Photo by Michele Innangi

When I met Sandy D’Alì this past July in Italy, I thought I was about to interview a teenager from the ’80; she was wearing Michael Jackson memorabilia: a t-shirt, a pendant and a bracelet, skinny jeans and had her blond hair tied in a nod. Not the image I had of one of the most popular and among the first Italian belly dancers.

Originally from Naples (Italy), Sandy started to dance when she was a little girl; she studied ballet, modern dance, and jazz and was introduced to belly dancing by chance when she met her Jordanian husband.

Tell me about your encounter with Oriental Dance.

When I met my now ex-husband, I had a chance to travel with him to Greece and to the Middle East. I became fascinated with Arabic culture and music. I have always danced professionally, but when I was exposed to baladi and I started to observe local women moving at the sound of the drums and rhythms, it was ‘love at first step’. When I came back to Italy, I started to study oriental dance. It wasn’t easy; in Naples nobody was teaching it so I had to commute to Rome to take classes. I was broke, but determined that I wanted to learn belly dance. I had the support of a girlfriend who offered me hospitality while I was taking classes.

Who were your first teachers?

My first teacher and mentor was Esmat Osman, I also studied with El Hadi Shariffa.

I soon realized that if I wanted to be a professional belly dancer I needed to learn the culture, and the language. My love for oriental dance became a passion and a career after I moved to Egypt where I lived and worked. It wasn’t easy being a foreigner who was trying to make it as a belly dancer but I succeeded and I learned a lot. When I came back to Italy I started to teach.  

 What is the biggest lesson you took with you from Egypt?

I learned by observing Middle Eastern dancers. They are naturally sensual when they are on stage. Their way of flirting while dancing and winking at the audience is unique. Many western dancers are technically perfect but they lack to express this pathos. If you want to be a belly dancer you need to understand the song and dance to the music. It is very important. Additionally, my experience in Egypt, and the teaching of Esmat moved me to bring dignity to this ancient art by teaching and dancing in the respect of its traditions.

When did you start teaching and how were belly dancers perceived in Italy?

I started in 1992. Because of the lack of knowledge and understanding, belly dancers were associated with strippers and low class women. I can tell you that in the past 20 years the perception has changed dramatically, and today Italians are becoming increasingly interested to learn about belly dancing. The number of women that are now taking my classes is increasing. I have young students but several middle-age women who are experiencing a renewed interest in their femininity and bodies.

Photo: Andre Elbing

 

I understand that Sandy D’Alì is faithful to raqs sharqi, however you have created a new fusion based on Michael Jackson music, can you tell us more about it?  

You are right, I am faithful to traditional Oriental Dance, but I also believe in using dance to innovate!

I have always been a huge Michael Jackson fan. When he passed away I felt compelled to offer a tribute to his life and his music. So I put together a choreography I named:  “Your Are Not Alone”, Oriental Tribute to Michael Jackson, where I have incorporated belly dancing moves and techniques with M.J. style. It has become a fusion of M.J. style and oriental dance. The idea was to use Michael Jackson’s most popular songs and rearrange them with oriental percussions and rhythms. I introduced the choreography at the Belly Dance Convention of Riccione (Italy) and I have been inundated with requests to perform it all over Europe. The show includes twenty dancers, one singer and one professional Michael Jackson style dancer. In the choreography I combine Jackson’s style and belly dancing techniques. It is really amazing what you can create though music and dance.

 Did you also coin the name Belly Jackson? Not at all! My fans started to refer to it as Belly Jackson. My idea behind the show was simple: to offer a tribute to Michael Jackson, I wasn’t looking to create a new style, just to belly dance to his songs. I dedicated a lot of time and effort to this production, teaching to such a big group was a challenge that I took very seriously. I even travelled to Egypt to have the costumes tailored. I am pretty happy with the outcome. I just came back from Germany where I presented it and I need to work my schedule to be able to incorporate other dates.

 Any future projects? Perhaps, an American Belly Jackson tour?

I am working on several projects, because I can’t stay still! It is in my nature to always think forward. I am putting together Belly Naples, the first International Oriental Dance Festival that will be held in the city of Naples in February 2011. I started several new classes at the Mara Fusco School of Dance in Naples, and I am incorporating the Belly Jackson style as well. An American tour? It would be a dream come true!

 Sandy D’Alì teaches and performs all over Europe. She is also the founder of Sherazade Danse and teaches at the prestigious Mara Fusco School of Dance in Naples. She has collaborated with another famous Italian belly dancer, Aziza, and has participated to several belly dancing festivals and TV shows.

For additional information on Sandy D’Ali and the Belly Jackson, you can access her web site at http://www.sherazadedanse.it

Her videos are on You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqPOAaD0K7M

Crystal is a true dance fusion-ist: her style ranges from tribal to hip hop.  It takes talent to combine dance forms and make them look good.   This lady has that talent!  To learn more about this Santa Cruz instructor, click here.

We’ve had several requests from readers looking for belly dance instructors in Texas.  To help you with your search, we’ve found an incredibly talented belly dancer from Dallas.  Check out this lady with over 35 years of experience as a teacher!!

We’ve added a new instructor from San Francisco: Oreet.  This lady is a true dancer and fitness instructor.  If you thought dancing was not enough of a workout, you may need to try out one of her session.  Click here to learn more about Oreet.

She claims audiences just don’t want to see 51-year olds dance.  We beg to differ.  Sharon Kerr is a beautiful, inspirational artist to women of all ages.  To watch her dance and learn more about her, click here: http://bellydancingdiva.com/findaclass/mexico/sharon-kerr/

We have added another talented instructor and performer to our listing of belly dancers.  To read more about Etoile and watch her performance, click here: http://bellydancingdiva.com/findaclass/inland-empire/etoile/

Marcela Escobar, a beautiful dancer from El Salvador has been added to our instructor listing.  To learn more about about Marcela, or to view her dance, click here: http://bellydancingdiva.com/findaclass/el-salvador/marcela-escobar.

We have added our first talented belly dancer from Canada to our instructor listing.  Click here ( http://bellydancingdiva.com/findaclass/canada/halyma) to learn more about Halyma and to see clips of her dance.

Rasa Vitalia hails from San Francisco where the belly dance scene is legendary.  Vitalia has over ten years of dance experience.  She has performed all over the United States.  She also uses different props to her dance like the sword and finger  cymbals.  Please read her profile here.

We have added our first, amazingly talented and beautiful instructor from Central America: Ambar Alcira Escobar.  To view her profile, click here.