Shimmy Shake Festival Brochure by LiteSide

CELEBRATING URBAN FUSION BELLYDANCE

Friday 21 – Sunday 23 November 2014 Maaspodium, Rotterdam

Celebrating Urban Fusion Bellydance!

Many people ask – what is Fusion Bellydance? This festival will definitely provide you with answers to this question. It’s the most creative, surprising, new dance genre to appear on the scene. Originally invented in the USA this dance form has captured the imagination of a growing number of dancers and rapidly spread all over the world because it provides a new vision on femininity, a vision that incorporates sensuality and power. The Fusion choreographies are all very personal interpretations and expansions of the basic moves of oriental style dance to which the dancers bring their own dance background, personality and individual style. The mixes include jazz dance, ﬂamenco, street dance, ballet and more. The diversity and possibility for personal expression makes it so rich and fascinating. I am often asked how I got involved in this. As initiator and programmer of the LiteSide Festival I was exploring the inﬂuence of oriental traditions on contemporary and street culture, to discover which new artistic language was developing to express the reality of new times in big cities. Having become an Egyptophile I am there at least once a year and am aware of how important bellydance is at any occasion in the Turkish or Arab world. No celebration without a dancer! But the question was: what is the interpretation of this age-old tradition when it crosses over to the Western culture?

Therefore I started up a competition called Shimmy Shake, to see who was creating a new dance language with the basics of this dance.

A rare chance to dance with this beautiful and fascinating woman. There are many great workshops for all levels during the festival, from Burlesque, through Tribal Fusion, Popping and Locking to Buugengs! Even a Fantasy and Tribal make-up workshop. There are three wonderful shows including a Gala Show on Saturday night where all the international guests and top stars from Holland will perform. On Friday and Saturday we have after parties in the foyer, there is a market and bar and special lunch and dinner deals with STROOM Restaurant and Hotel close by. We are screening old Egyptian bellydance films, have an in-depth program about the birth and history of Fusion and its relationship to Bellydance and a photo exhibition of the ladies in action. A great weekend for Urban Fusion aficionados and total new comers to this genre!

In 2007 the first Shimmy Shake cross-over Bellydance Competition took place and was a big hit. This new dance form is a true expression of the urban society we live in, diverse and pluri-cultural. The response to the first event was overwhelming, prompting me to turn the Shimmy Shake cross-over Bellydance Competition into an annual event for amateurs and professionals. As the interest has continued to grow so has the concept, developing into a yearlong multi-layered Dance Development Program including coaching at all levels, workshops, master classes and the production of shows and tours. In reaction to the continuing enthusiasm, we organized a small pilot event to test the waters for a festival and it became very clear that it was the next thing we needed to do. Now in 2014 the first big international festival is here!!

Gail Pilgrim

Shimmy Shake Festival 2014 invites you to enter the world of Urban Fusion Bellydance in all its various forms, to watch, experience, join in and enjoy all that it offers. Try one of the free workshops by Kaouthar Darmonis who plunges you into Women’s Power with the Goddess Bellydance workshop or Dance the Widdershins with Deosil Scylla. Sharon Kihara from the USA, one of the top dancers from the Fusion world, will not only teach classes for the more advanced dancers but also a beginner’s workshop!

Known for her vision, enthusiasm and energy Gail Pilgrim, the initiator and Director of the LiteSide Foundation has started up many festivals and events during her career including the LiteSide Festival, Shimmy Shake Dance Development Program, Hammam Verhalen, Power to the Streets and LiteSide Schrijft! She was also initiator and director of the Culture Coalition Foundation where amongst other projects she started up the first breakdance competition – Spin off, now a national landmark in the hip hop world and produced “Rapido! – Shakespeare Goes Hip Hop” with Helmert Woudenberg en Felix de Rooy.

In the late 1980’s, the American Bellydance world was struck by the utherworldly beauty and power of a new form of dance emerging from a community of visionary artists in the San Francisco Bay Area. It all started with JAMILA SALIMPOUR, pioneer dancer and instructor of bellydance in America since 1949. She was the first one to codify a format of terminology in bellydance

In the 1970’s, former student of Jamila Salimpour,

MASCHA ARCHER, began teaching and directing her own troupe, San Francisco Classic Dance Company. Mascha blended together the diverse elements of Bal Anat into a single cohesive dance style. This approach was some of the earliest and most notable bellydance world fusion work in America.

CAROLENA NERICCIO, Mascha’s student, being young and tattooed, attracted other young people living alternative lifestyles. In 1987 she founded FatChanceBellyDance®. Carolena created a method of improvisational choreography, using a vocabulary of natural movements and cues allowing the dancers to communicate via gesture and eye contact when dancing together. She has registered their signature style as American Tribal Style Bellydance (ATS).

FatChangeBellyDance®

Mascha Archer still used today. Being a former circus performer she created a variety show for the outdoor Renaissance Pleasure Fair Festivals, with her legendary troupe Bal Anat, featuring tribal dances from North Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean. The show inspired a whole generation of American Bellydancers, giving way to the rise in popularity of the Tribal Bellydance genre.

