Wow – What a treat the 2025 Grammy Awards had for us! Shakira was back with her signature belly dance moves.
Sahira of Houston, Texas really leaned into this performance, analyzed the choreo, and has graciously uploaded a quick instructional demo.
I appreciate Sahira’s approach to filming, showing us both the front and back view of each combo. I ran through this tutorial three times and worked up a sweat.
If you are like me, a little older and a little chubbier, I recommend taking time to warm up the joints and stretch out the back and legs before tackling this demo.
The Rolling Stones wrote up a review, and in their article, they shared a close-up of Shakira’s bra. Notice how much coverage and support this bra offers along with a U-shaped length of beaded fringe reaching from the top of one cup to the other.
In this belly dance fashion era of the “Dina Bra,” it’s really nice to see a dancer sporting a look that looks secure enough to hold everything in place.
I just love spotting belly dance in popular media and watching how movement and costuming styles evolve and change.
I hope you have a blast trying out Shakira’s moves!
Today, I was involved in a conversation on the venerable social media giant FaceBook. The question of the day, “Are you an improv style dancer or do you prefer choreography?”
Davina performing at “Celebrating Dance” in 2016
Chreo Vs. Improv
Like most things in life, the answer is “Depends.” In the video above, it would be nearly impossible for the elegant and graceful Shoshanna to perform a set choreography. Live music with a band requires the trust in your skills, have the speed to respond to tempo changes, idiosyncratic arrangements, and even unexpected shifts into different songs.
Choreography is great when you are working with a group of people and want to achieve a high level of synchronization. Working with recorded music helps groups stay together and on beat.
Davina posing for a pre-performance shot at SAMEDA Fair, 1992
Different Approaches for Different Situations
So my answer is a resounding both! New dancers often focus one one modality over another. Experienced performing dancers face a variety of different performance scenarios. One week you might dance on a standard stage. The next performance might be in round, a typical scenario at large weddings. But there is also an infinite variety of facility layouts in restaurant, cafe, and bar scenarios.
One of the key skills that separates the student from the teacher, the social dancer from the professional, is the knowledge base to quickly take stock of the performance situations. Where is the audience situated? What are the paths to enter and exit? Given the layout, what are the places to pause for one-on-one interaction with a VIP or patron with a special event like a birthday or anniversary.
Combonography
Okay, I get it, that’s isn’t really a word. But it catches the essence of my own personal approach when I have the opportunity to dance. As an older more experienced dancer, I have favorite combos that I know are comfortable, safe, and also as distinctive and show-stopping as I achieve in this season of dance.
Davina Performs at BayCon 2006
Hybrid Dances: Choreography + Improv
As a long-time instructor I have crafted performance pieces for a variety of dancers and groups. Over the arc of my career, I’ve come to the conclusion that to be a successful performing dancer, it’s important to have a full arsenal of approaches. One approach is to craft dances to recorded music that include choreographed pieces, like a chorus for instance, and spaces for improv.
Including passages, verses or bridges for open improv allows for spontaneity and flexibility to interact with the audience. It also creates time for moving through spaces between tables, up and down off stages and platforms. It’s also time you can take to adjust to larger facilities, or smaller more intimate venues that might need subtle adjustments.
No matter where you have the opportunity to dance this year, I hope that these concepts give you food for thought and inspiration!
Happy costuming and dance, Dawn Devine ~ Davina, Feb., 2025
PS: Here’s a blast from the past with the 2019 lineup of my troupe Swirl, demonstrating a hybrid dance with choreographed portions with individual improv sections.
I’m so happy to share my Winter 2025 belly dance history course, “Dancing Down the Midway: 1893.”
During this four-session belly dance slide-history course, we’ll take a deep dive into the venues on the Midway Plaisance of the Chicago World’s Fair of 1893.
