Thread: So what are you/we going to do about it?

The other thread "when is it no longer bellydance?" got me thinking - there's a lot of complaining about the issues (which great zeal), but what is being done to correct them? We can identify trends, and a pattern of reactions - and then what? Step one is identify the problem, Step two is find a solution, and Step three is make it so. (Otherwise, it's just like bitching about air pollution while chatting in your running 5mpg SUV with the windows down and AC running while using aquanet.)

Let's look at who's doing fusion
-educated dancers who know what they're doing and expertly fuse their elements and accurately properly promote what they're doing, and are conscious of where they're performing it.
-not-so-educated dancers who fuse willy-nilly and are not so good at labeling what they're doing accurately, and perform without consideration of education for the audience.
-a little of both of the above blended.

The first group - it's important to keep in mind that generally, most successful fusion artists are also successful traditionally-based artists as well. They may perform fusion mainly, or from time to time as part of their greater collection of work.

I believe if you polled the second group, you would mainly find dancers who have been dancing for less than 5 years. More likely 1-3 years. Maybe I'm the eternal optimist, but I believe that dancers in this group will outgrow this phase and work to becoming part of the first group. Seriously, how many of you never did something rather silly/stupid when you were starting out, thought it was the coolest thing ever, and now grimace at the thought of it? And it doesn't even have to be fusion! That's part of the learning experience.

The third is a mix-and-match - perhaps experienced teachers having some fun, leading inexperienced students through a fusion piece, and the students don't necessarily get things straight - or perhaps the teacher doesn't know as much, or learns the wrong information. Or it could be a very experienced troupe/performer who is inspired to dabble, and thinks nothing of a change of costume is all the difference needed. ("Oh, that goth fusion is easy! Just add more eyeliner and dance to spooky music!")

Personally, I believe that those inexperienced dancers who truly love the dance, and stay with it, will be inspired to learn more about the history - and it's up to the elders to be willing to impart their knowledge, as well as the mid-range dancers to act as a bridge between the two. If there's such animosity and disdain ("they're ruining our dance!" and "they won't let us be creative!"), it's hard to get that flow of education and communication going.

We also have to face reality and say, some people are just morons, and no matter what you try to show them, they'll make a mess out of anything they do.

So, what do you all think? What are you going to do to insure the history of bellydance and it's future?

Originally Posted by rosehips

I believe if you polled the second group, you would mainly find dancers who have been dancing for less than 5 years. More likely 1-3 years. Maybe I'm the eternal optimist, but I believe that dancers in this group will outgrow this phase and work to becoming part of the first group. Seriously, how many of you never did something rather silly/stupid when you were starting out, thought it was the coolest thing ever, and now grimace at the thought of it?

I would like to believe this too, but this has not been my observation in my own community. There are dancers here who started out around the same time I did and who are still plugging away at the same ill-conceived, ill-informed fusion. I totally agree that we all make stupid mistakes in our early years of dancing, but I don't see everyone learning from those mistakes.

I also feel that, at least in my area, the problems created by willy-nilly fusion go hand-in-hand with and are often created and/or exacerbated by the tendency for students to "go pro" without adequate training and preparation.

I think the "instant dancer" mentality that is endemic in our dance communities is the source of most of what is wrong with belly dance today. Unfortunately, because belly dance has been put forth as something "everyone can do," now it really IS something everyone can do...BADLY.

I feel like there needs to be a paradigm shift in dance communities wherein it is generally recognized that this IS a serious dance form that demands hard work, study, and commitment from those who wish to do more than take a once-a-week class and perform at recitals and haflas. I also wish professional dancers would aspire for something more than a once a week gig at Joe's Falafel Hut.

We also have to face reality and say, some people are just morons, and no matter what you try to show them, they'll make a mess out of anything they do.

True!

I would like to believe that education is the answer. But you can lead a horse to water...

I dunno. This is an interesting thread and I'm looking forward to reading all the responses.

