Thread: When using a veil...

You've completed your entrance with a veil. Do you retrieve it from the floor when exiting the stage?
If you do. How do you go about picking it up with style? This isn't a traditional performane.
Thanks a bunch.

I often use the veil for my finale (at restaurants / birthdays etc.). It's my way of making sure that it doesn't "dissapear" while I am changing into normal clothes

When I am in a restaurant I usually prefer to deposit my veil on a chair so that it doesn't get dirty or no waiter can step on it....

When you are on stage, make sure you drop it out of your dance space. All the way in the back or front. If you plan on picking it up later, make sure you drop the veil accordingly. For example spread your arms wide open and drop the veil on an accent. This way it will fall openly and it's easier to find the hem again later.

Actually, picking a veil up elegantly is a skill I teach in my veil introduction workshops because it's always useful. You never know when you just step on it or it slips out of your hand.
Make sure not to bend down with your butt to the audience!
The two most common ways for me:
- stand behind or to the side of the veil - bend legs but keep upper body upright - pick up veil with one hand and as little eye contact as possible - come up fast or slow, according to the music

- stand behind the veil - bend over and pick up veil with both hands - come up with a "boom", throwing back hair and throwing up veil

It depends on the music which one of these will work best, just try it out.

MEISSOUN

I can't think of a situation where I would ever leave my veil behind. Either I'm the whole show, so I'm leaving at the end, or it's a 'variety' show, where someone else needs to use the stage after me. Either way, I have to retrieve my veil before I exit.

Sometimes my finale/exit lends itself to picking up the veil and dancing with it again at the end.Then I do exactly what Meissoun described. Other times I pick it up after bowing, toss it over my neck, and make a showy exit.

Either way, I was taught to pick up the veil gracefully. Never bend over and point your butt to the audience! Walk behind or beside the veil, bend from the waist (with a pointed toe and straight leg in front, perhaps) and sweep the veil up.

If I'm dancing at a belly dance event or stage, I pick it up gracefully after I'm done performing and taking my bow.

If this is a restaurant gig, I either leave my veil behind and expect the wait staff to pick it up for me along with my tips and any other props I may have also left behind, OR I pick it up during my exit song and do a little veilwork for my finale.

Originally Posted by Dance2

You've completed your entrance with a veil. Do you retrieve it from the floor when exiting the stage?

Depends on the venue and the performance. Many large stage showcases have what I call the "Diva Rule" where its expected that the dancer will leave her veil behind, and the MC will retrieve. Dancer as royalty and all that.

Other places, its considered bad form to leave it behind. When in doubt, ask!

Ditto on all the suggestions on how to retrieve - and as one of my instructors would say "Keep your BUTT out of the audience's face!"

Ditto to all of the above, but I wanted to share one creative solution our troupe came up with for our own show.

We had two ~9-10 year old girls attending. It was the birthday of one of the girls that evening, and she had given up the option of a sleepover party in favour of coming to our show. So, we made these girls "VIPs" for the evening. We made "backstage passes" for them and bought them dollar store tiaras. We assigned them the task of going onstage and retrieving our veils at the beginning of intermission. When we tossed our veils, we did so at the very back of the stage, out of the way of other dancers. The girls got to go up on stage at intermission, pick up the veils, and bring them backstage to us. They were thrilled, and we got to act like divas who don't have to bother picking up their own veils. *g*

There was a well-known dancer in my area who was able to retrieve her veil at the end of her set by picking it up with her toes and catching it mid-air. It became a signature move for her. I've never tried it but it could be fun to work on.

You can also drape the veil across the front of your neck and it will stay there if you don't have too much vigorous dancing to do before the exit, e.g. a drum solo where you are mostly staying in place.

You can drape it around a special audience person and collect it on your way out, or toss it to a friend and retrieve it later.

Thank you for your replies,Very helpful. ;)