Day in the Life of Natalie Brown

I'm performing at Tribal Fest Sunday!

natalieb — Mon, 11 May 2009 21:36:28 GMT

1:42 PM. Come out and see!

Delirium Tribal, Awalim, Asharah and The Mezmer Society at Art Bar, Saturday, January 17th

natalieb — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 19:06:26 GMT

Never say that nothing cool ever happens in Columbia. Ever. Four of the finest Tribal Bellydance acts on the east coast, ranging from old school to new school, gothic to vaudeville, appear together at Art Bar (1211 Park Street in the Vista) on Saturday, January 17th. This is shaping up to be an absolutely killer show, and I'm so excited to be bringing these acts to Columbia, SC. DO NOT MISS THIS ONE! Performances start at 9 PM. For the mere cost of $5, you will get to see: Delirium Tribal from Columbia, SC http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-pZD0UrCC7w With its solid foundation in American Tribal Style Bellydance (the original tribal bellydance, for those following along at home), Delirium Tribal does it all: ATS improvisation, Tribal and Tribal Fusion, and even fire and circus arts with Columbia Alternacirque. Delirium will open the show with a classic ATS improv set, and later in the evening we'll show you the new stuff we've been working on: new solos, choreographies and an acrobatic, death-defying, six-person sword choreography that we really hope doesn't kill anybody. Awalim from Atlanta, GA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GX-LmaEZhVY East Coast Tribal represent. Awalim was formed in 1999 under the Direction of Ziah Ali McKinney-Taylor as a group to bring World Fusion Tribal Bellydance to the stages of Atlanta and the Southeast US. Awalim's particular flavor of Tribal is decidedly upbeat and earthy while being sophisticated and urban, bringing what they feel are Atlanta's strongest characteristics to the Tribal genre. Asharah from Alexandria, VA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvgzRKIPShM Asharah is one of the rising star soloists in Tribal Bellydance. Known for her dark fusion and goth sensibilities, as well as immaculate technique fusing ticking and locking with classic tribal, Asharah's dramatic performances will blow you out of your chair and give you a taste of where Modern Tribal fusion is going. The Mezmer Society from Asheville, NC http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mgpDLQ_9wU Onca and August had so much fun playing at Art Bar with Alternacirque last July, they are coming back and (I've been told) bringing more musicians. Founded in 2007, the Society fuses diverse elements such belly dance, cabaret performance, Romany music, foppish occultism, unapologetically pretentious Belle Epoque café living, goodwill, bad behavior, misappropriated pop songs, and the horribly misguided notion that one can try and squeeze an entire Balkan brass band into one accordion. And if all of my previous experience with the Mezmer Society holds, they will play and create mayhem all night long. Crazy kids.

Natalie Brown now booking workshops.

natalieb — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 20:25:19 GMT

I found out today I will be laid off from my day job in two weeks. I'm sitting on the fence on whether I should fight tooth and nail for a full time job, or whether I should give a middle finger to the economy and dance/teach full time. If you'd like to book me for Derivative ATS technique, tribal fusion technique, or music theory for dancers, now would be a most excellent time. I am easily reached at natalie_c_brown@yahoo.com. Thanks!

Footage of Delirium with Raquy and the Cavemen

natalieb — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 20:39:20 GMT

We got the chance last minute to host Raquy and the Cavemen for a show. Despite the late notice and the fact that we were up against Vista Lights, we had an amazing crowd and the restored 701 Whaley space was absolutely stunning. I have not seen a bad picture out of that show (go check out the Delirium Tribe, where I'll put some up momentarily), and we definitely want to use it again. Raquy and Liron were awesome and gracious, and my girls were amazing considering we figured out what we were doing and finally had a rehearsal with the entire troupe the day before the show. Ubermanda has footage here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-pZD0UrCC7w and here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82ev9AK0Gag

Uh oh.

natalieb — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 14:08:43 GMT

I'm going to Tribal Fest next year. Look out.

