As the music began to play, Victoria Papale's still body seemed to slowly come to life: her hips began to shimmy, the dangling coins on her red hip scarf began to jingle as they swayed back and forth, and her wrists formed soft, slow circles in the air.
The song was about heartbreak, Papale said, and her serpentine movements were meant to match the mood of the melody. It was titled "La Shou El Haki" by Natacha Atlas and The Mazeeka Ensemble.
"It's saying, look my friend, I've had a broken heart, too. We all have. Now fly with your veil, be free," Papale said, as she lifted a sheer veil over her head, laced it her through her fingers and wrapped it around her body, before releasing it again.
Papale, of the Villas section of Lower Township, is a bellydancer and a bellydance instructor at the Cygnus Creative Arts Centre in Egg Harbor Township, where she teaches two varied-leveled classes on Tuesdays, one for beginners at 6:30 p.m., the other for advanced dancers at 7:30 p.m. She will teach a 10-week session on beginner belly dancing at Dragonfly Wellness Studio in Cape May Court House, 106 North Main St., Cape May Court House, on Monday evenings starting in February.
On Jan. 15 during the studio's Holiday Detox day, Papale will present at bellydance workshop.
"Bellydancing is the language of movements," Papale said. "It's a very ancient, delicate, Middle Eastern art form with religious roots. In ancient times, to know how to dance was considered to be a gift from God."
However, Papale believes anyone with a interest and a desire can bellydance.
"If you have the passion and find the right teacher, you will get good at it," she said.
She began bellydancing 11 years ago, when she enrolled in a one-day class at a local studio.
"I fell in love with it from day one and never turned back," Papale said. "I danced at museums, went to to three classes a week, got in contact with famous bellydancers."
She's also the founder/choreographer of The Daughters of Terpsichore, a bellydance troupe made up of five local women, including herself, Meryl Bae, Jennifer Berenato, Terri Derozario, Jane Tayoun and Lorenda Knisel, all residents of Atlantic County. The Daughters of Terpsichore dance as a troupe as entertainment for events.
Typically, they dance an Egyptian-cabaret form of bellydancing, Papale said, which is very exciting, beautiful and festive, from the movements down to the decorative costumes, called bedlah.
"Bellydancing really livens a party," she said.
She said her golden rule with her dancers, however, is to always dance in a tasteful manner.
"A shoulder shimmy is actually a shoulder shimmy," Papale said, demonstrating the motion. "Bellydancing is very sensual, but you have to dance with dignity."
Lorenda Knisel, a member of The Daughters of Terpsichore and a resident of the Bargaintown section of Egg Harbor Township, said dancing, to her, is a spiritual journey.
"My dancing compliments my spirituality," Knisel said.
When she first heard Papale was offering bellydancing classes being at Cygnus, something sparked in her and she knew she had to go.
"It was like a calling," she said. "There is no competing. No matter your age, weight, where you're from, you feel beautiful, it's freeing. You don't have to conform."
Bellydancing is a form of storytelling and a performance, Papale said. She said writes the choreography in her head, practices it alone, then teaches it to her students.
In the Greek culture, which she has studied at Aegean Center for the Fine Arts in Paros, Greece, choreography literally means dance-writing.
"Greek culture is my muse," she said. "It permeates my dance and my art."
As she moved her body to the lyrics of "La Shou El Haki," the dancers in her class mirrored her motions, lifting their arms and shimming their hips.
"You don't have a care in the world when you're belly dancing," Papale said.
Contact Elisa Lala:
609-463-6713
If you go
Victoria Papale will teach a 10-week session on beginner belly dancing at Dragonfly Wellness Studio in Cape May Court House, 106 North Main St. Cape May Court House, on Monday evenings starting in February. She will also present a bellydancing workshop on Jan. 15 during Holiday Detox day. To sign up, call Dragonfly Wellness at 609-465-4200.
Times and dates TBA on The Daughters of Terpsichore Facebook page.
