But even with that small seed planted , when I finished high school I quit serious dance study . I knew that it was not an option for me to go any further with classical ballet . The seed was planted but it had not taken root that there were other dance forms to be explored . I felt I had to accept dance as my hobby . It was time to get serious and go to school . I enrolled in a program to be an interpreter for the deaf .
My father had taught me some sign language growing up and looking back I can see that there is a lot of similarities to dancing . Being able to communicate something with your body . With sign language , you must use big gestures and extreme facial expressions . That part I excelled at . Using my whole body to communicate was like the feeling I had performing and dancing . But the idea that I had to completely turn myself off and become a conduit only for another person ’ s voice ? That part was hard for me as I was not allowed to express how I felt .
I was unhappy because I thought it was a result of how difficult I found school . What I did not realize was that I was unhappy because I had given up dancing and performing . Until that time , I had not made the connection of how important dance is in my life .
I decided to go to Hawaii for spring break thinking that maybe I just needed time away . I did not come home and I stayed there for a year , dropping out of school . This is when I started dancing again . I started taking hula and some Tahitian and it reconnected my passion for dance for me . Dance was what I was missing in my life . I found it was the dance that brought meaning to my life , but it did not have to be ballet . There were so many other dance forms open to me to explore . Returning to Oregon , after being in Hawaii for a year , I started seeking out and taking other dance forms .
I took a lot of different classes exploring different ways and types of movement . I was taking some African dance , and I loved lyrical jazz . What brought me to my first belly dance class was a friend , who was Greek , whose aunt had given her a coin belt . She wanted to take a belly dance class and asked if I would go with her .
At first , I did not take belly dance seriously at all . The only thing I knew about belly dance was in the movie “ From Russia with Love ” the James Bond movie . I recall seeing a dancer that played finger cymbals , and I was fascinated by her costume .
My first class was with a woman named Rubye Sowder in a school gymnasium in Vancouver , Washington . Rubye was a tiny woman with a big personality and a lot of eyeliner . There were around 30 women in that first class . Being shy , I went straight into the back row when we arrived .
Aziza and Rubye Sowder
I think the very first thing that grabbed my attention was the music . I had never heard music like that before . In class we worked on steps and technique , learned to play finger cymbals , and most profound for me … improvised ! After so many years of the rigidity of ballet , I was finally given the freedom to express MY connection to the music . The fact that I had had so much dance training , and a clear connection with my body , meant that I was able to quickly pick up on the movements . I was excited , and a little obsessed . By the second class , I had moved up to the front row .
This is in the late ’ 80s for context . As I progressed , I got the attention of Rubye who also owned a singing telegram and belly gram business ; grams were popular at the time . I ended up working for Rubye doing singing telegrams at private birthday parties in exchange for free classes and private lessons .
You did not have to sing well … it wasn ’ t required . It was just putting on costumes and fearlessly performing . I would come to a party in costume . Sometimes dressed as a police officer or Dolly Parton and I would sing silly songs and take pictures . A lot of it was about improvisation because you had to go into whatever situation you were in and completely read the room and figure out your best contribution to celebrate the moment and create the best performance . I think all that work in improvisation has served me well in all aspects of my journey as a performer and as an instructor .
6 months after my first class I was pushed into performing at Greek restaurants in the area that quickly grew to work at many different restaurants - Lebanese , Persian , and Armenian , all around town , most with live bands . I admit I did not know what I was doing at all , and I had no choice
12 The Belly Dance Chronicles � January 2021