** B R A N D O N ' S  O A S I S **

 Celebrating Bellydancers & the Art Form in the DMVD & Earth

           (Washington, DC*Maryland*Virginia*Delaware)

       ** S H I M M Y S I S T A . C O M ** 

         THE BRANDON'S OASIS NEWS BOX

                                                (MOST UPDATED POSTS AT THE BOTTOM)

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*(2/21) ONLINE MILESTONE MARKED OUT IN CALI

Hopefully, every1 out on the West coast survives another deluge of an ''atmospheric river'' of flooding waters and potential mud and rockslides, including Suzy Evans, who announced on her FB page that the domain of IAMED's website is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. IAMED 1st started cresting bellydance VHS tapes back in 2001, shortly converting over to DVDs as well as creating theatrical presentations for sale. Their bread and butter was instructional videos/DVDs back in the day, now more of collectors items due to the fast paced presence of self-promoting and streaming. As many of ya know, I was a huge collector of many of IAMED's offerings (including BD-TV) and has tried to look forward to getting back into getting old fave and newer DVD offerings, especially when I get my tax refunds back. Feel free to check out the store page for any of the excellent teachers and performers to add to your own collections, an era of vid production (when West coast was queen) forever enshrined before the presence of ''Neonmania'' and WDNY (World Dance NY) DVD stamping on East coast bellydance producing...

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*(2/21) HAS BELLYDANCE FOUND A NEW HOME IN NORTHEAST DC?

They only open on Sundays for brunch hours, and from the images their ID page shows, every1 looks forward a fine time at VERA (NE DC). They started Brunch Hafla this month, with 2 seatings (1130am-130pm and 230pm-5pm), and features both Mexican and Lebanese entertainment, including....wait for it....wait for it....local area bellydancers performing. The irony is uncanny for me, personally. As of press time, there is no known cover or spending minimum, but looking at the menu it will ask you bring your wallet and credit card(s) when you are enticed by their Lebanese and Mexican cuisines being offered on Sundays, with possible other offerings upon request. I hope to check it out (health permitting) either this or next SUN. Its location (2000 Fenwick Street in the newly renovated Ivy City section of NE DC) would have been maybe a 10-15 minute walk from my old apartment on Owen Place, NE, but is till around a 30-minute walk from my new Oasis digs (off of Irving St/RI Ave, NE) as well as catching the E2 Metrobus that'll let me off right across the street from the venue. High praise has already been aloud by Rhia (DC) and newly returned Kristi Angel (MD). Reservations for both seatings are strongly advised, casual dress appropriate as well. Will this be the lighting rod that will strike a permanent presence for bellydancing's revival within the DC line? We will all see...

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*(2/21) FOR MISS CRYSTALICIOUS, THIS IS MORE THAN PERSONAL...

She knew within her heart that she needed to do something. She's seen the images. The toll. The destruction. The continued ignorance of these who runs all countries involved. And right near the MD/DC line near Takoma Park, bellydancer Crystal Silmi (DC) will have Busbys & Poets the venue (at 235 Carroll Street-Metro Red Line: Takoma) to have a bellydance benefit for the Palestinian Children's Relief Fund (PCRF) on Saturday evening, March 9th from 6pm-??, with a $20 suggested donation that will bring in local area bellydancers that shares the same passions to help those in need for the finds for an end to the violence organized in Gaza and along the West Bank, which is clear that there are more to this war beyond recovering hostages, a lasting ceasefire and a 2-state solution. This area has become a chess table, and many of those Palestinian (especially targeting women and CHILDREN) are sadly being used as throwaway pawn chess pieces beyond their will. And in many cases, our tax dollars has been funding it, and the world's demands for an end to it continues to go unnoticed and underground contractualized by both member parties in Congress. Be aware that its gonna be 1st come, 1st serve as far as seating arrangements, so ya might wanna get there as early as possible. A hopeful ray of light that will lead to getting many in Gaza and surrounding out of its entrapped darkness...

• PCRF's DC Chapter's IG Page

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*(4/2) BEFORE ANYONE ASKS....(SNAREDRUMS WITH DRY HEAVES)

Any unforseen stomach ailments conquered me in the beginning of last month, which I'm glad is put behind the calendar of yesterday forever. Other than a few nagging joints from off-and-on drenchings from Mother Nature this week, I'm primed and poised to makeup for last year's debacle in which a food poisoning journey from Hell KO'ed me from attending in AOTB'23 plus spent the majority of my then-planned vacation doing soft food rehab. Due to wicked weekend plans, I'll most likely be in the OC for FRI nite and SAT's famed all-day extravaganza, including Ro Raqs' famed ''Power Hour...Hour Hour...Hour'' segment, (which when the perform sched officially comes out) may feature the likes of this month's BDOTM (see above), Sadie (CO), Aziza (CAN) and legendary Egyptian dynamo Esra Warda.

