Serena Wilson

Serena Wilson (August 8, 1933 – June 17, 2007), often known just as "Serena", was a well-known dancer, choreographer, and teacher who helped popularize belly dance in the United States. Serena's work also helped legitimize the dance form and helped it to be perceived as more than burlesque or stripping. Serena danced in clubs in her younger years, opened her own studio, hosted her own television show, founded her own dance troupe, and was the author of several books about belly dance.

Early Years

Serena was born Serene Blake in 1933 in New York's Bronx. Her parents were vaudeville performers with their own show, Blake & Blake, featuring a variety of comedy and musical numbers, some of which Serena performed in as a child. As a young adult, Serena officially changed her name from "Serene" to "Serena".

Serena also began studying with famed dancer Ruth St. Denis, well-known for her interpretations of Oriental and Oriental-style dance. In 1952, Serena married Alan (Rip) Wilson, a musician, percussionist, and leader of a Dixieland band, a combination which complemented Serena's own background. In the mid-1950s, Serena gave birth to their son, Scott.

Not long after their marriage, Rip's band was booked for a gig with a Middle Eastern theme that required a belly dancer. In spite of the clash of styles, Rip quickly got hold of the music for popular Middle Eastern standards like Misirlou, and recruited his wife to dance, which Serena felt her studies with St. Denis had prepared her for.

According to her husband, Serena's dance ended up being rather awkward, as she wasn't sure what to do with her hands. She disguised this by carrying a vase on her shoulder throughout! The performance was nonetheless a success, inspiring Serena and Rip to pursue a life-long interest in Middle Eastern music and dance.

Rip took up Middle Eastern drumming and frequently accompanied Serena as she honed her skills dancing at the Egyptian Gardens club in Chelsea, an area then known colloquially as Greektown for the large number of Greek and Middle Eastern cabarets lining the street. Soon, Serena had become one of the most popular belly dancers in the city and even performed for various city officials.

Middle Years

In the mid-1960's, Serena began teaching belly dance, opening Serena Studios, on Eighth Avenue in New York City. In the 1970's she started her own TV show, known as "Serena" and "The Serena Show", which served as a means of educating the masses about belly dancing, and billed itself as "The fun way to beauty, grace, and a youthful figure." [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KB76_4rSDS8&feature=related The Serena Show] ]

Her son, Scott, continued the family tradition by dedicating himself to the study of the oud, an Egyptian lute or guitar. Serena also began writing the first two of her books about belly dance, "The Serena Technique of Belly Dancing" and "The Belly Dance Book".

Serena and Rip's success continued unabated until the Gulf War in 1991, when American attitudes towards all things Middle Eastern soured.

Later Years

In spite of the bias in American popular culture against the Middle East, Serena continued to perform in a number of Egyptian folkloric shows and appeared several times as the lead dancer in the New York Opera Company's production of Aida.Serena Studios: [http://www.serenastudios.com About Serena] .] She also continued teaching at her studio and choreographing for her dance troupe, Serena Dance Theater, which performed throughout New York City.

Serena's studio also provided dancers for hire, with dancers available for performances at traditional Middle Eastern weddings and other social events. Notably, in keeping with Serena's long-held belief that belly dancing was not comparable with stripping and erotic dance, her studio would not provide dancers for events in which their performance might be over-sexualized, e.g. for bachelorette parties, but not bachelor parties, for bat mitzvahs but not bar mitzvahs.Fox, Margalit. [http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/24/obituaries/24wilson.html?n=Top/Reference/Times%20Topics/People/F/Fox,%20Margalit&pagewanted=all "Serena Wilson Dies at 73; Popularized Belly Dance."] The New York Times: June 24, 2007.]

In June, 2007, Serena died suddenly of a pulmonary embolism. She had been scheduled to dance in Greenwich Village with her son's Middle Eastern band, Scott Wilson and Efendi, that very night. Her son Scott and husband Rip continue to carry on her passion for Middle Eastern music and dance. Serena's studio in New York also continues to hold classes and provide dancers for performances.

Further reading

*Wilson, Serena. "The Belly Dance Book." (McGraw-Hill 1983)
*Wilson, Serena. "The Legacy of Little Egypt: A History of the Belly Dance in America." (Serena Studios, 1994)
*Wilson, Serena. "The Serena Technique of Belly Dancing." (Drake Publishers 1972)

Video References

* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KB76_4rSDS8&feature=related The Serena Show]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhVAiYQvLik&feature=related Serena at The Egyptian Gardens]

ources

*Fox, Margalit. [http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/24/obituaries/24wilson.html?n=Top/Reference/Times%20Topics/People/F/Fox,%20Margalit&pagewanted=all "Serena Wilson Dies at 73; Popularized Belly Dance."] The New York Times: June 24, 2007.
*Serena Studios: [http://www.serenastudios.com About Serena] .
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KB76_4rSDS8&feature=related The Serena Show]

Citations

Persondata
NAME = Wilson, Serena
ALTERNATIVE NAMES = Serena; Blake, Serena; Blake, Serene
SHORT DESCRIPTION = Popular American belly dancer, dance teacher, choreographer, author, and host of instructional TV series, "The Serena Show".
DATE OF BIRTH = August 8, 1933
PLACE OF BIRTH = New York City
DATE OF DEATH = June 17, 2007
PLACE OF DEATH = New York City