My Story

Once upon a time, a girl from Brooklyn became a belly dancer. Her name was Luna. It all started in 2001, just a few months before the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City. At that time, Luna had no idea where the Middle East was. She had never even heard of Arabs. Then one day, Middle Eastern immigrants in her neighborhood invited her into their restaurants. There, they taught her how to play dominoes, smoke sheesha, and how to curse in Arabic. Luna’s horizons were expanding. 

 

And then… the night that would change Luna’s life forever…

Bassem, the owner of a hole-in-the-wall Syrian restaurant named the Tunnel (appropriately named due to its proximity to the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel) hired a belly dancer to entertain his all-male guests one fated Saturday night. He invited Luna to attend. This was the first time Luna had seen a belly dancer, and she was spellbound. She watched as the bedazzled young woman’s hips twitched to the beat of the drum, tossing the glass-beaded fringe that hung from her sequined belt in every direction. The awkwardness of a young woman entertaining a room full of older foreign men notwithstanding, Luna made it her life’s mission to be a belly dancer. But not just any belly dancer. She wanted to be the best belly dancer of all time.

 

Luna knew that in order to become the world’s best belly dancer (or at least one of them), she would have to move to Egypt.* At only 19-years-old, however, she could not convince herself to drop out of school and move halfway across the world. So, she spent the next three years finishing college. Still too scared to move to Egypt, Luna did what most young adults who don’t know what to do with their lives do—continue their education. It wasn’t until two years later that she decided to grab her dream by the horns. Equipped with a Master’s Degree in Middle Eastern Studies from Harvard University, an unusual fluency in classical Arabic (which nobody really *speaks*), and a whopping 25 years of life experience, Luna bought a one-way ticket to Egypt and never looked back.

While she was living in Cairo, Luna learned belly dance from some of the best dancers Egypt had to offer. She also learned the Egyptian dialect. Then one day, a musician noticed her at a workshop at the famous Ahlan wa Sahlan belly dance festival in Giza. He was a renowned tabla player (drummer) for belly dancers named Yosry al-Hifny. Yosry told Luna that she had what it took to dance professionally in Egypt and booked her first performance a few weeks later. The rest was history. 

In the decade that followed, Luna made a name for herself as a belly dancer in Egypt. Egyptian audiences sought her performances in weddings, hinna (bachelorette) parties, birthday parties, Nile River dinner cruises, cabarets, music videos, and movies. They loved her authentic dance style as well as her ability to communicate fluently with them in Egyptian Arabic. Luna also became a highly sought-after instructor. She was invited to teach belly dance workshops all over the US, Canada, Puerto Rico, England, Poland, Ukraine, China, Vietnam, Japan, Hong Kong, Qatar, and of course Egypt.

But because nothing is ever easy in umm il-dunya, (Egypt),** Luna became a victim of her own success. The recognition she achieved as a dancer caused her to be evicted from her apartment on two different occasions. This is because Egypt’s conservative religious culture frowns upon belly dancers. The reason is that the culture perceives dancers to be “fallen women” who expose more of their bodies than is culturally acceptable. So, while Egyptians generally enjoy watching dancers from a distance, many of them consider dancers a source of shame to be avoided at all costs. Aware of this cultural idiosyncrasy, Luna kept her profession hidden from all who did not need to know. Like landlords and neighbors. 

Luna eventually decided to move back to the US in 2018. She had maximized her ten years in Egypt and was ready for the next chapter of her life. Luna is currently based in Tampa, Florida, where she continues to perform for Middle Eastern audiences. During daylight hours, Luna is a “normal” person with a “normal” job. She also teaches advanced Egyptian belly dance classes. When she’s not working or dancing, she is teaching ongoing classes in Egyptian Arabic.  

 

* Egypt is the historic birthplace and capital of the ancient art of belly dancing.

** Translation: Mother of the Universe. This is the nickname Egyptians lovingly call their country.

 

To learn more about Luna and her adventures, check out her blog here.