Outside of regular ongoing classes, Raq-On Dance hosts over a dozen public events and performances on an annual basis. Below is an overview of upcoming events
2019 Raq-On Dance Events
January 26th: Raq-On Hafla at the Main Street Museum 7pm
Join us for open mic style Belly Dance performances and open dancing by the Northeast Belly Dance Community! Lebanese Debke and line dances will be taught too! 100% family-friendly performances.
Tickets: $15 in advance online, $20 cash at the door (ticket sales go live Jan 1st and are first come, first serve).
January's show will also have vending by Amity with Belly Dance items from her trip to Egypt! Teachers and event producers please bring flyers for upcoming events!
Want to perform? This event is open to the Belly Dance community at large! Enter our spot raffle by emailing us *on* Saturday, December 15th by 2pm at raqondance@gmail.com after reading the details below. Folks will be selected randomly via a hat and announced here!
Performers must:
-be willing to help with advertising and selling show tickets to help cover costs of the event
-have had at least 1 year of formal belly dance classes (this is a safe space for first solos)
-use music and movement vocabulary from the MENAT region (Middle East, North African, Turkey, Greece, etc.) We will have 2 spots each show for comedy/fusion of multiple dance genres
-when submitting for a spot, please send us a short bio and photos for advertising
Save the date! Next one will be September 14th, 2019. Dancers in the audience who support the Jan event will get first dibs on spots for September.
SPECIAL TOPIC SUNDAYS 11AM-1PM $35 PER CLASS OR $210 FOR ALL 6 CLASSES (DROP INS WELCOME BUT PLEASE CHECK FOR AVAILABILITY)
January 20th: Intermediate/Advanced Technique and Combinations
March 17th: Elegant Arms and Hands
April 7th: Intermediate/Advanced Technique and Combinations
September 15th: Fan Veils and Strong Body Lines
October 20th: Intermediate/Advanced Technique and Combinations
December 8th: Amity Alize's 5 Part Routine Roulette
February 16th and 17th: Raq-On's Epic Weekend of History of Belly Dance and Folkloric Dance Extravaganza (2 spots left!)
14 Hours of Raq-on-ess!
Combining the History of Belly Dance and Folkloric Dance Intensives into one epic, fact-filled weekend! Part sit down presentation, part dancing!
Saturday:
10am to 1pm: Class
1-2pm: Lunch
2-6pm: More epic class
Optional: Sleepover and dance clips @ the studio
Sunday:
10am to 1pm: Class
1-2pm: Lunch
2-6pm: More epic class
Cost: $300. Limited to 10 participants. Email raqondance@gmail to register. Payment plans available.
April 27th: Aisha Ali Workshops!
Join us as international dancer and researcher Aisha Ali comes to VT for the very first time! Registration opens Jan 11th, 2019
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP
Saturday April 27, 2019
11:00AM-1:00PM Tunisian Shaabi
2:00-4:00PM Egyptian Ghawazi
4:30-5:30PM Persian Motreb
6:00 P.M Dinner
GHAWAZEE
• History of the dance
(Egypt)
• Sagat (Egyptian finger cymbal) technique
• Movement technique and styling – shimmies
• Interpreting the music through movement
• Description of traditional and modern costuming
TUNISIAN
• Rhythms and movement technique • Improvised dance session
• Costume description and demonstration
Persian
• Traditional Motrebi reng music and movements
• Interpreting the music through movement
• Story telling with mime
• Description of costume from Qajar period
Sunday
Private lesson spots available, please book by Jan 1st!
About Aisha:
https://aishaali.com/
Aisha Ali is an internationally recognized authority on the dances of Egypt and North Africa. Following her successes in the United States, she performed widely in Europe and the Middle East. For over twenty years she directed her own folkloric ensemble, the Aisha Ali Dance Company.
In 1971, Aisha traveled to the Middle East to observe firsthand many traditional styles of dance not seen in the United States. She made subsequent visits to Egypt, Algeria and Tunisia from 1973 to 1997 to document folkloric materials that were fast disappearing. As a result, she has released twelve audio and video recordings.
Aisha AliIn 1973, after performing as the featured soloist at the Municipal Theater in Sfax, Tunisia, the Maison de la Culture asked Aisha to form a local dance company. Later that year she stayed among the Ouled Naïl in Algeria, a tribe famous for its dancing women. Over the years she has frequently danced at celebrations in Upper Egypt with the Banat Mazin, a Nawar gypsy family of Ghawazee.
Aisha AliIn the United States, Aisha directed the North African performers for the Los Angeles Olympics opening festival in 1984 and was a featured soloist at the grand opening of the LA Festival in 1993. In New York, in 1994, the American Academy of Middle Eastern Dance inducted her into their Hall of Fame. In 2000, she was an honored speaker and soloist at the International Conference of Middle Eastern Dance at Orange Coast College, and was later featured in an Egyptian folk dance program at Cornell University.
For many years, Aisha contributed articles to Arabesque magazine, as well as Habibi and various Middle East dance journals. Other publications, include an article on the Ouled Naïl published by the International Institute for the Study of Islam, the section on Egypt for the JVC/Smithsonian “Anthology of World Music and Dance,” and articles on Algeria and the Ouled Naïl in the International Encyclopedia of Dance published by the Oxford University Press.
Aisha Ali In addition to teaching classes at her Los Angeles studio, Aisha gives lecture/demonstrations at universities and conducts workshops and master classes throughout the world. At present, in addition to teaching and performing, Aisha devotes time to oil painting and writing her memoirs, as well as an ongoing project to update her unpublished collection of music and films to the latest digital form.
June 1st: Raq-On Dance's Student Showcase
Doors open at 6:30, Show at 7:00 P.M.
Briggs Opera House, WRJ VT
Tickets $20 online in advance, $25 cash only at the door
September 14th: Raq-On Hafla at the Main Street Museum 7pm
Join us for open mic style Belly Dance performances and open dancing by the Northeast Belly Dance Community! Lebanese Debke and line dances will be taught too! 100% family-friendly performances.
Tickets: $15 in advance online, $20 cash at the door (ticket sales go live Jan 1st and are first come, first serve).
Want to perform? This event is open to the Belly Dance community at large! Enter our spot raffle by attending the event in January or y emailing us *on* Saturday, July15th by 2pm at raqondance@gmail.com after reading the details below. Folks will be selected randomly via a hat.
Performers must:
-be willing to help with advertising and selling show tickets to help cover costs of the event
-have had at least 1 year of formal belly dance classes (this is a safe space for first solos)
-use music and movement vocabulary from the MENAT region (Middle East, North African, Turkey, Greece, etc.) We will have 2 spots each show for comedy/fusion of multiple dance genres
-when submitting for a spot, please send us a short bio and photos for advertising
November 2nd & 3rd: 10th Annual Shimmyathon Festival and Showcase THE LIVE MUSIC EDITION
Click here for the festival page
