For this week’s Tuesday Tease, we divert from our usual focus on burlesque to pay tribute to the legendary belly dancer Serena Wilson (often known by her stage name “Serena”) who, sadly, passed away on June 17, 2007. We recognize her on the eve of what would have been her 79th birthday. I know a lot of burlesque dancers also double as belly dancers and Serena is largely responsible for legitimizing belly dance as a valid art form. No small feat in the misogynist 1960s! Surely the efforts of the neo-burlesque scene to do the same owe a large debt to Serena for helping to pave the way.

Born in the Bronx on August 8, 1933 as Serene Blake, she was brought up in a family of performers. Her parents were vaudeville performers and as a young girl, Serena performed in musical and comedic routines as part of her parents show, Blake & Blake. Her mother was born in Budapest, so was familiar with what was then called “Oriental Dance.” She enlisted her 7-year old daughter in dance classes with the legendary Ruth St. Denis, a modern dance pioneer who is now recognized for introducing Eastern-style techniques into the art form.

When Serena was 19, she married Dixieland band leader and percussionist, Alan “Rip” Wilson. It is said that Serena’s performance career began when Alan’s band was hired for a performance that required a belly dancer. The band adapted their Dixieland repertoire to include musical renditions of Middle Eastern-inspired numbers and Serena, calling on her training with Ruth St. Denis, improvised her own version of Oriental dance, using a water jug as a prop.
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