MIDLAND Dance Studios owner Tabetha Vagliviello, also known by her stage name Zahara, recently competed in the Belly Dance Now International Challenge and won first place in the international professional and teachers category.

She said she has been a dancer since her childhood.

“My interest in belly dancing blossomed in 2000 when my mother-in-law took me along to a restaurant - Ali Tent in Vic Park,” she said.

“I saw this lady come out and she was wearing a beautiful costume, and she started dancing and I thought I could do that, so I went home and tried it and realised I couldn’t.

“My mother-in-law took me to one of my first classes and I haven’t looked back since.”

Ms Vagliviello said she loves the many different facets of Middle Eastern dance.

“I love that 25 years after my first lesson, I am still learning,” she said.

“There is so much depth and richness of cultural understanding needed for belly dance, from understanding the beautiful cabaret style or the earthy folkloric styles, the styles and costumes and regions you must know them all and understand the cultural heritage and rich tapestry of the different areas and communities.

“I love that it builds a sisterhood for the dancers; young, old, tall, small, skinny or round this dance helps women go on a journey or femininity and body acceptance and allows them to feel beautiful about themselves inside and out.”

She said she entered the Belly Dance Now international challenge as an exploration of her skills, to get feedback and keep pushing herself as a dancer.

I entered the competition after having a serious car accident when I was pregnant with my son,” she said.

“I underwent an emergency C-section and had quite severe neck and back damage where I had to stop dancing and relearn to dance and walk.

“My son was very sick for the first few years of his life and this took a toll on me as an individual but also as a dancer and I didn’t know what level I was at anymore.”

She said the competition was more focussed on the growth of its entrants rather than prizes.

“This competition was a little different from normal competitions so we received quite detailed feedback from the panel of judges and they would assess everything from musicality, understanding of the music, costuming, cultural appropriateness and technique.

“The competition was spaced out over approximately eight months and there were four heats, then finals.

“It was an amazing experience, although challenging and it was hard to perform on video with no audience.”

Ms Vagliviello was in Cairo for two weeks as part of a dance camp, which she won as first prize in the competition.