Teaching the Same Choreographies

So, you've found yourself teaching your first belly dance class, congratulations! Teaching baby belly dancers how to do basic moves and watching as they grasp how to circle their hips or handle a veil is so rewarding. But after the first few weeks or months almost everyone has usually grasped the basics and are looking to you to provide more. But your new students aren't ready for a performance yet, nor are they ready for an advanced class. What do you teach them now?

They might not be ready for a performance yet, but that doesn't mean they shouldn't learn a choreography! Getting used to remembering a long string of moves will be helpful later, as well as give them an early shot at learning how to combine all those moves together in a 3-6 minute sequence. Plus, you'll be ready for a performance at a moment's notice, once they've got a good choreography under their belt.

But once you've got that first choreo down, then what? Do you just keep rehearsing it? No! Teach them another one. So they're still not ready for a performance? No matter, there's a huge benefit in having a group of dancers that all know a couple of the same choreos. Why is that?

Well, if you have a couple of go-to choreos, you will always have dancers that can perform it. You'll always be ready for student performances, and you'll give new bellydance students something to aspire to. A new bellydancer will see dancers in the classes above her performing these dances beautifully, and she'll want to work for the day when she can perform with them. Also, you have a crop of dancers who can help out the baby dancers and practice with them outside of class--you have a built in team!

And if you're introducing a new choreo, you can spend entire classes working on combos or breaking down skills needed for a specific move. Class planning at its easiest!

Also, you'll be following in the footsteps of many a professional dance company. Several dance companies are known for the dances they put on year after year, and the choreography that goes with them. They don't change it up very often--why should you? Don't be afraid to tweak it every so often, if you don't like a part or you just notice your dancers having a hard time with sections, but there's no reason to throw out all your hard work and start afresh. If you want something new, just add it to your repertoire!

My very first dance teacher had 4 or 5 choreos that she taught beginning students. I recently saw a video of her latest students doing a performance--they were still doing the same choreos I learned in her beginning class, but each dancer added her own personality to it. If you stick to a set of core choreographies, you won't ever look like the same tired old troupe. There's always new dancers, new costumes, new blocking, and new venues.

In short, having a set of choreographies is only beneficial to you and your students. You'll have an easier time planning classes, your students have something to work towards, even if it's not a performance, and you'll always be ready for a show. You can't beat it!

Burn Baby Burn: When You're Just Tired of Dancing

Harry Furniss, State Library of New South Wales

Sometimes, it can get to be too much.

Whether it's the drama, the back-to-back shows, the in-fighting, or just your life outside of dancing, you feel like you can't even find it in you for a good shimmy.

And that's okay.

It doesn't always mean you're not a dancer anymore, or you're ready to quit. Sometimes you just need a break. Sometimes, you need to take care of life. Sometimes, you just need to find a new troupe. But if you find yourself approaching burnout, you need to take a step back and figure out what's bothering you before you just want to throw up your zills and quit.

The last thing you want to do is walk away from dancing and regret the decision later in your life. So how do you keep that from happening?


First, recognize the signs
If you're supposed to be going to class and instead you're trying to think of anything to make you late or keep you from going, you're definitely trying to avoid class. Or if you do get to class but don't give it your all, there may be a problem. Are you just tired that day? Something in your personal life affecting it? Is this another night this month that you just don't feel like dancing? Are there dancers you're trying to avoid? Sit down and figure out why you don't want to go to class. This is an excellent time to freewrite in your dance journal. Just get out your journal and pretend you're five again: "I don't wanna go to class. I don't wanna dance. I don't wanna stretch out. I don't wanna do our choreography again. I don't wanna listen to Miss Perfect getting praised again. I don't wanna listen to them complain about everything." Keep your pen moving, and you'll start writing down the real reasons you don't want to go.

Okay, I know why I'm avoiding class. Now what?
Once you've figured out where the problem is, you have to figure out what you're going to do with it. Is your class preparing for a performance that you don't want to do? Are you tired of having to relearn the same things over again? Are you learning something new that you're having too much trouble with while everyone else seems to get it? These require a talk with your teacher. Ask if you can sit out the performance (and don't ever be afraid to sit out a performance!), or take privates with her to improve other areas and give yourself a challenge. Or ask if you can move to another class--maybe you feel like you're ready for the next level, or there's another class that's not going to perform. It never hurts to just ask.

If your problem is with the drama of your fellow dancers or teacher, then it might be time to find a new class. You definitely don't want other dancers impacting your enjoyment of bellydance, but it can happen. Ask other dancers for recommendations, or check out your local bellydance hub. It's hard to start over again, but burning out because of other dancers' drama is even harder.

