New Limited Edition Skirted Pants
We have new limited edition skirted pants. These are similar to our popular power mesh skirted pants. These comfortable pants are great for class and performance. If you like a fabric, buy it now; we probably won't get in more exactly like these again!
Bellydance Fitness Fusion on sale through the end of February 2008!
In this four DVD set, Suhaila fuses Bellydance with Yoga, Pilates, Jazz and also presents her signature Buns workout. Available individually for $9.99 or as a four volume set for $34.99.
Finger Cymbals with Jamila CD Now Available!
The anticipated, remastered version of Jamila Salimpour's popular finger cymbal CD is here! Now with separated tracks and new design. A must have instructional tool for any dancer, teacher or musician!
SUHAILA CEC WORKSHOPS WITH SABRIYE TEKBILEK
These workshops include Suhaila Salimpour format and choreography (workshops taught by Sabriye Tekbilek); As well as being open to all students (no prerequisites), SSD certified members can take these for CECs.
Suhaila and Isabella backstage at Rakkasah East 2007
Greetings! The start of a new year is always an interesting time. I find myself looking back at the previous year, trying to find a way to sum up what the year meant in terms of good times and life lessons. I look back at 2007 and see a year full of great change.
This last summer was an amazing experience: being able to tour the world and teach my format. Montreal, Paris, Italy, Egypt, Korea, and Taiwan got glute squeezing, and I was blown away at how open everyone was to another idea of technique and movement. I look forward to going back and establishing the certification program. When Isabella returned to school, her “summer sharing” on the first day was very different, to say the least. I’m so lucky she was by my side for the tour. She not only assisted me in all my workshops, but she soloed during each performance and brought the house down. Now she is teaching her first workshop (alone), “Belly Dance for Kids”, at Summer Caravan this June in New Jersey. She can’t wait.
Suhaila Productions' original plans were to open another dance studio in Las Vegas, where my family and I would have an additional home to the one we have in the Bay Area; those plans have now changed. I am divorcing, and Isabella and I live full-time in the Bay Area. Change of this magnitude is very difficult on the family, and Isabella and I have greatly appreciate all of the well wishing and support we have received from friends in and out of the belly dance community. I also appreciated your understanding for privacy as well. Thank you!
Now, at the start of this New Year, I look forward and feel positive and full of energy. I see great and creative things for 2008. We have a full year of workshops organized, new products planned, and creative ideas in the making. As always, I'm excited to work with all of my students - to see their efforts blossom into growth and creativity. I am especially excited about the start of the Jamila Salimpour’s Traditional Tribal weeklong workshop and certification program -- finally! We are also going to have a “Choreography Collective” weeklong workshop the last week of June with guest teachers that will expose participants to many different styles: Tribal Fusion, 40’s style Cabaret, Modern Cabaret, and Traditional Tribal to name a few. I am also excited to say that in February I will be holding my first level 3 test.
We are finalizing the last touches on a new percussion album to be released in March as well as a single release of “Dark Veil”, an exciting and edgy song that is a rock and Middle Eastern fusion. The Suhaila Dance Company performed to it in 2006!
Due to a technical problem, we are having to rebuild our email list. Please forward this newsletter to your friends, family and students and encourage them to sign up. I appreciate your support. I'm excited about the great opportunities that 2008 will offer for all of us.
Wishing you all a wonderful 2008!
Suhaila & Isabella
Editorial
by Suhaila®
Isabella and Suhaila, Fall 2007
It was dark with only one small light bulb; sunlight peaked in from various cracks as if to want to share in my discovery. Each box was like uncovering a magical mystery that had been sleeping or hidden for years. The ground I was kneeling on was dirt/earth, and I felt like I was re-rooting as I reminisced about my legacy. You must know where you come from to move forward, which is what made this afternoon all the more special.
