The crowd went wild, and that set the tone for the night this was a highly enthusiastic, appreciative audience. The first performer, Lee Ali, looked as though she had stepped out of one of the vintage photos and delivered a marvelous performance to a medley of Arabic music old favorites. When the show began, the room was abuzz with anticipation and excitement. It was clear that, to these people, this was a timely and important project that Roxxanne Shelaby was undertaking.
In her bag was a copy of the album “Live at The Fez in Hollywood” that she was hoping to have autographed. I started belly dancing in 1996, so this was not my era, but listening to these women talk was fascinating! A woman sitting next to me named Vicky Schell shared with me that the first time she saw a belly dancer was at The Fez.
#DIANE WEBBER AUTOGRAPH FULL#
Prior to the show, the room was full of joy and excitement as many people greeted each other and shared their stories from The Fez. The Fez alumni present (but not performing) were: Feiruz Aram, Jawaher, and Tonya Chianis, but unfortunately, Antoinette Awayshak and Saadoun Al Bayati were unable to attend. Samy Farag, Princess Farhana, as well as Aubre Hill. In attendance were: former owner/editor of Habibi Magazine and dancer Shareen Al Safy, IAMED director Suzy Evans, music producer Dr. When I looked around the packed room, I saw several notable people from different facets of the belly dance community.
On the schedule was a brief viewing of a trailer for the documentary and a raffle in which the prizes were vintage photos from The Fez. Some of the dancers were accompanied by musicians such as violinist Maurice Saba, oudist Rico Orel, percussionist Var Daghevarian and on tabla, Achmend Al Aswar. To spice things up, there was also the Samba trio Irani and The Sambarinas. The lineup consisted of Lee Ali, Atlantis, Helen Vlahos, Fahtiem, Anisa, Jillina, Masa, Cory Zamora, Tamra-Henna, Anaheed, Aisha Ali and Sahra Saeeda. Some were alumni from The Fez, and others were well-known belly dancers. Roxxanne Shelaby believes this is a part of important Middle Eastern dance history that needs to be documented and preserved.Īlthough this fundraiser was a casual hafla held at a dance studio, a phenomenal line up of belly dancers agreed to perform. This documentary is intended to be not only a homage to her father. Roxxanne Shelaby is raising funds to create a documentary about Lou Shelaby, her father, The Fez Nightclub, and the artists who performed there. On JLou Shelaby’s daughter, Roxxanne Shelaby, hosted The Fez Forever Fundraiser at the Barsil Cultural Center and Copoeria Batuque. Many of the belly dancers who began their dance careers there went on to become leaders in the Middle Eastern dance community. The Fez set a standard of what a Middle Eastern night club should be, and that standard has never again been duplicated. The Fez was also known for Arabic music and even had an album called “Live at the Fez in Hollywood” (Aram). Many of these belly dancers credit Lou Shelaby with their growth as consummate performers and artists. Many belly dancers began or blossomed in their careers at The Fez among them were: Feiruz Aram, Jenai Rathor (mother of Ansuya), Antionette Awayshak, Tonya Chianis (mother of Atlantis), Marta Schill Kouzouyan (mother of Jenna Kouzouyan) and Fahtiem.
During that time, Lou Shelaby was not just the owner he was a musician, but above all, an extremely popular employer among the belly dancers. Lou Shelaby was the owner of The Fez from 1959 until 1971. Jayne Mansfield, Richard Boone, Danny Thomas were just a few who enjoyed the exotic ambience, and most of all, the beautiful belly dancers accompanied by Arabic music. During its heyday, The Fez was a popular haunt of celebrities. Located on Sunset Boulevard in legendary Hollywood, The Fez was the first Arabic night club in Los Angeles.
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