Video footage from Alternacirque's "Dreams"

natalieb — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 05:38:32 GMT

We were fighting rain and high winds from tropical storm Fay during our outdoor Art Bar show last Friday, so our backdrops were diminished and we didn't have a lot of our lights up. So the video of the new Dreams set isn't where I wanted it to be, and I won't be posting the full footage this month. I did manage to rig up a teaser trailer though, since we're running both that set and "We're All Mad" to the close of the season. It will give those of you who missed the show a taste. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPEhMjEYebs&ftm=18 We're going to rework a few things this month, and hopefully the weather will be fair and we can get all the backdrops and doohickies and atmosphere in place for the full effect.

Alternacirque at Art Bar tomorrow!

natalieb — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 04:12:59 GMT

Tomorrow (Friday, 22nd) at Art Bar, Columbia Alternacirque debuts the show we've been planning and hoping to do all year. No promo video this month, because we've spent every spare minute creating, rehearsing, sewing, crafting and building for the last five weeks. Remember the tripped out Pink Elephants sequence from Dumbo and how it scared the crap out of you when you were a kid? That was the inspiration for this show. In fact, it's our opener. I can promise you: *nightmares *dreamscapes *5 freaky looking birds *2 stiltwalkers *Susan and her fire hoop *Explosives, incendiary bubbles and other special effects *A magical musicbox *Natty in the infamous new feather costume *An amazing fire duet between Steve and Natalie that involves shedding costumes and blowing through 7 sets of fire tools. 9:30 PM: we repeat last month's insane vaudeville shenanigans "We're All Mad. " 10:30 PM: "Dreams" This is a FREE show, though we very much appreciate tips for the cast, which has ballooned to an insane 15 performers. Last month's show broke attendance records, so you need to get there early if you would like a seat or decent view. Bring lawn chairs. Buy drinks. Tip your bartenders. There might be a rainshower or two in the evening, but we're going to try our damndest to get the show on, so come on out.

DC Tribal Cafe, Teaching at Triboriginal, workshops in Charleston and Greenville

natalieb — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 03:29:32 GMT

Hey, guys. Just got in from Southern Fusion Fest in Athens, GA and have a lot of events finalized that I can now announce. Here goes: Friday, August 22nd: If the rain/hurricanes hold off, come check out Columbia Alternacirque at the Art Bar this coming Friday. We're All Mad at 9:30. New Dreams show at 10:30. Get there early for any hope of a seat or decent view. Saturday, August 23rd: I will be a featured performer at the Charleston, SC Shimmy-A-Thon for Breast Cancer, sponsored by Palmetto Oasis. 6-9 at Manny's Restaurant. http://www. mannysgrills. com/ Sunday, August 24th: Arabic and variations workshop in Charleston, SC. This workshop takes place in Charleston, SC from 3-5 PM on Sunday, July 20th. St. Andrew's Family Fitness center (Sam Rittenberg Blvd). $35 in advance to me using paypal at natalie_c_brown@yahoo.com or $40 at the door. Questions can be emailed to contact@palmetto-oasis.com. Sunday, August 31st: So excited to be going back to Washington, DC to hang out with the amazing scene there. I'm very honored to be joining Mavi from Romka and Shivati performing for the 3 year anniversary of DC Tribal Cafe. September 18-21: Newly announced, I will be teaching Sunday's makeup and hair class at Triboriginal Tribal Dance, Music and Culture camp. This is definitely one of my top favorite workshop weekends of all time, and I am thrilled to be a part of it. For more information, go to www. triboriginal. org. Saturday, October 25th:I will be instructor and featured performer along with Delirium Tribal at Blood Moon Rising Fall Hafla in Greenville, SC. More details forthcoming, but the workshop is going to focus on details: technique nitty gritty for the first two hours, and the anatomy of graceful movement, physics of arms and travelling, and using momentum to your advantage in dance. For more information, keep an eye on www. showleh. com.