I had made the declaration early in the morning, after my cup of earl-gray tea, that when I took my last sip I would tackle my downstairs basement and the “oh so overwhelming under the house” area, as well. I knew what this meant, no turning back now. Whatever I found, I would have to deal with it: file it, pack it, ship it, donate it or recycle it. I was creating a home office downstairs, and I needed the place to be cleared and organized.
As I looked through the boxes of programs, pictures, and magazine clippings, I could see the legacy of the Salimpour name unfolding in front of me. Sometimes, when you are busy and stressed, the bigger perspective of where you come from and where you are going can get lost in the daily details of just trying to keep going every day. As I was sorting and reconnecting with my past, Isabella came down to the basement and asked me, “I’m a Salimpour, right mom?” “Of course you are honey. And all this is yours”, I responded. She smiled and I could see her sense of security. “Remember that you are a party of this legacy. You are a Salimpour and no matter what you do with that, it is yours”.
Seeing all the old photos of Bal Anat was like going to a family reunion --my mother in her classes dating back to the early 60’s, the long line of students that came through our lives. I came across articles from the old Habibi magazine; every month for approximately a decade, my mom would write on the dining room table in the very house in which Isabella and I live now. These articles date back to the early 70’s and documented much of American Belly Dance history.
Jamila, Suhaila and Isabella on stage at Rakkasah West 2007
It was also very comforting to see all the old personal photo albums as well as boxes of Isabella’s baby clothing that I had saved. I’m the kind of mother that saves every Halloween costume and even Isabella’s favorite pajamas through the years. I think my all time favorite pajama that she had was her teletubbie pajamas that she adored and wanted to wear every night. It took me back years; I still can’t believe how time flies and that the nine-year-old standing in front of me seems so grown up. How did she ever fit into these teletubbie pajamas?
My mother had saved many of the old workshop fliers from both workshops she had sponsored and those that had sponsored me. Our first year that we went on tour together was the summer of 1976. I was nine years old, any my father has just died. We decided to take off and see the country together while we toured. My mother is afraid to fly, so we took the train everywhere we went; I will never forget the days it took to get to a workshop. We brought many books and games (a magnetic chess set being my favorite), and I even got to touch the liberty bell. It was a magical summer, and my mother made sure to fill my soul with memories that would contribute to who I am today as a woman.
As I packed up a box full of my wedding photos and memorabilia from the decade spent with Isabella’s father, I felt both closure and a new beginning. I wrote “Isabella” on the box and stuck it far back under my house next to my wedding dress. Someday I will give these items to Isabella.
After the bulk of organizing was done, I took a moment to step back and observe these mementoes and documents from my life. And, as often happens when you are embroiled in a project for hours, I realized I was incredibly hungry. My mother had just made some of her famous meat sauce, and nothing but mamma’s cooking would have both been able to soothe my stomach and soul at this time. Funny how no matter now old we are, moms can always make us feel better. I appreciate my mother even more, now that I am a mother myself.
So, now that Isabella is old enough, I can share with her the concept of the Salimpour Legacy – that the boxes downstairs not only represent my mother’s past and my past, but also Isabella’s past. Whatever Isabella chooses as a profession (dancer, doctor, accountant, director, etc.), she will have a strong family legacy behind her. She will know where she came from, and she will have that as part of her strength as she moves forward in life in whatever path she chooses.
Guest Articles
What Would I Find
by Renee Drellishak
Renee Drellishak is Director of inFusion Tribal. She is Level 2 certified in Suhaila's format. To read more about Renee visit www.infusiontribal.com.
Renee Drellishak
What Would I Find? This was the thought that kept echoing through my head as I prepared for my most recent trip to The Mothership, Suhaila's studio in El Cerrito, CA. I had spoken to Suhaila after the increasingly public demise of her marriage, after key studio staff had left. It was huge and traumatic. She kept encouraging me to come down to the studio, and I just kept wondering what I would find there.
