"Let's see who can shimmy for the longest!" cried Seyyide, a professional belly dancer.In response, twenty-some Brandeis students began to shake their shoulders, hips, and chests in quick, tremor-like movements, following the pulsing drumbeat of vibrant Turkish music pouring from the amplifiers.

"New York is winning!" exclaimed Seyyide to the mostly international crowd gathered last night, in reference to the only remaining shimmy-er, a student from New York. Immediately, a second round of shimmying commenced.

The dancers were International Club members and other students drawn to Middle Eastern Night, the first main event of International Week 2003. Their leader, Seyyide, was among the top performers of Raks Sharki, or Oriental Dance in New England (though this is not her only area of expertise; she also holds a Ph.D. in neuroscience!) She has studied with Amir Thaleh of Argentina, Yousry Sharif of New York, and many others.

Originally from Buenos Aires, Argentina, Seyyide gave an electrifying performance prior to the dance lesson. Wearing a flowing black skirt and small black top, both with red and silver metallic strips attached, Seyyide swerved and curved her belly in mesmerizing waves. She alternated between rapid, staccatto shimmies and slow, swaying flourishes. In the middle of the fifteen-minute show, she added a red scarf to the array, extending her arms like wings and twirling with ever-escalating speed.

At one point, Seyyide froze, and then with a burst of motion thrust her hips to the side and broke back into dance. She stretched up on her tiptoes, and swept down toward the ground. For a minute, Manar Tawakhry '06 shimmied on up to join Seyyide in an impromptu duo; the two women smiled and worked off each other's energy. Seyyide concluded her performance with a dramatic back arch that flung her long red hair behind her.

International Week, a yearly tradition, runs until Sunday, November 2. Each day highlights a different continent or area of the world. Monday was the Middle East, with a backgammon tournament at lunch and Seyyide's performance at night, presented with coffee, baklava, fig cakes, and cookies called kurabiye. Tuesday's theme was Asia, Wednesday's was Europe, Thursday's is Latin America and today's is Africa. On Sunday, students will participate in an international soccer tournament. The week is co-sponsored by Liondance Troupe, Oenology Club, ICC, BAASA, AHORA!, Aramark and KSA.

"One big difference (this year) is we split the week into continents," said Rita Gomel '04, originally from Turkey and co-president of the International Club. This way, said Deborah Finkelsztein '06, originally from Colombia and also co-president of the International Club, "you get to know a lot about each continent," instead of "just going to the food fair.