Bellydance & Baklava in Ohio
A Family Business Devoted to Great Food and Belly Dance for Over 40 Years!
by Elianae Stone
posted December 18, 2013
I had unexpected fun visiting the Desert Inn in Canton, Ohio, recently and enjoyed watching Sherena, the professional belly dancer, dance. The Desert Inn is a family operated business that opened in 1970, specializing in exceptional food with an Arabic flair in a comfortable atmosphere. The owner, Mark Shaheen, has been a fan of the art form of belly dance, and the Desert Inn has a long tradition of featuring live belly dancing at the restaurant every week. Mr. Shaheen, a kind, welcoming fellow, spoke to me briefly about the Desert Inn.
“We have the longest-running weekly belly dance show in Canton”, he mentioned, and pointed out that other notables in the business, like Tanya Papovich of Project Belly Dance fame, danced there. Sherena had a splendid start as a bellydancer, with her mother also being a professional dancer, and starting her early in restaurant entertainment. When I asked Sherena (who was on a brief hiatus between sets) how long she had danced there, I could not help but be impressed by her answer: 21 years! It says a lot for a business to have such loyalty to their talented dancers, and a lot about Sherena’s experience and tenacity in the art form.
“Dancing at the Desert Inn has brought so many experiences that have been valuable to my performing career!” said Sherena, “everything from interacting with customers, to how to handle costume or prop glitches, and also making beautiful memories with families who continue to return during the holidays, anniversaries , birthdays, etc.. I have been told that they have been continuing to attend my performances and have photos from each year from when I was twelve years old until now! Although stage performances and restaurant performances are two different ‘animals’, I will say that the weekly performing experience really helped my career to grow, and the memories I have made growing up with this unique restaurant are priceless!”
Indeed, many have captured pictures of Sherena performing as a young girl and still look forward to her shows every week. It is a rare treat to be able to see live shows on a weekly basis, and the Desert Inn has carried on this tradition in a beautiful way. Anyone stopping by the Canton area on a Friday night should come enjoy the ethnic atmosphere, tasty food, and live dancing!
Resources:
Have a comment? Use or comment section at the bottom of this page or Send us a letter!
Check the "Letters to the Editor" for other possible viewpoints!
Ready for more?
- 5-19-13 Ramzy’s Old and New
In conclusion, and personally being a purist with a lot of my Bellydance music, I like Hossam Ramzy’s “Best of the Best”; in my opinion, it’s hard to improve on that collection. However, I would recommend giving all of these albums a try, as they are all high-quality music. If you are a World-music fan, and love music that jams with a bit of rock thrown in, you’ll like “Rock the Tabla”! - 2-14-13 2 Instructional DVDs: Unprofessional or Homespun? “The Basics With Outi” & “Step-By-Step Bellydance”
The two DVDs that I received for review and comparison for Gilded Serpent were by a group and individual with whom I was unfamiliar. In fact, I had never heard of either one. Both had their strong points, but in my opinion, were fraught with significant problems also. - 5-16-12 Gypsy Flair Romani Party! 2 DVDs with Fun and Energy in Mind! Ansuya’s Istanbul Nights and Liz Strong’s Turkish Roman Dance
I reviewed two very pleasant, fun DVDs, Istanbul Nights by Ansuya, and Turkish Roman Dance with Elizabeth Strong. Both DVDs have much to offer, and are surprisingly different from each other in their interpretation of Romani Dance and teaching styles. - 4-4-12 Fire and Ice, Sugar and Spice! Mystic Moves With Ava Fleming and Hip-Notic Bellydance With Kaya
I have had the pleasure of reviewing two very good DVDs: Mystic Moves with Ava Fleming and Hip-Notic Bellydance with Kaya. Both dancers adhere to different styles of Cabaret or Oriental Bellydance, and I found their approaches both engaging and refreshing! - 11-16-11 Dance Combinations – Uneven, Misnamed Productions Still Worthwhile, “Cool Combos ‘a La Galit” and “Combin-Ography by Bahaia"
Through the process of comparing and contrasting these two DVDs, I learned that in our technical age, although there are many people out there that have knowledge that can and should be shared, production value really does count for something. - 12-15-13 Video Interview with Virginia of Miami, Part 5: What Happened to all the Arabic Clubs?
\ Why are there no Arab clubs to dance in anymore? Virginia talks about what happened to the clubs in Miami and what is happening currently in Cairo. - 12-5-13 In Search Of The Iraqi Kawleeya, Part 2: From Abu Dhabi to Sulimaniya to Stockholm
Throughout their travels in Iraq, El Kawliya incorporated and fused elements from various music and dance forms they encountered in the different areas of Iraq. - 11-20-13 Cairo Now, The Post Revolution Entertainment Scene in Egypt
As I watched the gorgeous rendition of the old folk tale “Ayoub wa Nassa” by the Opera’s Forsen el Shar’a Ensemble, I couldn’t help but think of how close Egypt came to going down a road where dance, secular literature and film may have become dinosaurs of the past. - 11-19-13 Tarazade Brings the Bellydance World to Istanbul, Tarazade 2013, Intercontinental Dance Festival
The five workshops I attended over four days were challenging and fun, which is what I had hoped. I love workshopping. It’s so much fun to dance to someone else’s rhythm and it’s hard to walk away not feeling inspired. - 11-17-13 Video Interview with Nathalie of Miami, Part 3: Auditioning with BDSS and Jillina
Part 3: In this segment she tells about her experience of working with the Bellydance Superstars and Jillina.
Sue
Dec 18, 2013 - 01:12:46
Sherena is the most beautiful and talented dancer in Northeast Ohio in my opinion. She is classy and her style is VERY exciting to watch. Her zills and powerful drum solos are AMAZING!