Thread: Good veil clips?

Looking for examples of dancers who work well with veil, or use it creatively on stage. Interested in single veil, not double veil.

Thanks in advance!

Shems posted this a few months ago and I really love it. Most notable: her ability to recover from mix-ups without being flustered or awkward.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRc751UVu88"]YouTube - Shems veil belly dance to Istanbul Istanbul Olali by Sezen Aksu[/ame]

Also: Sonja. I love this one a lot, especially the way she disposes of the veil around about 2:15. This one won't embed.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zx2MxOVp1Rk"]YouTube - Sonya - Belly Dance - Desert Orchid - Chicago[/ame]

Bozenka:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2IDMm-pXyCE]YouTube - Bozenka (III parte) en argentina infoarabe[/ame]

Maia:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=acK_I589rhk&feature=related]YouTube - Maia Performs[/ame]

Ansuya:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtnteZZnOv4&feature=PlayList&p=F902DA6868E D6C8C&index=0]YouTube - DreamTyme Bellydance Presents: Ansuya Rathor on Maui[/ame]

Shoshanna:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZI6dS4eOOEg]YouTube - Shoshanna - By Dancers For Dancers Volume 2[/ame]

Originally Posted by veritate

Also: Sonja. I love this one a lot, especially the way she disposes of the veil around about 2:15. This one won't embed.

YouTube - Sonya - Belly Dance - Desert Orchid - Chicago

Yes, that was very clever, and worth the extra step of going to YouTube to watch it. I think the best part about Sonya's clip is that she is dancing with the veil, not letting the veil dance for her. Too many dancers lose sight of that and let the fabric do all the work. I know I am in the minority, but I find it absolutely boring to watch veil dancers who spend the whole song just flapping fabric around. It's certainly impressive to be able to do barrel turns for five whole minutes, but it's also as dull as watching paint dry after the first few rotations. If a veil choreography doesn't have any meat to it without the veil, then there's something wrong with it, IMHO.

Originally Posted by Tourbeau

Yes, that was very clever, and worth the extra step of going to YouTube to watch it. I think the best part about Sonya's clip is that she is dancing with the veil, not letting the veil dance for her. Too many dancers lose sight of that and let the fabric do all the work. I know I am in the minority, but I find it absolutely boring to watch veil dancers who spend the whole song just flapping fabric around. It's certainly impressive to be able to do barrel turns for five whole minutes, but it's also as dull as watching paint dry after the first few rotations. If a veil choreography doesn't have any meat to it without the veil, then there's something wrong with it, IMHO.

I. Totally. Agree.

Like woah.

I am quite impressed by constant spinning, but if that's all the performance is, it doesn't hold any re-watchability, if you know what I mean.

Sonya really uses it to hilight her dancing here; to emphasize a hip drop or pelvic tuck, for example. It's subtle and beautiful and magical in this piece.

I myself am working on a veil choreography (my first original piece) and I'm finding it to be a challenge because, as you say, I don't want to just come out, "flap the fabric around" and do the same old tricks. My focus on this piece is to actually hilight the music I have chosen, so I'm looking for examples of creative veil pieces, too. I have been watching these ones that I posted (and the ones posted after them), so I had them handy. I'm looking forward to any other examples that might be posted here.

veritate, mathkitty ... thanks for the clips!

I'm trying to work on my veil these days, trying to make it a "partner" rather than a "prop." Was really inspired by a workshop I took with Aszmara (Aszmara's Home Page) recently. I'm interested in seeing how dancers use the veil as a dynamic expression...more pause, less spin.

Interested in comments on what you like and don't like too. :-)

Originally Posted by arielarielariel

veritate, mathkitty ... thanks for the clips!

I'm trying to work on my veil these days, trying to make it a "partner" rather than a "prop." Was really inspired by a workshop I took with Aszmara (Aszmara's Home Page) recently. I'm interested in seeing how dancers use the veil as a dynamic expression...more pause, less spin.

Interested in comments on what you like and don't like too. :-)

That's it for me; a partner. An equal. A creature with spirit and emotion. Yes, it's fantasy and not really Raqs Sharki, which is typically my focus, but if I am watching a dancer with a veil, the romantic in me comes out and hopes to see a story play out.

I can't stand it when the dancer just stands there, facing the audience dead-on, and flicks her veil around. Just - a pole, flicking a veil around. Without any movement in the knees, chest, or feet. Without any expression, wonder or amazement at the beauty of this creature (anyone been to an Aziza workshop recently? BE AMAZED!). Or when she comes out in a flurry of flaps and fabric, then wads it up and ditches it by the orchestra. It's incredibly amateurish. And pointless.

Shoshana is good in the above clip for movement, expression and intent. She makes it look like it's no big deal to manage 4 yards of fabric.

Maybe I've been thinking a lot about intent, muse, and dance energy and it's what I'm focusing on, but the movements should have purpose - and not just "to show 'em what I can do". This is true for all dance, but especially for veil and props.

I like what veils can do in terms of emphasizing movements or body parts. Like a zoom lens on a movie camera. They can draw attention to your chest articulations, your hip movements or right up to your eyes, and audiences (especially GP audiences) love that. They can dramatically change your silhouette, bringing you from scantily clad sparkle to mysteriously wrapped woman.

