Stephanie's Summer Hafla

Just a reminder that Stephanie is holding a Summer Hafla at the Electricity Club, Pontcanna, Cardiff on Friday 30 June.

Arabic drummer John Sleiman returns as the star attraction, plus performances, freestyle dancing, buffet, bazaar and bar.

It's from 7.30pm till midnight - all welcome, tickets £8 or half price for under 16's.

For futher information and tickets please contact Stephanie on 029 2023 1450 or email info @ stephaniebellydance.co.uk

Kami - Tribal Fusion Bellydance Workshop

Here's a chance to learn a modern fusion of an ancient dance from one of the Bellydance Superstars.

Kami is primarily a tribal dancer, but she incorporates modern hip hop, jazz and bhangra with various styles of bellydance.

The workshop takes place at Gloucester Guildhall Arts Centre on Saturday 27 May.

It's in the theatre space, 10am to 1pm, and costs £35 advance, £45 on the door, £25 for under 18s.

To book a place, contact Anna Chandler 01454 619557 or email anna @ egyptiannights.co.uk

More details at www.egyptiannights.co.uk

Charity Hafla in Chepstow - EVENT POSTPONED

The planned charity event at the Mythos Meze Bar in Chepstow on Wednesday 3 May has been postponed.

Helin hopes to rearrange it for a later date - we'll post the details here when it's sorted.

Hossam and Serena Ramzy - UK Tour

The leading couple of Egyptian dance are coming back to Britain for their first UK tour.

Each weekend starts with a Friday night hafla and concert with special guests, followed by two full days of dance workshops.

It's actually two mini tours - dates and venues as follows:

Lichfield - 9, 10, 11 June - King Edward VI School

Brighton - 16, 17, 18 June - Deanslade Leisure Centre

Cardiff - 23 June - Concert at the Coal Exchange

Cardiff - 24, 25 June - Workshops at Fitzalan High School

Manchester - 15, 16, 17 Sept - Swinton Masonic Hall

Bristol - 29, 30 Sept, 1 Oct - City Academy

London - 6, 7, 8 October - venue tbc

Anyone who remembers Hossam and Serena's weekend in Cardiff back in March 2004 will know this is not to be missed!

Full details at www.hossamramzy.com or contact Maria Credali email balliamo @ madasafish.com or phone 01543 250756.

Try Belly Dancing at St David's Hall

Haven't got time to commit to a weekly class? Want to try first?

Workshops are taking place at St David's Hall, Cardiff, on Saturday 24 June.

10.30am till 12.30pm - Beginners (Ladies)

1.30pm till 3.30pm - Refreshers (Ladies)

4.30pm till 6.30pm - Refreshers (Men)

Wot - no course for male beginners?

Courses cost £6 full price with concessions £4 - to book a place call St David's Hall Box Office on 029 2087 8444.

Bellydance workshop and party near Brecon

On Sunday 30 April there's a bellydance workshop and party at Llangorse Village Hall in Llangorse near Brecon.

Laila Hague invites you to experience the art of dance and exercise in a friendly and fun atmosphere.

The workshop takes place from 3 till 5pm and costs £8, with the party from 7 till 11pm also costing £8.

There's a raffle and donations are invited to the Children with Aids charity.

Laila also holds bellydance classes at Llangorse Hall every Tuesday night from 7 till 8pm.

For booking and information, contact Laila on 01874 658640.

Ahlam - a celebration of goddesses

Many of you will have enjoyed seeing or taking part in Hannah Corr's performance at The Gate arts centre in Cardiff in March.

Ahlam was a celebration of goddesses through Middle Eastern dance, featuring a number of local tutors and students.

You can see some photos of the evening on the Arabesq website.

What did you think of the performance? Send your comments to andy @ arabesq.co.uk and I'll add them to this page.

Sophira Shannon - South Wales Valleys

Sophira Shannon is a bellydancer who teaches several classes in the south Wales valleys.

