Rozeta Ahalyea

Rozeta Ahalyea was one of the earliest professional bellydancers in Australia with a performance career that spanned four decades.

Born in Greece and emigrating to Australia in the early 1950s, Ahalyea's professional career started in 1962 at age 16, arriving in Sydney after running away from home to escape an arranged marriage. Rozeta found work as a cashier in a Spanish nightclub in Kings Cross and this is where she saw her first bellydancer. The boss of the nightclub overheard her boasting she could dance better than the dancer on stage. He found Rozeta a costume and she performed for the first time doing a Greek Tsifteteli that she had learnt growing up with an accompanying live band. The crowd enjoyed the performance so much the boss gave her a job as a full time dancer.

Six months later she toured Japan for six months and at the age of 17 she was the youngest solo artist ever to visit. Next stop was Hong Kong for 3 months before going to Thailand. Unbeknown to Rozeta the owner of the Thai nightclub she was contracted to was the Prince of Thailand. After a month long courtship she became engaged to him. Their engagement broke down upon learning that the Prince wanted more than one wife, as was custom in Thai tradition. She fled the country with the help of a General’s wife, who was British, via Hong Kong and Taiwan before returning to Australia. She waited until she qualified for an Australian passport before working overseas again.

Rozeta worked extensively in the Sydney restaurant and nightclub scene but due to ill health from the smoky environment she moved to Queensland.

During her times in Australia she also taught bellydancing privately. Two notable students were Amera Eid who eventually set up Amera’s Palace, the first bellydance boutique in Australia, and Terezka Drnzik who started Sydney’s first full time bellydance school.

External links

* [http://ftvdb.bfi.org.uk/sift/individual/952264?view=credit Movie Credit]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRmA81fzHUw Performing on Cliff Richard at the movies]
* [http://iblog.net.au/halcyonparks/2007/06/15/rozetta/ Rozeta's current home]