Belly Dance Life

Born in Berlin, Germany, Beata Cifuentes started dancing at the age of six. Already as a child she attended her weekly ballet lessons with great persistence. Her decision to interrupt medical studies, as well as an intensive three-year course at Berlin’s Academy for Performing Arts, led her to discover oriental dance. She was fascinated by Arabic music when she heard the legendary singer Um Kalthoum – this was the start of a life-long passion for oriental dancing. After serious research, studies and travels to the Middle East, Beata founded the first-of-its-kind school for oriental dance in Berlin. She currently co-directs the Dance Academy Cifuentes in Beelitz, performs and teaches internationally, and is an inspiration to dancers world-wide.

In this episode you will learn about:

- Teaching mistakes Beata did in the beginning of her career

- Transition from ballet to the belly dance world

- Incorporating ballet class structure into oriental dance

- The love story of Beata and Horacio

- Crazy situations of collaborating with various composers on music CDs

Show Notes to this episode:

Follow Beata Cifuentes via website, FB, YouTube and Instagram.

Follow Iana on Instagram, FB, and Youtube . Check out her online classes and intensives at the Iana Dance Club.

Find information on how you can support Ukraine and Ukrainian belly dancers HERE.

Podcast: www.ianadance.com/podcast

This is a special weekend series ‘Student Voices’ where I share my conversations with the members of the Iana Dance Club about life, dance and training. Some of participants are belly dance beginners, some are professionals, but all of us have one thing in common: we all remain being students of dance. :)

Enjoy this inspiring conversation with Wendy where she shares her belly dance transformations with us:

Belly Dance Transformations:

"I needed to exercise, but I couldn’t make myself going to gym on a regular basis. Dance on contrary is just something that is fun. Every time there is music on, I feel that I have to move."

"I’m naturally a very clumsy person, I’m usually covered in bruises because I keep bumping into things, so me being able to coordinate all these different movements together is a victory."

"I never thought I would be able to learn a choreography over just one month, because I have terrible memory. I’m so proud of myself now."

"When you learn a choreography, it’s nice to share it with the audience, but I’ve determined that it’s not something that I NEED in order to be happy."

"I’m enjoying just how I improve my movements, exploring the ability to learn things that I thought were too hard for me." _Wendy

Show Notes to this episode:

Find information on how you can support Ukraine and Ukrainian belly dancers HERE.

Check Wendy’s community page at the Iana Dance Club website.

Follow Iana on Instagram, FB, and Youtube . Check out her online classes and intensives at the Iana Dance Club.

Podcast: www.ianadance.com/podcast

Warda is a professional national and international award-winning bellydancer. She has traveled to Egypt over thirty times to research and train and has won awards by top Egyptian professionals for her dancing. Warda is the director of the Shahrazad Dance Company , and has written ‘The Origins and History of Bellydance’, along with Egyptian Professor Dr. Hassan Khalil. She is a mentor and teacher of a number of prize winning dancers.

In this episode you will learn about:

-  Traveling lifestyle as a part of military community

- Bringing innovation to dance

- The origins of the belly dance art form

- What is the proper name of our dance style

- The importance of critical thinking

Show Notes to this episode:

Follow Warda via website, FB, YouTube and Instagram. Her book ‘The Origins and History of Bellydance’ is available HERE.

Follow Iana on Instagram, FB, and Youtube . Check out her online classes and intensives at the Iana Dance Club.

Find information on how you can support Ukraine and Ukrainian belly dancers HERE.

Podcast: www.ianadance.com/podcast

This is a special weekend series ‘Student Voices’ where I share my conversations with the members of the Iana Dance Club about life, dance and training. Some of participants are belly dance beginners, some are professionals, but all of us have one thing in common: we all remain being students of dance. :)

Enjoy this inspiring conversation with Lilia where she shares her belly dance transformations with us:

"I’m battling perfectionism constantly."

"In my mind ‘professional’ means ‘perfect’ which is not true."

"I have several performances and competitions that I skipped because I though I wasn’t ready, that they would not be perfect. It’s a constant battle."

