The San Francisco Bay Area has always been blessed with talent, and it was no less in the early 1990s when I thought of showcasing the best in male belly dancers under one roof and in one show. Well known dancers like Dick “Kamaal” Magnanti, Tom “Rashid” Ryan, John Compton, Joey “Yousef Hassan Deeb” Nin, and Bobby Banda, performed on that night in their glitzed and blinged costume regalia to a packed house at The Grapeleaf Restaurant on Balboa Street. Amina Goodyear closed the show with a superb demonstration of traditional male tahteeb or stick/staff dance wearing the traditional galabaya and head scarf of a male dancer, culminating in one cohesive and well performed event.
On that night and in that time, we all worked together to showcase individual talents. These were the most celebrated male belly dancers, gay and straight, with an added female depicting the cultural aspect of Middle Eastern male dance and performance. On that night, the public saw gay, straight, males, and females showcasing the best of themselves in a unique and very special show depicting the assumed traditional and cultural roles performed by a diverse group of talented dancers by a then unknowledgeable public.
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