Being a babybelly myself I'm curious to see what is said here.

Originally Posted by rosehips

What are you going to do to insure the history of bellydance and it's future?

For a start, there's my blog (link in .sig), which talks a LOT about these issues. Less now than before, but we'll see about ramping back up.

For another, I'm going to try to write more articles, overall. I've been slacking hard in that area...

Third, I talk about it on the 'Net. I worked on, and keep an eye on, the wikipedia article on Belly Dance -- a big source of "starter info" on the 'Net itself. I'm also working on an Raqs Sharqi for Google Knol, a Wikipedia-like space.

But I have to say -- there were tons of uneducated dancers in the "Big Boom" of the 70's, from what I've read and heard of the era. Some survived, and most who did got smart, fast. Although I think part of the drop-off is due to that lack of education, I also think this is how it goes; the more people in a diffuse group, the harder it is to apply norms. Ballet, to contrast, has a strong hierarchy, and can apply the norms you're speaking of much more easily, but with a loss of flexibility for the art form.

I am trying to to contribute by defining and clarifying. So in that spirit:

Originally Posted by rosehips

("Oh, that goth fusion is easy! Just add more eyeliner and dance to spooky music!")

Does "goth" refer to a culture or a dance style in this context? Is gothic belly dance a fusion of a gothic dance style and middle eastern dance style, or is it a/n (in)fusion of gothic aesthetic (of costume or movement) and middle eastern dance?

I'm familiar with gothic culture in the US, and I have friends who refer to gothic dance. Is that a style or a mood?

Sorry to stray a little from the topic, the quote just sort of brought that up for me.

Originally Posted by LeylaFahada

I am trying to to contribute by defining and clarifying. So in that spirit:



Does "goth" refer to a culture or a dance style in this context? Is gothic belly dance a fusion of a gothic dance style and middle eastern dance style, or is it a/n (in)fusion of gothic aesthetic (of costume or movement) and middle eastern dance?

I'm familiar with gothic culture in the US, and I have friends who refer to gothic dance. Is that a style or a mood?

Sorry to stray a little from the topic, the quote just sort of brought that up for me.

Hi Leyla! No problem, I'm referring to Gothic Bellydance (as in The Gothic Belly Dance Resource - where you can read in-depth on it) which fuses aspects of the Gothic subculture (aesthetic, club movement, theatrics, music (which already has a lot MED influences)) with MED (movements, music, costuming, musicality (how movements are interpreted through the music, etc). It can based off of a cabaret or tribal base. The common misconception is that all you have to do is add fishnets and heavy eyeliner or wear a black bedlah while dancing to Bauhaus - but it's a far more intricate application of fusion involving stylized movements, cohesion of movements with music and costuming, and a theatrical foundation. (in a nutshell).

Originally Posted by KelsNasim

Being a babybelly myself I'm curious to see what is said here.

Actually, since you're a student, I'd love to hear YOUR perspective on what you wish "the elders" would do. What courses of action would alienate you? What courses of action would inspire/influence you?

Originally Posted by asim1

For another, I'm going to try to write more articles, overall. I've been slacking hard in that area...

I too have been thinking about whether there is something I could do with article-writing that would be positive action. For example, maybe modifying my "styles of belly dance in the US" series of articles to add tribal fusion, and weave in some editorial comments there, as well as writing one or more new articles.

Must think about it further.

Something I already do on my own small local scale is to use strictly Middle Eastern music when I teach my classes, and teach my students how to dance to that music.

It always amazes me how many teachers DON'T use Middle Eastern music for their beginner classes, even if those teachers claim to teach and perform "Middle Eastern dance". I've heard people say that they wait until the intermediate level to use Middle Eastern music, because they're afraid their beginners aren't capable of "getting it" at the beginner level. To that, I say, "Horsefeathers!" Although I wouldn't use an intricately-arranged version of full-length Alf Leyla in a beginner class, I've had quite a bit of success using the simpler arrangements from Mary Ellen Donald's Gems of the Middle East at the beginner level.

