The Magpie Court

Posted by januaryfae in Uncategorized

Baba Ghanoush proudly presents Queen Maggie and her lady-in-waiting, Pie:

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Queen Maggie (right) and her lady-in-waiting Pie of the Magpie Court visit the 2013 Maryland Faerie Festival. Photo Courtesy of Tawny Woodchucker.

Queen Maggie and Pie enjoyed a visit to the 2013 Maryland Faerie Festival, where they collected many wonderful shiny things for their nests and inducted new friends into the Magpie Court.  Members of the Magpie Court are welcomed by magpies everywhere, as well as by their corvid cousins: crows, ravens, jackdaws, choughs, nutcrackers, treepies, jays, and rooks.  Court herald and jester Cousin Squelch announced the arrival of the Queen and Pie as they wandered among the many shiny sights of the festival.  Her Majesty was excessively pleased with the Maryland Faerie Festival and particularly enjoyed liasing with Wedji Tucheeks, Eye of Isis, Maharal, and the Aubergine Faeries.

Meanwhile, Amy Fae and Alizarin were spotted with those same Aubergine Faeries, who delighted both Spoutwood and Maryland Faerie Festivals with dances from far-off lands, mundane and fae alike.  Amy Fae stole hearts young and old as she personified the rogue of the Bengali song Awara, while Alizarin’s playful saidi solo drew delighted sighs and smiles from the audience.

Aubergine Faeries dance at Spoutwood Farm's 2013 May Day Fairie Festival. Photo courtesy of Willow Dower.

The Aubergine Faeries dance at Spoutwood Farm’s 2013 May Day Fairie Festival. Photo courtesy of Willow Dower.

The local Faerie Festival season may be wrapping up, but Baba Ghanoush is looking forward to other exciting, if not quite so winged, events.  We’ll be appearing as ourselves and with our fellow Aubergines at the All Seasons Hafla on Sunday, June 2nd.  And we are very pleased to announce the first ever Baba Ghanoush workshop: BG’s Belly Dance Duet Toolkit.  We’ll be co-teaching this exciting workshop at Halima’s in Westminster on Sunday, July 28, 1:00-3:00 pm.  Check out the Facebook event page for details!

Upcoming Events:

June 2, 3:00pm (Sunday) – All Seasons Hafla at 7 West Bistro in Towson, MD.  BG duet and also perform with troupe Aubergine at this local monthly hafla.  $10.

July 28, 1:00pm (Sunday) – Baba Ghanoush’s Belly Dance Duet Toolkit, workshop at Halima’s House on the Hill in Westminster, MD.  Come build your own toolkit of belly dance duet strategies!  $35/person; no partner necessary.

Look out, 2013! Here comes Baba Ghanoush!

Posted by januaryfae in Dance Events and tagged with ,

Baba Ghanoush isn’t big on making resolutions, especially not the kind that get lost in an embarrassed tumble of excuses or life-as-usual.  We do, however, enjoy making lists and dreaming up future projects.  So while we’ve spent most of January welcoming in the New Year with music, dance, and friends, we’ve also been planning our adventures for 2013.  For starters, we’ve applied to some local festivals and haflas. We’ve been discussing what to choreograph next: a new drum solo, a sword dance, or perhaps a new candle dance?  There may even be a Delicious Duets workshop percolating.  Meanwhile, we will continue to develop our own dance techniques and personal styles in the coming year, and you can continue to see us solo once or twice a month at Kitchen of India in Parkville, Md.

What will 2013 hold?

A new veil dance? (Photo by Stereovision.)

A new veil dance? (Photo by Stereovision.)

Or perhaps some pink fluffy unicorns? (Photo by Triformis Photography.)

Or perhaps some pink fluffy unicorns? (Photo by Triformis Photography.)

Perhaps a fierce new sword dance.

Perhaps a fierce new sword dance. (Photo by Triformis Photography.)

Maybe a faerie festival or two.

Maybe a faerie festival or two. (Photo by Triformis Photography.)

If you’re hankering to see us in action sooner rather than later, check out our Upcoming Performances below.  In particular, we are very excited about Ishtar’s visit to Baltimore on March 2-3, 2013.  This will be a weekend of workshops and Ishtar performances including both open dancing and scheduled performers.  Amy Fae will be co-teaching a Theatrical Bellydance Workshop with Nina Amaya on March 3, and both Amy Fae and Alizarin will have solo performances with the band at the hafla later that day. Check out the Facebook event page for more information regarding the weekend’s events.

Upcoming Performances:

January 25, 7:00pm (Friday) – Java Hafla at Birdie’s Café in Westminster, Md.  Westminster’s monthly friendly, free hafla.  BG will likely be performing both duets and solos.

February 9, 5:00pm (Saturday)- Alizarin at Cupid’s Heart Hafla at Typhrodisia’s Bellydance and Beyond Studio in Severna Park, Md.

February 10, 7:00pm (Sunday) – Alizarin at Kitchen of India in Parkville, Md.

February 24, 7:00pm (Sunday) – Amy Fae at Kitchen of India in Parkville, Md.

March 3, 5:00 – 7:00pm (Sunday) – Hafla w/ Ishtar at Kitchen of India in Parkville, Md.  Amy Fae and Alizarin will each solo to live music.