We are going to begin with an overview of the fair and a history of the exhibitions that lead up to Chicago in 1893. Then we will zoom into the Midway Plaisance and look at the surviving primary source material featuring entertainers and the stages where they performed.
These four sessions each include 50 slides featuring primary source diagrams, maps, illustrations, and photographs. Then I’ll wrap things up and in fifth and final talk, pending questions and queiries.
The slide deck above is a quick flip of “Part 1: Setting the Stage.” Now available on Patreon at the $15 Tier.
Check it out – and if it’s a good fit and the right price, join me for this deep dive into the archives!
Free 2025 Calendar “Textiles from the Islamic World”
Aramco Magazine releases a free downloadable calendar each year. This year’s theme is “Textiles from the Islamic World,” and this calendar is simply gorgeous!
Above: Saddle cover, detail, Uzbekistan, late 19th century. Wool and silk. The Textile Museum Collection 2021.17.45, Brick Freedman Collection. “Textiles from the Islamic World,”
Each month, there’s a beautiful photo selected from the collection of The George Washington University Museum and The Textile Museum. Description, history, and details about the culture, use, and materials are included in the description of each object.
Even if you have already chosen your calendar for 2025, click through to check it out. You can treat this calendar like a digital magazine filled with loads of great information. I found the text to be that right balance between academic and accessible and easy to read.
An unexpected bonus on both the website and the calendar is an excellent explanation of the Hijri dating system. This includes an easy-to-use formula for translating between the Gregorian and Hijri. Best of all, the calendar is printed with the Hijri numbers and key dates.
Above: Detail of January showing Gregorian and Hijri dating system. Source: 2025 Aramco Calendar
I’ve been downloading and reading the Aramco calendar for years, and 2025 is one of my favorites. If you want to see more textiles from The George Washington University Museum and The Textile Museum visit their website: museum.gwu.edu
I hope you have a year full of the people, places, and adventures full of the things you most love.
November 2024 - Classes, Demos, and Workshops with Studio Davina - https://www.patreon.com/davinadevine
Hello my friends in belly dance and costume. Welcome to the Studio Davina December Patreon Classes, Demos and Workshops.
I’m almost entirely back on my feet after struggling through an illness. I’m a one-woman shop here at Studio Davina. I really appreciate all my friends, fans, and followers on Patreon for giving me the grace to heal.
My classes, demos, and workshops are all located over on Patreon. I offer three monthly informational and instructional demos/talks along with a free informal coffee chat
Subscribing is like buying a monthly class card to study with me. Best part, for less the cost of three cups of coffee, you can gain access to everything.
November 2024 – Classes, Demos, and Workshops with Studio Davina – https://www.patreon.com/davinadevine
December Patreon Offerings:
Free Coffee Chat – Click the Video Above to Watch!
Show and Tell $3 – Level Özel’s “The Belly Dancer in You” Book flip and biographical information about this legendary Turkish belly dance star.
History Talks $15 – “Recent Research” – Check out some of my latest finds and historical connections.
If you are reading this in the future, all of these presentations are available in the Patreon archive. Just click through and flip through the collections or use a quick search by title or keywords to find the video you want.
Patreon: What’s up Next? December 2024
Patreon classes are released during the last week of the month. In December, this is sometime between Christmas and New Years. Watch for topics:
Coffee Chat – Studio reorganization, destashing project, and plans for 2025
Book Flip – “Style File” a breakdown of what is moving to “Costuming from the Hip: 30” and what is not making the cut.
Sewing Demo – Shalimar’s “Blue Mermaid” – Building the master to:do list, order of construction, shopping my stash, appliqué design and planning.
Belly Dance History Talk – New Series Starting “Dancing Down the Midway: 1893” – In Part 1 we are setting the stage, discussing the venues where patrons of the fair could see cultural performances.
I’m very happy to be back on my feet!
But I’m simply over the moon to be back at my desk working.
Thank you for your continued support of my work in belly dance costuming and history. Happy holidays!