Yesssssssssss.

natalieb — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 02:52:47 GMT

We have a show. After all the chaos, the false starts, the panic attacks, the confusion, and the seemingly insurmountable vision and goals, it all suddenly popped into place tonight. The cloaks are almost done. The stiltwalkers are walking (and dancing) on one foot legs and about to bump up another six inches. The entire show is blocked, and running fairly smoothly. This Wednesday we clean. Next Monday we catch Steve and Maria up. Next Wednesday we pull a full fire dress rehearsal in the front driveway. Friday we perform. We may actually pull this out yet.

It's official. We are breaking records.

natalieb — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 16:19:28 GMT

Columbia is a university town. This place is deader than a doornail over the summer, plus the economy is obviously not very hot at the moment. Nevertheless, I heard on Thursday that Columbia Alternacirque's last show with the Mezmer Society broke attendance and take records for the Art Bar. Bigger than any live bands. Bigger than any Halloween. And we did it in July. Somehow a tribal bellydance and fire show has become a hit in the middle of a Bible Belt town that still flies the Confederate Flag on the statehouse grounds. I had no idea when I got blown into town three years ago that this was even possible, and it's all thanks to the amazing and talented people I get to work with every week. So on the heels of that news, we are digging deep and building the new "Nightmares and Dreamscapes" show. This show has blown up into a monstrosity of new costumes, special effects, actors, dancers, fire performers, hula hoopers, and (tentatively) stilt walkers. We are attempting to push the envelope in every possible way. 14 people in one show that we're putting together in four weeks. I've taken over the basement rec-room, which currently looks like Jim Henson's Muppet Creature Shop. Cirque is coming over tomorrow to help sew all the cloaks and masks we have to make, as well as my cloak, Fire Steve's new demon costume, and new backdrops. Complicating issues are that fact that Steve is out of the country until next Sunday, Maria is out this week, and Dana and I are at Southern Fusion Fest next weekend. We have two weeks to go. Ready or not, this show goes live Friday, August 22nd at 10:30. "We're All Mad" gets a repeat performance at 9:30. Mark your calendars and come see the insanity.

The fabled new bird costume in a new photoshoot with Scott Bilby.

natalieb — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 23:45:49 GMT

Alternacirque goes surrealist with "Nightmares and Dreamscapes" on August 22nd at Art Bar. Scott Bilby and I burned the midnight oil to get the new look on film last night. Really cool working with a new photographer (and one new to bellydancing) to get a fresh perspective. Check out my photo album for the first shots out of the editing process.

Columbia Alternacirque, Deft Key and The Mezmer Society at Art Bar TONIGHT!

natalieb — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 16:42:29 GMT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCMP4E6QJJI Now with Day in the Life Video Goodness.

Insane update of doom.