Classes are currently taking place in Bedwas, Ystrad, Cwmaman, Treforest, Beddau and Cilfynydd - for dates and times see www.arabesq.co.uk/classes.shtml

Sophira and her dance troupe Habibafusion are also available for haflas, parties and other events - for more info check out her new website at www.bellydancingexotic.com

Saffira - bellydance in mid Wales

Anyone from mid Wales interested in bellydance? Get in touch with Saffira, leader of the Veiled Sapphires.

"I have available a wide selection of new Turkish Velvet and chiffon coin belts, from £16 - £20, plus a few veils to match, and some zills, from £8.

"In addition, I also have in stock a few skirts, some velvet some chiffon and am available to attend classes/ haflas in the mid-ish region."

For more details, contact Saffira on 078 333 86648 or saffira @ tesco.net

She also tells us of a Christmas party to be hosted by the Veiled Sapphires at the Welfare Hall, Ystradgynlais, to raise money for two local charities: The Healthy Living Centre, Ystradgynlais and Penmaes Special School, Brecon.

Classes and their teachers invited to attend/ perform and generally shimmy and sparkle on December 2nd. For further info about the party contact Lin (email daibabs @ aol.com) or Julie (email julieandadrian @ birches2.wanadoo.co.uk)

Jawahir - costumes for sale

Message from one of the members of Jawahir: "I have a large stock of brand new Egyptian coin belts both chiffon and metal in at the moment, from £16-£22 max as well as bra & belt sets max £50 a set, lots of skirts around £18-20, tops, Isis Dancing Wings £42 and many other items. I can be contacted on 07973 354260."

Jawahir is a Middle Eastern dance club based in Newport - for details of their courses, performances and other activities go to www.arabdance.co.uk

Sue Lloyd - costumes, coin belts and CDs for sale

Message from Sue: "I have a large stock of coin belts in at the moment, from £28 upwards, if any one wants one and has a specific colour / shape in mind, contact me on safeenabellydance @ yahoo.co.uk

"Also, I will be in Turkey over Easter if anyone is interested in Turkish costumes ... 4 piece starter costumes (bra, belt, panel skirt and veil) start at £80, 7 piece more professional (as above but with headdress and wrist bands) from £120 ... just give me measurements and prefered colour and I will see what I can do.

"Also, Turkish music ... Tarkan, Asena, Mostafa Sandal, Mezdeke, folkloric ... all CDs are £11.99 ... and zills £10 for a set of 4 ... lovely sound."

For details of Sue's classes, workshops and other activities, see her website at www.safeena.co.uk

Andy Roberts - bellydance DJ for hire

To anyone who's enjoyed my services as a bellydance DJ - and to anyone who hasn't yet had the pleasure...

Just wanted to let you know I'm beefing up my DJ gear with an amplifier and some more powerful speakers.

It'll improve the sound in venues where the in-house PA systems aren't particularly brilliant, and in larger venues where we'd otherwise have to hire in some equipment.

Although I mainly perform around south Wales, I'm willing to consider offers of gigs further afield e.g. Bristol, Bath, mid and west Wales etc.

More info on my page at www.arabesq.co.uk/andy.shtml

Beatrice Curtis Workshops - May 13/14

Beatrice Curtis is coming to Bannatynes Health Club in Newport to host some workshops on Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 May.

Saturday's workshop is aimed at helping beginners and improvers nervous of performing at haflas, while Sunday's session is a stick dance for improvers or more experienced dancers.

Beatrice will also be performing at Shirley's hafla in Rogerstone on the Saturday night.

To book a place or get more details, contact Sue Lloyd or check the website at www.arabesq.co.uk/workshops.shtml

Welcome!

Hi guys - welcome to the Arabesq noticeboard.

It's a new feature to support my existing Arabesq website about the bellydance scene in Wales at www.arabesq.co.uk - there you'll find pages devoted to classes, workshops, events, weblinks and more.

Here, I'll be alerting you to the latest additions to the site - I'll also be adding miscellaneous messages about items for sale, people looking to book bellydancers, new venues opening, and anything else that might be of interest.

Send your bellydancing news to andy @arabesq.co.uk