I have been studying with Suhaila for almost 7 years. In early 2001 I attended a workshop with her in the Seattle area and instantly became hooked on her message, on her training style, and on her personality as a teacher. I made my first pilgrimage to her studio in September 2001, a week after 9/11. Even back then I wondered what I would find at a bellydance studio with owners of Persian and Palestinian descent in the wake of our radical fundamentalist-driven national tragedy. What I found then were red, white, and blue ribbons in the windows, and a welcoming community of dancers, TAs, and Suhaila herself. Half of the workshop attendees couldn't or wouldn't fly out, so there were 11 of us, and 4 TAs, and Suhaila. To say that it was an intense week would be an understatement of epic proportions. I loved it. Even as I cried tears of frustration, invisible as they mingled with my dripping sweat, I loved it. The studio became a home away from home for me.
Just as the studio became a home, the women there became my family. Even as old faces left and new faces joined, there was a feeling of camaraderie and community, especially among the long-distance dancers, those who, like me, flew out to the studio once, twice, sometimes three or four times a year to train, to soak in the knowledge that hard work and integrity could elevate this art form. Every weeklong workshop I attended was like a family reunion.
And now I worried that the family was coming apart. Suhaila's family had in fact come apart. What would I find at the studio? Would there still be that feeling of community? Would there be fear? Chaos? Would the center hold?
It was raining when I walked into the studio on Monday afternoon, but it was warm and bright inside, and immediately I was greeted with smiles and hugs from old friends. There were new teachers, new classes, new blood, new energy. Suhaila came in on Tuesday with a huge smile on her face. Rakkasah East had been a resounding success. She had shown everyone that a personal setback was not going to affect her professional or artistic vision, far from it. The women in the company had rallied, swept and sweat the studio clean, and the possibilities seemed limitless.
Throughout the week, as I worked and sweated, danced and drilled, I kept thinking, "I am so glad to be here. I am so glad I came down." Once again, I found home.
An Egyptian Night
by Marisa
Marisa is a bellydancer based in Las Vegas, Nevada. She is Level 2 certified in Suhaila's format. To read more about Marisa visit www.marisalasvegas.com.
Marisa and Suhaila at the Pyramids
Giza, Egypt—July 2007: From the street, the unassuming shop doesn’t look like much, but Suhaila’s enthusiasm is contagious, and I find myself grinning while we wait for the oil shop door to open. I have no idea of what to expect but have been assured that "this is the real thing." The door opens to reveal the proprietor, an Egyptian man wearing a simple white cotton galabeya and a skullcap. His gentle eyes invited us into the multi-roomed, dimly lit store. As I cross the threshold, I feel as though I am stepping backwards in time. Filled with wonder, my senses take it all in: The mirror-backed wooden shelves that cover the walls, the geometric cut-outs in the wooden paneling that break the golden light up into little stars and the hundreds of shiny hand-blown glass perfume bottles. Reminiscing happily about Suhaila’s visit the year before, the owner leads us into a back room where we sit on velvet cushions and are served sweet mint tea by one of his teenage daughters.
Relaxed by the warmth of the tea and the gentle lighting, I lean back into the cushions and take a closer look around. Interspersed with the tiny, delicate perfume bottles are huge glass decanters of perfume oil. None are labeled, and I wonder if the owner distinguishes the different oils by their scents, their location on the shelves, or their color, which ranges from transparent to a deep translucent red. Suhaila is engaged in conversation, so I turn my attention to a stack of magazines on the miniature glass coffee table beside me. One is a belly dance publication that I assume was left here by one of the hundreds of foreign dancers in town for Raqia’s festival. As I leaf through it, a photo grabs Suhaila’s attention and she tells the owner “look—this is one of my students.” I flip the page. “Oh, these girls are my students too!” I carefully watch the expression on the shopowner’s face as I flip the pages and Suhaila points out her students in the glossy, full color photos. On one page she names three soloists and a troupe. “These are all your students?” our host asks. “Yeah, she’s kind of a big deal in the States,” I reply as I turn the page again. “Look!” I cry when I see the full-page photo from the SDC performance at Rakkasah. Suhaila laughs. “Is that you?” asks a soft male voice, which continues to answer its own question with “You got the biggest photo of them all!”
