Ella's Notebook

Some people said Ansuya is an angel. I had better belive it.
She actually has brought me some good luck these past two days. =)

Have I always said that I am a blessed person? I shouldn’t ignore myself.

I promised Sandy to host Ansuya recently, during  her visit to Taiwan as a guest performer in the annual performance of Eva’s dancing group. She is going to tutor in their belly dancing workshop in this coming weekend as well.

I once regretted that I took this project beacuse I have  been exhausted due to having many projects on hand. But right now, my thoughts have been totally reversed. The reason is not only because Ansuya is such a great belly dancer, but also she a real woman.

When I said ‘real’, I meant she is a very passionate, sincere and a person devoted to life based on what I have learned from her so far. I am so glad to know her and be her friend during her stay in Taipei. She actually balanced my previous thoughts about Americans. Americans can be very sweet, warm and nice!

Ansuya is a fantastic dancer, a very charming woman and a very sweet girl indeed. What a wonderful day with her! Cheers!

About Ansuya: http://www.bellydance.org/aboutansu.php

Dancing with Waterlilies 
2006 Annual Performance by
the Dance Department of Taipei Physical Education College

<<百合起舞 - 2006 台北體院舞蹈學系年度公演>>
    *圖片摘自公演節目表

原本只是想，有人邀請又不用付票錢，就一起來看場學校的公演吧。沒想到，我被嚇壞了...

原來台灣真的變了，學校的演出曾幾何時已經不只是一場學校的演出，這場舞讓我看過的什麼有的沒的大小表演都相形失色了，尤其到最後幾幕幾乎逼的我快飆淚，究竟是我的心臟太小太容易感動，還是欣賞這場演出的時機真的太對了呢？在被一些阿豆仔氣的半死的歲月之後，看到這場於自己成長的土地上所發展出來的原生藝術，我實在不能不感動，不敢相信它只演出北中南三場就結束了。

表演的前半場綜合了芭蕾、現代舞以及改編的古仕女舞蹈，夢幻般的燈光、舞衣、音樂與細膩的舞蹈動作，已經足夠令人目眩神迷，下半場的「百合起舞」收編了九個台灣原住民的樂舞，穿插了強悍的生命力、合諧的族群精神、樸實的生活趣味以及溫柔婉約的男女互動等，看了更是讓人想攀雲吐霧，亦或是拍案叫絕！

真的好高興！時代在改變，愈來愈能在台灣的表演團體裡看見土地的生命力，我感覺我們愈來愈美麗！

雖然演出的場次這麼少，可是改變已經開始了不是嗎？看看這群洋溢青春活力的新生代，大家真的不需要太悲觀，這是一個文化的城市， 我們正在往好的方向前去，隨百合起舞，美哉，福爾摩沙！

....

當然，看完表演去吃蚵仔煎，還有西裝褲搭拖鞋的老兄所拉來的長毛臘腸狗狗陪伴，這也是台灣生命力的一種喔！

"It really is something for everybody - people who understand it and people who just like it because flamenco really does touch you. It is not like a classical ballet, where you look at it and appreciate it. You can feel flamenco: you feel temperament, you feel passion. Ballet's aesthetic is for the eyes, while flamenco is for the stomach."

-  Carmen Salinas, Artistic Director of Ballet Teatro Espanol de Rafael Aguilar    

A few days ago, I watched the DVD ‘Burning Dreams’ for the second time with a friend. It is a documentary film which records a Jazz dance school located in Shanghai and founded by a Taiwanese Jazz dance lover. Not like the first time, which occupy me with the jollity and musical hustle bustle in the film, I perceived more the feeling of alienation and drift at this viewing.

Tomorrow tons of cross year activities are coming. I am too excited to sleep. After lying abed, listening to swing Jazz for one hour, I found myself still awake. So I went blogging and found a very fancy website for Jazz dance. 'What's not shared is lost.' - that's what the website encourages.

http://www.offjazz.com/index1a.html

http://www.offjazz.com/vidjz-2-oct-2005/2141.htm
 
Time flees. Dance at midnight one day before the end of 2005. Remember this wonderful year!

Not everything happened has a reason, but something that I have messed up lately did. However, I have to stop moaning on my lost. The only thing I can make up for myself is to make my life the more positive the better. See what I have done today:
 - Got my hair trimmed
 - Swept the public floor of our apartment building
 - Read lots of magazines
 - Had a good dance in the Jazz dance class
 - Got lots of "life's little vexations" organized. Cheers!

The Jazz dance made me exetrmely energetic, plus the coach is humorous and pretty, I was reluctant to leave the studio.

http://studentweb.providence.edu/~hgroco07/

On my way back home, I picked up a hip-hop collection album in a shop. The music is very amusing, especially Akon's tour-de-force 'Lonely'. In the beginning of the song a little man wails with a pressed, begging trill: 'I'm so lonely. I'm Mr. lonely. I have nobody. To call my own.'  My goodness! This babyish voice has been hilarious enough!

Good to see the days I am now living are wonderful.
Freedom comes from the depths of our souls.
Life is good. ^__^

晚上去國際會議中心看了「卡門」，女主角Trinidad Artiguez 的身材火辣令人讚嘆， Flamenco 炫麗的舞衣賞心悅目，狂野的舞步放蕩不羈，嘹喨而沙啞的嗓音與吉他彈奏著譜出一場屬於吉普賽人的盛宴，真的很值回票價  =) 

「卡門」描述的是一個美艷的吉普賽女子，不顧道德禁忌撩撥男人的情慾，周旋在為卡門逃兵的軍官荷西、走私販毒的丈夫賈西亞與鬥牛士魯卡斯之間，最終死於充滿忌恨的荷西的手上。