THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, August 30, 1995 TAG: 9508290145
SECTION: ISLE OF WIGHT CITIZEN PAGE: 02 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Linda McNatt
LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines
Rosemary Wiley has been a wife, a mother, a receptionist, a secretary and she's owned her own cleaning service.
But at some point a few years ago, she wanted to be somebody else, somebody entirely different.
So she became a Middle Eastern dancer.
``I'm not Rosemary. I don't work in a hospital. I don't have children. I am Samra,'' she says. ``It is my fantasy.''
Wiley, 47, decided to try her other life when her husband, now retired from the Air Force, was stationed in Arkansas in the mid-1970s. One of the base commander's wives, she said, was opening her own dance studio. Wiley enrolled for jazz dancing and aerobics. That lasted about two weeks. She switched.
The woman also was teaching Middle Eastern style, commonly known as belly dancing. Wiley was fascinated by the body movements, the music, the costumes. She was sold on the exotic, mystical image of harems and sheiks. And she couldn't resist the sparkles and spangles on the costumes she got to design, make and wear.
``You get a chance to dress up in glittery, sparkly outfits,'' she said in a recent interview, smiling as she displayed one of her latest creations in the kitchen of her Smithfield home.
The lessons in Arkansas went on for about a year. When Wiley's husband was transferred to Langley Air Force Base, she signed up for lessons in the exotic dance style at the Newport News Recreation Center. After about eight months of learning exactly how to move her body to the music, she became pregnant, and her youngest daughter was born.
Most recently, Wiley's adventure into the Middle East has lasted about two years. Now she's a member of Desert Wind, a group of dancers that entertain throughout Hampton Roads.
``We do a lot of community service. We dance often at nursing homes. When the residents see all of the colors and jewels, they love it. That's how we practice, and we get paid with cookies and punch.''
The women, mostly Wiley's age or older, also get paid in keeping their bodies supple.
If you can believe it, the class starts with an hour and a half of aerobics - no stopping. Then the dancers practice technique for an hour. They have lessons one night a week, rehearse another night, and they may have performances as often as once a week.
Wiley, a Long Island native, said problems she was beginning to have with her feet and legs have disappeared since the dancing started. The oldest member of her troupe is in her 50s. But in Richmond, where a seminar will be held in October by a famous Egyptian dancer, Middle Eastern dancing is the rage among 60- and 70-year-olds.
Wiley doesn't mind if others refer to her hobby as belly dancing, but she does get a little ticked if somebody, for example, asks her if she can roll a quarter on her belly.
``No, I don't do that,'' she says, and she goes on to explain the rules. ``No touching. No shimmying up next to anybody.''
Her youngest daughter, now 12, enjoys helping her mother design her costumes and get dressed for performances. Her older daughter, 27, is ``fine'' with her mother's unusual interest.
Her 30-year-old son, however, ``still expects me to be a mother first.''
``When he comes home, he'll say, `Mom, what's for dinner?' I'll say, `Go buy yourself some fried chicken. I've got to dance.' ''
And her husband? ``He'll come to performances,'' she said, laughing, ``but he gets a little jittery.''
Wiley chose her dance name - Samra, ``the dark one'' - because she wanted to be somebody other than who she actually is. She wanted an escape from reality.
Now she's preparing to escape for at least four minutes straight when she dances a solo, her own creation, in the upcoming ``hofla'' - a recital of sorts - Sept. 16 at the old Hampton Recreation Center. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by LINDA McNATT
Rosemary Wiley says dancing is her fantasy.
by CNB