natalieb — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 19:28:25 GMT

Hey, all. Welcome back to the magical mystery tour. If you'd like off this carnival ride, please send me an email and I'll remove you from the list. Hoo boy. There is so much going on with me, Delirium and Alternacirque that I'm not sure where to start. We're flying pell mell into our busy season, so I'm going to start the weekly emails up again to help you keep track of what's happening. What follows is only the givens at the moment. There's more stuff in the fire, and I'll post as details are finalized and I get clearance to reveal them. Website Stuff: www.nataliebrown.net is in the process of being updated (finally, sorry guys). Due to overwhelming demand, included on the main page of this site is an itunes mix with a lot of the stuff I dance, teach and drill to. The list is by no means comprehensive, but it hits the highlights of artists commonly used in the bellydance community, and will give you a jumping off point to explore and find more stuff. www.alternacirque.com is now live, and hopefully will be completed by the end of this weekend. Excuse the mess. The deal with Bellydance Superstars: First off, thanks for all the good wishes given to Ashley and me when we auditioned for Bellydance Superstars a few weeks back. Washington, D.C. was a great experience, and we made a great impression, though we didn't advance far enough in auditions to guarantee an immediate spot. Though we thought about it long and hard, we've decided not to go to L.A. to re-audition at this time. The economy is a large factor in preventing us, but I'm also feeling that my place and focus is here in Columbia and with Cirque at the moment. Thank you for all the offers of support. Art Bar next Friday, July 25th, with THE MEZMER SOCIETY! This show is so chock full of awesome, I keep jumping up and down with glee. At 9:30, Alternacirque repeats our team-up with local DJ Deft Key for a live electronic set. At 10:30, we debut our new vintage vaudeville set, "We're All Mad" with the help of five actors/heroes-for hire, an accordion, a whistle and a rubber duckie. Rehearsals have been hilarious, and we hope you like the show as much as we do. Around 11:30, we'll feature The Mezmer Society from Asheville, NC. For those of you who have heard of Onca O'Leary and Baraka Mundi, this is Onca's new project. Live music, accordions, drums, vaudeville, singing, dancing, burlesque, and general debauchery, this is one of the most amazing acts in the Southeast I've seen. The last time I saw these guys, I ended up partying in a dance studio in Knoxville with them, Zafira, and a whole lot of red wine until the sun came up. August played ditties until about four AM, Onca did feats of acrobatics, and I did tangos with the drummer. This is standard operating procedure for The Mezmer Society, and the plan for Art Bar is to open the stage up for jam session and open dance after Mezmer's main set. We'll go until Art Bar kicks us out. All dancers and performers bring your dancing shoes. For those who have written me about other commitments, I'm pretty sure we'll still be going by the time you can get here. Do not miss this one. This show is free, though we'll be doing a lot of tip begging to pay for 18 performers' gas money. We'll be outdoors in the Art Bar parking lot. Art Bar itself is 21+. See y'all there! Alternacirque needs stilt walkers for August and September: If you know any, or anyone that can conceivably pick it up quickly, I want two. Send them to me. Rehearsals for our new set begin July 31st. We have mandatory rehearsals all Mondays in August, with me reserving the right to call full Wednesday rehearsals as well. We split our compensation from Art Bar and tips among all performers, and you get a free drink tab the night of the show. Classes: Ongoing: Wednesday classes are still ongoing in the Lexington CDE studio, 711 E. Main St., in the basement of the Old Mill. 7-8 PM. $10 drop in rate. We're currently going through 3/4 shimmies until September 10th. Starting Tuesday, August 12th, we'll start holding open dance sessions at the same location from 7-8 PM. This gives dances of all levels a chance to put their ATS skills into practice. Cost is $5, class cards accepted. I will run most of these sessions, though members of Delirium will step in when I'm out of town. Our workshops: Sunday, July 20th: Charleston, SC. I'll be teaching Tribal moves where technique blunders pop up the most: Egyptian Basic, Arabic Hiptwist, Spins and Snake Arms. This workshop takes place in Charleston, SC from 3-5 PM on Sunday, July 20th. St. Andrew's Family Fitness center (Sam Rittenberg Blvd). $35 in advance to me using paypal at natalie_c_brown@yahoo.com or $40 at the door. Questions can be emailed to contact@palmetto-oasis.com. Saturday, August 2nd: We are happy to announce that we will be teaching a workshop day in the Columbia area on Saturday, August 2nd. We'll be at our old faithful location, the Center for Dance Education in the basement of the Old Mill, 711 E. Main St., Lexington, SC. We'd like to continue our tradition of skipping the choreographies and going straight for hardcore technique and tools for you to use in your own fashion. 