Bellydance Superstars coming to Kent

Now one of the star performers of the Bellydance Superstars, Petite Jamilla didn’t even make the cut at her first audition six years ago. “I was rejected,” Jamilla said in a phone interview Sept. 24 prior to an eight-hour rehearsal for two shows in the Los Angeles area. “But I kept my name in circulation.”

Petite Jamilla performs along with the Bellydance Superstars at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 10 at the Kent-Meridian Performing Arts Center.

Petite Jamilla performs along with the Bellydance Superstars at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 10 at the Kent-Meridian Performing Arts Center.

Now one of the star performers of the Bellydance Superstars, Petite Jamilla didn’t even make the cut at her first audition six years ago.

“I was rejected,” Jamilla said in a phone interview Sept. 24 prior to an eight-hour rehearsal for two shows in the Los Angeles area. “But I kept my name in circulation.”

The Bellydance Superstars troupe had been formed to take part in the 2003 Lollapalooza tour, an annual music festival that features bands as well as other performance artists, including dancers. Jamilla followed the tour to several cities.

“They used guest belly dancers and I was a guest dancer at about five or six cities,” Jamilla said. “They saw my solo dance and liked it.”

Jamilla, 26, joined the troupe full-time in 2004. She performs with Bellydance Superstars on Oct. 10 at the Kent-Meridian Performing Arts Center, as part of the city of Kent Spotlight Series.

Fans won’t likely forget Jamilla’s dance. She spins with veils throughout her more-than-4-minute dance with five other performers.

“Spinning is my specialty,” Jamilla said. “The veils need air so you have to spin to use the veils.”

Other performers at the two-hour show will combine Polynesian dancing, ballet and even gymnastics with belly dancing.

Belly dancing has been part of Jamilla’s family for years. She learned how to belly dance from her mother, Jamilla Rasa, who also gave her daughter the stage name of Petite Jamilla.

“My mother was a belly dancer,” Jamilla said. “She did it as a hobby at restaurants and weddings.”

Jamilla first belly danced at age 4. Because her father served in the military, she moved a lot as a child before her family settled in Alabama when she was a teenager. She started to take belly dancing seriously during her teen years. It was a way to ease into the awkwardness of adolescence.

“I was pretty dorky and didn’t fit in with other people my age,” Jamilla said.

But as a dancer, she found a comfort zone belly-dancing with women older than her. She started to perform professionally at age 15 and became an instructor by age 17. She had two instructional belly dancing DVDs on the market by age 19. Two years later, she joined the Bellydance Superstars for their nine-month tours throughout the world.

“It’s an awesome job,” Jamilla said. “I’m lucky to have it.”

Jamilla lives in Alabama while not on tour. Show promoters refer to her as the “Southern beauty” in media materials.

When Jamilla first started to practice her spinning act, she could only spin for about a minute. But she built that up to more than four minutes without getting dizzy.

“I do not focus on anything when I’m spinning,” Jamilla said about the key to avoid dizziness.

Media critics call the belly dancing show the next big phenomenon to follow “Riverdance,” the world-famous Gaelic dance troupe.

“It’s family entertainment with a lot of special acts,” Jamilla said.

For more information, go to www.bellydancesuperstars.com.

Bellydance Superstars in Kent

When: 7:30 p.m. Oct. 10

Where: Kent-Meridian Performing Arts Center

Cost: $30 general, $28 ages 55 and older, $25 ages 25 and younger

Tickets: Kentarts.com or call 253-856-5051


Talk to us

Please share your story tips by emailing editor@kentreporter.com.

To share your opinion for publication, submit a letter through our website https://www.kentreporter.com/submit-letter/. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. (We’ll only publish your name and hometown.) Please keep letters to 300 words or less.

More in Life

t
Miss Teen India contestant represents Renton

Washington state’s 1st runner-up is on her way to the national competition.

t
Annual Kent Winterfest set for Saturday, Dec. 7 at Town Square Plaza

Food trucks, parade, music, tree lighting part of 2 to 7 p.m. festival downtown

t
Donations begin in Kent for annual Toys for Joy program

Firefighters also run Jerry Woods Holiday Engine program to collect toys, money

Photos by Joshua Solorzano/The Mirror
Wild Waves 2024 Crypt Keeper Challenge contestants.
Wild Waves 24-hour coffin challenge produces 5 brave winners

The first meal of the night at the Federal Way amusement park was tarantula-covered pizza.

Team Survivor Northwest hike to Twin Lakes in the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. Courtesy photo.
Team Survivor Northwest leads hiking adventures for women battling cancer

“It’s so wonderful connecting with all these women,” said breast cancer survivor Jennifer Dovey.

Kent Station’s annual Haunted Boo-Levard is from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 31 at the shopping center. COURTESY PHOTO, Kent Station
Kent Station shopping center plans Halloween celebration Oct. 31

Trick or treating at local shops from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.

t
Street of Treats Halloween event in downtown Kent set for Oct. 26

A frightfully fun family outing from 2 to 5 p.m. at 11 participating businesses

t
The Wolf’s Hometown Holiday country concert set for Dec. 5 in Kent

Lineup: Jordan Davis, Randy Houser, Warren Zeiders, Jackson Dean, Priscilla Block and Zach Top

My first Marble Queen Pothos, named Frida. Photo by Bailey Jo Josie/Sound Publishing.
Plants are the new pets: Bringing some lively green to your living space

For people who may be new to house plants or those who want a way to help spruce up their living space, here are a few tips.

Gamers face off in a match of “Tekken” at PAX. Photo by Bailey Jo Josie/Sound Publishing.
PAX West: Highlighting local games, charities

It has been 20 years since the Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) first… Continue reading

t
Disney on Ice returns Oct. 23-27 to Kent at ShoWare Center

Theme for this year is Magic in the Stars