"Sometimes when you want it to be perfect, you do nothing, because you are afraid it won’t be perfect."

"I don’t even know what is ‘perfect’. That’s the irony of it."

"Now I’m trying to practice smarter rather than harder."

"Belly dance gives the freedom to express my feelings. It gives me storytelling techniques with the body." _Lilia

Show Notes to this episode:

Find information on how you can support Ukraine and Ukrainian belly dancers HERE.

Check Lilia’s community page at the Iana Dance Club website.

Follow Iana on Instagram, FB, and Youtube . Check out her online classes and intensives at the Iana Dance Club.

Podcast: www.ianadance.com/podcast

We often make grand plans but fail on showing up and performing them. Or sometimes we do show up but don't put 100% of our energy into the task. This relates to dance training too, especially if we are talking about practicing on your own. How to be more accountable and stop finding excuses of being too busy, or too tired, or simply postponing for later? 

Show Notes to this episode:

Find information on how you can support Ukraine and Ukrainian belly dancers HERE.

Follow Iana on Instagram, FB, and Youtube . Check out her online classes and intensives at the Iana Dance Club.

Podcast: www.ianadance.com/podcast

This is a special weekend series ‘Student Voices’ where I share my conversations with the members of the Iana Dance Club about life, dance and training. Some of participants are belly dance beginners, some are professionals, but all of us have one thing in common: we all remain being students of dance. :)

Enjoy this inspiring conversation with Tita where she shares her belly dance transformations with us:

‘’I feel that I’m growing, and it’s wonderful to be 59 and still experience the growth in your body."

"I started doing belly dance to help with my cognition, to feel more feminine on my body. I’m learning to be not just to be a worker, but to have individuality and to express myself."

"My training is changing with my body. Some days I just sit and watch videos, or listen to the music and mark moves in my head."

"I’m happy if dance just belongs to me [without showing it to anyone else]. But I like sharing and bringing joy to people too."

"What keeps people away from even trying to attend the class is that fear of feeling lost."_ Lina Marie

Show Notes to this episode:

Find information on how you can support Ukraine and Ukrainian belly dancers HERE.

Check Lina’s community page at the Iana Dance Club website.

Follow Iana on Instagram, FB, and Youtube . Check out her online classes and intensives at the Iana Dance Club.

Podcast: www.ianadance.com/podcast

Amar Lammar was born in Mexico City. Since a young age she showed interest in art, especially dance. At the age of six years old she began her studies of Polynesian dances followed by a short period of ballet together with Mexican folklore. At the age of 11 she got into Afro-Caribbean rhythms but finally discovered and pursued her studies of oriental dance at the age of 13. 

Her international career began in 2003 with her first contracts in India for the Sheraton hotel group. After this first successful contract, she expanded her career and performed in several countries including Bahrein, Syria, Lebanon, Tunis and the Netherlands. For 12 years she has resided in the UAE performing full time at some of the most prestigious hotels in Abu Dhabi and Dubai including Marriot, Millenium, Rotana, Burj Al Arab, Atlantis the Palm and Emirates Palace. Now based in South Africa, Amar continues dancing and improving. Her main goal is to teach Oriental Dance based on her experiences in the Middle East and the knowledge she acquired during all these years.

In this episode you will learn about:

-  Reasons why she quit daily shows in Dubai and moved to South Africa

- Connecting with dancers, client and students in a new country 

- Preparing classes for beginning students

- Teaching livestream classes vs prerecorded videos

- Motivation to practice without any performance goals

Show Notes to this episode:

Join me on livestream class this Thursday, May 12 at 3 pm Kyiv time to work on Turkish Romani dance technique. This workshop is part of the project Dance With Stars. You can contact Nataliya Goncharova to find out how you can participate. Find even more information on how you can support Ukraine and Ukrainian belly dancers HERE.

Follow Amar Lammar via website, FB, and Instagram.

Check out our previous episode with Amar Lammar here: Ep 18. Amar Lammar: Twelve Years of Performing Every Night in the Arab Emirates!