12 PM to 2 PM: Per popular request, Natalie will be teaching layering technique. We'll talk about the popular shimmy layers of course, but there's a whole host of other stuff we can layer in both the fast and slow vocabularies. 2:30 PM to 4:30 PM: Ashley is our go-to girl for smooth and gooey tribal fusion combos. She'll be giving advice on how to construct tribal "sentences," long streams of standard moves, cut, spliced and smooshed together that are perfect for solo work. Workshops are $30 each (we understand the economy is crashing around our ears, so we're trying to keep it reasonable). I will accept class cards. If you would like to use your credit card, you can paypal to natalie_c_brown@yahoo.com. Make sure you specify which workshops you're purchasing in the notes, or send a followup email. You can also pay at the door. And of course, we'll be throwing one of our infamous houseparty haflas of doom that evening. More details coming. Ongoing monthly workshops in Greenville, SC: Workshops continue in Greenville, SC on the first Tuesday of every month. Next workshop date: August 5th. I'll be teaching tribal and tribal fusion technique - literally a month's worth over a two hour period. This class is $35 in advance and $40 at the door. Class is held from 7 to 9 PM. Class location is in a bit of flux at the moment, i'll update people as I get the information. Please contact Brandy at brandy@bellymuse.com for more information on venue and purchasing classes. Upcoming workshops we're supporting and recommending: Saturday, July 26th: Bhangra in Lexington: EVENT: Bhangra Workshop Led by members of the UGA Bhangra Team, “BULLDAWG DA RAAJ” DATE/TIME: Saturday, July 26, 2008/ 11:00AM-1:00PM LOCATION: Deniese’s School of Dance 209 Parker St., Lexington, SC 29072 COST: $20/person Due to space, restricted to 30 participants Hosted by Saidi Belles Dance Troupe www.saidibelles.com Vending - World Emporium Kiosk. www.worldemporiumkiosk.com INTERESTED OR HAVE QUESTIONS? CONTACT HELEN FIELDS hefields@engr.sc.edu Weekend August 15-17: Southern Fusion Fest, Athens, GA. I'm going, and am open to carpooling or sharing crashspace. Features three days of cabaret and tribal workshops, vending, and two nights of performances. Featured instructors: Tamalyn Dallal, Tamra-henna, Gypsy Caravan, Moria Chappell, Mardi Love, Zafira Dance Company, Gina, Fatina, Liora, Amani Jabril, Aziza Nawal, Sha'ni, & Devyani Dance Company. Impressive line-up, and if my experience there last year is any indication, this is a smooth and tight running ship in terms of workshops. Go to www.southernfusion.net for details and registration. Weekend September 6-7: Mira Betz in Washington, D.C. I took workshops from Mira Betz at Tribalcon this year, and she's very much on my favorite instructors of all time list. Unless we or the economy completely falls apart, Delirium is gearing up to try to attend this event and perform in the show, so carpooling with us may be an option (can't promise). I'm discovering the D.C. dance scene is amazing. Details coming soon at http://meahunaproductions.com/. Weekend September 13-14: Kami Liddle in New Orleans. I'm sorely tempted, and am looking to carpool if anyone else is interested. Put on by our dear friend Shannon Wolfe of Saffron Studio. Kami is also on my favorite instructors of all time list. Details at www.saffronstudio.org soon. Weekend September 18-21: Triboriginal outside Asheville, NC. I am going come hell or high water. This is my favorite event of the year. Featuring instruction by Zafira, Pirate Bellydancer Samantha Riggs, Baraka Mundi, Romka, Awalim, Blue Lotus Tribe, Politti, Gypsy Hands (for those of you who have been keeping up with my blogs, these are the amazing massage therapists/dancers who have changed my life), dance classes, business classes, fire classes, hooping classes, and music classes with Daveed from Turku, August from the Mezmer Society, and one of my favorites, River Guerguerian. The cool thing about this workshop is that your registration fee includes your lodging in the cabins as well as all meals provided by a whole foods chef (it's amazing). There are rates for significant others and children to attend as well, and there is some childcare provided. Best. Experience. Ever. Weekend, October 4-5: Moria Chappel in Augusta, GA. Highly recommended, and we're planning on going. Moria is a powerhouse performer in Bellydance Superstars, and she always destroys me in workshops. In awesome ways, of course. Fabulous technique instructor, as well as costuming and makeup. Registration and workshop descriptions are here: http://www.alchemydance.com/sm08.shtml ___________________________________________ Hope to see you guys in class this week, and the extended "family" at the Art Bar Vaudeville Extravaganza this Friday. Cheers, Natalie Brown Director, Delirium Tribal and Columbia Alternacirque (803) 586-8824

