Choosing a Belly Dance Teacher
Decide on what you want out of the course. Are you feeling like you want to learn Belly Dance seriously and maybe become a performer somewhere down the line, or are you looking for something fun and different to do to get fit? Whatever your reasons, make sure you are choosing a teacher with credentials. Every teacher should have some form of promotional vehicle that clearly explains her professional training, teaching and/or performing history. In any case, whatever your goals are from your course, please enrol with a teacher who has had at least 5 years of training with a reputable teacher.
Unfortunately, many people start teaching without the necessary knowledge and experience behind them, and this can rob you of a great initial experience with Belly Dance. If you get turned off from the beginning, you may never come back so please choose wisely from the start.
This article is an extract from Shemiran Ibrahim
What should I wear to a Belly Dance class? Do I need any special "equipment"?
Lightweight workout clothes , or a leotard and tights are fine. I make & sell belly dance clothes. Dressing up is lots of fun, but you definitely don't need to & it is not a requirement. I have some students who come in sweats while other students love to wear the harem pants, dance skirts and cool tops. I personally love to be fashionable while dancing ;) Where else can you exercise while looking so exotic & beautiful?? Somehow sweating and getting a major workout isn't so bad when you look so fabulous! :)
As far as footwear is concerned, you will be dancing on a hardwood-like suspended cork floor. Although some students dance either with socks or barefoot, I encourage students to invest in a jazz shoe, jazz sandals, or ballet practice shoes as class footwear. Tennis shoes are not allowed, and socks slide on the floor
Is Belly Dancing a good exercise?
Belly Dance is excellent exercise. Not only do you work your body, but you also work your mind. There are so many interesting things about this ancient dance!Belly dance combines natural, body-friendly movement with yoga, ethnic and modern dance. The result of this unique synthesis is a dance which gives your body an anerobic and aerobic form of exercise.
What is Tribal and Tribal fusion?
As a general category, Tribal Fusion Style covers many flavors of American Cabaret Belly Dance, both the ethnically folkloric inspired and fusion cross over styles which explore modern, jazz, dance theater, and hip hop with classic belly dance technique. This fused with traditional, classical & ethnic dance forms from across the world makes for a very unique and joyous dance form.
As well, “tribal Style” also includes a wonderful form of Improvisational dance that is done as a “community”, where a vocabulary of cues are shared by the dancers to cue movement, technique and combinations giving the vision of a well choreographed dance, all moving as one, yet, the dance is totally improv within a “follow the leader” structure. This fun, exciting and artistic approach to belly dance coupled with creative fusion instills a sense of tradition, camaraderie and progression for both the dancers and audience.
Can Children take the Class?
Belly dance’s most traditional form is Middle Eastern women’s social dancing. It is enjoyed by women of all ages, from little girls to their great-grandmothers.
The majority of my students are adults, but the class is also appropriate for teens and preteens with the maturity to behave appropriately in class.
Students aged 15-17 may take the class with written permission from a parent or guardian. Students Under the age of 15 may take the class with a parent or another responsible adult (with parent/guardian permission). We also offer family discounts for families!
But Isn't Belly Dance Like Stripping?
Absolutely not! This is one of the most common misconceptions about belly dance. While belly dance is “exotic” in that it’s different and special, it has nothing to do with “exotic dance”.
There is no erotic content or intention in belly dance:
However, some people mistakenly thing that belly dance is erotic for a few reasons:
The harem fantasy
Many people mistakenly believe the myth that belly dance originated as a means of seducing the sultan in the Ottoman harems. This is false. While belly dance has been adapted for the stage, its true source is women dancing for other women. To this day, it’s done by women of all ages, from tiny little girls to their great-grandmothers, most often at parties among family and close friends.
We move our hips and torso
Western women are not encouraged to move our hips and torso, and most western dance emphasizes the arms and legs. Since most people have only seen hip and torso movements in the context of “exotic dance” or sexy dancing on MTV, they read an erotic intent into belly dance that isn’t there.
Also, keep in mind that when westerners first saw belly dance, they were accustomed to seeing women tightly laced into a corset, so any movement of the torso was highly scandalous to them. Unfortunately, this victorian attitude continues to give belly dance a bad reputation, even though it is completely undeserved.
Impostors and Bad Apples
Not everyone wearing a belly dance costume is belly dancing. Some strippers and exotic dancers try to capitalize on this naughty reputation by incorporating “harem girl” themes and costumes in their acts. This is exotic dancing, not belly dance.
And, unfortunately, every industry has a few bad apples whose bad behavior reflects badly on everyone else. There are a few dancers who cross the line of appropriateness because of greed or ignorance. Just like the inappropriately-dressed coworker or boss who makes unwelcome advances, these dancers are not representative of belly dance as a whole.
You see our bellies
While most belly dance costumes expose our bellies, you see less of a belly dancer’s body than a ballet or broadway dancer’s, and far less than most dancers on MTV. Many women at the gym show more skin in yoga class than we do in performance.
We move with confidence
A woman who moves her body with confidence and joy, and without apology is naturally appealing. This is true regardless of the dance form, and it even applies when walking down the street. Since belly dance is so much fun and such a great confidence-builder, we naturally glow on stage. But there’s nothing sexual about our intentions or our dance.