Follow Iana on Instagram, FB, and Youtube . Check out her online classes and intensives at the Iana Dance Club.

Podcast: www.ianadance.com/podcast

This is a special weekend series ‘Student Voices’ where I share my conversations with the members of the Iana Dance Club about life, dance and training. Some of participants are belly dance beginners, some are professionals, but all of us have one thing in common: we all remain being students of dance. :)

Enjoy this inspiring conversation with Tita where she shares her belly dance transformations with us:

Before:

- My body was stuck doing nothing my whole life. I had to learn to move every muscle, especially my hips.

- It’s difficult to follow the choreo with ‘rights’ and ‘lefts’.

- Finding my flow was very difficult. I’m good with capturing all accents in my mind, but my body isn’t, lol.

Now:

- Belly dance helped me to exercise consistently.

- It also inspired me to take care and move my body even more diving into other disciplines.

- My self-confidence improved. I found that I am beautiful.

‘These days I found a new way of enjoying dance. I’m not dancing for someone, but I’m dancing for myself.’

"Two girls started dancing because they saw my very first performance. That was so inspiring. Since then I think: Ok, I’m not perfect, but I CAN do it!"_ Tita

Show Notes to this episode:

Find information on how you can support Ukraine and Ukrainian belly dancers HERE.

Check Tita’s community page at the Iana Dance Club website.

Follow Iana on Instagram, FB, and Youtube . Check out her online classes and intensives at the Iana Dance Club.

Podcast: www.ianadance.com/podcast

Semsemah has created a unique, innovative and modern belly dance style and became one of the most famous dancers of her generation. She knew how to develop a modern style while preserving the Egyptian soul. Artistic director of the Sesame Association, she regularly organizes events related to oriental dance (tours to Cairo, shows, training, festivals). She hosts the annual show "Bent El Balad" bringing together her students and renowned artists such as Aladin El Kholy, Gamal Seif, Hind, Salma, Hakim, Taly, Kareem Gad, Zomzom. Semsemah also co-organized the Eshtah ya Eshta oriental dance festival with the renowned oriental dancer Taly, bringing together artists from France and Egypt (Wael Mansour and Mohamed Kazafy). Today, SEMSEMAH is regularly invited to dance and teach internationally (Italy, Venezuela, Ukraine, Russia, Mexico, Germany, Ireland, Spain, Russia, Switzerland, Serbia, Estonia and France).

In this episode you will learn about:

- Algerian culture and belly dance

- How Semsemah defines the term ‘professional dancer’

- Her learning process with Yousri Sharif

- Tips on how to develop individual style

- Teaching classes online vs in-person

Show Notes to this episode:

Check out Pedro’s photo book Ventre at www.pedrobonatto.com/ventre. Find even more information on how you can support Ukraine and Ukrainian belly dancers HERE.

Follow Semsemah via website, FB, YouTube and Instagram.

Follow Iana on Instagram, FB, and Youtube . Check out her online classes and intensives at the Iana Dance Club.

Podcast: www.ianadance.com/podcast

This is a special weekend series ‘Student Voices’ where I share my conversations with the members of the Iana Dance Club about life, dance and training. Some of participants are belly dance beginners, some are professionals, but all of us have one thing in common: we all remain being students of dance. :)

Enjoy this inspiring conversation with Aleesa where she shares her belly dance transformations with us:

‘’I used to think that belly dance was silly, but 20 years later belly dance is a huge part of my life.’’

‘’Dance provides a nice contrast [to my profession] where I can express my femininity, creativity. It also allows me to move, to connect with people all around the world.’’

During her 22 years of belly dance exploration, Aleesa has made a couple of breaks from dancing to question the authenticity of her love to dance, but every time she came back to it.

"For me belly dance is as much about community, as about dance and music itself.”_Aleesa

Show Notes to this episode:

Find information on how you can support Ukraine and Ukrainian belly dancers HERE.

Check Aleesa’s community page at the Iana Dance Club website.

Follow Iana on Instagram, FB, and Youtube . Check out her online classes and intensives at the Iana Dance Club.

Podcast: www.ianadance.com/podcast