Captive Breeding

“Captive Breeding” was my contribution to a group show, the Zoo, presented by Venus Uprising in the spring of 2010.

Style

Clearly, Captive Breeding  is not traditional bellydance.  The moves, I guess, are Egyptian-ish, although I did try to chinoisify the body line a little.  I think of the piece as a burlesque, although I’m not aware of any burlesque currently happening with as much emphasis on dance.  I would be delighted to see this piece cited as an example of "Contemporary Panda Fusion," "PandCab," "PTS," or something of the like.

Music

The music is two tracks:  Song from Shandong and The Menjiang Girl.  Both are from the CD Chinese Traditional Erhu Music 2 by Lei Qiang.  The entire album is really very lovely, and adding it to my collection was an unexpected side benefit to this project.

Props

My veil is just three yards of plain old polyester chiffon. 

Super Sudoku to Exercise Your Mind and Yahtzee  are available on-line or probably at the bookstore wherever you live.

I do not recommend that you purchase Forbidden Treasure.  Yes, I did read it all.  In the tub.  And I regret every steamy moment of it.  If you really want to know, a reviewer has provided an extraordinarily thorough plot synopsis here.

Costume

Eleftheriou’s Chinese peasant costume was purchased from Pearl River.  (I bought a white set and a black set in the largest size available, spliced them together, and then tacked in numerous layers of polyester batting around the midsection).

My top was also purchased at Pearl River; I cropped it to midriff length.  Pants salvaged out of a jumpsuit on the sale rack at Rainbow. 

My hipscarf, appropriately, came from a hole in the wall in Chinatown.  Observant fans may recognize it as one of the scarves worn by the mermaids in Atlantis.

Cast
Eleftheriou Targouisti has the soul of an artist.  He developed his intense love of the Dance in childhood.  After attracting the attention of a benefactress, he studied at L’Ecole du Mime with Etienne Decroux.  In this performance, he combines a love of movement with a passion for animals.  Of Greco-Moroccan heritage, Maestro Targouisti now makes his home in Astoria, Queens.

Other Videos
If you enjoyed Captive Breeding, you may also enjoy Atlantis.  This video is not currently available on YouTube; it is included on the collection Fantasy Bellydance from World Dance New York.  Buy it here.