After the rough copy of each segment was finished , we would send it to the dancer for corrections and comments . THIS was hugely time consuming since many of them just couldn ’ t be reached . International travels , deaths in the family , working on their own projects , illness ( Elena Lentini and Feiruz Aram both had major hospital stays during this time ), or just not being that comfortable with talking about themselves - these were some of the reasons for delays on top of delays .
In January of 2020 , after three years , the project was finished . It was with intense relief to have the artwork cover by Carly Frey , the introduction , the eleven segments , one bonus track , and the credits all finished .
Then it was time to focus on marketing . I had calculated very carefully that I would be able to come out even in costs and maybe even make some profit ! The documentary was made available through online streaming and on USB flash drives for those that no longer owned a DVD player . It was time to get the hard copy DVDs replicated and the premieres and screenings scheduled . Then two things happened : Mher told me his duplicating company of 40 some years had suddenly gone out of business . Another replicating / duplicating company had to be found quickly . I had a big learning curve - these companies have another technical language to figure out ! And , there was a big financial hit I had not counted on . And , approximately around the same time , the Covid pandemic hit . The pandemic caused many of my premieres and screenings scheduled throughout the country to be cancelled . The loss of those sales and shared excitement was extremely disappointing .
declined . Marliza Pons ( NV ) and Nakish ( CA ) also were invited but their archival materials never arrived . I truly regret not being able to include these three legendary dancers in my recent projects .
AMAYA
Amaya resides in the Land of Enchantment , also known as New Mexico . She enjoys an eclectic life of green roasted chilis , sunflower harvesting , writing , sunset gazing , fire fly dancing and scratching the heads of her boys , Mr . Smith , Buddy ( rogue Scottie Terriers ) and Partner Pete . For more info on Amaya ’ s dance see www . AmayaDances . com
I completed this labor of love for posterity sake . Knowing that this ICONS documentary is an archival nugget of information that will never go out of interest , makes me happy . This historical gem will be available for a long time to those aficionados , dance studio owners , history buffs , new students , and fans that want more detail on our history . There are still many more gifted and talented American dancers to honor . I have learned never to say never . Perhaps there is another historical project in my future . My heart swells when I think of the rich dance history in this country . May we all continue to add to it !
* In answer to several queries , Serena Wilson ( NY ) was at the top of my list to be included in the Legends DVD , but she
44 The Belly Dance Chronicles � October 2020