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Whatever title you choose to know it by, Oriental, Middle Eastern, or Belly dance (be it Egyptian, Lebanese, Greek, Turkish, Western, or other styles) provides wonderful physical benefits as a low-impact workout that gently targets and strengthens isolated muscle groups through natural body movements.
It is so much fun you won't even notice it's exercise. All ages, sizes and levels of experience are celebrated in my classes. It is my aim to provide a fun environment to help students learn grace and improve self-confidence through dance!
Beginners will learn proper posture and basic introductory movements in addition to warm up and stretching techniques. A breakdown of movements helps students learn and perfect the steps which are then practised with repetition and variations. Students are then gradually introduced to varied combinations of the moves that they have learned which will lead to improvisational dancing. These moves may then be put into an easy routine to help them practise smooth transitions from one move to the next. Levels with some experience will incorporate additional movements, layering of more than one move, and the addition of various props (veil, cane, tambourine, cymbals). Even experienced dancers can benefit from a beginner class; it's a great way to revisit those taken-for-granted movements and make sure they're not getting sloppy, or just for a fun workout. All classes always include proper warm-up, attention to posture, cool-down and stretching.
My classes feature a mixture of classical Arabian dance music (Egyptian classics such as Mohamed Abdul Wahab, Om Kalsoum, etc) and modern Arabic (mainly Lebanese and Egyptian pop hits, such as Hakim or Amr Diab) or Turkish pop numbers (ie Tarkan) to help students learn the beauty of Middle-Eastern music.
Wherever possible I try to include some useful information on historical and cultural context as well as other interesting items (though, I promise not to take up too much dancing time with talking!). I do not claim to know everything, but if I don't know the answer, I can direct you to someone who does.
We do sometimes have events where students who wish to do so can perform for others, but none of my students are ever pressured to perform if they don't want to. Performing is an entirely personal choice, and I completely understand and respect that some dancers prefer to keep their dancing as something they do for themselves, not for the public. I offer gentle encouragement and a safe supportive environment appropriate for students who do wish to perform and just need a little help, but I never, ever, expect or push anyone to do anything that would make them uncomfortable.
I do not encourage students to perform in professional venues before they are ready. Professional gigs should be reserved only for those who are ready to make the transition to becoming a true dance professional. To endorse anything less would diminish the professional dedication of my teachers, mentors and colleagues. There are a number of excellent venues for students to get performing experience without jumping into the professional realm before they are ready.
Though I cannot claim to teach pure Egyptian style, I feel that this is the style that has probably most influenced my dance training to date. Because I have some experience in other dance forms, and have also studied from some teachers who teach various other styles, I have been influenced by all of these, and I try to share my own unique style and personality as I try to inspire my students to develop their own personal style. I encourage my students to try other teachers, not only to help in the development of their own individual styles, but also to support the professionalism of my colleagues in the dance community.
For some additional thoughts, you can read some articles I have written on dance related topics on the
© Jocelyne Khan
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
