Arabesque: A Middle Eastern Dance and Music Concert
Oakland Asian Cultural Center
388 Ninth Street, Oakland
November 8, 2025
Smack dab in the heart of Oakland’s Chinatown is the Pacific Renaissance Plaza. Spanning more than an entire block, this mixed use facility was modern when it opened in 1993.
Several eateries are located in and around the plaza, but only 3 were open for dinner. Peony serves excellent Chinese food, and Sobo Ramen serves excellent Japanese food. We opted for Sakura Bistro Sushi and Sake Bar, which is on the second floor of the plaza directly across the way from our eventual destination for the evening, the Oakland Asian Cultural Center. It serves both Chinese and Japanese cuisine, and our meal was excellent.
Located above the Asian branch of the Oakland Public Library, OACC offers high-quality cultural programs including live performances, workshops, festivals, school tours, classes, and exhibitions. They are in their fourth decade of celebrating Oakland’s diverse immigrant communities. Apparently, one of their historical displays includes a picture of yours truly performing at the venue in the past.
On this particular night, Shabnam Shirvani, one of the world’s most awarded belly dancers, celebrated 20 years of her creative practice with a free concert at OACC.
The Persian American dancer/instructor/choreographer specializes in Orientale dance, blending Middle Eastern or Arabic dance with ballet. Belly dancing has been a celebration of the female form practiced for thousands of years, and Shirvani’s contemporary approach to the ancient art form honors its traditional roots.
For the performance she was accompanied by internationally acclaimed musicians: violinist Georges Lammam; percussionist Amina Goodyear; keyboardist Khader Keileh, and; Susu Pampanin alternating between two different doumbek/darbuka drums. Each player brought passion and mastery of traditional Middle Eastern music.
Keileh utilized keyboard voicings of traditional instruments such as the oud, qanun, and ney. Lammam’s violin was at times spectral, and elfin at others. The two metaphorically danced in a whirling, phrygian dominant frolic filled with quarter tones atop Pampanin and Goodyear’s percussive foundation, which was as solid as Egyptian granite.
The audio was also exceptional in this space.
Playing complex rhythms and melodies, this ensemble lightweight almost stole the show from an amazing dancer.
Shirvani was not going to let that happen though.
After letting the band warm up the crowd, she came out in an outfit that was giving Episode 6 Princess Leia.
She followed that grand entrance with several different dances that involved complete wardrobe changes in between each dance. She wore red, silver, black, pearl, orange, and purple outfits.
Though the focus of most of her repertoire was on highlighting her torso muscles and hips, the performance also showcased her gymnast level athleticism and strength combined with the grace of a ballerina. In addition to belly dancing, there was also a twirling scarf dance, a dance where she balanced swords on her head and hip, one where she balanced a vase on her head, and a dance performed on top of wine glasses that involved a hand stand.
Shirvani and the musicians evoked a wide range of emotions; some pieces were festive, some were serious. A variety of tempos were involved. Sometimes she showed a lot of flesh, sometimes she didn’t. Sometimes she danced to only one solo instrument, sometimes two, and other moments the whole ensemble was raising the temperature in the room.
Regardless of the mood in any given moment, there was a lot of tarab going on. The crowd cheered Shirvani on throughout, clapped in rhythm with the music, and ululated in assent, zaghareet.
The event was put on in conjunction with an exhibition of Shirvani’s acrylic on canvas artwork, The Mystics of Dreams and Dance. Also a teacher at OACC, Shirvani seemed right at home dancing here, her smile genuine.
The Mystics of Dream and Dance will be on display in the OACC’s hallway from November 5-30.