If it's your personal life that's making you avoid dance class, talk to your teacher about taking a break. Work, family, kids, spouse--sometimes life just gets in the way.  Remember that the most important thing is for you to take care of you first. If it means taking a break from dancing, there is nothing wrong with that! If you're worried that you won't return to class after a break, discuss a potential restart date with your teacher, and mark it on your calender, then set a reminder a week before. When that reminder goes off, discuss with your teacher and/or family your return to dancing, and see if you need a longer break or if you're ready to get back into the swing of things.

Before the burnout
Again, the most important thing you can do is take care of you. If you really love dancing, you don't want to burnout early. Take a break, change your classes, but most of all, don't be afraid to speak up. The worst thing you can do is do nothing and then bellydance is no longer enjoyable to you no matter what you do.  And there's also your fellow dancers to talk to--tell them what you're going through, and I'm sure they'll be able to tell you of the time they almost quit, and how glad they didn't, and what they did to get through it!

Thought Supression in Belly Dance

Have you ever had trouble with a dance move, and noticed that the more you think about it, the less likely you're able to do it? Or have you ever been practicing something you've been trying all week to get down, but all the practice in the world doesn't seem to be helping? You'll even see this happen just before a performance, or sometimes even when everyone else in the class seems to have mastered a move and you're still trying to figure it out.

This is called 'thought suppression', or the 'white bear' effect. It's named so because of a study where a group of participants were asked not to think of a white bear for 5 minutes, and had to ring a bell every time they thought of one. Members of the group ended up ringing the bell twice as often as the control group, who were asked to try to think of a white bear. So how does this relate to your dance practice? Well, if you're trying to master a move and keep thinking things like "I'll never get this choreography"), you'll have a harder time trying to master it.

Thought suppression can affect your dance practice negatively by producing negative thoughts. All of us can have negative thoughts, and it's easy to see the rest of your class move on without you and think that you're a terrible dancer, or to tell yourself you'll never be ready in time for the show. However, if you're still trying to practice, and banish those negative thoughts from your head, they can keep coming up, making it harder for you to practice, or to even want to practice. If you aren't careful, they might make you quit dancing all together.

Don't despair, though, if you've had trouble suppressing negative thoughts about your dancing. There are some things you can do to help you ignore or replace those thoughts:

• Tell yourself to think about those negative thoughts--much like trying to make yourself hiccup when you have the hiccups. By trying to think of something negative, you'll find it harder to come up with something, and soon you'll forget what it was you were thinking about. 

• Distract yourself. Rather than work on something you're having trouble with, work on something you excel at, and try to make it better. When you return the original dance move or choreography, you'll be less likely to think of those negative thoughts. 

• Learn to meditate. Now, meditation won't banish negative thoughts immediately, but as you learn to empty your mind and dismiss thoughts as they come to you, you'll have an easier time ignoring negative thoughts during dance practice--definitely something you want to hold on to for the future!

Resources
Why Thought Suppression is Counter-Productive
Thought Suppression

To the beginning bellydancer...

Congratulations! You've just discovered bellydancing, and with it, a lifelong passion filled with fun, creativity, and great friends.

If you're just looking around at what bellydance has to offer, and haven't taken your first class yet, get yourself to one! There are many resources online that can point you to a teacher near you. Don't be afraid of sampling teachers and styles until you find one that's just right for you.

If you've started taking classes, fantastic! You've already experienced some of the wonderful aspects of bellydancing, and have hopefully met some great sisters and brothers, as well as a great teacher who can guide you through your training and help you develop your love for dance.

If you're still a little curious, here are few things bellydance is:

-A fun hobby
-A career
-Aerobic exercise
-Social interaction
-Costume design
-Musical training
-Team-building
-Production training
-Educational

And here are a few things bellydance is not:

-Easy
-A quick way to slim down
-Stripping
-Burlesque
-Fast track to making money

Of course, if you want any of the things that bellydance isn't, there's a whole host of other hobbies and activities that can provide those things for you. However, if you've read the list and find you want more of the things bellydance is, then put on your hip scarf and get ready to shimmy!

Making the jump to teaching

I've recently started teaching when a studio director I once took flamenco from asked me to come in and take over an ill teacher's classes. Now, I have no teaching experience, but I have a lot of experience taking classes, so I hoped I could extrapolate some of what I'd (hopefully) absorbed.

I'm not a big people person by nature, so it took awhile for me to get used to the fact that I was standing at the front of the class, talking, instead of standing in the back of the room, listening, but my students are friendly and willing to learn. The studio owner, who has a decade or two worth of experience, has been fantastic about giving me advice on things to try, and while I'm stumbling along, I'm doing the best I can.

Truth be told, I had thought about contacting her and setting up classes, but I kept telling myself I wasn't ready yet, I've only been dancing for four and a half years, I have so much more to learn...so many excuses. A lot of them are the same for why I haven't performed solo.

