A Revue of the Belly Dancer of the Universe Competition 2006 by Marta Schill



The Ever Expanding Universe,
by Marta Schill

There was a major shift in the time/space continuum over the 2006 Presidents’ Day weekend in Long Beach, CA. Einstein’s theories were once again verified - and the result? The Universe exploded with excitement! The celebrated duo of Tonya and Atlantis offered a greatly expanded Bellydancer of the Universe Competition: More space, more workshops (16!), more competition categories (11), and more shopping than ever before.

Tonya and Atlantis’ BDUC has always worked toward the goal of attracting the attention of the wider public to the art of Bellydance - thus their courageous move to the gorgeous and spacious Long Beach Convention Center.

Competition entrants came from all of North America as well as the Near and Far East. This year’s theme was “Legends of the Dance,” resulting in an astounding spectrum of experienced, talented instructors presenting the seminars: Classes overlapped in two separate venues, leaving students with the deliciously difficult choice of which ones to take.

Saturday: From morning ‘til night, the stars appeared and shone. Early on, the Divine Championship was claimed by Soraya (Utah), with Deborah (So Cal) as First Runner-up. Then, the initial new category appeared, the Dancer’s Drum Solo, with an amazing number of eager contestants. The Champion, Louchia (So Cal) was fabulous, closely followed by Rimarah Hare (Florida) as First Runner-up.

Then, comets streaked through the cosmos – the Junior dancers (displaying our promise for the future) dazzled the audience with their talent and inventiveness. Magdalena was the luminous winner, and lovely Angelika took First Runner-up.

More enticing new life forms were introduced; Tribal Fusion Solo dancers were intriguingly innovative in their approach to this compellingly unique category. Washington State’s Elizabeth Dennis took the top trophy with an exciting Flamenco/Tribal fusion, while Rimarah Hare was First Runner-up with an exotic double sword dance.

The recent burst of activity in the area of children’s dance troupes led to yet another new venue: the Junior Group Category. The Champions? Gems of the Nile, with Jewels of Miehana as First Runners-up. Obviously, small dancers are perceived as precious stones (as well they are)! Continuing with the opportunity to glimpse our future treasures, the Little competition was held, with Nadana from Nevada the Champion and Vanessa (So Cal) as First Runner-up.

Saturday evening’s gala show opened with the Tribal Group competition, with Blue Stars of Tanit (So Cal) emerging victorious. First Runner-up went to the notorious Balcksheep Bellydance from Northern California. Then, the Champions from all the daytime categories displayed their talents, inspiring the audience to take to the floor for open dance.

One astounding moment of this extremely enjoyable evening occurred when Helena Vlahos, a legendary dancer famous for her abdominal control and expertise, performed majestically on stage – then came to a special dance floor on the ground level and enchanted the crowd with her expert wielding of quarters on her beautiful midsection: She brilliantly maneuvered the coins not only ‘in line’ up and down three times - but also rolled them down one at a time – then every other one separately! Be sure to see the video of this performance! It was truly spectacular.

Of Veils and Incense and Essence of Veils along with Atlantis’ breathtaking moves with her white feather cape continued this high energy show: Then, the dynamic diversity of dance styles presented by instructors Amina Goodyear and Una proved them the perfect superstars to cap an extremely successful first day.

Sunday: The second dawning of the new Universe convincingly demonstrated the BDUC’s myriad reasons for expansion! The new location was filled with attendees, students, dancers and musicians. This was the period of greatest suspense: Who would be still standing in the evening’s Universal and Egyptian finals?

First came the very popular Fusion competition; the diverse and eclectic presentations in this venue were beyond imagination, creating a galaxy of their own - all of these performers are to be congratulated. The Championship went to Viridiana (So Cal), First Runner-up, Chris! (No Cal); Second Runner-up, Washington’s Elizabeth Dennis; and Louisiana’s Morrighan was Third Runner-up.

It was now time to identify the brightest stars in the solar system…four finalists were selected from the Egyptian category (which had a record number of hopefuls this year!) as well as from the Universal dancers, who competed for the ultimate honor of the title which gave this competition its name.

Sunday evening’s show embraced the venerated traditions of the BDUC, opening with the Group competitions; ranging from a full stage (22!) of gorgeous dancers, all the way to a duet who almost went all the way! Their samba costumes sent ripples of excitement throughout the crowd. The “stage full,” however, prevailed over the “eye full,” and Anja’s Court (So Cal) claimed the victory. First Runner-up, Ooh-La-La from Northern California, Second Runner-up, Babylon Mood (So Cal) and Third Runner-up, Shazadi from Utah.

Now! Time for the finest dancers to be held under the microscope (or is it telescope?). Four beautifully appointed Egyptian performers competed, using their own recordings with the addition of a drum solo at the ending that was completely new to them. Ultimately, the standout representative of all things Egyptian was Louchia from Southern California! First Runner-up was Isis (Utah), Second Runner-up, Angela Prato from Ohio, and Third Runner-up was Talia (So Cal).

Drum roll…or was that thunder? The Universal finalists appeared one by one to perform to music they had never heard; including (among other factors) 9/8, 6/8 and drum solo played by oudist Viken Najarian, kanunist Carlos Devecioglu and noted clarinetist Andres Tsianis. This show was the ultimate test of a dancer’s ability to improvise, play zils, adjust and perform in any situation - the final challenge!

As the ballots were being tallied, a final bolt of silver sailed through the evening sky – Atlantis again performed brilliantly, posing the timeless question: Where does she find that amazing energy? Maybe Einstein can solve that one!

And…the Universal Champion was - beautiful Katayna from Arizona, closely followed by Julianna from Minnesota, Florida’s Rimarah Hare, and Aziza Nawal from Georgia as First, Second and Third Runners-up respectively. Congratulations to all of these extraordinarily gifted dancers.

More information, including the Peoples’ Choice and Congeniality Awards, with additional coverage of the teachers, judges, and vendors present this year is available at bellydanceroftheuniverse.com – as well as photos of all winners and of the event itself.

Once again, the telescope is at rest. Each star shone in its own beautifully unique manner – and will bring brilliance to Bellydance for the year to come. The Universe will once again convene on Presidents’ Day weekend in 2007. See you there!

http://www.bellydanceroftheuniverse.com/bduc2006.htm#reviewbymarta