Diary of a Born Dancer!

November is starting to get pretty booked. I'm already scheduled to dance at a school fall festival, a show in connection with a workshop and a show for an assisted living community. It doesn't seem like alot at first, but then you start thinking about all of the preparation: the costumes you're going to wear, the music your going to use, the time you have to schedule in for practice, etc. Before you know it, your time becomes precious, especially free time. What is free time anyway?

At the workshop, I get to bring back my Polynesian drum dancing. It was a request. I've been focusing alot on the West African and the Middle Eastern dance. It's what the people have been asking for, so those two styles are being performed more often. But I missed wearing a grass skirt and a coconut bra. I missed twirling my hips at unknown speeds. Shibar called me a "Water Gypsy" (Thanks for the compliment). That's very fitting, considering how far I've traveled and where I've lived in the pursuit of dance. I'll go through all of that some other time.

Oh yeah, I have to do a workshop for some girls on the 15th! Time is flying by!

Ok. So a bit of time has passed. Ok. Alot of time. I have been productive though and things have been moving right along. Cultured Pearl will probably be lauched in January. Sooner if I can help it, but no later than that. This diary will be moved to that domain.

Lately, I'm finding that I have to do alot of explaining when I tell people that I am a professional dancer. Most often, the first thing that comes in their head is "Stripper". Or they will ask me what it is that I do, and I'll say I'm a pro dancer and the next thing that they ask is "What kind of dancing do you do?" I went to purchase a few things from a beauty supply shop and the store owner kept asking me what I was buying the products for. So I said "costumes". She asked, "Costumes for what?" I said "Dancing". She apologized for prying too much into my business. I then explained to her that I'm not a stripper.

Is a dancer's image getting that misconstrued? If you're not a starving ballerina, then you are a sleazy, but profitable stripper?

Especially those of us that are not in ballet or modern dance companies. Say you are a ballerina and you might be put on a pedestal. Then what about those of us that do not do ballet or modern? Oriental or bellydancers, African dancers, folk dancers, etc. We're still professional and don't take off any clothes, but not taken as seriously. I don't believe we get the level of respect that we deserve for the hard work, and sacrifices that we put in to doing what we are most passionate about.

What are we dancers to do? I guess only one thing. Educate.