They can also fill the dance space, making the dancer "larger than life", or sort of be a trail of light behind her as she travels or spins- like a comet or a faerie leaving dust. I guess in short, I like it when the veil becomes a special effect, rather than something the dancer is juggling.

I totally agree that you want to try and use the veil as a partner vs. a prop. Really make it an extension of your body. It boils down to finding the right balance between spinning and posing. You definitely don't want to not spin, since you want to use the length and width of the veil. I think a lot of it is experimenting, and not relying on lots of standard tricks. And use the length of the veil the way Sonja and Shoshanna do, it their videos (holding by the narrow end), wrap and unwrap to emphasize your movements. Do catch and releases, like Bozenka and Maia do holding the veil with one hand vs. two, that will spice things up a bit.

I also think if you want to avoid too much spinning and veil thrashing, pick slower, quieter music. I love doing slow veil, really changes the equation. The music you choose should dictate how much spinning and big flailing moves you can do.

One more thing...the type of veil will also dictate what you can do with it. Like how heavy it is, is it sheerness and its shape and size. These also factor into what you can/should do with your veil. Heavier veils, for example, don't spin as well, so you should look into spinning alternatives. It's always a pet peeve of mine if a dancer is using a heavy veil and doing lots of spins. It just doesn't look right.

Anyway, just spend a lot of time getting to know your veil(s).

Although some nice clips have been shared on this thread (thanks for including mine :-) many of my favorite dances done with veils really aren't on youtube. We should have a video party one of these days.

Aziza and Aszmara are two dancers who really rock the veil, but in different ways. There are several others as well, depending on the style and approach you want to take.

Seriously though, when are we getting together to play with silk?

Veritate --- Thanks for the article link, i hadn't read that one!

mathkitty --- Good comment on veil weights and spin. Agreed.

Shems -- yep, lots of my favorite veil pieces aren't online. Actually, I saw Kaeshi Chai do a really gorgeous veil piece at Rakkasah. what's your favorite Aziza veil vid?

and...silk party after xmas? I want to see the visionary art museum's new exhibit too. :-)

woo-wee silk partaeey!

My favorite Aziza veil clip is "So You Want to be a Bellydancer?" on Rockin' the Casbah. Hands down, it has a great sense of humor, style, grace and really well done veil work. Aziza has a veil DVD out too, but I don't have it and haven't seen it. It is probably worth a look:

[ame=http://www.amazon.com/Veil-Aziza-Belly-Dance-Instruction/dp/B000ERH7H8]Amazon.com: Veil with Aziza Belly Dance Instruction DVD: Movies & TV[/ame]



She does some nice veil moves that I lifted (I'm not denying it) on her performance DVD that Hollywood Music Center put out. I'm not super stoked about that dvd in general, it doesn't capture her usual energy that she has when she's dancing live, but it is a good reference for move stealing. ;-)

Originally Posted by shems

woo-wee silk partaeey!

My favorite Aziza veil clip is "So You Want to be a Bellydancer?" on Rockin' the Casbah. Hands down, it has a great sense of humor, style, grace and really well done veil work. Aziza has a veil DVD out too, but I don't have it and haven't seen it. It is probably worth a look:

Amazon.com: Veil with Aziza Belly Dance Instruction DVD: Movies & TV

I have this DVD, and it's pretty good. It's my favorite IAMED DVD. She goes over some basics and then some more complicated stuff like the helicopter,
Shabnam does it here at about 53 seconds in:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoXgvZ3f-qc]YouTube - Shabnam Bellydance[/ame]

Some of the things she teaches, like the helicopter are a little too "tricky" for me. But she definitly does go over some good basics and it is worth having.

I also recently got Shoshanna's Fabulous 4-Yard Veil DVD. It's cheaper and it's also worth it. She definitely teaches some different moves than you'll see on Aziza's video that can be adapted to shorter veils if you're not into over sized veils.

I've totally lifted moves from both Aziza and Shoshanna.

Originally Posted by mathkitty

...She definitely teaches some different moves than you'll see on Aziza's video that can be adapted to shorter veils if you're not into over sized veils.

:-) I'm 5'10'', with long arms. I LOVE gigantic veils. 3 yards is almost too short for my wingspan. Thanks for the recc!

I've got a great one for you. Check out Mariyah's veil at the beginning of this clip:

YouTube - Oriental dancer Mariyah - New York - bellydance

Thanks. I was looking for this too!

Originally Posted by shems

I've got a great one for you. Check out Mariyah's veil at the beginning of this clip:

YouTube - Oriental dancer Mariyah - New York - bellydance

Ok...wow. I really need to see her live. Next time I'm in NYC. And with Souren and Haig!!!!!!!!!!! AWESOME. :-)

we are similarly inspired..clips are being posted on THE REST forum as well :)

I have Aziza's veil DVD and I love it. She explains the steps so well and I could watch the performance at the end over and over again.

Originally Posted by jesennia

we are similarly inspired..clips are being posted on THE REST forum as well :)

Thanks for the tip!

Check out Vasha Hatal's YouTube clip from Rakassah 2007. The veil portion is short but really good!