Asim said"But I have to say -- there were tons of uneducated dancers in the "Big Boom" of the 70's, from what I've read and heard of the era. Some survived, and most who did got smart, fast."

If you look at interviews from Morroco and other dancers from the 60s & 70s, they may not have had much dance education, but they had live music. They were often educated by the musicians as to the music itself and the expected movements. Many seem to have spent time in the clubs playing tambourine or zills with the band between dance sets.

Originally Posted by *Shira*

Actually, since you're a student, I'd love to hear YOUR perspective on what you wish "the elders" would do. What courses of action would alienate you? What courses of action would inspire/influence you?

Hi, Shira..g.: Personally, it seems like it's fairly easy to find general info on different styles but difficult to find more. If there are few teachers in your area how do you find out more about a specific style? Workshops are great but there's only enough time to give an introduction to something new. So what's a newcomer to any style to do? You don't want to watch one video and say "now I do (insert style here) dance."

I like your site and all the info there but I've had a hard time finding "good" (reliable, indepth) sources on history, styles, etc. I have asked someone in my area that seems to have more experience but I think she forgot. Actually, that's part of why I joined bhuz. I was hoping to become more educated. I guess, to answer your question, it would alienate me for people to assume that because I don't know I haven't tried to learn.

catwomyn is right -- the "Big Boom" dancers I have met or corresponded with ALL have a deep connection with the music that I don't see in a lot of modern "fusion" dancers.

But I've been in this scene longer than 5 years, and I can assure you that the fusionistas I've met have not only NOT "outgrown" fusion, they more than likely have embraced it more fully, shunning the "ethnic" forms as too static and unchanging for these times.

Part of me thinks it's the accessibility of (and I'm not blaming or flaming Tribal Fusion so don't get mad) the so-called "Tribal Fusion" dvds and Tribal Fusion instructors that drives this fusion-frenzy. Let's face it, Rachel Brice is a SWEET person! She's cool to be around. Who wouldn't want to hang with her?

But what she's selling is so vaporous and boundary-less -- it defies description. What the heck IS Tribal Fusion, ya know? How do you define it? What is it exactly a fusion OF? Two OTHER fusions? Trying to describe it leads the unknowing student to think ALL belly dance is just some fusion, and so why not just WALLOW in your fusion and work to create even MORE fusion and fuse even newer and weirder things... (sarcasm.)


What am I planning on doing about it? Just being as honest as I can with my students, and introducing them to Middle Eastern music from day one. I also try to show them the folk roots of the steps and dances we do, and show them video of people in situ dancing those same folk dances, hoping it sinks in.

My strategy is to lead by example.

- I only use ME music in my classes

- I wax poetic, even if it's only a passing comment, about the beauty of ME music and it's vital connection to the dance

- My student troupe only dances to ME music

- I encourage my students to go to events where there is a great deal of traditional BD featured, and promote the events in my class

- I personally choose to only do fusion or dance to non-ME music at events where "out-of-the-box" or "theme" performances are specifically requested

- I strongly discourage any of my students from performing to anything but ME music until they have at least a few traditional performances under their belts

- When I'm complimented on performances, I try to respond with my own comments about the music I danced to, rather than about my technique ("Thank you so much! It's hard not to have a good time dancing to Fatme Serhan, and that song is one of my favorites!)

-I never hesitate to remind my students that this is a dance from outside of our own culture, and as a result, it deserves respect and thoughtful consideration

I tend to think that people are more influenced by "little" things mentioned consistently over a period of time, rather than orations from soapboxes.

I was happy to discover the other day that this site: Belly Dance Home Page (Oriental Dance) - is still up. It's essentially archives from the MED-Dance list and other resources. As a baby dancer, I must have used a ream of paper printing out articles from this site to reference (to the bane of my first teacher, who pretty much espoused many myths of BD, and me in my eagerness going "but look what they say here!")