Photoshoot with Toby

natalieb — Sat, 31 May 2008 16:38:15 GMT

A couple months ago, a few days after Bradley broke up with me, I drove aimlessly around town with Toby in my car while we discussed our lives and the meaning of it all. At one point, around 4 AM, he looked over at me and said, "Sounds like it's time to get into the lighting studio with you again." I've been costuming my head off for the last several weeks, and finally got to a stopping point this week. Toby and I have photoshoots down to a science now, and he knows me better than probably anyone else on the planet. I'm glad he and I could remain friends. Fruits of our labor are in my profile. We shot over 300 photos, and they're pretty much all usable, so it's hard to narrow them down. Leave a comment or two, and give me a message if you're in the southeast and want to use Toby.

Columbia Alternacirque's infamous "Wicked Fascinations" set.

natalieb — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 08:33:13 GMT

Ladies and gentlemen, two weeks after this show and it's already stuff of legend in our town. Here is Columbia Alternacirque's "Wicked Fascinations" show in its entire, unedited glory. See Delirium Tribal, Fire in Motion and Susan Osbaldiston dance, hoop, spin, act, love, hate, and kill in all its rawness, technical difficulties, bits, bobbles and hair on fire incidents. It's the most amazing thing you'll see all week. Part One: the medley, and Alternacirque's first chorus line http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fi2Yn18NCR8 Part Two: Delirium party onstage http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX0Uf77excw Part Three: Steve shows off his poi skills and attracts admirers http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWDz3ORgD3g Part Four: Steve falls for Ashley's charms, but trying to pick up a street urchin is not necessarily the safest idea.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tFfejLPDGc Part Five: Natalie senses an opportunity and steals over to pick up the pieces.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qM8hwheCaT0 Part Six: Natalie and Steve go on a date to see Susan Osbaldiston's magnificent fire hoop performance. Steve tries to get lucky, but Natalie blocks the play. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvcj152caYg Part Seven: Steve, frustrated and puzzled, drops Natalie off at her door. Ashley senses an opportunity and steals over to pick up the pieces.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTyJl9_b58w Part Eight: Delirium Party onstage http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jN3Tgkwqhyc Part Nine: Newest Alternacirque member Nate juggles and somersaults over his spinning poi in order to impress the ladies. Obviously neither of these boys will ever learn. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnPQW7JdU_U Part Ten: Steve tries again with Natalie in this hair-owing (har har) fire duet. Natalie continues the coyness at first, but just as she's ready to give in, Ashley shows up. Steve finds to his dismay that he's made the fatal mistake of toying with the wrong women. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gwu2EQmxoF0 Finale: Get a taste of Natalie and Ashley's closing duet before the battery ran out. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diUm76GermU

Day in the Life of Delirium Tribal, vol. 8

natalieb — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 03:56:22 GMT

Oh, I love running around with the alternacirque kids again! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NGpgTK2Jp6o

Video of Delirium at Tribalcon

natalieb — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 19:36:47 GMT

I think we scared our audience. Was awesome, though. Huge thanks to Karen for snagging this footage and posting it for us. http://s127.photobucket.com/albums/p149/kcarterga/?action=view&current=Delirium001.flv http://s127.photobucket.com/albums/p149/kcarterga/?action=view&current=Delirium002.flv

Tribal Bellydance Classes coming to Greenville, SC!

natalieb — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 23:09:44 GMT

Over the past two and a half years I've been in South Carolina, I've received countless emails from all over the state asking about Tribal classes. Though interest in Tribal is growing rapidly, there are only three instructors in the state, and Ashley and I are two of them. Therefore, I am pleased to announce that I will be teaching monthly tribal classes in Greenville, SC. The first one will be Tuesday, March 11th, after which time we'll be holding them on the first Tuesday of every month. I'll be teaching tribal and tribal fusion technique - literally a month's worth over a two hour period. This class is $35 in advance and $40 at the door. Classes will be held at the Carolina Ballet Theatre on Woodruff Road from 7 to 9 PM. Please contact Brandy at bmlw@whiteclassics.com for more information on venue and purchasing classes. Can't wait, guys!

