April 2024 - Dance & Music with Monica
April greetings!
This is getting sent to my whole list (Egyptian! Italian! All the things!) since it covers a lot of ground. Read on for:
Class and dance-along updates
Two rare chances to see me dance
Live Arabic music shows
June Pizzica workshops in San Francisco
Two videos of the month
Related events and happenings of note
Link, reads, and art of interest and inspiration
Class updates: Lines Dance Center
I teach a weekly raqs sharqi and raqs beledi class at Lines Dance Center. Class is taught live over Zoom Mondays at 6pm PST. It costs $15, and is a darn good way to spend an hour, with some truly fine folks.
Dance-along updates: Zoom
I host a weekly pizzica dance-along every Tuesday over Zoom. It is not a class, rather it is a way to practice with like-minded folks — this is after all a social dance. Low key, low pressure, big fun. It is one-song long, and it is free, though we do seasonal mutual aid as we are able.
Upcoming events of interest
Stuff I'm involved in is in bold because why not
Gilded Raks
Saturday, April 6
San Jose, California
I'll be dancing in the 3:00 hour, debuting a new piece called Medinsud. This is being held at a lovely theater. A rare chance to see me perform.
Note - the event organizers are looking for volunteers to work an hour or two in exchange for free admission.
Songs of Palestine with Aswat Ensemble
Saturday, April 14
San Mateo, California
Yes, it's last minute, and yes, it will be awesome, so grab a ticket and come sing along with us in solidarity, grief, and love.
Michela Musolino
Libreria Pino
April 25
A fabulous Sicilian American drummer and singer performing at a North Beach bookstore? YES PLEASE.
Bay Area Dance Week
April 26 — May 5
Lots of free dance events, in person and remote.
Music in-Takht
San Francisco International Arts Festival
May 4
I shared this group's Mountain View show last month, and have since learned they will be playing here in SF, too. Wonderful musicians and people. Egyptian music fans, come hang out with me in the audience! I already bought my tickets.
Baladi Dance
Salon Hala
Thursday, May 9
San Francisco, California
I am one of the featured artists this month at this monthly salon put on by Mama Ganuush and team. Come be part of the conversation (and part of the dance, because I'll be asking everyone to join in!). A wonderful community event to attend and support.
Carmen Consoli
Club Fugazi
May 28
I never miss this Sicilian folk/pop/indie/rad singer when she is in town!
Songs From Syria
Salon Hala
Early June
San Francisco, California
I'll be playing percussion for Syrian singer Nasser Meerkhan along with some stellar musicians. Nasser is an amazing artist and person, and is putting together a beautiful and thoughtful program. Come by (but pre-register when tickets are open, as it will sell out). The whole salon series is life-affirming and community driven.
Pizzica Workshop in San Francisco
June 22—23
Kate Causbie and Francesco Faustino are coming back to San Francisco! We're going to have two days of classes with some social time Saturday evening. Please save the date, and details plus sliding scale registration will be up shortly.
Ma-kan مكان
An exhibit by Egyptian artist Ebti at SF Camerawork at Fort Mason through June 22.
Sirens Fest
July 19-21
Sebastopol, California
Hot Raqs
June 28-30
Clovis, California
Carnival of Stars
July 13-14
Hayward, California
La Danza Residency
September 2024
Galatina, Lecce Province, Italy
I'm not a group tour person, but I am a pizzica person and a dance intensive person. I was lucky to hear about this residency happening in Galatina from its inception, and then to be one of the early people to commit to participating. It just opened up for others to register, and maybe it's your jam, too? Check it out!
And if you can't come to Galatina with us, maybe you can come to San Francisco to kickoff Summer?
Video of the month (part 1)
Dancer Nagwa Fouad and singer Fatme Serhan (and some great musicians) in a fun tableau. The lyrics describe, in great detail, erm, someone's physical attributes. It is titled 'haggala dance' which is not accurate, but the song is likely Bedouin, perhaps from the Egyptian/Libyan border, and presented on a Cairo stage.
Video of the Month (part 2)
Since I'm combining my lists this month, let's head from Masr (Egypt) to Italia (Italy)! One of my teachers, Andrea De Siena, showed this video in our class recently. It is the Pizzica di Gargano, and it is a delight. If I can nerd out for a sec, tambourine-wise I notice it is more fingertip based than whole hand based, which I love as I've been working on that technique with my Sicilian drum teacher. Learning while trying not to mix up and muddle regional styles for the win!
Miscellaneous
How to Say I Love You in Italian
بحبّك & تقبرني & تقبريني & ti amo & ti voglio bene...this is a beautiful piece on how to express love cross-culturally.Playing Finger Cymbals in the Roman Empire: An Iconographic Study
Finger cymbals are the freaking best.
Yemeni singer and 'ud player Faisal Alawi
+ Lahji style dance. So good.Where I'm From
I used to do these poems with young people when I was a teacher, and they are so wonderful. You should do one for yourself or with your friends and fam, too.Friday PSA
Not sure how to keep up with what is going on in Gaza? I highly recommend the Friday Palestine Solidarity Announcements from AROC and the Center for Political Education each week at 12pm. It offers a somatic grounding, news updates, conversations with thoughtful activists and organizers, and a way to feel informed and connected to others. You can watch past PSAs here.‘Rewilding’ the land brings back birds, bees, butterflies
“Through planting a native garden, you're actually planting a garden that's much bigger than you, because you're planting a garden that's for the insects that move through it, and for the birds that move through it...and so you're actually creating a garden that's about your region and your place in the world.”The Fire These Times
I think of it as a thoughtful and timely podcast, but it is a lot more, offering multi-disciplinary, cross-cultural work and thinking and ideas. Heartbreaking and hopeful.The Red and the Black: What the forgotten story of Angelo Herndon tells us about Cop City
A story worth reading for some amazing parallels to today.
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