Arts & Culture
Dancers of Shaharazad to perform Saturday
nmeye177@uwsp.edu
Belly dancing was first brought to the United States in 1893 when the dancer Little Egypt performed at the World’s Columbian Exposition, also known as The Chicago World’s Fair. The art caught on in America, especially in Hollywood, where filmmakers started making films showcasing the art. The Middle Eastern cultures where belly dancing originated would take notice and the influence of America would change the art forever. Stevens Point will get a taste of how far belly dancing has come this weekend.
The Dancers of Shaharazad, the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point belly-dancing club, will take the stage this weekend at the Festival of India for their first performance of the year. The group has been preparing every Wednesday night since classes began for their only fall performance. They will be performing two dances, each featuring a different style of dance.
“We are going to be doing a Bollywood dance and then we have a dance that has some aspects of the India Temple dance, “ said club President Wendy Hoffman.
The group draws influence from four types of dance: Arabic, American Tribal, Indian Temple dance and Indian Bollywood dance. The group draws influences from all of these to create individualistic expressions through dance.
“It’s an aerobic activity so that’s great. It gives people a chance to do some self expression. Anyone who wants to create dances is welcome to create dances, and it’s great for social interaction,” said Hoffman.
Each type of dance according to Hoffman, offers something distinctly different from the other types.
“Arabic involves shimmies, some specific steps and a lot of hip movement. The American tribal, it is similar to Arabic but there’s a lot more arm movement and it’s a lot slower and more controlled,” said Hoffman.
For anyone interested in trying this type of dance for the first time, the group has split up its meetings on Wednesday nights into two sections. The first section from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. is for newcomers to the art. Long time members of the group teach basic steps and dances to get beginners accustomed to moving their bodies the way they need to.
From 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. is the advanced portion of the meeting where experienced group members practice for performances and teach each other dances they’ve created. But the meetings aren’t all about work.
“It’s a group of people who get together, have some social interaction and really a lot of us just enjoy dancing,” said Hoffman.
Beyond performing, the group also works to dispel myths and stereotypes about belly dancing. Specifically there are three myths on the group’s Web site they’d like to put to rest. The first is that belly dancing and exotic dancing are the same thing, which according to their Web site is false; belly dancing has nothing to do with seduction.
The second myth is that men don’t belly dance. The group’s Web site has a link to a phenomenal male belly dancer and has also had male members in the past, disproving this myth.
“We had two guys last year, but they both graduated,” said Hoffman.
The third myth is the image of a harem being a naughty place to be. According to the Web site, Harems were actually safe places for women to be and protected them from male guests.
The group will continue its mission to dance and inform Saturday at 6 p.m. The group has other plans to perform again before their spring performance at the Cultural Festival.
“We’re looking at getting together with local girl scouts just to do a little performance and then we’ll teach them some basic moves,” said Hoffman.
For more information on the Dancers of Shaharazad visit, www.uwsp.edu/stuorg/dos.
