an event that was held at Casablanca. I met them and shared my passions for this art form, which believe it or not, started at the age of 5 when I saw my 1st bellydancer on a cheesy late-night Saturday movie sitting with my late dad (which got a chuckle from Kaya when she asked how I 1st got involved).They were honestly kind and open, and thankful that one more person cared to learn and enjoy, a trait I appreciate to this very day, and their honorary membership induction for their lifetime achievements will never be lost on any current member or appreciator (like myself) or workshop students in this area.
As I walked out of the room and headed out (after getting a pic taken with the darlings of Denver), I had a chance to see the long caravan following them also wanting their pic taken with them. Their moment. Their inspiration. Their rememberance of visions of greatness. For a new generation of bellydancers, fans and WAMEDA members, a modern-day weekend tutorial on what bellydance can be and can be even better was delivered, with an A+ grade. Just like in many of their vids and DVDs, I looked back one last time to see them in embrace, smiling and posing like college teenagers on a vacation. A vacation called a career of destiny that has no end. I walked out of the hotel pumping my fist in the air, having realized somethng very special.
BFJ 9/15/09.
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