YANA owns a unique style of bellydance. Her elaborated technique and emotional interpretation are well-known and appreciated in many countries of the world. This evening she surpassed herself! She was beautiful, charming and dancing at such a high level that you would rarely see at other bellydance shows!

YANA is the founder and leader of Oriental Dance Ensemble. This dance group is famous for its originality and beauty. It seems that their motto is to be splendid in everything – appearance, costumes, technique, emotionality! You will see it on the photos below.

We were also delighted to see the beautiful choreographies of the guests of the show. The stars of bellydance – Nour, Ahmed Fekry, Galina Savelieva! Songs interpreted by Yasser Al-Swery! ‘Amrita’ – a famous Indian dance ensemble!

It was very interesting to see other dance styles – flamenco by Katarina Garcia, Duncan dance by Dina Vaymer.

The audience also had a rare chance to see the legend of stage oriental dance. Mahmoud Reda, the founder of Reda Troup, the very first oriental dance group, and Farouk Mustafa, the choreographer of Reda Troup, were the honourable guests of YANA and Oriental Dance Ensemble. Mahmoud Reda was invited to the stage in the end of the concert and said he highly appreciated what YANA and Ensemble had done.

The thing I admire about “Oriental” dance ensemble is how different all their choreographies are!

Classical bellydance – a well-known song Habibi Nour El Ain:

Fan dance – pure inspiration! A beautiful dream!

There’s a video of this dance from youtube:

Bright and lively Anatolian Fantasy:

An Emerald Dance I call it – a nice dancer with a charming smile and graceful movements:

Cane dance – a fountain of energy and joy!

Move – a series of tabla. What elaborated technique! And wonderful acting – this dance is composed as a contest of three groups of dancers:

Wings dance – never seen anything like that! A fairytale about celestial creatures:

The next dances were all as parts of one scene in a café.

First came a girl who danced to French music in arabic arrangement – this was something unusual and original. And what an interesting costume!

Then came the interpretation of an arabic song ‘Hayati’ – ‘My way’ if you translate it. A beautiful and sad love story told by YANA:

And finally all the girls joined in one dance – this was the well-known oriental tango of the Ensemble:

The next choreography was a surprise to everybody. Have you ever seen Oriental Hip-Hop?

YANA’s solo was one of the most impressive events this evening. Action, passion, a grand spectacle! No words can describe it – here’s the video:

And a final lively and joyful Barsha:

I know the disc of the show is already on sale. You can get more information about the show on the official site of YANA and her Oriental Dance Ensemble: www.yanadance.com

YANA owns a unique style of bellydance. Her elaborated technique and emotional interpretation are well-known and appreciated in many countries of the world. This evening she surpassed herself! She was beautiful, charming and dancing at such a high level that you would rarely see at other bellydance shows!

YANA is the founder and leader of Oriental Dance Ensemble. This dance group is famous for its originality and beauty. It seems that their motto is to be splendid in everything – appearance, costumes, technique, emotionality! You will see it on the photos below.

We were also delighted to see the beautiful choreographies of the guests of the show. The stars of bellydance – Nour, Ahmed Fekry, Galina Savelieva! Songs interpreted by Yasser Al-Swery! ‘Amrita’ – a famous Indian dance ensemble!

It was very interesting to see other dance styles – flamenco by Katarina Garcia, Duncan dance by Dina Vaymer.

The audience also had a rare chance to see the legend of stage oriental dance. Mahmoud Reda, the founder of Reda Troup, the very first oriental dance group, and Farouk Mustafa, the choreographer of Reda Troup, were the honourable guests of YANA and Oriental Dance Ensemble. Mahmoud Reda was invited to the stage in the end of the concert and said he highly appreciated what YANA and Ensemble had done.

The thing I admire about “Oriental” dance ensemble is how different all their choreographies are!

Classical bellydance – a well-known song Habibi Nour El Ain:

Fan dance – pure inspiration! A beautiful dream!

There’s a video of this dance from youtube:

An Emerald Dance I call it – a nice dancer with a charming smile and graceful movements:

Cane dance – a fountain of energy and joy!

Move – a series of tabla. What elaborated technique! And wonderful acting – this dance is composed as a contest of three groups of dancers:

Wings dance – never seen anything like that! A fairytale about celestial creatures:

The next dances were all as parts of one scene in a café.