JILL PARKER, an original member of FatChangeBellyDance速, is widely recognized as the mama of tribal fusion. She founded Ultra Gypsy in 1996 and simply called it Belly Dance Theatre. Ultra Gypsy began to scale down the tribal costume, expand the movement vocabulary, work with modern DJ mixed music and play with theatrical themes in their performances, fusing ATS technique with burlesque, cabaret, flamenco, and other forms of dance.

HEATHER STANTS

and Urban Tribal Dance Company early 2000, popularized an innovative style inspired by hip-hop, modern and interpretive dance, emphasizing flexibility and athleticism.

RACHEL BRICE

named and largely popularized Tribal Fusion. She was the first to fuse American Cabaret technique with American Tribal

Rachel Brice Style, and the first to perform as a soloist. Her approach to isolations and Yoga-infused dance training has crossed stylistic boundaries and expanded the number of Tribal Fusion enthusiasts worldwide. Tribal Fusion is a new art form with as many interpretations as there are artists performing. Continuing to create and expand upon this style, pushing the boundaries of bellydance with theatricality, musical choice, costuming and venue selection. Want to know more about the history of Fusion Bellydance, visit the presentation on Sunday 23 November at 14.00h with Maya Acid, Nadiya Natali and Arya Jansen. (Source: Flyer Tribal History by Maya Acid & Wikipedia)

SHARON KIHARA A seasoned performer, inspirational teacher and exotic personality, Sharon Kihara is known for her avant-garde sensibilities, as well as for her graceful and powerful technique. She has a background in western dance, beginning with Ballet and continued to perform with University Modern and Jazz dance companies throughout the nineties before deciding to pursue Tribal Fusion Bellydance. She served as Tribal Director of Bellydance Superstars for 6 years and currently tours the world as a lead soloist and choreographer of Bellydance Evolution. She has taught and performed in over 40 countries, danced for hundreds of celebrities and royals, has appeared in countless TV spots and music videos, and remains one of the most popular and unique dancers in the genre.

ANASMA A versatile and complete artist, performance arts dancer, Oriental Fusion master teacher, choreographer, singer and songwriter; Anasma is cofounder and co-director of the New York Theatrical Bellydance Conference, director of World Citizen Dance Inc. and World Citizen Dance School and co-founder of the International Urban Bellydance Collective. Her focus is to make dance meaningful and touching through storytelling, character development, truthful emotions and aesthetic powerful movement. Her peers recognize her for her wild creativity, great expressivity, constant risk taking and pushing the envelope. Seen in more than 35 countries, featured in many performance and instructional DVDs and albums, she currently tours Europe, North & South America and Asia to teach and perform in festivals, intensives and prestigious theatres. Currently she is getting her 200-hour RYT yoga teacher training.

MADAME ROMANOVA Has had a true passion for entertainment since she was a child. Over the years she has travelled around the globe, working as a dancer and performing various dance styles. Currently she resides in the Netherlands and focuses on what has fascinated her for years â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the classic Burlesque Show. She takes her audience to the glamorous 1950s â&#x20AC;&#x201C; the time of Pin-Up models, Las Vegas showgirls, Jazz, Blues and Rock & Roll. In 2012 she became "Vice Miss Burlesque Paris" and in 2014 she was the first Russian performer at Las Vegas "Burlesque Hall of Fame".

PINY ORCHIDACEAE A passionate, intense performer and a dedicated teacher with a special taste for challenges and breaking boundaries; Piny is a non-conventional performer always looking for new approaches and new understandings of movement. She completed a BA in Contemporary Dance & Creation, did her first bellydance class in 2000 but fell deeply in love with Hip-Hop. In 2006 she founded the female Hip-Hop crew ButterflieSoulflow. In 2009 she integrated the all styles Hip-Hop crew Jukebox Project, where they develop work around Popping, Locking, New Style and Breakdance. The passionate and relentless search for new approaches and new vocabularies, led her to travel on a national and international level to learn, listen and understand the different styles. Her main areas of work are Breakdance, House Dance, Lofting, Waacking, Contemporary Dance and Tribal Fusion Bellydance. In 2012 she founded Orchidaceae Urban Tribal where Hip-Hop meets Tribal Fusion Bellydance.

ESTHER NEDERPELT Started with classical and folk dance when she was 5, began jazz dance at the age of 12 and fell in love with this new way of moving. Followed by contemporary dance, street dance, hip-hop and Spanish dance. For years Esther has been working as a passionate dance teacher in modern and jazz dance. She teaches at Fontys Dansacademie in Tilburg and gives open courses, guest courses and workshops throughout the country. In the last few years she has specialized herself in observing, guiding and coaching dancers and teachers (in various styles of dance). Her style of dancing is inspired by the physical game between power and relaxation, a flow with a dynamic explosion of energy in which you give yourself the freedom to dance from your heart.

MARCO MENEZES A.K.A. OBELIXX Founder and instructor at Obelixx Popping Factory; Obelixx started as a B-boy, and has been dancing for 17 years. He explored his African roots with Kuduro dance and Kizomba and then fell in love with Popping. When he saw a lack of coaching and sharing knowledge from some older dancers, he took the initiative and started teaching. He now teaches more than 100 students spread over Belgium, Portugal, The Netherlands and UK. His goal is to create a platform between people who want to share knowledge and people who need it. At the same time he wants to help those people to grow as dancers from the inside and out.

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