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Raks Baraka is a small troupe in Santa Cruz, California. We are currently(clockwise from top) Helen Hudson, Hendy Lund Appleton, Julie Holm and Marisa Herzog, all coming from different backgrounds and bringing different insight into belly dancing. Heather Brockett is currently on "walk about". We reserve space in our hearts for Janene Robinson (center above), Christa Figone, Talya Touhy and Tara Shea, troupe members off to new adventures. Raks Baraka is influenced by the dance, music and culture of North Africa, the Middle East and India, as well as orientalist images, and equal portions imagination and cultural appreciation.
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We love the imagery of classic Persian and Indian art, as well as Bollywood movies and our favorite contemporary belly dancers. Taking pieces from the variety of American forms of belly dance as well as the sacred and secular dance of various countries, Raks Baraka seeks to present a unique and respectful perspective on belly dancing to their audiences. Our costumes are influenced by vintage photos of Middle Eastern women and such historic figures as Mata Hari and Thea Bara. (H.B. & C.F., top of the pic)
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Julie has far outstripped being a student. She is a mother and baker of evil addictive food things. She is our keeper of knowledge and without her our feet often don't work.
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Helen Hudson has been a vocalist and a fiber artist, and practices two different forms of Silat, an Indonesian martial art. Helen's appreciation of music brings us new pieces regularly. Thru the grace and generousity of Helen's teacher Guru Mike Roberto at http://www.serak.net/ we have rehearsal space with a mirror, walls and a roof.
Hendy has been dancing for sometime, is one of those techy-workers for the Silicon Valley, plays in the Society for Creative Anachronism, and is a new mom. You can find her here http://www.naadhira.net/
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Marisa Herzog is a full time mother of twins, active in the Society for Creative Anachronism, who works on writing and costuming in her “copious free time”. With the help of a handful of loyal sherpas, thugs, fans and groupies Raks Baraka manages to continue to learn and grow, teaching when they can, attending local Bay Area dance conventions, dancing and laughing all the while.
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As all of us have jobs and "real" lives, we dance for ourselves and for fun. At the same time we continue to seek to educate and polish ourselves, developing our skills and stage presence. We have come a long way, discovering our own style and strengths, and we look forward to more adventures ahead.
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