belly dancer I saw was the sultry Miabella . I was sixteen and dying to learn how to belly dance ! I waited until she came out after her show and asked her about lessons . At that time she only taught out of that Greek restaurant in Dallas . My parents weren ’ t too keen on me taking belly dance lessons , let alone driving to Dallas by myself every week as a sixteen year-old girl . So that didn ’ t work out ...
But , as if fate had a hand in it , within a couple weeks of my belly dancing dreams coming to a halt , before that could even get started , my mother showed me an article in the local newspaper about a BELLY DANCE STUDIO that opened up about ten minutes away from our home . It turned out to be Isis ’ Star Dancer Studio and I would go on to be in the first graduating class from her new studio . arts , humanities , business , theater , media communications , dance and art . I finally chose to major in art with a focus on painting , drawing and photography . I would have minored in dance , but my university dropped their dance program in Jazz , Ballet , Tap , and Modern dance from the roster half-way through my studies . It was during my college years that I started to pursue belly dancing professionally . I approached restaurants , auditioned , and got the jobs . These restaurant jobs led to private events and before I knew it , I was performing seven to ten shows a week .
I always tell my students that if they want to get better fast , performing is the way to do it . Dancers usually improve exponentially when they start performing regularly as
Photo by Chris Brown
Tell us about your journey becoming a professional belly dancer ? Do you have other dance or performance experience that has helped shape you as a dancer ? e . g . ballet , yoga , musical instrument , singing …? My journey to becoming a professional belly dancer is probably similar to many others who start taking some classes , but never consider “ going pro .” It wasn ’ t until people started to tell me I was a good dancer that I thought about seeing where it could take me . From the very beginning of being involved with belly dance , I was eager to perform , and I took artistic initiatives . My very first performance was actually my high school talent show where I won third place ! I spent a lot of time at the studio studying DVDs in the studio library and meticulously practiced what I learned . Being at the studio was also an escape from a rough home life . I threw myself into belly dance and was totally consumed with it . At this time I was graduating from high school and getting ready for college . I admit that I didn ’ t have a lot of direction when it came to what I wanted to study and “ be ” after college . I floated around from major to major , but belly dance was always a constant .
In my undergraduate education at Texas Wesleyan University , I explored the liberal