Marguerite Kusuhara

The first known etiquette book was written in 2400 B.C. by Ptah-hotep. Much of today’s formal etiquette originated in the French royal court of King Louis XIV during the 1600-1700′s, where elaborate social customs were called an etiquette, an old French word meaning ticket/card/placard, upon which the rules were posted. This code of behavior spread [...]

BIOGRAPHY Louchia hails from Moldova, west of the Black Sea and south of Russia. At age six, she began ballet and gymnastics studies, then danced with the children’s Dance Company of Moldova “Sperantca” for eight years. At 16, she entered the dance college of the National Folk Ballet of Moldova, “Jok,” training in Classical Ballet, [...]

It is refreshing in today’s world of idealized, sculpted females to watch Regine and Babylon Mood belly dancers; a thrill to watch exquisite dancing and staging rendered by mortal, human women who express perfection through their art. Regine’s Bio Regine Costello began performing Flamenco, Mexican Folklorico and Aztec dances at age eight and teaching them [...]

You are in the belly dance business from your first paying gig—ready or not. How can you make it your dream come true rather than a nightmare? Preparing a belly dance show involves much more than 20 minutes of actual performance. There are costuming preparation, makeup, music, rehearsal and travel time to be considered. Remember [...]

They are not long, the weeping and the laughter, love and desire and hate: I think they have no portion in us after we pass the gate. They are not long, the days of wine and roses; out of a misty dream our path emerges for a while, then closes within a dream. Edward Dowson [...]

In the 60’s the movies of Federico Fellini (1/20/20-10/31/93), the Italian Oscar-winning filmmaker, made a big impression on me. Inspired by circus people, caricatures, art films, dreams, Jungian unconscious, and Yaqui Indian knowledge, his images were extravagant, fanciful, baroque. Actors in his films were Italian street people–garish faces, characters, bodies. This Fellinian element to our [...]

“Yoga is 99% practice and 1% theory.” ~Sri Krishna Pattabhi Jois A yogini is a female yogi. But what is yoga? Hatha yoga is a 5,000+ year-old science of self-improvement–a work-in, not a work-out—that boosts immune system, increases flexibility, oxygenates bloodstream, enhances respiration, and calms the mind. Yoga can be a dance: “Belly Dancing has [...]

A Sun (Capricorn)/Moon (Cancer) Super Moon Lunar Eclipse on New Year’s Eve hip-drop-kick-starts us into the next decade. Lunar Eclipses help us release and reform at a higher level. Super Moons intensify tidal movements, on earth and in our bodies. We can act or react, move on or have change forced upon us. “The Sabian [...]

“Like a kick in the butt, the force of events wakes slumberous talents.” (Edward Hoagland) The butt—back end, backside, behind, bottom, bum, derrière, fanny, gluteus maximus, haunches, hindquarters, posterior, rear, rump, seat, tush, ass, backside, can, posterior, rear, rump, tail—is a portion of the body that we all observe–on everyone else; it’s pretty difficult to [...]