Meet Jacqui Lalita’s mom!

By Amy Smith

Joyce Zarro is Jacqui Lalita’s mom. She lives in Rhode Island has recently taken up belly dancing. We took the opportunity to ask her a few questions about her belly dance journey.

Did you know anything about belly dance before Jacqui started studying it?

I knew nothing about belly dancing before Jacqui started taking belly dance classes, and I still knew nothing even after she became a professional dancer and teacher. I was at the opposite pole on the dance globe. Where she wore exotic dance costumes and performed breathtaking undulations and hip sways to enchanting Middle- Eastern music, I was out dancing in jeans and Western boots doing boot-scoot boogie and two-stepping to Toby Keith and Garth Brooks. My country-western dance career ended in 2003 when I had part of my foot actually replaced with an artificial joint. Dancing in Western boots for years took its toll on my feet.

What did you think when she became a professional belly dancer and teacher?

Watching Jacqui perform belly dance from the beginning has always been magical for me. Her body and heart are so connected. She radiates love of the dance and of life whenever she dances and teaches. She is a master at belly dance and I watch her with awe. I have always felt such pride in watching her perform all types of dance in her life, but nothing compares to her masterful art of belly dance.

What finally inspired you to take up belly dancing?

I found myself falling in love with Arabic music and wished I could dance too, but working a tedious desk job and caring for an aging mother left no energy to try it. It was not until two years ago, being retired, that I felt I as ready to share my daughter’s passion, to share her love of belly dance, to venture outside my comfort zone and try it.

I have so much to learn but I am loving it more with each class. My back is not what it used to be in my youth, my movements do not flow effortlessly, and often I feel like awkward, but I love my belly dance classes, and I strive to get better with time and practice and to continue to learn indefinitely.

What advice would you give women about starting belly dance later in life?

My advice for women learning belly dance later in life is to just enjoy pushing your hips further than you have since disco dancing; no pressure, no competition with 30-yearolds. Smile in the mirror as you shimmy and let your heart become captivated with the whole Middle-Eastern culture and dance. All women are sensual at any age. Belly dance is a beautiful art. It is captivating and exotic. It is wonderful exercise that tones body, improves your mind, and can slow the process of osteoporosis.

I am eagerly looking forward to when Jacqui is in New England and can give me private lessons. She is an amazing, patient teacher; my daughter; and my best friend, and I strive to get a good report card as her student.