If the moves of a seasoned belly dancer have made you wither with envy, here’s a piece of news that is bound to please you —Sedona Soulfire, International belly dancing artiste and Miss Belly Dance USA’08, is in the city for a week, and with a mission – to get you to take to the stage and move your torso just like a pro! In an exclusive chat with Bengaluru Chronicle, She lets us in on what brings her to the city and what to expect from her forthcoming performance on March 20.
“This is my first visit to Bengaluru, though I’ve visited India a couple of times. I’ve heard a lot about the artistically rich folk here. It’s a very modern city. And I’ve noticed that people do vroom about a lot in motorcycles. The roads are filled with them!,” says the California-bred certified belly dancer with a chuckle, when quizzed about her experiences in the city so far.
A self-confessed dance enthusiast, Sedona traces her passion for performing arts right back to early adolescence. “As a teenager, I learnt theatre from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts; and did a lot of theatricals and plays. I’ve been dancing all my life, and gave my first ballet performance at the age of 4. But I believe I discovered myself through Belly dancing.” In addition to prestigious belly dancing titles to her credit, the artiste has performed classical Indian Odissi Dance in Pushkar Temple Dance Festival'15, and is also a present day priestess and founder of the Goddess Temple Portland.
While running her dance company Belly Dance Soulfire takes up most of her time, Sedona is quite the community welfare-oriented sort. “I lead women’s wellness circles and community ceremonial celebrations too.”
On asking her about expectations from the workshop, she says. “I expect to have fun with the students, share my signature choreography "Shimmy on Soul fire" – this is an upbeat and dynamic classic cabaret drum solo piece, which will help the dancers to strengthen their technique and raise the level of their dance. I am honoured to share my work and my art with the dancers of Bangalore .” The artiste will also be putting up a special performance at the Raqs Odyssey 9 show on March 20 at the ADA Ranga Mandira.
