This year will see some changes to the Hafla. Most notably, a bigger theater!!! Even our first year we were too big for our venue, Renaissance Theatre on Commerce St. We actually turned people away at the door because we were over the building's capacity. Much of the audience had to watch the show on closed circuit TVs from the lobby! Well, no more! Our new home is the auditorium at RS Payne school. We should fit quite comfortably there. And we're looking forward to the comfort of dancing on a traditional stage.
The Hafla is catching the attention of dancers and troupes across the state and 2009 will see some new faces on our stage. It just keeps growing, almost independent of the organizers.
Much of our art consists of dancing for dancers. The audiences of many regional haflas are made up primarily of other dancers and our families. The Kaleidoscope Hafla is different. While naturally the audience is full of Bellydance supporters, it also draws from the general public, thanks to the stupendous publicity from being a part of the Kaleidoscope Festival, Lynchburg City's month-long arts festival. It is quite an honor to be able to bring Bellydance to folks who might otherwise have never been exposed to it. The Hafla is the perfect platform for combating some of the ridiculous misconceptions about bellydance. And, let's be honest, the energy of a theater full of dancers who passionately love their art is indescribable.
We hope lots of you will join us on Sept.12th--either in the audience or on stage (and there's still room to dance, send us an email if you're interested).