Metamorphosis

From one of my first Tribal Fusion performances.

It's official.  May 2015, I will begin Initiation in Rachel Brice's 8 Elements.  I have looked forward to this for a long time.  Tribal Fusion is what made me become a tribal belly dancer.  But for reasons I'll elaborate in a future post, I devoted 5 years of my dance career to ATS®.  I have been a belly dancer for 6 years.  If it is true that our bodies completely regenerate every 7 to 10 years, then maybe it's not a coincidence that I'm ready to redirect my purpose as a tribal belly dancer.

Who I am today is not the same dancer who took her first belly dance class 6 six years ago.


I will still be a FCBD® Sister Studio and uphold my duties as a sister studio.  American Tribal Style® is a necessary element in the Arkansas Bellydance Community.  But now it has developed enough that I can fade back and let someone else lead, pun intended ;)

WARNING:  This is where I'm going to sound arrogant, but I'm just being honest.  I don't mean to be condescending whatsoever.

As of right now, there are not any Tribal Fusion masters in Arkansas, not really.  We don't have Jills or Rachels or Miras or Kamis or Zoes or Heathers or Sharons or Amys or Aprils and etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. We DO have Oriental masters, and I have learned lots from them.  The tribal belly dance community, however, is still a youngling. We DO have talented dancers who study Tribal Fusion. I have learned a lot from them as well.  They are, after all, more experienced in Tribal Fusion than I am.  But in a way, I feel like I'm not that far behind.  What puts them ahead of me is that they have a strong voice in their craft.  A dancer can be a technique expert, but what makes that dancer special is the voice.  The voice identifies the dancer, even when he or she specializes in writing choreography for other dancers.  I am confident in my technique despite that there is room to grow.   While devoting my time to ATS®, I have always studied Tribal Fusion, but on a technical level.  I do not have a voice.  It'll take years of experimentation to discover that voice, and I need a master to send me off in the right direction... and beat some humility into me.

Not everyone needs intensives or mentors to help develop their own dance personality.  Some are happy doing the work independently.  I am not one of those people because I need others.  I am a very social dancer.  I do not like learning from DVDs or Online Videos.  They are great references, but not teachers.  I am one of those kids that need to go to class.  I need to travel out of state to take workshops.  I need people to motivate me and challenge me.  If I was blessed with the ability to grow independently, then living in Monticello should not have snuffed out my passion for the dance.  But even without leaders and mentors in Arkansas, I do what I can.

Those who know me, know that building positive communities is a big deal to me.  I try to do my part to benefit the community, but now I'm taking a journey that just serves me.  I will not withdraw my service to the dance community, but I am putting a much-needed focus on my craft.  I am ready to pursue the dance style that inspired me to become a belly dancer.

I am ready to find my voice.