Also printed out for reference was Kajira's interviews with many great names in BD - found near the bottom of this page: BlackSheepBellyDance Writings

Originally Posted by rosehips

Hi Leyla! No problem, I'm referring to Gothic Bellydance (as in The Gothic Belly Dance Resource - where you can read in-depth on it) which fuses aspects of the Gothic subculture (aesthetic, club movement, theatrics, music (which already has a lot MED influences)) with MED (movements, music, costuming, musicality (how movements are interpreted through the music, etc). It can based off of a cabaret or tribal base. The common misconception is that all you have to do is add fishnets and heavy eyeliner or wear a black bedlah while dancing to Bauhaus - but it's a far more intricate application of fusion involving stylized movements, cohesion of movements with music and costuming, and a theatrical foundation. (in a nutshell).

Neat! Thank you! I'm going to do some slow-afternoon-at-work reading then.

Originally Posted by *Shira*

Actually, since you're a student, I'd love to hear YOUR perspective on what you wish "the elders" would do. What courses of action would alienate you? What courses of action would inspire/influence you?

Well then... ahem.....l;,
I am blessed to have a teacher who not only teaches how to perform bellydance, but it's history, it's culture (we had a whole class on Om Kalthoum), and exposes us to great dancers of both the past and present through movies and lectures. All this information has made me a better dancer and gives me a great respect for the art.
I like to be exposed to the "varieties" of bellydance but do find it a bit confusing sometimes at shows where evrything is mixed up.
At the Midwest Bellydance Challenge I loved seeing the groups (Am Cab, Troupe and Tribal) individually. It allowed me to appreicate how different each was and gave me a better undertsanding of what the dance style is.
Here's a thought to help the GP in the audience... include a small background for the styles to be seen that night. That way folks could better understand how they all are "bellydance" yet so different.

Originally Posted by *Shira*

It always amazes me how many teachers DON'T use Middle Eastern music for their beginner classes, even if those teachers claim to teach and perform "Middle Eastern dance". I've heard people say that they wait until the intermediate level to use Middle Eastern music, because they're afraid their beginners aren't capable of "getting it" at the beginner level.

That's a real head-scratcher. I don't get why anyone would think it's a valid pursuit to teach Middle Eastern dance without using Middle Eastern music at all -- just doesn't make sense. If a great many teachers are doing this, I'm sure it contributes to the proliferation of ill-advised fusion, because students are merely being taught an amalgamation of movements without any context. They end up thinking that this dance can and should be done to any and all music.

As Shira points out, simple arrangements such as Mary Ellen's Gems are more suitable for beginners than elaborate full-on orchestral music, but that seems like a no-brainer to me. There's plenty of music of the more basic variety out there for teachers of beginners to use.

And if that doesn't seem interesting enough, there's also lots of lively Middle Eastern pop music that should be fun enough to draw beginners in and which doesn't seem to me to present a problem of "getting it."

One of the problems I runn into frequently isn't that the students don't care, it's that the teachers don't know and don't want to know. There is an infamous story of my waiting to perform at a showcase. I heard a great piece of music - very Saidi based - and mentioned it to another dancer who teaches. She looked at me with glazed eyes. When I explained, she siad, I don't care about that stuff.

So how can students be responsible when there are many teachers out there who couldn't care less?

Sorry, I am being a tad bit cynical today.

