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Gilded
Serpent presents...
Carl's
Raqs LA Photos
Best from the Stage on the Lower Level
Glendale Civic Auditorium, California
produced
by Miles Copeland and
organized by Marta Schill
May 17-18, 2008
Photos by Carl Sermon
text
by Carl Sermon, Ma*Shuqa and Marta Schill
As always
we would love help with names, thanks
Marta
Schill- Organizer:
The first year of Bellydance Raqs L.A. broke new ground with
its unique approach to a Bellydance festival. More opportunities
were presented to take class with more legends of the dance than
ever before in Southern California.There were hour-long sets with six live bands over the two-day
event, providing Egyptian, Turkish, Gypsy Rom, Fusion and Arabic
styles for the dancers and viewers delight.
Additionally, because performers came from around the world
to audition for the Bellydance Superstars, most also performed
on the Open Stage during the festival, and elevated the entertainment
to a spectacular level.
The Saturday evening show featured performances by the stellar
instructors: Morocco, Helena
Vlahos, Bozenka as well as the Bellydance
Superstars at their best. Additionally, the recording band Milli
Collective finished the show with dance music for late-night
partying aficionados.
Raqs L.A.
will continue presenting the finest in Bellydance music and
dance with our 2nd annual festival on April 25 and
26, 2009 at the gorgeous Glendale Civic Auditorium.
Carl Sermon Photographer:
This
year, I photographed the lower level stage at Raqs LA, enjoying
the wonderful weekend of performances
that felt like
a "party in a palace". The stage was draped in a
burgundy/gold/green curtain that made it seem dancers were
performing on a vintage
set from a Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. movie.
It was a mixture of dancers, some experiencing
their first stage performance and some professional dancers,
all who spontaneously "Raq’ed" out
with live bands and their excellent music. Many times, special
moments in performance happened when professionals and beginners
alike jumped on stage or danced in the aisles to the singing
and percussion of the well-known Gamal Gomaa and his band.
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Click photo for enlargement
Kamar dancing with the Feldthouse
Family Band |
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Suleyman |
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David (Davul) |
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Bryan Venton |
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Ryan |
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David (playing cumbus) and
Bryan. |
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Suleyman and Ryan with Dusty
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Jessica |
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Frank Farinaro |
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Celeste |
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Annabella |
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Band Taxsim |
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Artemis Strimenost |
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Shoshanna |
Mystery Dancer #7 |
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Valentina |
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Marzue
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Claudia Lopez |
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Estrella Ellison |
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DeVilla
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Gamal Gomaa Band |
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Jayna dances with more mystery dancers |
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Narayana |
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Jody Waseca |
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Julia |
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La Shonda |
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Michelle
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Saeeda |
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Mina |
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? of Middle Earth |
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Shirin |
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Shalimar and Jessenia |
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Steven Eggers and Sabrina Fox |
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Celeste |
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Nasila |
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Nocturra |
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Miriam |
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Shahira |
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Tracy Farmer |
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Viridiana and Roxanna |
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Ziva
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Unknown performers |
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Mystery Dancer #1 |
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Mystery Dancer #3 |
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Mystery Dancer #4 |
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Melissa Billings of Phoenix, Arizona (Thanks Helena!) |
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Casuals |
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Ernesto |
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Angelika |
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Have
a comment? Send us a
letter!
Check the "Letters to the Editor" for
other possible viewpoints!
Ready
for more?
5-9-08 Carl
Sermon's Photos from the Hoover Hafla
Event
produced by The San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of MECDA on February
10, 2008, at Hoover Theatre in San Jose, CA
3-17-08 Photos
from Carnival of Stars 2007- A-Z Page 3 Casual photos by
Carl Sermon, Duane Stevens, John Kalb, Murat Bayhan,
and Lynette Harris
Novemenber
10 & 11, 2007, produced by Alexandria and Latifa Centennial
Hall in Hayward, California
2-14-08 Photos
from Carnival of Stars 2007- A-Z Page 2- L through
Z photos by Carl Sermon, Duane Stevens, John Kalb,
Murat Bayhan, Christopher Erickson, Lynette Harris
Novemenber
10 & 11, 2007, produced by Alexandria and Latifa Centennial
Hall in Hayward, California
2-11-08 Photos
from Carnival of Stars 2007- A-Z Page 1- A through
K photos by Carl Sermon, Duane Stevens, John Kalb,
Murat Bayhan, and Lynette Harris
Novemenber
10 & 11, 2007, produced by Alexandria and Latifa Centennial
Hall in Hayward, California
6-10-07 MECDA’s
First 30 Years , The Middle Eastern Culture and Dance Association's
Changing Role in our Community by Marta Schill Kouzouyan
Diversity,
however, often leads to dissention, and controversy flew regarding
the perception of the rather strict parameters of the Egyptian style.
7-18-05 Cairo
Carnival 2005 Page 1 June
11-12, 2005, Glendale,
California photos
by Lynette
Please
help us identify faces. Thanks!
9-1-08 The
Broken Vessel by Paola
We,
too, must believe in our movements, believe in their purpose and
message, and we must deploy them with the array of human faculties
that begin to evolve when the Art of the Dance is taken up.
8-29-08 The
Hippie Connection: Robert Altman’s 1969 In Utero
Belly Dance Portrait of ME by Melina of Daughters
of Rhea
There
it was, the second of a series of black and white hippy portraits
--people raving, a woman blissfully breastfeeding, couples hugging,
dogs leaping –THE SEMINAL PHOTO OF MY LIFE –only, I
was cut out!
8-16-08 Randa
Kamal by Yasmina of Cairo
"Then
the film roles that I've been offered have unfortunately been frivolous,
or portrayed the dancer in the stereotypical way they always do.
The cinema has done enough to spoil the reputation of dancers,
without me adding to it by taking such a role."
8-16-08 Dina:
April 2008 by Catherine Barros
It
was a late night as usual as we didn't even go out until midnight
to have dinner and watch Dina at around 3am . . . but who was watching
the time . . . It is CAIRO!
8-4-08 My
Winning Experience at Leyla Jouvana and Roland's 1st
Bellydancer of the World Contest by Khalida
Author
is winner of the 1st place in the Solo Raks Sharki and 3rd Place
in the Solo - Fusion Fantasy Categories
8-1-08 Fantasy
Bellydance, A New & Ancient Reality by Jehan
This
trend has been growing steadily since I can remember, but caught
fire recently, due to the instantaneous broadcasting of ideas and
styles on the worldwide web and the proliferation and availability
of video for this generation of dancers. |
