DANCERS BACKSTAGE RITUALS, PART THREE: LOTUS NIRAJA

The featured performer for Part Three of Dancers Backstage Rituals is Lotus Niraja. I have been charmed by her performances for years, as i am sure many of you have! She's also a really nice person in "real life"- we spent some quality dressing room time at the shoots for Cheeky Girls Productions "Combination Nation" and "By Dancers, For Dancers" DVDs.

She's also fireball: not only is she an exquisite dancer and international workshop instructor, she is the founder, choreographer and artistic director of award-winning dance company, The NDC , or Niraja Dance Company.

She has been featured on several instructional and performance DVDs, and is admired for her precise technique and dynamic stage presence. As if that weren't enough, she also runs the popular competition The Belly Dance Nationals, and recently partnered with Michelle Joyce of Cheeky Girls Productions to co-produce the hit web-based reality show, "Project Belly Dance".

For Lotus, stage-fright has never been an issue... but are you wondering how she gets such boundless energy?

Her secret-like her personality, is ultra sweet, just the right combination of naughty and nice!

Here's what she has to say, in her own words:

"I do not have a pre-performance ritual per se. I grew up behind the stage as a child, so I can get into costume and makeup pretty quickly.

My only mandatory good luck charm is that I have to have four safety pins in my costume at all times. If I do not have four, I feel like the stage will fall apart if I even touch it. You will find four safety pins in each of my costumes in patterns such as crosses, x's and letters. BUT...after I perform is when the ritual magic happens.

When I leave the stage and the music is off. You'll see me rummaging through my bag with a gusto. I grab a bar of high quality chocolate out of my bag, open it, and slowly savor the taste. I won't rush it either. I don't chew it , I let it melt in my mouth. My post-performance ritual is to have a piece of chocolate after every performance to congratulate myself and to savor the moment.

I have to have it, or I won't think my performance is complete! My current favorites are Yeli Belly Chocolates (made by a belly dancer in the Dallas/Ft. Worth Area) and Richarts in NYC.

But if I'm desperate, I'll grab a quick 70%+ cocoa bar from the local grocery store and throw it in my bag. I love the feeling of having something special waiting for me during the finale part of my dance.

It's my little sweet secret!"


-LOTUS NIRAJA



To find out more about Lotus and The NDC, please visit: www.lotusniraja.com

Photos:
LEFT: Lotus' newest DVD, "The Icing On The Drum Solo", released by Cheeky Girls Productions

RIGHT: Lotus looking uber-glam in a costume by her mom, designer MAZ

Bottom: Lotus' newest DVD, "The Icing On The Drum Solo"

BY DANCERS FOR DANCERS

This year is already flying by, and the past month in particular, my calendar has been loaded with amazing dance events.

In addition to my up-coming dates in Scotland and England starting this week, (March 13-22, 2009—please check www.princessfarhana.com for dates, workshop and show info) I recently performed at Gothla USA and I taught, performed and judged competitions at The Belly Dancer of The Universe. I always love that event; it was one of the first events I ever attended as a “baby belly dancer”. Tonya and Atlantis always deliver- and this year were no exception. Judging the categories was VERY difficult, because there were so many amazing dancers from all over the globe- Russia, Korea, The Czech Republic, Puerto Rico, and all across the mainland US. The bar has really been raised- some of the contestants were so breathtaking that we judges were just stunned.

It was particularly tough to judge the kids! In “Little” category (the age five-to-twelve competition) not only were the small fry uniformly great technicians and performers, how the hell do you judge a category where some of the participants have had dance training longer than others have been alive? It was mind-blowing.

Exactly a week ago, I participated in Cheeky Girls Productions “By Dancers For Dancers” live show and DVD shoot. The weekend was intense- Cheeky Gal In Chief Michelle Joyce is not only a terrific dancer who teaches and performs world-wide (and a helluva gal off-stage) she is a visionary entrepreneur, event producer and DVD producer, with an extensive line of high-quality instructional and performance DVD’s. Her concept is full on DIY- tired of waiting to “be discovered” she took matters into her own hands and began both the “By Dancers For Dancers” performance series, as well as the line of instructional discs from the ground up.

Michelle attended to every minute detail of the entire weekend without once losing her cool. In fact, most of the time she was laughing and smiling-cool as a cucumber, that one. Last weekend she reserved Saturday for shooting the instructional DVD’s “Combination Nation Vol. 1 & 2” which will be out respectively in summer and fall of 2009. Sunday, we did a show at the Live Oak Theater in Berkeley, which will be released as “By Dancers For Dancers Vol. 4 ” probably later this spring.


The talent involved in both of the shoots was beyond impressive: world class dancers came from all over America to participate, including Aradia from Las Vegas, Lotus Niraja from Baltimore, Oreet from New York, Shoshanna from NoCal, Kristina Canizares, Sandra, Adriana, Nana and Zari from the Bay Area, and Bahaia from Texas, with make-up artist extraordinaire Jacknife Ruby in tow…. I know I’m forgetting some dancers, sorry!

It was exciting watching everyone teach and perform, all the gals’ individual styles are so diverse, and everyone is so talented…not to mention the fact that in spite of a super-intense schedule (and jet-lag for some of the East Coasters) everyone looked peachy keen and gorgeous. Onstage, Michelle was a vision in a hot Turkish costume of olive green and burgundy--which she'd better leave to me in her will if she wants to get to heaven; Lotus Niraja’s honey-kissed skin was complimented by a soignée pink Pucci print bedlah (made by her mom!) and thanks to Jacknife Ruby, Aradia looked like a belly dancing 1940’s era Veronica Lake, with a huge cluster of Daffodils in her hair. Photographer extraordinaire Michael Baxter was on hand to snap live pix, and the performances included raqs sharqi, Lebanese, Turkish and Egyptian style; Zafira’s sassy balady, sizzling drum solos, and Las Vegas –based blonde bombshell Tonya’s incredible fan dance.

There wasn’t much downtime, but since the hotel room shared by Bahaia, Jacknife Ruby and myself was functioning as the beauty parlor, I got to socialize from the comfort of my bed while dancers got their hair and make-up done! And, we discovered the best restaurant sign ever- “King Dong”…too bad it wasn’t open, that was a HUGE, so to speak, disappointment!

For more info on Michelle, By Dancers For Dancers, and the entire line of DVD’s, make sure to visit www.cheekygirlsproductions.com
Pi
Pix: Combination Nation DVD, Michelle "Champagne" Joyce, KING DONG! Bahaia and me backstage, "plearning"!