More tea is served and this time the daughter remains standing near the corner of the room, where she is joined by a younger sister who stands silently by her side. Something about the quality of the space has changed, and I realize that it is time for the shopping to begin. Without thinking, I adjust my posture, sitting up attentively. Our cheerful host takes on a serious tone as he explains the process that begins with plants and ends with fancy bottles for sale in expensive boutiques. Mentally I try to take note of the details, especially the part about three months under the desert sand…but then he is unstopping the decanter of lotus oil and dabbing a tiny drop on my right wrist, just at the base of the thumb. I close my eyes and bring my nose to my wrist, visions of ancient Egypt dancing in my head. I open my eyes and wonder what’s next. It’s lavender, a dab of which is applied to the back of my hand. I ask if there is any citrus and before I know it there is sweet orange on the outside of my wrist and grapefruit at the base of my pinkie. Then it’s gardenia, sweet pea, amber and a gooey sandalwood oil that feels luxurious as I rub it into the skin of my elbow. I’ve run out of space on my right arm and am having a hard time remembering which scent is where. On the other arm go white musk, red musk and some blends: Cleopatra, Arabian Nights, Aida and more. Intoxicated by the scents, I can’t help but giggle as we rub the last couple of oils onto our ankles.
I look at my watch and realize that we have been in the store for nearly two hours. Dozens of perfume decanters are untouched, but we are unable to process any more olfactory information. “I am a simple man,” our host tells us as he places pens and some sheets of blank stickers on the table. “I don’t read or write in English or Arabic.” I wonder again at his ability to distinguish between the different oils, a talent which seems to be shared by his daughters as well. The girls fill our perfume bottles almost as quickly as we label them, their hands steady as they pour the precious liquid from decanter to bottle without spilling a drop. I watch as the younger daughter fills the bottle I labeled “1001 nights—blend for women.” The stream of lemony-colored oil doesn’t even touch the sides of the bottle mouth as it flows from one container to the other. Strangely, the girls’ efficiency and the transfer of money from hand to hand doesn’t break the sensual spell of the shop and it is easy to lean into the cushions again while we are served Arabic coffee. The chocolatey dark coffee has a slightly spicy aroma that cuts through the dozens of other smells covering us. “Suhaila,” I say as I hold out one arm to her, the opposite index finger pointing to a spot on the inside of my forearm, “can you tell what this one is?” She sniffs, shrugs her shoulders and replies “I don’t know, but it smells hella good.”
The coffee cups are empty and it is time to get back to the hotel and get some sleep before the workshop tomorrow. The shopowner, whose name I had already forgotten, thanked us and bid us farewell. “You’ll be back soon, Inshallah. Even though you just bought enough perfume to make you smell good for a million years.” Huge, carefully wrapped bundles under each arm, we step through the doorway, out of the dream, into the busy Cairo night.
Workshops
January 27, 2008, El Cerrito, CA LEVEL 3 MASTER CLASS
Content:
Level 3 layering from Suhaila Salimpour’s Format
Prerequisite(s):
None
Cost:
$50 ($45 SSSD members)
To register:
To mail check or money order, send to Suhaila Salimpour, P. O. Box 8612, Landscape Station, Berkeley, CA 94707; 510-647-8554
Online registration: www.smartcart.com/Suhaila
January 28-February 1, 2008, El Cerrito, CA MULTI-LEVEL WEEKLONG
Content:
Overview of Suhaila Salimpour’s entire program
Prerequisite(s):
None
Cost:
$550 ($495 for SSSD Members)
To register:
To mail check or money order, send to Suhaila Salimpour, P. O. Box 8612, Landscape Station, Berkeley, CA 94707; 510-647-8554
Online registration: www.smartcart.com/Suhaila
February 2-3, 2008, Seattle, WA SUHAILA CEC WORKSHOP WITH SABRIYE TEKBILEK
Content:
Suhaila Salimpour format and choreography (workshops taught by Sabriye Tekbilek); SSSD members who are certified take this workshop for CECs
February 25-29, 2008, El Cerrito, CA LEVEL 3 WEEKLONG
Content:
Level 3 material from Suhaila’s format
Prerequisite(s):
Current Level 2 certification in Suhaila’s format
Testing:
Optional Level 3 certification testing available on Sat, Mar 1 for an additional charge.
