A little footage of me

[Yasmine Bint Al Nubia]

Yay for bellydance families!

I second that! But hey speaking for all maternal units out there, it's not easy raising kids and your husband too!:lol: Keep in mind we all had fun long before the kids were a twinkle in our eyes!

Starr, there are alot of husbands and conversely wives that support their spouses in Oriental Dance. My teacher's husband takes us everywhere for our gigs and chaperones us when we have private parties he just LOVES it. These spouses are a special breed because I suspect they would support any creative endeavor.

Yasmine

 

[Tarik Sultan]

I'm having a hard time with my dad now with bellydance. Sadly, last night, since it was sunday, my mmom and I watched a movie about Paul the Apostle. It was really good and stuff. My brother started watching it with us and suddenly the next scene was "bellydancing" but the girls butt cheeks were flapping everywhere and it was really bad. My brother got extremely angry at us that we didn't turn it off right away and that we said, oh it's bellydancing and started laughing before it got really really bad. So we turned off the tv but my brother was already stomping to his bedroom. So my dad talked to him and now he's convinced that walking out of my bedroom with a tank top on his bad!!!! (Heck, I wasn't going to expect that from a movie about the bible!!) So my brother said he's sick and tired of my bellydancinnd wants it to stop. i told everyone I'm not GIVING IT UP and I don't give the crap! Heck no! But now, Outside of my bedroom, i can't do anything, like a hip drop or a figure eight, with out police jumping down my throat. I'm really really really frustrated because I can't do anything. My dad told me that sure its folk dancing, whatever, but in america we havne't grown up around it, so because america is drenched in sex and what not, boys here have a hard time keeping their thoughts clean especially when you move sensually. I try to ask him about the tahitian and stuff. He loved it when my mom performed the hula in PUBLIC before they got married. I'm just one confused child, frustrated and ready to put some sense in their brains. UGH

What to do!! (I hope I don't sound like I'm complaining too much...) BTW Yasmine, you are da AWESOMEST person out there!!!

You have to stand your ground. Explain that they are going to see stuff like that in the media because it perpetuates the stereotype. 2000 yrs ago NO ONE would be dancing in a two piece costume. In fact the performance style we now know wasn't invented till the early 20th century. Neverthe less, you can do a lot to educate. explain that the Hula was also once stereotyped in the same way till the Hawaiian people themselves decided to reassert their culture and challenge the sterotype. Show them my Egyptian clips on youtube. I even have clips of little kids dancing socially as well as guys and a couple.

If I were you though, I would perform in gowns and dresses rather than two piece costumes. they can be just as glamerous and are in fact more in keeping with the cultural values of the region. Keep dancing., keep opening minds.