There’s no magical formula that guarantees a viral YouTube video but there’s no doubt it takes something special to captivate a global audience. For belly dancer, Nataly Hay, that unique something is a mix of strict technique, a diverse style in movement and music and a luminescent beauty that shows great love for her art form. This combination has helped one of Hay’s performance videos reach 22 million views and the dancer couldn’t be more thrilled.
“These moments are making me keep dancing, performing and doing what I love,” reflects Hay who describes the happiness she feels knowing her art is making people smile.
Fortunately, in addition to the enthusiastic response from fans and belly dance lovers who have studied and tried to replicate her performance in their home countries, the video’s success has enabled Hay to share her dancing and brighten many more faces.
“I receive a lot of invitations to perform and teach around the world thanks to that video,” she reveals.
Hay is already a sought-after performer in her home country of Israel as well as internationally. The versatile dancer, who speaks Spanish and has many fans in the United States, Brazil and Mexico. was a recent winner in the European Belly Dance competition in Amsterdam as well as the National Kizomba competition in Israel. Kizomba is a dance style which has increased in popularity among Salsa lovers and especially in Latin countries over the last few years.
In August Hay performed for more than 100,000 event-goers at the Ozora Festival in Budapest, Hungary as a member of Juno Reactor, an experimental musical and performance group that fuses electronic and global music and is best known as co-collaborators on the score for The Matrix movie.
Though Stephen Watkins, manager and deejay of Juno Reactor jokes that working with Hay is “a bit like swimming with an octopus,” and full of surprises, he finds her among the most graceful dancers he’s ever seen.
“Sensual and captivating, she has forged her own style and personality to fit inside Juno Reactor,” he remarks.
Yael Moav, organizer of the International Bellydance Festival, for which Hay has annually taught and performed, has watched Hay climb to the top of her field over the years.
“Nataly combines talent with discipline, willingness to work hard, ability to learn and great beauty,” she says. “Nataly is a very talented dancer – compelling and charismatic as well as being wise and serious. Working with her is a great pleasure.”
Though handpicked for her great talent after only a month into her training in belly dance to become a teacher herself, Hay’s ascent hasn’t been without obstacles. Recently the dancer’s father passed away, making it difficult for Hay to dance at all for weeks afterward.
“The first dance after about a month was, for me, the most powerful dance I have had for a very long time,” she explains. “I was crying during the dance and felt like flying in the space. I let myself improvise and express all my feelings through my body movements. It was really sad and amazing at the same time and I released a lot of sadness that I’d kept inside.”
Hay, like many dancers, draws upon music, movement, and the daily discipline of practice to make it through all of life’s toughest moments.
“I love to hear music, dance and do sports,” says Hay. “Any time I feel down I do one of these and it makes me feel better.”
Consistently working out and going to the gym can also be a help but dancers like Hay require a toughness beyond the physical.
“The strength of the body helps me develop new dance movements and improve my technique more easily. The fact that I have a supportive family that I can always count upon makes me mentally stronger,” adds Hay.
Watching Hay perform, you’d never suspect she’s experienced hardships. Always in control from head to toe with a sparkle of joy in her eyes, this remarkable dancer exudes confidence in her generous smile. This ability and, according to Israeli TV producer, Gilad Malkin, “her rare talent, unique beauty and charisma,” have helped Hay rise to the highest levels of international success as a dancer.
When asked about the lessons she’s learned in her career, Hay credits her mother for the person she’s become and simply passes on a word of advice about being positive.
“Try to be happy with what you have and appreciate it,” remarks Hay. “This attitude will make all things in life look like gifts and you will always have good people around you.”
An idea as worthy of going viral as Hay’s amazing and most popular belly dance video.
See more of Nataly Hay’s incredible dancing at her website or YouTube channel which has 17K subscribers.