Decide on what you want out of the course. Are you feeling like you want to learn Belly Dance seriously and maybe become a performer somewhere down the line, or are you looking for something fun and different to do to get fit? Whatever your reasons, make sure you are choosing a teacher with credentials. Every teacher should have some form of promotional vehicle that clearly explains her professional training, teaching and/or performing history. In any case, whatever your goals are from your course, please enrol with a teacher who has had at least 5 years of training with a reputable teacher.
Unfortunately, many people start teaching without the necessary knowledge and experience behind them, and this can rob you of a great initial experience with Belly Dance. If you get turned off from the beginning, you may never come back so please choose wisely from the start.
This article is an extract from Shemiran Ibrahim
What should I wear to a Belly Dance class? Do I need any special "equipment"?
Lightweight workout clothes , or a leotard and tights are fine. I make & sell belly dance clothes. Dressing up is lots of fun, but you definitely don't need to & it is not a requirement. I have some students who come in sweats while other students love to wear the harem pants, dance skirts and cool tops. I personally love to be fashionable while dancing ;) Where else can you exercise while looking so exotic & beautiful?? Somehow sweating and getting a major workout isn't so bad when you look so fabulous! :)
As far as footwear is concerned, you will be dancing on a hardwood-like suspended cork floor. Although some students dance either with socks or barefoot, I encourage students to invest in a jazz shoe, jazz sandals, or ballet practice shoes as class footwear. Tennis shoes are not allowed, and socks slide on the floor
Is Belly Dancing a good exercise?
Belly Dance is excellent exercise. Not only do you work your body, but you also work your mind. There are so many interesting things about this ancient dance!Belly dance combines natural, body-friendly movement with yoga, ethnic and modern dance. The result of this unique synthesis is a dance which gives your body an anerobic and aerobic form of exercise.
What is Tribal and Tribal fusion?
As a general category, Tribal Fusion Style covers many flavors of American Cabaret Belly Dance, both the ethnically folkloric inspired and fusion cross over styles which explore modern, jazz, dance theater, and hip hop with classic belly dance technique. This fused with traditional, classical & ethnic dance forms from across the world makes for a very unique and joyous dance form.
As well, “tribal Style” also includes a wonderful form of Improvisational dance that is done as a “community”, where a vocabulary of cues are shared by the dancers to cue movement, technique and combinations giving the vision of a well choreographed dance, all moving as one, yet, the dance is totally improv within a “follow the leader” structure. This fun, exciting and artistic approach to belly dance coupled with creative fusion instills a sense of tradition, camaraderie and progression for both the dancers and audience.
Can Children take the Class?
Belly dance’s most traditional form is Middle Eastern women’s social dancing. It is enjoyed by women of all ages, from little girls to their great-grandmothers.
The majority of my students are adults, but the class is also appropriate for teens and preteens with the maturity to behave appropriately in class.
Students aged 15-17 may take the class with written permission from a parent or guardian. Students Under the age of 15 may take the class with a parent or another responsible adult (with parent/guardian permission). We also offer family discounts for families!
But Isn't Belly Dance Like Stripping?
Absolutely not! This is one of the most common misconceptions about belly dance. While belly dance is “exotic” in that it’s different and special, it has nothing to do with “exotic dance”.
There is no erotic content or intention in belly dance:
- We do not attempt to seduce or titillate audience members
- Most of us won’t perform for all-male audiences
- We do not remove our clothes
However, some people mistakenly thing that belly dance is erotic for a few reasons:
The harem fantasy
Many people mistakenly believe the myth that belly dance originated as a means of seducing the sultan in the Ottoman harems. This is false. While belly dance has been adapted for the stage, its true source is women dancing for other women. To this day, it’s done by women of all ages, from tiny little girls to their great-grandmothers, most often at parties among family and close friends.
We move our hips and torso
Western women are not encouraged to move our hips and torso, and most western dance emphasizes the arms and legs. Since most people have only seen hip and torso movements in the context of “exotic dance” or sexy dancing on MTV, they read an erotic intent into belly dance that isn’t there.
Also, keep in mind that when westerners first saw belly dance, they were accustomed to seeing women tightly laced into a corset, so any movement of the torso was highly scandalous to them. Unfortunately, this victorian attitude continues to give belly dance a bad reputation, even though it is completely undeserved.
Impostors and Bad Apples
Not everyone wearing a belly dance costume is belly dancing. Some strippers and exotic dancers try to capitalize on this naughty reputation by incorporating “harem girl” themes and costumes in their acts. This is exotic dancing, not belly dance.
And, unfortunately, every industry has a few bad apples whose bad behavior reflects badly on everyone else. There are a few dancers who cross the line of appropriateness because of greed or ignorance. Just like the inappropriately-dressed coworker or boss who makes unwelcome advances, these dancers are not representative of belly dance as a whole.
You see our bellies
While most belly dance costumes expose our bellies, you see less of a belly dancer’s body than a ballet or broadway dancer’s, and far less than most dancers on MTV. Many women at the gym show more skin in yoga class than we do in performance.
We move with confidence
A woman who moves her body with confidence and joy, and without apology is naturally appealing. This is true regardless of the dance form, and it even applies when walking down the street. Since belly dance is so much fun and such a great confidence-builder, we naturally glow on stage. But there’s nothing sexual about our intentions or our dance.