Cost:
$700 (lunch included)
To register:
To mail check or money order, send to Suhaila Salimpour, P. O. Box 8612, Landscape Station, Berkeley, CA 94707; 510-647-8554
Online registration: www.smartcart.com/Suhaila
March 2, 2008, Bordentown, NJ SUHAILA CEC WORKSHOP WITH SABRIYE TEKBILEK
Content:
Suhaila Salimpour format and choreography (workshops taught by Sabriye Tekbilek); SSSD members who are certified take this workshop for CECs
Optional Level 3 certification testing available on Sat, Mar 8 for an additional charge.
Cost:
$700 (lunch included)
To register:
To mail check or money order, send to Suhaila Salimpour, P. O. Box 8612, Landscape Station, Berkeley, CA 94707; 510-647-8554
Online registration: www.smartcart.com/Suhaila
March 9-16, 2008, Valley Village & Vallejo, CA RAKASSAH WEST
Content:
See Rakkasah schedule online to view Suhaila or Jamila class details.
April 21-25, 2008, El Cerrito, CA LEVEL 2 WEEKLONG
Content:
Suhaila Salimpour format and choreographies from five different teachers (teachers to be None
Prerequisite(s):
Current Level 2 certification in Suhaila’s format
Testing:
Optional Level 3 certification testing available on Sat, Mar 8 for an additional charge.
Cost:
$650 ($585 for SSSD Members)
To register:
To mail check or money order, send to Suhaila Salimpour, P. O. Box 8612, Landscape Station, Berkeley, CA 94707; 510-647-8554
Online registration: www.smartcart.com/Suhaila
July 28-August 1, 2008, El Cerrito, CA MULTI-LEVEL WEEKLONG
Content:
Level 3 layering techniques in Suhaila Salimpour’s format
Prerequisite(s):
None
Cost:
$50 ($45 for SSSD Members)
To register:
To mail check or money order, send to Suhaila Salimpour, P. O. Box 8612, Landscape Station, Berkeley, CA 94707; 510-647-8554
Online registration: www.smartcart.com/Suhaila
August 3, 2008, El Cerrito, CA LEVEL 3 MASTER CLASS
Content:
Overview of Suhaila Salimpour’s entire program
Prerequisite(s):
None
Testing:
Optional Level 1 and Level 2 certification testing available on Aug. 1 after workshop for an additional charge.
Cost:
$550 ($495 for SSSD Members)
To register:
To mail check or money order, send to Suhaila Salimpour, P. O. Box 8612, Landscape Station, Berkeley, CA 94707; 510-647-8554
Online registration: www.smartcart.com/Suhaila
August 4-8, 2008, El Cerrito, CA MULTI-LEVEL WEEKLONG
Content:
Overview of Suhaila Salimpour’s entire program
Prerequisite(s):
None
Testing:
Optional Level 1 and Level 2 certification testing available on Aug.81 after workshop for an additional charge.
Cost:
$550 ($495 for SSSD Members)
To register:
To mail check or money order, send to Suhaila Salimpour, P. O. Box 8612, Landscape Station, Berkeley, CA 94707; 510-647-8554
Online registration: www.smartcart.com/Suhaila
August 11-15, 2008, El Cerrito, CA LEVEL 3 WEEKLONG
Content:
Level 3 material from Suhaila Salimpour’s format
Prerequisite(s):
Current Level 2 certification in Suhaila Salimpour’s format
Testing:
Optional Level 3 certification testing available on Sat, Aug. 16 for an additional charge.