March 17, 7:00pm (Sunday) – Alizarin at Kitchen of India in Parkville, Md. St. Patrick’s Day Special!

March 23, 1:28pm (Saturday) – Alizarin performs at Art of the Belly at The Carousel hotel in Ocean City, Md.

March 24, 7:00pm (Sunday) – Amy Fae at Kitchen of India in Parkville, Md.

BG’s Holiday List

Posted by januaryfae in Uncategorized

In the midst of this tumultuous holiday season, Baba Ghanoush would like to take a moment to share some of the things we are grateful for in our dance lives.  So here is our list, not of what we wish for, but of what we’re so very thankful for:

  • A strong Baltimore dance community that maintains high standards of professional conduct and local dancers that are willing to share advice and experiences.
  • Our Aubergine troupe family of fun-loving, interesting, wise women of diverse life experiences.
  • Each other: Baba Ghanoush dance partners with compatible communication and working styles, and complimentary dance skills.
  • Local events like the Inappropriate Halfa, Dance Your Heart Out, the Java Hafla, Goblins & Gears.
  • Our duet sisters, Cypress, who helped us put on an amazing show while raising money for House of Ruth, Maryland.
  • Supportive significant others, parents, friends, and fans.
  • Glitter and sequins.  And more glitter.

Celebrate the season with us at our upcoming solo performances at Kitchen of India on Joppa Road in Parkville, MD:

December 30: “New Years Eve Eve” with triple headliners Nina Amaya, Alizarin, and Amy Fae, $20 buffet, 6:30

January 13: Alizarin

January 20: Amy Fae

More Baba Ghanoush performance dates to follow.  Until then, here’s the video of our October performance at Mariza’s Belly Dance Showcase:

Happy Autumn!

Posted by januaryfae in Dance Events

Baba Ghanoush welcomes the days of apple cider and pumpkin carving in the near future.  You can find us celebrating these crisp colorful days at a number of upcoming events:

Alizarin portrays the Autumn Faerie in Aubergine’s The Ugly Goblin at Artscape 2012. Photo by Seth Ramesh.

  • BG will appear in Mariza’s Belly Dance Showcase at Theater Project in Baltimore on October 5. We’re stepping out of our comfort zone and tackling a Suhaila Salimpour choreography for this one.  Other featured performers include Barakaat and Kallisti Tribal, and of course Mariza’s amazing student troupe, Lazuli!
  • Both Amy Fae and Alizarin will be featured at the Art of Belly Dance on Sunday evenings at the Kitchen of India.  Each Sunday, beginning October 14, a member of Aubergine will solo at this family friendly restaurant in Parkville.
  • Aubergine, parent troupe of Amy Fae & Alizarin, will be performing at the 2012 Multiple Sclerosis Fantasy Ball, Goblins & Gears II on October 27.  Get your favorite Steampunk or Faerie get-up on, and come support a great cause with us!

Gemini: Reflections

Posted by januaryfae in Dance Events

We’ve been a little busy recently – perhaps you heard?  Baba Ghanoush and our dear friends Cypress collaborated to bring you Gemini: A Showcase of Belly Dance Duets.  Featuring a selection of local professional and for-the-occasion duets, Gemini raised $1100 plus two laundry baskets of donation items for House of Ruth Maryland.

Cypress closes the show at Gemini: A Showcase of Belly Dance Duets (Photo courtesy of Pamela Rowlett)

For those of you who don’t know, House of Ruth is a nonprofit organization that supports women and children who’ve suffered from domestic abuse.  They do some amazing work in our area – please check out their website: http://www.hruth.org/.  (You can make online donations!)  To quote some of our promotional materials from Gemini:  “Baba Ghanoush and Cypress feel that the soulful art of belly dance has given each of us a gift of self awareness and autonomy over our bodies. House of Ruth helps women and children who are or have been victims of domestic abuse find or regain the same things.”

One of my greatest pleasures in dancing, besides the dance itself, is using belly dance as a medium to create good energy and positive change in the community.  Last year, BG participated in our mother troupe Aubergine’s show, Muppets & Monsters, benefiting Smiles & Dreams:  The Tohoku Kids Project. (We were “Pink Fluffy Unicorns Dancing on Raibows.”) The year before, we debuted as BG in Nina Amaya’s Disco Hafla Competition, benefiting wildlife clean-up from the BP oil spill in Louisiana.  (We danced to “It’s Raining Men” by the Weather Girls.)  Earlier this year, we were a part of Gypsy Fusion’s Dance Your Heart Out Hafla, benefitting the American Red Cross.  (Cypress was there too!)  We perform at countless other charitable events with Aubergine. In Gemini, we have now, with Cypress, successfully organized and run our very own event!

Baba Ghanoush - Gemini

Baba Ghanoush skirt-swishing at Gemini (Photo courtesy of Pamela Rowlett)

It’s a lot of work.  Quite a bit of stress.  Probably best NOT to schedule it the weekend after another major performance (oops).  But the payoff – the caring support of so many performers, volunteers, and audience members – is totally worth it.

(Photos courtesy of Pamela Rowlett Photography, Gemini’s official event photographer.   You can check out all the photos here.  Videos will be up soon.  If you have photos or video from the event that you’d like to share, please leave us a link in the comments!)