So you may be wondering what my posts will be about. You might be thinking, what you could possibly learn from me? Maybe you are not even into bellydancing. Maybe you have all the information you need on bellydance & fitness. Well, just like my classes, it is never just bellydance. I’ll cover different topics of interest ranging from what I am doing in my classes, performances, behind the scenes stories other bellydancers won’t discuss on a public forum. I will talk about how I keep the balance living in NW CT, running my dance studio in New Rochelle (my hometown), being a stay at home mom, wife, performer, instructor and friend, while still making time to party like a Raqstar!
 
I’ll begin with how I came to be a dancer & teacher and how I developed my unique style of bellydance. I will start by saying I have never had any formal dance instruction. Yes I said it! This, the main reason why I am not accepted among some of the traditional bellydancers who have studied their whole life. But, I have been dancing since I could walk. When I got old enough I began going to dance clubs. I was usually that girl in the center of the dance floor with a crowd surrounding me. I love to dance and my passion for expressing myself always transcended into my dance. My first job as a dancer came in 1999 when Palladium Night Club was opening in New Rochelle. They were looking for dancers and I could not resist an audition. I was hired on the spot! 4 girls were hired but only 3 of us became the permanent fixtures there. We had our own fabulous dressing room and created themes on a weekly basis. We made most of our own costumes. For me it was one of the best jobs. I got paid to do what I love. Dance to the music I loved with crowds of people cheering me on, dressed like every weekend was Halloween! Dancing became such a huge part of me. The weekends were like mini productions. Perfecting new dance moves for the crowd each week and making it a show. These would soon become my signature moves. When Palladium’s popularity started to die down I started looking elsewhere for dancer gigs. It was extremely competitive and very clicky. I soon found myself dancing regularly in popular NYC clubs such as Webster Hall and Limelight. I even did opening night at Avalon when it was switched over.
I believe I grew the most as a dancer during my time at Webster Hall. I experimented with the acrobatic rings that hung from the ceiling to our stage. Trying new tricks and using props to wow the crowd. I started putting other different styles of dance to house and trance music. At Webster Hall we were also forced to dance to 80’s, rock, disco, latin and any other genres of music you could think of in the Marlin Room.  I had to be prepared to dance to anything! Most of my friends and now husband is Albanian. I spent a lot of time exposed to the culture. I was enraptured by the music and dance. I attended a lot of Albanian events during this time because of the war that was happening in Kosova. I had friends that joined the KLA (Kosovo Liberation Army). The functions were always centered around music & dancing. I watched on the sidelines at first, watching the foot movements, and the way the crowd moved up and down as one but each couple moving separate. I learned the circle dance, the Valle. Then my friends pushed me out there and told me just dance. I did not get good at it until I started to feel the music as my own. I soon became known for being the “Spanish” girl who could dance Albanian. Rumors had even started that  I was half Albanian. I started putting some of these moves to House music on stage at Webster Hall. When I discovered the video for one of my favorite songs, Sting’s – Dessert Rose, my mind was opened to bellydance.
 I had always been drawn to middle and far east countries music & cultures. Albanian not being so different from some Arabic music and culture I decided to learn more. I looked up teachers in the area, but was soon turned off by how rude and pretentious some of the well known instructors were. I decided to look in NYC area instead, where I worked during the day. I soon found the wonderful and charming Serena Studio. After a few e mails between myself and Serena and Jenna one of her instructors, I decided to purchase a 10 class card. They were both so helpful and informative. The classes were great, but I somehow felt that I had been doing these moves all my life. It just never had a name until now. I took my now husband to a restaurant where Jenna was performing downtown. Her performance was so beautiful. I decided at that moment, this is what I want to do. I wanted to take my dance career into bellydancing, but with a twist! I did not return to Serena Studios, but always think of Serena & Jenna fondly for the kindness that they showed me. And not just me but the respect they seemed to have for all dancers, and students that came to Serena Studios.
I began to concentrate on putting all I had been learning from different cultural dances to House music. The result is my unique style of dance now known as Bellydance-House Fusion. People always approached me asking if I gave lessons. I decided it was time to break down the moves I learned and created and put them into a format that I could teach other women. I knew at this point dancing was my destiny and Destiny The Dancer was born.
 I gave my first lessons at The Southside Boys & Girls Club in New Rochelle to the kids for free. This would give the kids a fun free activity and me the students I needed to test my teaching abilities. The program was a success and through the kids class I got a lot of the parents to join an adult class. My next step was teaching out of a Capoeira studio for the next 1 – 2 years. This was a great situation, until another dance teacher was also moved in. Lets just say she was less then respectful to myself and my students. I decided this was not the place for me to be anymore. I took some time off to have my last 2 sons and just taught here and there in gyms and doing private gigs. 3 months after my youngest son was born I decided it was time for me to open my own dance studio. 1 month later I was looking at spaces with a realtor. He showed me a few that I was less than thrilled with. He said he had one last place he could show me in another part of town. He was not the listing agent, but knew the owner and could get me in. We looked at all the spaces and some would accomodate my needs and well with in my price range. Then he told me he had 1 other space in the building that was out of my price range, but to have a look just for fun. He informed me it was Norman Rockwell’s old artist studio. I walked into a small room with an archway that led into a larger open room with a skylight. This was it! I had to have it, no matter the cost. I knew there was a reason I had been brought to that space. This would become Dancing With Destiny Studio. I still get the same feeling each time I walk into my studio. I painted Maktub- meaning Destiny, Fate, It was written, your souls purpose over the archway. 1 year after running the studio successfully I had to make the difficult decision of giving it up when we decided to move our family 1 hr 40 min to NW CT.  Fast forward 3 years later I was looking for space in New Rochelle area again. I was settled in CT and have now grown accustomed to the commute a few days a week, since I still had most of my performances and clients in Westchester & NYC area. I decided to give my old landlord a call and just take a chance to see if my old space was available. It was. I struck a deal with him to have it for the summer and see how it would work out. The economy has changed a lot and I have not been advertising in New Rochelle area in quite some time. It has been challenging to say the least. My loyal students are determined to keep me here, so we will see what happens. Maktub is still painted over the archway after all these years. Still trying to make it work and figuring it all out. How will I do it now that 2 of my 3 kids are in school and commuting almost 2 hours? Well the way I see it, it is better to have loved and lost, then have never loved at all. I won’t be that person with regrets later on in life saying I shoulda, coulda, woulda…I did it. Whether it works or not the point is to enjoy life.. you only get 1 shot at it. Until next time…Maktub.
Destiny
To follow my crazy life and join my dance madness find me on Facebook.com/Destiny Maktub