The Belly Dance Chronicles July/August/September 2017 Volume 15, Issue 3 | Page 41

~ EVENT REVIEW ~ “The Art of Dance is the Art of Courage” i A review of Virginia Mendez’ 2016 Theatrical Production, In Four Acts, “REFLECTIONS” By Jihan Jamal - Photos by Bradley Marshall and Denise J. Marino Dance is a courageous undertaking, made possible and bearable due to our personal hunger for creative expression, our dedication to allowing our dreams and goals to manifest, and our love and devotion, both to our art and to ourselves. On a deeper level, it is the desire to be fulfilled and to discover our divine nature. It takes great courage and determination to be a dancer, (or anything we desire to be in life), and it takes great love and discipline to resist every temptation that may distract us from our personal path; ours, because we have chosen it, and so we must be faithful to it and never relinquish our hold on our personal joy and destiny. Whatever our personal desire is, we must follow our heart (and our gut) with courage! We begin to focus on our dreams and goals with determination and perseverance, concentrating on the journey, not merely the destination, while cherishing every dream close to our hearts, for each desire is not to be ignored, as they originate from a higher- self, and have a special destiny to be fulfilled, and a clear legacy to be etched in history; our dance history. Virginia - Inta Omri July 2017  The Belly Dance Chronicles 41