Dorothea in costume purchased in Egypt in 1984
Greek musicians ! Family members and friends , including children , took rose petals from the rose bushes and lovingly threw them upon me ! Tears in my eyes from joy !
For many years now , I , my students and other dancerfriends and non-dancer friends take great delight in being at the Athenian Corner restaurant in Lowell , MA . I am usually there 3 to 4 times a month ! We absolutely enjoy the ambience , the delicious abundant portions of Greek food and the music provided by the talented musicians who have also been our “ friends in dance ” for many years … Costas Maniatakos on oud , Mike Gregian on dumbek and clarinet , Hagop Garabedian on keyboard , Nick Kokoras on bouzouki , and his brother George Kokoras on keyboard . From time to time , Joey Kouyoumjian joins in on oud . For years , our beloved Freddie Elias delighted us all every week with his magnificent violin music and … his stories shared with us during the break are unforgettable .
Oh … about “ the christening link ” I mentioned at the beginning of my story … About 8 years ago at the Athenian Corner , having danced free-style with my friends , we were walking back to our table when a young woman beckoned me to her
Dorothea performing in a hand-beaded bedlah with custom skirt
table . She asked me if I was a professional dancer and I said yes ! She told me she enjoyed watching me dance ! I thanked her sincerely and continued to my table . During the break , Costas , the oud player , came to our table to say hi and he said to me : “ I saw you talking to that girl over there , do you know her ?” I told him I did not know her but that she had complimented me about my dancing which was so kind of her to do so ”. He then said to me , “ She is my sister Emily ’ s daughter !” I rushed to her table and exuberantly said … “ Oh my Heavens , my name is Dorothea , and I am a long-time friend of your mother ! I was at your christening at the Greek church here in Lowell !”
My journey has included attending many repeat seminars , in and out of state , taught by the local teachers . Often those teachers sponsored a teacher from far away ! In New York City I studied with Morocco and , at one of those seminars , with her guest-teacher , Nadia Hamdi , from Egypt ; in Connecticut with “ Riskallah Riyad ”, Dolores Matzen , and her guest-teacher , Mahmoud Reda , from Egypt whom she brought here in 2007 , 2010 , and 2011 ! Amazing learning experiences and cherished memories . “ Ibrahim ” Bobby Farrah , and “ Phaedra ” from NYC taught seminars in Boston .
48 The Belly Dance Chronicles � May 2021