{{{HUGS}}}

I consider myself to be a baby belly dancer. From my perspective I think what would help is open arms from the Elders. Understand that when you have someone out there belly dancing, you can tell they are a beginner and they are dancing the wrong dance to the wrong music, it is probably because they don't know any better. Any sort of attitude that you may put forth to them because of your disapproval of something they WILL pick up on. In the first year of learning bellydance every single AC dancer I met was very judgemental, and every traditional Raqs Sharqi dancer was worse! I actually steared clear and I then had the misconception that every single AC/traditional dancer was going to be a rude snob to me becuase I liked to wear some unusual things and dance to some non traditional music. As I progressed in my knowledge, I came to really start to learn about ME music and learn about the different KINDS of belly dance that there are and thank goodness I met my teacher and her friends who were AC dancers and were nice to me and supportive of my exploration and opened a whole new world of belly dance to me. I think this would be one of the most important things, attitude can make a huge impression on a baby bellydancer.

I teach using exclusively middle eastern music. In fact, the first class in my beginners session is an hour of listening to music from various regions in the middle east with a brief overview of it's characteristics. I have also decided to plan a hafla that requires performers to use middle eastern music. I started the other thread after seeing how much fusion has taken over in my area. It bothered me immensely to feel out of place doing raqs sharqi at a hafla. I want to at least have one event in my area that is more along traditional lines.

Originally Posted by nisaasaintlouis

I also feel that, at least in my area, the problems created by willy-nilly fusion go hand-in-hand with and are often created and/or exacerbated by the tendency for students to "go pro" without adequate training and preparation.

I think the "instant dancer" mentality that is endemic in our dance communities is the source of most of what is wrong with belly dance today. Unfortunately, because belly dance has been put forth as something "everyone can do," now it really IS something everyone can do...BADLY.

I feel like there needs to be a paradigm shift in dance communities wherein it is generally recognized that this IS a serious dance form that demands hard work, study, and commitment from those who wish to do more than take a once-a-week class and perform at recitals and haflas. I also wish professional dancers would aspire for something more than a once a week gig at Joe's Falafel Hut.

.

I totally agree with this. A lot of teachers have students perform long before they're ready. You also have students who go off, buy costumes and find places to perform and teach before they're ready. There's no hierarchy or certification process around performance and teaching which contributes to the "belly dancing is easy and anyone can do it" perception. No need for any musical, cultural or historical study or years of dance training; a few classes, a costume and you're good to go pro. Here, I would recommend that teachers hold off on letting students perform to early, and students should really look for experienced, qualified teachers in their area. And also take from multiple teachers with different backgrounds when possible, to broaden their experience and knowledge. Now getting everyone to do that...

I think that much of the fusion explosion can be traced to Rachel Brice. Love her or hate her, she has forever changed belly dance. People really admire and worship her. Remember when she wore a white costume and suddenly every tribal fusion dancer had a white costume? She went outside the box and did something very different. Now, in the fusion community, there's a lot of pressure to be different, and that's how you stand out and get noticed. By either doing your best RB impersonation or coming with some crazy new costume/prop/fusion routine or picking weird music you will get noticed. I think the actual dancing and musicality has fallen to the side. Furthermore, with the proliferation of youtube, has made it so that a lot of fusing happens in a vacuum. People watch clips online, DVDs, and teach themselves, so all fusion context gets lost. I'm not sure how to fix that.

I use ME music always, even if it's only pop. I talk about cultural contexts of the dance and I talk about the fact that oriental dance is NOT some pure frozen static thing, but always on the move, that there is no set singular way to do things but the techniques we teach will allow people to look good and dance safely, I talk, when I can, about how certain instruments and sounds are conventionally interpreted, and I increasingly talk about it as a social form that is not just about performance but about musical interpretation and feeling too.

What I find is, the people who stay in the oriental classes like ME music, even if it's only pop. I get lifts with students sometimes and in their car stereos? Arabic pop. Same with the folk students. Students who don't like ME music can go and do tribal, where it is not always used. The only difficulty is that the tribal side of the school is kind of its own thing and I have no idea what they're being told in there. BUT what I do know is that the tribal teachers have been exposed to more oriental and folk dance, and oriental and folk dance masters, than they once were and they now realise that it's not "oriental = this, tribal = this" but something much more complex.

