Middle Eastern dancer delivers 'bellygrams' around Yuma

Talk about a doorstep delight. The pizza guy sure never looked this stunning. That's why men and women alike love it when local belly dancer Zarmineh rings the doorbell and delivers one of Yuma's most unique gifts: a bellygram.

"I tell them 'I am here for your birthday, but I am not your birthday present!'"

Instead of singing, though, this exotic telegram features more shaking and shimmying, complete with gorgeous Middle Eastern makeup, dresses, scarves and, of course, lots of gold coins. Zarmineh typically greets the lucky person at the door in motion and then proceeds inside the home or business to perform a 30-minute show, usually for a crowd of family and friends.

But don't go thinking that 50-year-old Zarmineh is just pretty. She's a fantastic talent, too, wowing audiences with the magic moves of a serious and ancient art that she's worked hard to perfect. People also like her performances because they always get their time in the spotlight, too.

"After I perform I love to get the people involved with me," Zarmineh explains. "I want them to dance with me. I want them to have fun. I always take along my hip scarves and some costumes, and I put them on women and guys so I can teach them all the moves."

Once the gentle teacher gets everyone past the obligatory case of nerves, she often finds that party-goers aren't just pretty good. In some cases they're down right talented.

"Some of the ladies, once they relax, it's amazing what they can do with their bodies. They say 'No, I can't move like you,'" and I tell them that everyone can do it.

"Some of the guys, oh, they are awesome, too. They worry about wiggling their butt and us judging them. But I tell them that some of the best (well-known) belly dancers out there are men."

Zarmineh, by the way, means "queen." It's pronounced "sar-mee-nay" and no, it's not just a stage name. Zarmineh Begijanian Moody is her full moniker. She performs with the local belly dancing troop Jewels of the Desert in addition to her day job as a secretary for Yuma County Public Works.

And yes, her delicious Middle Eastern accent is real. She was born and raised in Iran.

Zarmineh began performing her bellygrams three years ago, charging $100 each. She got the idea from another dancer, and she's actually not the only belly dancer in Yuma who does them.

"At first I was getting called about every other month. Now in the last few months, it's really picked up and I'm doing bellygrams about every other weekend."

But she doesn't just get deployed to doorsteps for birthdays. She also does other occasions, from anniversaries to retirements.

"I dance for the ladies, too. Some women have hired me to dance for their friend's birthday party."

Brave Zarmineh also dances for men who haven't seen many women for a while: Marines returning from war.

In fact, there's really only one type of gathering she refuses to book.

"Bachelor parties. I will not do them," she said, stressing that it's too easy for men to get the wrong idea. "I am a professional belly dancer. I am not a stripper, which is something so very different. I make that clear over the phone ahead of time."

In truth, the gatherings that hire her are always just friendly folks having a good time. She said it's actually rare that a guy gets fresh with her.

"If that happens, I just move to another place in the room. I never have to say a word. A couple of times I've had them pick me up, though, and I've had to say 'OK, could you put me down, please?'"

Usually, though, the bellygram recipients are just surprised when Zarmineh shows up. She recalled one fellow who dropped his jaw - and his drink.

What's funny, too, is that her performances end up entertaining a lot of unsuspecting people. She's the first to admit that she's earned some pretty strange looks as she walks up to a house or sneaks through a conference room in preparation for a surprise grand entrance.

One thing's for sure, though - Zarmineh is having fun. She loves working with people and she adores her favorite form of artistic expression.

"To me, belly dancing is so much more than going out there and wiggling my body. It's emotional and spiritual. I will be doing this to the day I drop! I don't care if I'm 80 and (have) arthritis. I'll still be out there doing my shimmy."

To contact Zarmineh, call her at 446-9792.

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Darin Fenger can be reached at

dfenger@yumasun.com or 539-6860.