December 1, 1997
Vision and Operating Principles

Purpose:
1. To educate its members and the public about Middle Eastern dance and culture through performance, research, and study and to nurture a community of enthusiasts for this dance medium.

2. To provide the experience of movement, dance and performance for troupe members.

3. To provide social and fun experiences for its members.

Operating Principles:
1. Have respect for the culture and dance form we represent.

2. Have respect for ourselves by presenting a professional appearance at all times.

3. Have respect for our fellow performers by providing assistance and support.

Guidelines:
1. A member is part of a group and must remember that on and off stage.

2. A performer is "on stage" from the moment she (he) appears on the site in the sense that the performer represents the troupe and in a broader sense Middle Eastern dance and culture. What people see in you is what they will think about the troupe, belly dance, and in some degree, Middle Eastern culture.

3. A performer will make sure to have grooming, make-up, costume and personal attire appropriate to the occasion. Coordinate with each other, with the troupe coordinator, costume director and director to make sure you know what is appropriate.

4. In as much as each dance has a concept as a work of art and in as much as each dance will represent a specific country or aspect of the culture, including American interpretive pieces, each dance will have a different costume "look". Every effort will be made to create costumes that minimize expense, use pieces of costumes that performers have or provide costumes from the director's closet. However, if a performer does not have a costume for a particular dance (one way or another), she (he) cannot perform in it. It is important therefore to check with the costume director and to bring costumes to dress rehearsal to make sure everything is in order.

A basic costume wardrobe that each performer should try to accumulate would include:
Bra, hip belt, skirt, veil
Harem pants, yellick
Beledi dress, hip wrap, head scarf
Cane, finger cymbals
Body suit or leotard
Cover-up
A more extensive wardrobe would include:
Additional skirts, veils, bras & belts.
Saudi Thobe
Specialty folkloric costumes such as   Gawazee, Tunesian, Gypsy,
Guedra, Spanish

Costumes should be clean, pressed, in good repair for each performance.

5. Performers will let the troupe coordinator know as soon as possible whether they will be able to participate in a specific performance so the coordinator can develop a list of performers for each dance, for each show. The floor pattern may have to be altered for each performance depending on number of performers and stage facilities at the site. Consequently, anyone who cannot make the dress rehearsal will not perform in that show.

6. Each show is deserving of a professional presentation whether paid or not and no matter how small the audience. This means members must
-arrive on time, 
-report in to the coordinator,
-get in costume in a timely manner,
-stay focused on the job at hand and the need to coordinate  last minute details before performing,
-check with the director or coordinator about when you may change into street clothes: for some kinds of shows you may change immediately upon finishing, while for others you should stay in costume until the last performer has finished and the announcer has said good bye to the audience, sometimes everyone will take a final bow and you need to be in costume for that,
-be ready to go on as soon as it is your turn there should be no gaps in the show audiences have short attention spans and will leave if there is a break in the program.

7. Performers will provide support for each other during a show. This means:
during a street fair, staying beside the stage to add color and noise to the performance;
during a stage show providing clapping, zagarettes and other signs of attention and support.
Every performer when looking your way should see a smiling supporting member of the audience.
No matter what you think of the performer she (he) is out there trying and needs your help.

8. Troupe members should each learn each dance thoroughly and take responsibility to help each other learn each dance. When performing a group dance, it is each member's responsibility to know where everyone is on stage at any time, to maintain straight lines, proper spacing and floor positions, synchronize turns and hand positions, as well as help cover any mistakes that may (will) happen.

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