Fact is, people do what they want to do and tribal is attractive. I think actual tribal is more attractive to a lot of people than TF. I know many students say they like watching and doing tribal but do not warm to the more TF stuff that is around because they don't like the music/creepy aesthetic/whatever. But younger girls often like tribal fusion heaps, and I don't blame them, because I would have eaten that stuff with a spoon when I was in my early 20s. Except for the girl on girl undulations. I am too 80s for that ****.

Originally Posted by DragonDancer

attitude can make a huge impression on a baby bellydancer.

Amen to that, and not just belly dancers... Truth is, for each discipline, art form or school of thought, you have two (at least) sides: the idealists/purists and the innovators/iconoclasts. While I can appreciate the idealist/purist’s endeavor to maintain a certain level of purity and/or accuracy in their topic of choice, I think that trying to label, divide and exclude is not helpful in the long run. Humans have done nothing but mingling, trading and exchanging since the dawn of time. Going against human nature is never an easy battle. But, if someone’s dedication to a particular form of dance is so strong that a desire to maintain it in its purest form is a life goal, I say more power to you. However, I think it is utopic to expect to educate *everyone* on it and prevent *anyone* from ever being inspired by it. And, a negative or elitist or totalitarian attitude will quickly diminish the public that one is trying to educate. Whether you’re a flowlight spinner being told that you are bastardizing the Maori art of poi, a Quebecer being told that this French is less French than that French, a gamer being told that game XYZ is not a real RPG or an Austrian economist being told that Keynesian is the only way to go... in the end, a negative approach will only foster more negativity.

As a newcomer to bellydance, for now I look at it as a buffet: Ansuya, Suhaila, Petite Jamilla, Ariellah, Dondi, Rachel; a few excellent and tasty choices amongst many, many more. Likewise, I love all kinds of music. Personally, I don’t like country music “twang”. Whether it is the Western country music “there’s a tear in my beer, my truck won’t start and my beloved is gone” or the Eastern country music “there’s a tear in my tea, my camel won’t get up and my habibi is gone”; it just doesn’t turn me on. Hence, in a bd class setting, I’d have a harder time learning a dance step if I don’t feel the inclination to groove to it. I do like a good groove, percussions too. They can be from Pakistan, Egypt, US, Japan. They can be by a random someone sitting in a park on a sunny day, a world reknowned Egyptian bd band or some hard rock band: if I like it, I’ll dance to it. So to answer the question, perhaps going with more basic percussion-based songs for a beginner class could be a way to make the ME sound more accessible. After all, drums imitate the beat of the human heart and their sound stirs the soul. All human beings can identify with the sound of a drum. It’s all about marketing, I suppose. *g*

(to be continued...)

Kem.

To answer the questions:

What would alienate me? Being given a huge checklist of things to do and learn before I can start to learn. Being told that I’m disrespecting a culture just because I don’t know all the intricacies of it. (To put things in perspective, I’m Francophone. If an Anglophone messes up the feminine/masculine when they are making the effort of speaking to me in French; I don’t consider it a disrespect. Likewise, I don’t believe that I am disrespecting the ME culture because I say bellydance and cannot differentiate a taksim from a saiidi right away.)

What would inspire/influence me? At the basic level, a passionate and open-minded teacher, who has a sense of humor and makes me want to learn instead of forcing stuff down my throat. Drums. Outfits that are comfortable and visually appealing. After that, once I know my basics thoroughly enough that I can concentrate on style rather than mechanics, anything goes as long as it is done with a positive attitude. (I don't remember who said it but I agree about the "sisterhood" thing. However, it's possible to be positive and welcoming human beings to one another without going all out "sisterhood", yes? I hope so! *g*)

Thanks for letting me share. Cheers,

Kem.

I love this! It made my day...l;, and such a true comparison...

