Some Thoughts . . . .

Gilded Serpent has published my article!

sausan — Fri, 06 Jun 2008 17:01:24 GMT

Gilded Serpent has published my article!

sausan — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 21:10:02 GMT

Hello, All.... Just wanted to drop you a line to let you know that Gilded Serpent (www.gildedserpent.com) has published one of my articles. Please go to: http://www.gildedserpent.com/art44/sausanedc.htm Looking forward to hearing from you. -- Sausan Master Teacher Sausan Academy of Egyptian Dance "The Pain, the Passion, the Joy... Dancing with Nephis"

www.almasrirestaurant.com and www.almasrisf.com are now www.almasrisfca.com

sausan — Sun, 24 Jun 2007 02:44:59 GMT

As many of you know, Al-Masri was closed for six to seven weeks....I'll be explaining why in a later blog. But for now... Go to www.almasrisfca.com for the Al-Masri web site. www.almasrisf.com and www.almasrirestaurant.com website domain names were stolen. They are NOT good at this time. Good domain name... www.almasrisfca.com HAVE FUN!!!!!

I just got published in Gilded Serpent

sausan — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 22:21:33 GMT

http://www.gildedserpent.com/art39/SausanEgyptgavedance.htm Looking forward to any feedback. :-) -Sausan

More DVDs to Come!!

sausan — Mon, 01 Jan 2007 22:26:44 GMT

Hi, my lovely Tribe friends.... I'm working on more DVDs! I have over 600 hours of 3 to 4-minute dance clips stored in more hard drives than I'd like to admit. Collect all of these DVD!!! I finally found a way to upload a small MP4 video to my Tribe page, so check it out and see what there is available. See you all again next time! -S

I'm relocating my Yahoo Seminar Group.......

sausan — Sat, 15 Jul 2006 20:51:42 GMT

I'm relocating my Yahoo Seminar Group over to Tribe.net and will eventually shut down the Yahoo Seminar Group. Tribe.net is so much better...... Please be sure to join my Sausan Academy™ of Egyptian Dance Tribe group for upcoming events. tribes.tribe.net/sausanacademy

Taxonomy of "Raqs Sharqi"

sausan — Sun, 12 Mar 2006 19:50:10 GMT

I don't think it has ever been done before. And now it has. If you are familiar with the Egyptian Dance Code, which I teach, you'll understand the diagram. It is the codification and identification of belly dance movement done the Egyptian way. -Sausan

Look At It As A Paid Audition

sausan — Thu, 13 Oct 2005 07:53:01 GMT

I read an the article "How Much Do You Charge" on The Gilded Serpent, and I found it a little convoluted. (article located on http://www.gildedserpent.com/art32/nannagigrates.htm) Belly dance business is no different from any other business when it comes to wages and salries and keeping quiet about them. It happens everywhere, especially in the small business world where wages and salaries are always initially discussed behind closed doors and then later discussed amongst co-workers. Only in government positions are wages and salaries predetermined to the level of experience and education pre-qualified by that government. And unions are considered a form of government. Club owners do not propagate silence. No one can keep another silent. Wages were always discussed amongst my dance friends anywhere I was working, and for those that had been working longer and harder at their dance night, they simple got paid more – much the same as in any position in the small business world. And similarly, as in the entertainment world, some got paid more because of having taken advantage of the boss's casting couch. Dancers to not unwittingly keep the general rate ridiculously low in restaurants and nightclubs. They are kept low for one reason, and one reason only – overhead. Before any dancer is hired in any restaurant or nightclub, the restaurant owner faces a multitude of license and permit fees as well as the ever present skyrocketing cost of keeping his establishment from closing. In other words, an establishment owner pays commercial (not residential) fees for gas, water, electric, garbage, rents, and cleaning. He faces scrutiny by the City Health Department, Fire Department, and Police Department and pays fines for discrepancies that often times are so minute that the only reason a fine is placed is because the City needs the cash. Additionally, these fine amounts are raised according to the City's need and not the restaurant owners discretion, so in one year a fine may be one amount predetermined by the City and in another year the same fine for the same infringement will have doubled or tripled. Along with these payments, he also faces the ever rising cost of food, liquor, and other resalable goods. And on top of all that, the owner is required to pay an annual amount, also predetermined by the City, which is always raised yearly at the City's discretion, for operating permits, licenses, and fees; some of these going into the four-digit amounts, which multiplied by the amount of licenses, fees, and permits can equal to a small fortune. In fact, he must pay one of these licenses in order to legally hire belly dancing entertainment! (Does the establishment in which you are dancing have this license making it legal for you to dance, and is it displayed?) Then there are advertising costs, waiters' wages, equipment rental, lease, and repair costs, and of course the ever present taxes incurred by the State, City, and IRS. And the list goes on and on. But what really got my goat was when the writer equated belly dancers to doctors, dentists, computer technicians and lawyers. These doctors, dentists, computer technicians and lawyers are professionals, who go to school for many years to get their degree -- some of whom have performed a residence in a hospital -- and who pay small fortunes for their education. Belly dancing should not and cannot be equated to these kinds of professions, though it sometimes is; and as in all business -- belly dancer to brain surgeon -- it is a fact that everyone starts at the bottom rung of their professional ladder in terms of wages and salaries. Belly dance entertainment in a restaurant or nightclub is a luxury expense, and the way I look at it, they are "paid auditions". In the issue of the clown getting paid $200 for a children party, I really had to really shake my head! A children's party lasts about four hours with the clown working in it for perhaps two or three. In that case the clown makes about $66 to $100 an hour. A dancer dancing for a private party can make up to $500 for around one half an hour of belly dancing entertainment. Additionally, this clown does not have a venue called restaurant or nightclub in which to show off his talents like a belly dancer can. For these wonderful paid auditions, a dancer can go on to negotiate private parties and charge what she wants to dance at that private party. Although I'm sure one will get her asking price at any private party, I don't think a demand of $200 at any commercial establishment will be agreed upon. And if one can't get that amount, other ways of getting paid can be negotiated through dinner trades for family and friends, a place in which to practice or put on a show and collect at the door, or a place in which to record a video. The imagination is endless and money is not always the answer. The only way any dancer can ever get any experience in this dance along with audience feedback is to perform in restaurants and nightclubs; festivals and other shows can only contribute to dance experience so much. I would not loose this opportunity because I believed I needed more pay. I'd keep these restaurant dance gigs as "paid auditions" for the amount of parties it can generate where I can charge what I think I'm are worth -- $200 or more! And the more paid auditions I can generate at the many establishments offering them, the more parties I can contract with from those establishment customers and demand my asking price! And it's those "paid auditions" that will get me in front of those customers.

