Performing with Aziza in the Fairfield Halls of East Croyden was brilliant!  Aziza was brilliant! Aziza had been teaching workshop in Edinburgh in January, and after I went to one of her workshops, I thought she was just lovely! Her teaching was very informative, and relaxed. No pressure to push ones self, as she explained and went over things. However when I got to see her in action I realized how lovely she really was. She performed with grace, and elegance, which of course I liked.

During the show, I performed in the first half, before Aziza . Spotlights blinded me, and the floor space was huge. Luckily I had time to rehearse beforehand. The hall held 300 people, and the show was a great success. It was sold out! Soon it was Azizas turn to perform. Her whole personality shone when performing, and she seemed to be glowing as she performed her two pieces. A true delight to watch. Aziza performed a veil piece in the first half wearing a lovely dark plum traditional two-piece costume, and an oriental piece in the second half in a stunning olive green costume. Once again it was a traditional costume she chose to wear with coins, in gold and silver. Its was really nice to see her perform, as I had only seen her on videos previously.

The night was fulfilled, with variety and excitement. There were many other performers including Charlotte Desorgher, the organiser of the event, Khaled Mahmoud (Egyptian style), Ozgen Ozgec (Turkish style), and Angela Wooi. At the end of the evening I was lucky enough to get a snap shot of the wonderful Aziza, and have time to chat with her, before boogying the night away. It was quite funny, as I remember earlier on Aziza was trying to finish getting ready, wanting to leave the changing rooms etc but seemed to be bombarded by fellow performers, and audience members wanting a piece of her. This was when I decided to to leave the star of the show. Shortly afterwards I met local bellydance teacher/performer Angela Wooi. Angela a teacher/performer in England. Angela had scared many people during her solo performance, including myself at first glance, in her scary red costume. See pic below Hahaha. She had performed a fusion piece that was interesting, and brought variety to the show.

Lastly I would like to say a big Thank You to Charlotte Desorgher for inviting me to be part of such an event. Not forgetting I got to hang out with Aziza!!!!  For those of you who were there I bet you had as much fun as I did. For those of you who missed it, make sure you catch Aziza next time. Aziza a great performer not to be missed! For more info check her website  www.azizashimmy.com
Review by Fereshteh Hosseini   www.fereshteh.co.uk