If you go to my MetrOasis page, and scroll downwards, you should see the AOTB year-by-year collective of YouTube clips spanning more than a decade to relive or at-home experience the fun and on-stage magic that this festival brings. Fingers crossed that I can get some excellent pix along da way (as good as the footage I had from Crystal Silmi's PCRF benefit a couple weeks ago) and send them immediately to my Facebook and IG pages for all to capture the moments (especially with a now Google Pixel phone that has ridiculous zooming skillset). To all attending, remember that this is absolutely NO VIDEO OR LIVE TAPING of any1's dances, period. And, NO FLASH photography is allowed, especially since some performers will be on stage with sharp items and wouldn't need to jump off the stage and chase you out of the Naimahdome. :)~~

As you can imagine, the overall anticipation is slowly overwhelming me, feeling just a travel experience again is long overdue, a sad sense of victory awaits when the countdown officially kicks in as soon as I leave a vapor trail out of work on Thiursday, shortly after the noon hour to make at-home final preps. Looking forward to see many online faces in the flesh on the oceanside, hon!! ;)

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*(4/28) THE ''QUEEN OF THEATRICAL BELLYDANCE'' WRAPS UP A GENERATION OF BRILLIANCE

It takes a while for that statement to sink in, especially considering that Sahara Dance (NW DC) co-founder/artistic director Rachel Kay Brookmire was introducing the crowd that attended to its 19th presentation of Under a Desert Moon (with a few early years of Desert Sky titles) at AU-Greenberg in Tenleytown, which RKB's faculty count has grown now to 18, including the recent addition of Sophianna (MD),  is also just a stone's throw from Sahara Dance's central hub studio.

Saturday's masterpiece showing of faculty and nearly a 100 bellydancers of all levels once again highlighted the nucleus of devotion and deciation RKB has established within the NW DC and DMVD bellydance communities, the therefore mentioned still beaming as a brand new mama as well as last Fall's epic performance on the National Mall TV'ed by millions as well as watched online via YouTube with the help of Jillina's Bellydance Evolution (more on that shortly...)

20 performances representing all of what Sahara has to offer, including the growth of live drummers to excellent soloist presentations (by Megan, Florencia, Julie Athie & Alma, Leilah Moon and Mohamed Ali's mind-bending traditional Tanoura dervish dance). RKB's faculty has now grown to 18, with the addition of Sophianna (MD) and her never-ending Greek playfulness and giddy, infectious attitude as a professional dancer, giving Sahara a newfound Greek heritage to advance one's dance and will also tutor in a new teaching era for kid's bellydance classes moving onward.

The show also featured tons of dance companies enlightening the audience as well, pics allowed can be seen on my IG page, as well as more professionalized photography will show up soon on Sahara's Facebook and IG sites as well. The famed studio is closing in on wrapping up its 1st generation of existence, a mental photo album that Rachel carries within her every single moment as the countdown to that 20th anniversary nears, and I as many others will be there for it every step...and shimmy....closer... And done all within 2 hours time, RKB being as punctual as ever....

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*(4/28) JILLINA BRINGING THE ''EVOLUTION'' BACK TO THE DMVD....AS A BIRTHDAY PRESENT?

Jillina (CA) and her Bellydance Evolution express is currently touring all over North America, reliving their theatrical love as much as the above mentioned, with the ''Jungle Book'' live action offerings, and will be back in the DC area on Saturday 8/24th (yes, that's the day before my birthday) at the Fitzgerald Theater in Rockville, MD. As of typing this, we're not official on the start time, but we know it will be part of  Sahara Dance's Summer Caravan (and the BDEvo website has an actual listing of 4pm, which lends itself to being an afternoon offering). The theater will seat close to 500, and I'm pretty much certain it will be wise to get a jump on seat selects as soon as they become readily available. This will also be part of an entire weekend of fun for bellydancers alike, as BDEvo workshops will also take place on My Birthday Sunday also, more details as they come about...

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*(4/28) YES, IN CASE IF YOU WERE WONDERING, 'HON....

You can CLICK HERE to indulge and prosper as many online fans and fam are doing to the Oasis' created playlist representing 2024's Art of the Belly weekend extravaganza that held in the OC at The Carousel earlier this month.  ;) As of today, there are 46 videoclips to enjoy in your spare time(s), not just here but all over the internet. It will amaze you when you see videoclips from past years (2025 will be AOTB's 15th anniversary, if you can believe that) how strong the DMVD bellydance database is, how it draws many folks from all over the country and has a support base that rivals any other bellydance fest in the nation. Naimah and Patti Cakes went out of their way to expand the scope of the art form through workshop offerings from Esraa Warda (EGY), Sadie, Aziza (CAN), Khadijah (CO) and plenty of others, some who has performs in the playlist.  Belladonna (DC/VA)'s performance with her soulmate forever, drag king icon Ken Vegas has yet to be added (it is up on her Vimeo.com channel) as well as 2 YouTube AOTB clips from Caitlyn Poole and Cherra' T.B. that is on but not able to be put in the playlist, but deserves equal enjoyment in watching.

As also known to those who follows on here, on my MetrOasis page, you can also see past AOTB performance playlist over the years and appreciate how far this local staple of bellydance entertainment has come... Enjoy it!! ;)

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*(4/28) 

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