Originally Posted by kemintiri

Whether it is the Western country music “there’s a tear in my beer, my truck won’t start and my beloved is gone” or the Eastern country music “there’s a tear in my tea, my camel won’t get up and my habibi is gone”; it just doesn’t turn me on.

While I can appreciate the idealist/purist’s endeavor to maintain a certain level of purity and/or accuracy in their topic of choice, I think that trying to label, divide and exclude is not helpful in the long run. Humans have done nothing but mingling, trading and exchanging since the dawn of time.

I agree absolutely. And yet people in the BD world who don't know me well would call me a card-carrying member of the Ethnic Police and a purist to boot, because I *did* my "bd to western music" schtick years ago and am OVER it, and feel there is so much to learn and explore in ME dance that I feel no need to don the regulation stripey tights of "individual kewl expression" just yet, and daydream of having an event like TribalFest where tribal/tribal fusion/omg my own ahrtistic visssionnn! dancers are told to learn some oriental or piss off to their own festivals. How does that pan out?

The thing I think we need to remember is the issue of power. THIS dance came from the ME (and do not engage me with talk of Indian gypsies or whatever fantasy is hot this week). It was popularised in the US as a representation of the ME. It is Middle. Eastern. Dance. Just because a whole lot of Americans have been doing it for forty years doesn't give them, or me, or anyone else the right to take it wholesale and rework it, sex it up, take the sex out of it, get rid of all those nasty *Arab* things that are in it, without taking into consideration whose dance it was first, who still learns it from infancy, who it represents, whose dance it was first, who owns it.

I'm not saying don't ponce around in anything you want, fusing anything you want. But do it with knowledge and RESPECT for someone other than your SELF.

Originally Posted by zumarrad

without taking into consideration whose dance it was first, who still learns it from infancy, who it represents, whose dance it was first, who owns it.

I'm not saying don't ponce around in anything you want, fusing anything you want. But do it with knowledge and RESPECT for someone other than your SELF.

Well said! I'm totally in agreement with the above.

What do you do if 2 out of 3 local teachers start off teaching tribal fusion. If none of them teach music and rythmns. If none of them explain the difference between TF and egyptian???

Beledi-bomb them?

I think all you can do is be true to yourself and ethical in your own dealings with the dance, and *try* not to be down on the fusionistas. If you give people oriental dance, the ones who like it will come. It's bloody frustrating, I agree, but it would be better for a BD teacher on their own to have less students, who like roughly what she likes, than students who don't like what she likes and push her to teach tribal or whatever.

Most of the TF I have seen has *no* connection to BD other than a technical one - they don't dance to ME music any more, they're trotting round in cancan skirts. It's absolutely bang on fun for some people and they can't and shouldn't be stopped doing it. But much as I hate separatism I do think the time is coming for people who like ME dance to start doing what tribal dancers did a decade ago - set up their own events that are not as fusion-friendly.

It sucks because from a globalised BD and especially US BD perspective, BDers have always played and fused and done experimental things. But I do feel that oriental dance is under fire in a lot of places and it simply won't continue at all if dancers don't have safe and fun spaces where they can dance and perform the dance they like.

Yeah but I'm trying to learn and all I've got is this

What do I do about it? (I don't have any plans to do more than I'm already doing...) As an educator and event sponsor:

1) I teach to Middle Eastern music
2) I teach the dance as an ethnic art form, show native dancers in class, teach rhythms and 'source' folk dances
3) I make sure when my students see fusion or novelty dances they know that's what they're looking at. (even if it's me doing it!)
4) Shows I sponsor are at least 80% Middle Eastern dance
5) Any instructor I sponsor for a workshop will be someone who takes the ethnic element of the dance seriously

What I won't do:
1) Tell other people how to run their events
2) Be judgmental of people who aren't my students or haven't asked for my opinion
3) Denigrate others in front of my students to elevate our group as being 'better' than those who make different choices
4) Dictate that my students must make the same choices I make or have the same taste as me.