In 1995, Saiqa (pictured at left) was my first belly dance teacher, she continues to teach the “ethnic” or folkloric style of belly dance brought to us by Jamilla Salimpour. Since then, I have studied with many teachers throughout the Bay Area and beyond and have also taken finger cymbals and percussion classes. I believe it's important to continue the study, currently I study with Amanda of Halanda Studio, and with Malia (resparking my love of Tunisian Dance), also the occasional drops-in, private lessons and workshops with various instructors. I find that the best teachers are my peers, so I attend as many performances as possible and on my occasional travels, I often look up local belly dance teachers and take home what I learn as souvenirs. 

 

Classes
In 2002, I began teaching belly dance classes at San Jose State University through the Associated Students Adventures Program. Currently, I teach out of my home studio located between Downtown and Willow Glen in San Jose and find teaching to be very challenging and extremely rewarding, I love to see students who become hooked just like I am. 

Troupes and Dance Projects
I love dancing in groups far better than solo because it's more challenging and I get the opportunity to connect with other dancers. Raks al Khalil (Dance of Friends) is my student troupe; Rak Core is the advanced dancers and the Rakettes are the mixed level dancers. We had our grand debut at Desert Dance Festival in 2006 (see pix) and have since performed at many belly dance festivals since then (check us out on You Tube). Currently, I also dance with Karavansaray which is a student troupe led by Amanda of Hahbi Ru, I love Amanda's challenging routines. Look for both groups at the upcoming events!

I have also had the honor of performing with many other dancers, in duets, trios and troupes, such as with: Odina, Simone, Paloma (owner of Lunatic Fringe), Mozaeek (Farsi for Mosaic), Hazeen Helwa, Troupe Namaste, Troupe Zambalita, Malia and the New Moon Rising Belly Dance Company, Dunia's Nile Spice Dance Company, Jewels of the Oasis, Ke’kuja and Saiqa's student troupe- Sisters of the Temple Moon.

Costuming
Besides belly dancing, I love to sew. For me, so much of the dance is all about the costume. I enjoy designing, making and dressing up in costumes. A shy person by nature, costuming helps me to become someone else, my ultra alter ego. With a flair for the traditional, I favor the ethnic style of costume with a splash of flash. 

Dancing Diva Designs is the name of my costuming company which is my part time work right now, primarily doing custom work. The most exciting part of the work is seeing my costumes come to life on dancers. On occasion, I vend at the various belly dance events around the Bay Area. If you ever have a need for unique and flattering costuming, look to me!

Art Fool
I have a degree in Photography with a concentration in Commercial Photography, I am a free lance professional photographer and graphic designer serving the belly dance community at large. I enjoy dabbling in anything artistic: sculpture, ceramics, painting, drawing, crafting and graphic design. One exciting accomplishment is the completion of a home dance studio which includes a hand-painted ceiling border and a mehndi inspired floor design, it was a lot fun to do and now there is a beautiful place for me to practice, hold classes, host drum classes and whatnot. (Thanks Mike, thanks Russ!)

In conclusion, I just want to say that belly dance rules. IT RULES!

Visit me on Tribe! http://people.tribe.net/khajulah
Visit me on MySpace! http://www.myspace/khajulah
Drop me a line with a little info, let's link up!

04-23-10

 

 
alternative email: patricekhajulah()yahoo.com