First came a girl who danced to French music in arabic arrangement – this was something unusual and original:

Then came the interpretation of an arabic song ‘Hayati’ – ‘My way’ if you translate it. A beautiful and sad love story told by YANA:

And finally all the girls joined in one dance – this was the well-known Oriental Tango of the Ensemble:

The next choreography was a surprise to everybody. Have you ever seen Oriental Hip-Hop?

YANA’s solo was one of the most impressive events this evening. Action, passion, a grand spectacle! No words can describe it – here’s the video:

What else can I add? Never seen anything like that!

I know the disc of the show is already on sale. You can get more information about the show on the official site of YANA and her Oriental Dance Ensemble: www.yanadance.com

What do you do with your old costumes and accessories?

Maybe you have a costume but haven't found that perfect necklace. Maybe you are just tired of your costume but don't feel like buying a new one because you already spent a fortune on one last week. Maybe you have an old pink hip scarf that you don't use because your favorite new outfit is baby blue and you desperately want an ice blue silver necklace. Why if someone had this necklace and was in real need of a pink hip scarf, how can these too people meet so that an exchange can take place that will benefit both parties?

From wedding dresses to prom dresses and everything in between, people have been trading costumes and all kids of items on www.giglogo.com. I traded a pair of silver ballroom shoes that I no longer needed (they were in good condition since I only used them twice) for a nice green and blue skirt and gold coin jewelery. I am now looking in the back of my closet for other things to trade because its fun. Every costume has a story behind it and each dancer trading isn't shy to share it. From a headpiece one dancer wore on the night of her first performance to the first ballet slippers another dancer bought for her daughter, it is a great feeling to share in these great moments.

Next, Tamalyn does a very tender dance, depicting a princess named Salme fron Zanzibar. Each dance has a description at the beginning - like a well edited micro documentary. A really nice style, in which she explains her motivations for each dance as well as the context she is performing in- which country, what it is like. If she was inspired by a song, she gives the meaning of the song. In one part, a Bedouin in the Sahara gave her an old tape that had unwound in the stereo of his jeep. She fixed the tape and the song had her name in it. She had it cleaned up in a studio and this rare music was ready to dance to.

In another part, she hears a beautiful song from Zanzibar and heads to the remote African island to look for the musicians. We see the musicians practicing in a little club house in Zanzibar. They are like the Buena Vista Social Club of Africa. Then she starts producing CD's of their music. There are four songs on the DVD where she dances to their music and it is amazing.

Afterward, we see a piece of old film from the 70's of Egyptian dancer Azza Sharif doing a Bedouin inspired dance. Then Tamalyn is shown in Argentina, dressed in the same costume doing the same dance. This is appropriately named "Tribute to Azza Sharif.".

 Two of my favorite pieces are related to China. "Beledi in China" shows scenes of Chinese street life, and a little girl doing a traditional Chinese "Face changing dance", in which each time she turns she has a different mask. Then Tamalyn comes out on a crazy looking stage with a giant backdrop of pyramids advertising a real estate agency. Bubbles and smoke billow onto the stage as Tamalyn Dallal enters in a beledi dress made of traditonal embroidery from the Siwa Oasis of Egypt. This is a festival and the weather is clearly cold as the very local Chinese audience, who are all bundled up cheer and attempt to do some head slides. It is just amazing to see someone doing traditional Beledi style bellydance in a remote town in China and seeing it celebrated in grand Chinese style.

Another favorite of mine is "Citizen of the World", where Tamalyn Dallal takes us on a trip around the world through a special rendition of the "Dance of the seven veils". She enters wrapped in red and gold fabrics and takes us on a journey, smoothly transitioning from a Gypsy Arabic- Spanish to Chinese (with Chinese music), to Arabian. Two of the veils magically transform into silk fan veils. It is very original and unique, and tells a story. 

My family and I have watched this DVD several times in the past few days and see something new in it every time. Tamalyn Dallal changes charcter and reprotoire often, and has a wide range of styles and personalities she can display, so we don't get bored watching it over and over.  

You can find "Citizen of the World" on Tamalyn's website www.tamalyndallal.net.