No class this week. My father died.

natalieb — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 03:06:44 GMT

My father passed away last night after a long battle with stomach cancer. Mom and all of us kids were there with him in the hospital when it happened. Class and rehearsal on Wednesday are suspended for this week, and we will get back together next Wednesday and resume classes. Delirium will make up rehearsal Sunday morning at 10 in Lexington, and Monday evening at 7:30 in Lexington. For those of you that knew him, a memorial service for Charles Brown is scheduled for Wednesday at the Caughman Harmon funeral home on Old Bush River Road. Viewing is from 1-3, service is at 3. Dad will be buried with full military honors at Arlington Cemetery later in the spring. Anyone wishing to donate in his memory can do so to the American Cancer Society.

My classes are returning! Plus I quit my job!

natalieb — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 10:57:35 GMT

Repost from the mailing list: Hello, everyone: Classes will resume tomorrow, January 30th, at 7:00 PM in the LEXINGTON STUDIO. I know I told some of you 7:30 in the Vista, but as always, we're gerri-rigging in the face of some disaster or other. The Vista CMFA suffered an electrical fire last week after SCE&G changed over to a digital meter. There's no structural damage, but the electrical system is shot in most of the building and limping in the rest. John Whitehead is telling me the expected fix time is April, though we all hope we can go home sooner. So until then, for the sake of consistency, we'll be in the Lexington studio, 711 E. Main St., in the basement of the Old Mill. If anyone needs to carpool from the downtown side, we'll leave from my house in Olympia at 6:30. Please email me for directions to my new house, as we've moved and are no longer in the Duplex of Doom. Class format is changing a bit. I'll be teaching one class for now (opening others as demand requires), in themed sessions of 6 to 8 weeks. We'll be working more in depth and covering both a basic and intermediate level topics (don't panic, everyone is welcome, including beginners), like moves and their variations, circle ups, cues, leading and following, etc. I'm also going to be switching back and forth between American Tribal Style and Tribal Fusion topics, matching the diversity we're now following in Delirium Tribal since we went all cooperative. For the first 8 weeks, we're going to be working on arabic and arabic hip twist. Anybody who's taken the intermediate class on arabic before knows that there are a gazillion variations to keep us busy for 8 weeks. This should give everyone a good foundation on technique, musculature, arms, how ATS improv works and how to really dig down on a personal level to teach your body how to do things. Sound good? Good. My pricing system may change soon when I get the details ironed out. For now, we'll stay at a $10 drop in rate, and I will continue honoring class cards that are floating around out there. In future, I would expect the drop in rate to increase, there will be a discounted rate for buying each session. There's a rumor that Ashley and I may honor each others class cards in future, but let us work out the details. On a personal level, I put in my notice at work last week. With the circus, the museum show, MTV, Tribalcon and Southern Oasis all taking place in the span of about 10 weeks, it suddenly became very obvious to me that I was spending too much time and mental stress on my day job when I should be focusing and pushing my career. We have way too much awesome stuff in the works for me to be squeezing director duties in at 5:00 in the morning. Work is being very excellent about this, and though my official last day is February 8th, I'll be temping at my own job off and on through the end of the month to help them transition. In the meantime, this means I will be relying on teaching and performance income to pay bills. If anyone wants private lessons, traveling classes in the southeast or to host me and/or Delirium in a workshop, now would be an excellent time to email me. Cheers and best wishes, and I CAN'T WAIT to start teaching again. It makes my heart and head and body happy and it's been far too long. Any questions, please email me. nat