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The Power of Stage Makeup!

Why Most Belly Dancers Need to Put More Makeup On

This article was ZAGHAREET! Magazine's "Internet Pick" in Sept./Oct. 2000 - Bookmark
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stage makeup after show My stage makeup shows up even in the dark!

Are you uncomfortable wearing stage makeup or even any makeup at all?Do you feel self-conscious, silly, "fake" or somehow dishonest when you have makeup on?

Many new performers aren't used to wearing makeup, and have a hard time judging just how much makeup they need onstage. Read what professional teachers, performers, and troupe directors had to say about wearing stage makeup.

Laurel Victoria Gray:

"Makeup application is one of the basic tools of any theatrical artist...But many women who come into Middle Eastern dance have no prior stage experience.  Basic stage directions and proper theater etiquette are completely foreign to them -- not to mention familiarity with stage makeup, lighting, and costuming.  I believe this is why some of the performances...have an amateur quality to them."  (used by permission)
Isara (Member of the Purple Roses of Cairo Middle Eastern Dance Company
"I don't wear base (foundation) in my mundane life, but I do for the stage. The makeup helps me get into character - kind of like wearing a mask. The makeup is as much a part of my alter ego as is my costume and dance name."  (used by permission)
Naadhira:
"...I feel like the makeup is me, exaggerated and highlighted.  The flaws (the blotches, the freckles, the zits...the uncertainty, the depression) are hidden and the good points (big green eyes, good cheekbones... the honesty, the emotionality) are emphasized.  Putting on the makeup before performing brings the good stuff to the fore front of my thoughts... it sets my internal stage for my performance.  Catching a glimpse of myself in a mirror before stepping out to perform is a wordless reminder that calls the good stuff up and out.  If you don't accentuate the contours of your face, it flattens out.  If you don't accentuate your eyes, they almost disappear.  A faceless dancer can't hold an audience's attention nearly as well as one with a smile and sparkly eyes."  (used by permission)
D'Anne Hargis:
"When a dance student takes a stage name they are creating a "role" or stage persona for themselves. To further that persona, they can use makeup and costuming to change themselves completely from their everyday selves to the glorious Middle Eastern Dancer they wish to be."  (used by permission)
YaShahara:
"I would suggest Meleah's "Face It" video which comes with a little workbook. She is a belly dancer and knows the way to do stage makeup. I don't think she has a web site, but her phone # is: (toll free) 877-378-7945.  She also sends out a newsletter a few times a year... I mail-order makeup from her and have never been disappointed.  She gives advice over the phone and suggests which products are best for your type skin. She sends samples for you to try and really works with you.  Standard disclaimers...just love her stuff."  (used by permission)
Laurie Williams, B.A. (Theatre):
"...the audience can't SEE their FACES under stage lighting unless they accentuate and exaggerate their features! The lighting is normally so bright that their faces wash out and become blobs with no eyes or mouths or any real shape to them...I DO find that there is a calming ritual to putting on my make-up, to transforming my plain, bookworm, costumer-with-the-tape-measure-around-my-neck self into a *dancer*, into someone who commands attention and admiration on stage. It allows me to become someone else, be it a sequined diva or a sweet girl folk dancing. It allows me to put on that mantle of confidence that I rarely (if ever) actually feel when I step out on stage. And all that with the brush of some blush and heavy eyeliner!"  (used by permission)
Vanessa Belle (www.faceart.com):
"If you're like me, you are always interested in adding to your makeup techniques wardrobe, so I put a whole feast of treats in my video: "Virtual Makeup!" My video may offer another approach to the students, and is a comprehensive overview of makeup application - so if you don't have the time to teach makeup, this may be just what you need!"  (used by permission)
(And last but not least!)
Hafsa Ali:
"Ask them if they want to look like a cinder sweeper, or a Cinderella!"  (used by permission!)

See photos of dancers before and after applying stage makeup.

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