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Many are the times we have heard belly dancers bemoaning the fact that there are so few venues, especially paying ones, for our art form. They long to be professional dancers, and are understandably frustrated at the lack of opportunities afforded us for acceptable venues for performances.<\/p>\n
But, does the lack of venues keep dancers from being professional, or does being unprofessional create the lack of venues?<\/p>\n
In our last article<\/a>, we talked about cover-ups and lack of use among belly dancers.But there\u2019s more to being a professional than just covering up and there\u2019s more to being a professional than just having a steady paying gig. Being professional also means adhering to a code of conduct that puts a dancer above reproach, to having respect for one\u2019s self as well as the dance, to operate as an honest, reliable business person, and to respect other dancers and their gigs, just to mention a few. <\/p>\n For example: a few years back, a dancer from a local troupe was complaining about the way she had been treated at a nightclub. She and her fellow troupe members had performed at a workshop and afterwards decided it would be great fun to go clubbing in their costumes. So off they went to a local hotspot, and hit the dance floor for a fun night of dancing. At one point during the evening a \u201cgentleman\u201d started hitting on this dancer and making some rather un-gentlemanly comments about her being a belly dancer. Her retort? \u201cWhen I\u2019m wearing this costume, I\u2019m a professional and I expect to be treated like one\u201d. She was extremely upset at the way she had been treated.<\/p>\n But how exactly had she been treated? She was out in public, in a belly dance costume that the general public has some rather incorrect assumptions about at times, shaking her booty in a bar. What on earth was he to infer, seeing her dancing around wearing what he considered exotic garb? What opinion of belly dancers in general do you think were formed that night by patrons of that nightclub? Do you think, after seeing this behavior that they would be more or less likely to hire a belly dancer for their next event? AND, if they were inclined to hire one for their event, what do you think they would expect her behavior to be? It\u2019s an unfortunate reality that whenever any of us step out into the public eye as a belly dancer we are causing the public to form opinions of what belly dancing is like, and what belly dancers are \u2026for better or worse!<\/p>\n All the trappings of your costuming are considered to be your \u201ctools of the trade\u201d.<\/p>\n Just like a doctor and his stethoscope, the lawyer with his briefcase, or the carpenter with their tool belt, your costume is a needed item for you to fulfill your job. Would you want to go to the doctor who shows up in a bar in his surgical garb swinging his stethoscope around? Or trust a lawyer to represent you if he was balancing his briefcase on his head while shaking his booty? Or hire the carpenter in his overalls dancing in his tool belt? Would seeing them at a bar like this make them more or less professional in your eyes? You can\u2019t be upset at not being treated professionally by others, if you don\u2019t treat yourself that way. <\/p>\n Now granted, the above is kind of an extreme example, but when you are in your dance persona, are you conducting yourself in a manner that tells the world you respect yourself and the dance? Do you exhibit a courteous, conscientious and generally businesslike manner while representing yourself as a belly dancer? Do you support other dancers in your community, whether you personally like them or not? Do you refrain from engaging in gossip and innuendoes about other dancers? Do you honor your commitments no matter what? If you have a gig at a venue (restaurant or nightclub) do you support the establishment, even when you are not there? If you can\u2019t answer yes to all these questions, then you are not being professional.<\/p>\n Put yourself in the place of the general public and look at yourself through their eyes. What exactly do they see?<\/p>\n These types of behaviors are examples that we have personally seen. If you want people to think well of belly dancing and dancers, if you want more dance opportunities, then we all need to adhere to a code of conduct that paints us in the light of professional, courteous people who are a joy to hire. When dancers do not, then those who hire begin to regard all belly dancers as not worth the trouble. <\/p>\n When you cause your employer nothing but headaches, they begin to regard the whole thing as a lost cause and decide to hire NO DANCERS! <\/p>\n Several years ago, (we hesitate to tell you exactly how many) there used to be belly dancers at the Omaha Greek Festival<\/span>. Dancers from Lincoln and Omaha were invited to participate and it was a wonderful venue for everyone concerned. Without going into great detail, as the show