The Report: Belly Dancer of the Year 2019

Belly Dancer of the Year 2019 Finalists

My troupe and I are back from our adventure in Berkeley, CA for the Belly Dancer of the Year competition. It was so fun to travel with my sweet friends, meet many wonderful and kind belly dancers, and be part of a well-run and enjoyable competition. My troupe, Amirat Dance Company, placed 2nd Runner Up in the troupe category and was also awarded the “Congeniality” trophy. The winners of the troupe category, Asheq Collective, performed an incredible dance complete with shamadans and veils, plus breathtaking costumes with a very fitting fire motif.

In the solo category, I competed against 16 dancers and was surprised and delighted to make it through preliminaries and into the finals where I placed 4th Runner Up. The 2019 Belly Dancer of the Year grand prize went to the amazing and talented Gameela. She kills it on all fronts: spectacular costuming, flawless technique, and lots of heart. She more than deserved the title!

So, why compete? I completely recognize that dance competitions, and perhaps belly dance competitions in particular, can be highly subjective. It’s also immensely difficult to capture everything that is amazing about this dance form in a choreography that is only a few minutes long. For me (and my troupe, too, I hope!) competition provides an opportunity to step up my game. I push myself harder to choreograph a dense and interesting dance and I love the process of practicing.

Competing has also provided rewarding and life-affirming experiences after surviving cancer. While there are some days that it is hard to put myself out there in this breastless body, showing up on stage and receiving love from audiences makes me feel utterly alive and grateful that I made it through. My body might be different, but I’m still here. I’m still dancing. And I am still a contributor in this beautiful world.

The Belly Dancer of the Year competition is particularly well-organized and thoughtfully put together. This year, there were 13 judges representing a wide swath of our dance community. They provided number scores, and of those, the highest and lowest were thrown out. This ensures that no single judge can throw the competition one way or another, which I absolutely appreciate. I believe the judges do their utmost to be fair, but judging belly dance is more art than science, and the judges are, after all, human!

The stage for the first day of competition was perhaps a bit on the small side for troupe work, but very comfortable for solo. The background was a simple, dark curtain, allowing our costumes to shine rather than compete with a busy backdrop. I wish all competitions did this! It was also great to have closing curtains so we could get into place out of sight. The stage managers were lovely people who herded us with patience and humor, keeping anxiety as low as possible. The other competitors were warm, friendly and supportive, too. While perhaps having congeniality prizes helped to keep everyone on good behavior, the dancers seemed like kind, sweet people who would have been wonderful to hang out with in any circumstance.

Finals were to live music by none other than Pangia (squeee!) I loved that it was in an intimate environment rather than a formal stage. Competition organizer Jennifer clearly put a lot of thought and care into creating a two-part competition that requires dancers to not only demonstrate excellent technique, but also connect with the audience and be emotionally vulnerable. I cannot think of a better way to get to the heart of belly dance. The experience was transformative: there are parts of my performance that I absolutely cannot remember because I left my body. It was just my heart, and the hearts of everyone there, beating in sync with the music, and basking in the beauty and power of our beloved dance.

Thank you to Jennifer, the judges, the stage managers, and all of the other competitors for a completely wonderful experience. And so much love to my dancers Michele, Lisa and Yolien, the best travel, dance, and life companions I could ever ask for. We’re looking forward to future competitions. I just might have some ideas up my sparkly sleeve…