Cost:
$700 (lunch included)
To register:
To mail check or money order, send to Suhaila Salimpour, P. O. Box 8612, Landscape Station, Berkeley, CA 94707; 510-647-8554
Online registration: www.smartcart.com/Suhaila
October 19, 2008, El Cerrito, CA LEVEL 3 MASTER CLASS
Content:
Level 3 layering from Suhaila Salimpour’s format
Prerequisite(s):
None
Cost:
$50 ($45 for SSSD Members)
To register:
To mail check or money order, send to Suhaila Salimpour, P. O. Box 8612, Landscape Station, Berkeley, CA 94707; 510-647-8554
Online registration: www.smartcart.com/Suhaila
September 12-14, 2008, El Cerrito, CA LEVEL 1 THREE-DAY
Content:
Level 1 of Suhaila Salimpour’s format
Prerequisite(s):
None
Testing:
Optional Level 1 certification testing available on Sep. 14 after workshop for an additional charge.
Cost:
$375 ($337.50 for SSSD Members)
To register:
To mail check or money order, send to Suhaila Salimpour, P. O. Box 8612, Landscape Station, Berkeley, CA 94707; 510-647-8554
Online registration: www.smartcart.com/Suhaila
September 15-19, 2008, El Cerrito, CA JAMILA SALIMPOUR CERTIFICATION WEEKLONG
Content:
Jamila Salimpour format (more details soon!)
Prerequisite(s):
None
Testing:
Optional Jamila format certification testing available after workshop for an additional charge; details coming soon!
Cost:
$650 ($585 for SSSD Members)
To register:
To mail check or money order, send to Suhaila Salimpour, P. O. Box 8612, Landscape Station, Berkeley, CA 94707; 510-647-8554
Online registration: www.smartcart.com/Suhaila
October 20-24, 2008, El Cerrito CA LEVEL 2 WEEKLONG
Content:
Level 2 material from Suhaila Salimpour’s format
Prerequisite(s):
Current Level 1 certification in Suhaila Salimpour’s format
Testing:
Optional Level 2 certification testing available on Oct. 24 after workshop for an additional charge.
Cost:
$550
To register:
To mail check or money order, send to Suhaila Salimpour, P. O. Box 8612, Landscape Station, Berkeley, CA 94707; 510-647-8554
Online registration: www.smartcart.com/Suhaila
Featured Workshops
LEVEL 3 WEEKLONG MAR 3-7, 2008
El CERRITO, CA – Only a few spaces still available!
Must currently be Level 2 certified in Suhaila’s format to take the workshop. Only a few spaces are still available! Cost is $700 (lunch included). To register online: www.smartcart.com/suhaila.
LEVEL 2 WEEKLONG, APR 21-25, 2008
EL CERRITO, CA
Must currently be Level 1 certified in Suhaila’s format to participate. Space still available. Cost is $550. To register online: www.smartcart.com/suhaila.
CHOREOGRAPHY COLLECTIVE WEEKLONG, JUN 23-27, 2008
EL CERRITO, CA
Suhaila Salimpour format and choreographies from five different teachers (to be announced). No prerequisites. Cost is $650 ($585 for SSSD members). To register online: www.smartcart.com/suhaila.
JAMILA SALIMPOUR CERTIFICATION WEEKLONG, SEP 15-19, 2008
EL CERRITO, CA Jamila Salimpour format (more details soon). No prerequisites. Cost is $650 ($585 for SSSD members). To register online: www.smartcart.com/suhaila.
Inspiration Point
Check out this fusion clip on YouTube.com. To provide your comments, please send an email to suhaila@TheRealSuhaila.com and put "Inspiration Point" in the subject.
Bring Suhaila to your event! Suhaila and the Suhaila Dance Company travel all over the country and the world performing and teaching workshops. For availability and booking information, contact Suhaila at suhaila@TheRealSuhaila.com.
Classes
The Suhaila Salimpour School of Dance
10082 San Pablo Avenue
El Cerrito, CA 94530