was about to start, several dancers got into a verbal altercation. Unfortunately, it was within microphone range and was consequently heard by everyone including the band, audience, and sponsors. Long story short? That was the end of the festival hiring belly dancers and to this day the festival still will not consider doing so. The unprofessional behavior of a few led to the elimination for everyone of a wonderful opportunity to perform. <\/p>\n We all need to remember, that our own behavior impacts not only ourselves but every other dancer! <\/p>\n If one dancer acts in an unprofessional manner, then their actions affect all other dancers. The public may not remember exactly which dancer they saw in a bar dancing in their costume, but they will absolutely relate the story to others. And the next time someone sees a performance, there probably will be somebody in the audience wondering if the dancer on stage is the one they heard about. Or they will have an event coming up and perhaps consider hiring a dancer\u2026 then they will remember the story related to them and decide that perhaps a belly dancer isn\u2019t going to be the right type of entertainment after all. <\/p>\n Here\u2019s another example: a few years ago, we had the opportunity to attend a nearby ethnic festival and see some of the other dancers from that area. While watching a completely new and unknown (to us) belly dance group perform, a local American Tribal Style troupe showed up and joined us. They were rather upset with the group that was performing because some of what this group was doing was not exactly tasteful, not only in their dance, but in their costuming and behavior. Many in the community had never seen belly dance before, and after having seen this group, SWORE to never hire another group again. The ATS troupe had missed out on several dance opportunities because of the behavior of another group, and no amount of effort on their part to ensure that they were tasteful professionals did them any good. <\/p>\n Sadly, the public paints all dancers with the same brush and bad news travels fast. We owe it not just to ourselves, but to our fellow sisters in dance to behave in a professional manner. Treat and respect everyone (dancers, band members, public, etc) the way you would like to be treated and respected. This, fellow dancers, is the Golden Rule in action! <\/p>\n We\u2019ve seen dancers show up at other dancer\u2019s gigs (and that includes nightclubs and restaurants) in full costume with boom boxes. We\u2019ve seen dancers play their zills in the audience while another dancer is performing on stage. We\u2019ve seen dancers in costume walk across a performing area in FRONT of the audience while another troupe was performing. And we\u2019ve seen dancers handing out flyers for their own group while another group was on stage. Now, ask yourselves this question. Were ANY of these dancers being professional and supporting other dancers, or were they merely looking for attention and behaving amateurishly? <\/p>\n As for the business side of what we do? Once you have committed to a performance, then you do it. PERIOD<\/strong>. There is nothing more unprofessional than backing out of a commitment, unless you are sick, dead or dying. And if you are sick, dead or dying, then you\u2019d better have found a replacement! It doesn\u2019t matter if your heart isn\u2019t in the performance on that particular day or your mother reads your horoscope and advises you it\u2019s not a good day to perform\u2026 you do it. It doesn\u2019t matter if your boyfriend or husband or significant other has come up with wonderful plans for the two of you\u2026 you do it. It doesn\u2019t matter if the weather is too hot or cold or rainy or windy\u2026 you do it. AND you do it well! You don\u2019t show up and give a half hearted performance or whine and complain, because if you do, in all likely hood not only won\u2019t you be hired back, but you may just jinx the job for any future dancers. <\/p>\n A commitment once given is honored. <\/p>\n Unfortunately there is no universal standard for professionalism, so we have to rely on our own common sense. Bottom line? Very simple. If you want to be treated as a professional, then you have to not just act like a professional, but BE<\/strong> a professional in everything that you do. It\u2019s more than your outward appearance; it\u2019s how you conduct yourself both on and off stage, it\u2019s how you present the dance and it\u2019s how you treat your sisters in dance. Remember, in this day and age of the computer and the Internet, the whole world is watching! <\/p>\n Coming soon– Part II \u2013 Practical Guidelines for Dancers: \u201cThe Do\u2019s and Don\u2019ts for being Professional\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n Have a comment? Use or comment section at the bottom of this page or Send us a letter!<\/a> Ready for more?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/p>\n\n
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