My Dancing

sausan — Sun, 02 Oct 2005 06:15:44 GMT

Hips in unusual spaces Breasts bobbing unaware of themselves Shoulders rolling to and fro Hair in flight Legs in flight Heart in flight. Smiles, smiles, and even more smiles Framed by arms and curling wrists Eyes with laughter Breath with breath Moving and dancing . . . . Dancing and moving . . . . . . . Alive, alive, ALIVE! Sausan - 2005

Debut at the Bagdad Cabaret

sausan — Sun, 02 Oct 2005 06:11:01 GMT

The lights dimmed down. There was a hush. The dancer rose; her face a-flush. Her cold flesh ached, her heart beat low; then music, soft, began the show. She tried to think - recall the dance to now fulfill this moment's chance. The Middle Eastern Arab tunes of camel caravans and dunes, of moonlit skies, of tents and veils, of sheiks and swords, and fairy tales which filled the air with past pretense broke through the room with sharp intense. The dancer trilled a zagareet. Her brass sagats began her beat. Her head tipped back, her arms rose high - she drew a breath and heaved a sigh. Then out she stepped to claim her fame; her chance had come to prove her name. Excitement swelled among the crowd as out she flew, her head held proud. The coins which glistened with each mood rang with each note strung from the Oud. Within the pureness of her flow revealed a truth of ancient glow. The skirts she wore caressed the light. They swung and lifted in her flight. With each one beat a step she knew, she did with ease. And movements grew to rapid beats which worked the drum until the awed-struck crowd was numb! Then 'round and 'round the dancer spun; Around and 'round she spun and spun. Her skirts were full, her hair out-flung; her body twirled to music sung. Then down she dropped with flare and grace! The clamor ceased without a trace. The snake-like figure on the ground swayed slowly back without a sound. Her body writhed; her hips were first to undulate as she'd rehearsed. She glided past her audience with smooth finesse which left them tense. With graceful ease she worked her form back to her feet. The air was warm. The perspiration trickled down and stung her eyes, yet not a sound she made, but smiled and danced and shook and made her audience look and look! The lights went on; there was a roar! The crowd stood up and yelled for more! The dancer bowed and gave a glance; she knew she had fulfilled her chance. Sausan, 1980

Sunset

sausan — Sun, 02 Oct 2005 06:06:50 GMT

At eve when the earth shows mysterious glow, when the sun yells emotion while bending so low, for fifteen pure minutes, the colors above streak red, pink, and yellow - bursting with love. For those fifteen minutes, the colors that streak put ease to the minds of the brave and the weak. The strains and the pressures put through them at day dissolve as they gaze at the cloud full of ray. The world becomes golden; above there is life, a husband embraces and kisses his wife. The beauty of earth is once more exposed through the brightness of fire as the sky becomes closed. S. Molthen 1972