Summer 2024
Summer Greetings!
Hi pals!
Sending a seasonal newsletter for Summer 2024 about my teaching sabbatical, what’s up at Lines, some really cool music shows I’m part of in June, a July dance opportunity, as well as a thinky video and some stimulating reads.
Egyptian Dance Classes
My teaching sabbatical is here, and it already feels weird not to see you all on Mondays! It also feels great to have some room to stretch out a bit and breathe.
Just after I decided to take a break, I learned that Lines is changing their entire system, and those of us who are on faculty (current teaching faculty are actual employees of the dance center) will no longer be on payroll, but can continue as renters, beginning July 1. This is a huge change, and while I am grateful to have been invited back in that capacity, I’ll have to make some choices when I am ready to start classes back up. If I’m going to be classified as an independent contractor, welp — I’m going to do things my own way! That said, I have taught at Lines consistently since 2003, and I love that place deeply. I’ll always be part of it, I hope, but things are shifting there, so we will see where they land.
Those of you reading this who take private classes with me, not to worry as they will continue. If that is of interest, please reach out.
Italian Dance Skill Share / Dance-along
Tuesday night pizzica dance-alongs continue each week. Pizzica is a southern Italian folk dance in the vast, varied, and very vernacular tarantella family. I am a hardcore nerd and obsessed amateur dancer at the moment ; ) Jump in la ronda (our virtual circle) and dance with me!
These are weekly low key dance alongs for folks of all levels to practice our dancing skills together to a great song. Free, with collective mutual aid donations suggested if you are able.
Events
Salon Hala
Saturday, June 8
Syrian music with Nasser Meerkhan (I’ll be backing him up on percussion along with Ari on nai) and then some Egyptian dance with yours truly. There will also be conversation, food, and if prior events are any indication, some amazing people in attendance. What is not to love?!
Masks required.
Queer Arts Featured
575 Castro, San Francisco
7pm
Songs from Syria
Saturday, June 15
Join us for a musical evening featuring songs from Syria. We will take you on a journey around the country as you listen to songs from its different regions, each with their unique styles and traditions. The performance will feature Basma Edrees (violin); Moe Elshazly (oud); Monica Berini (percussion); and Nasser Meerkhan (vocals).
Part of the sales will be donated to survivors of Syria's 2023 earthquake.
We’ll be in a private garden theater in San Carlos
Tickets
7pm
Saturday, July 13
Carnival of Stars
Monica dances around 3pm
Hayward, CA
Sunday Streets: Excelsior (featuring…YOU?!)
Sunday, July 21
I’ll be dancing in the streets of San Francisco — and you are invited to join me in the performance! Have you taken class with me, or have we danced or made music together in the past? Wanna dance in the streets this summer in SF? Please email me ASAP if so. We’ll meet once in June to prep (remotely if need be), and then we’ll have a blast on the 21st. Exact time will be determined by the organizers a few weeks prior to the event.
Videos of the Month
Orientalism: Desert Level Music vs Actual Middle-Eastern Music 
This is a long video, but so worth watching if you are curious about how Orientalism plays out in the arts today, and especially if you are into music and music related arts (like dance!) from Southwest or South Asia, even only slightly. I daresay it should be required watching for all ‘belly dancers’, and especially participants in the global fusion offshoots. Thank you to my friend Moe for sharing this with me!
What I’m reading, watching, listening to, on about
The Wimple Life
“We celebrated the Sabbath in silence with a thirty-minute cassette of Chopin, a six-pack of Stella Artois, and three boxes of Franzia. Under the table, I could see them petting and sneaking food to their dog, Chaeli, whose name means “One who is like God.” Looking around St. Scholastica, whose placid surface is rivaled only by the still water of the pond behind the convent, it was easy to believe that their sweet, simple life would continue as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be. But for most Catholic religious orders, nothing could be further from the truth.”
Dabke Disruption
“Joyful resistance.”
‘My Place Is Here’ Directors Talk Women’s Rights, Poverty in Post-War Italy
“An unmarried single mother, Marta, who is deemed to have brought shame on her family, has been promised to an older farmer as his wife. While making preparations for the wedding, Marta meets Lorenzo, the village’s openly gay wedding planner. He encourages her to broaden her horizons and take typing lessons at the local Communist Party office as a means of finding work. Here she meets Communist activist Bianca, who offers a different role-model to the down-trodden women of her village.”
Thanks if you made it this far : )
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