I'm still not ready, but I'm never going to be ready if I don't start, and make mistakes, and test things. For instance, if the studio director tells me to try something new, or helps me figure out my students' personalities, I will try it next class, tweak it, see how it works, and go from there. This week, I'm putting together a simple choreo for the baby dancers to learn, so they have something to work towards.

And I've learned that not everyone dances like me. Not every belly dancer wants to be a professional dancer. Some of them just want something fun to do after work, or some reason to get away from the kids. I think that's the most difficult part, is getting into that mindset. They don't care about whether their arms are perfect; they just want to have fun dancing around to great music, and maybe show off their skills a little later.


So what have I learned so far?

Listen to your students. You can tell by their smiles, by how willing they are to work on the material you give them, how they leave the class, and how friendly they are with you, whether or not they are enjoying the class. It's this way that I can see whether or not we should move on, change the move, or keep working on it.

Know your audience. What kind of students do you have? Are they serious students who have dreams of performing and teaching one day, or just students who want a new, fun hobby? Ask your new students what their goals are, and teach accordingly.

Plan not to plan. Just like you, your students have varying moods. Maybe they've had a long week, or something happened at work or in their family. Or maybe they just aren't going to understand a move or are injured. If you plan out your class to the last detail, something will always go wrong and you'll be off your schedule. The most I will do is have an idea of what I want to teach in class, and then go from there.

Know your anatomy. The best teachers I've had know how the body works, and can explain which muscles I'm supposed to be using and when. This is probably one of the hardest parts for me, because I know all the basic moves instinctively. I can't remember what it's like to be a beginner, and not know how to do a chest lift, or what part of my abdominal I need to contract to do a hip circle. The ability to break down the move is a must for any teacher.


I hope to add more information here as I learn it--my journey into teaching is definitely a fun ride!

Dress Rehearsals, and Why You Need Them

I had a purple drawstring skirt that I was dying to wear to a performance. However, I'd bought it from another dancer who was slightly taller than me, so it was a few inches too long. No matter; I'll just roll it a few times and pin my scarves to it to keep it up, I told myself. But when it came time to go on stage, I realized that all the safety pins in the world weren't going to keep that heavy skirt around my waist, hip scarves or no hip scarves. For the entirety of the performance, I was in fear of stepping on that skirt and accidentally ripping it off.


What would have helped me realize that nothing short of superglue was going to keep that skirt on was a dress rehearsal. My troupe does do rehearsals, but we never do a full dress rehearsal, with everyone in their costumes and makeup, leaving it up to the dancer to determine whether or not her costume will fit. Looking back, it sure would have been helpful to try dancing in that skirt beforehand so I could realize that it wasn't going to work. I've run into many other dancers who should have tested their costumes before a performance--there's nothing more distracting than watching a belly dancer frantically tugging at her hip scarf while in the middle of a performance.


So what is a dress rehearsal, and how does it differ from just a rehearsal? Well, it's in the name already. A dress rehearsal implies that you wear your full costume and makeup and run through the entire performance, rather than just marking it out on stage. All kinds of performance art use a dress rehearsal, from theater to musicals to a ballet show. You are basically putting on the show for an empty theater before you perform the show live, allowing you and your troupe to work out any and all kinks before letting the audience in. And a dress rehearsal will point out all kinds of things that you never thought you'd have to worry about.


For instance, I spoke to a belly dance recently who was growing her hair out. Prior to an upcoming show, she decided to do some floor work, and during the dress rehearsal she went through her routine. It was during her routine that she realized the floor work wouldn't be practical because she kept sitting on her hair! She would have never thought of this before the dress rehearsal, but it was lucky she realized it prior to going on stage, or she would have had to do some quick thinking.

If I had had a dress rehearsal, or even just worn the skirt to our practice, I'd have realized beforehand that the skirt needed shortening before I could consider wearing it on stage. A dress rehearsal is also a good time to figure out if any parts of your costume need reinforcement, such as hair pieces and bra straps. The last thing you want is for a large flower to come flying off your head and hit an audience member, or for your coin bra to snap open in the middle of your show.

Even with all the preparation of a dress rehearsal, though, there are still small things you won't get to practice. I have seen plenty of zill-related incidents that would have never been worked out in a dress rehearsal. There's also the freak accidents that occur, such as a troopmate getting too close to you and accidentally hooking their costume on yours, or getting your hair caught in their jewelry. You're certainly not going to spend your dress rehearsal brushing past you troopmates to determine whether or not you'll get stuck to them! And you can't always plan for your performance space or audience, either.  Things just happen sometimes, and no matter what, you can't have control over them.

However, the advantage of a dress rehearsal is that you can be as prepared as possible. Freak accidents will happen; but that's no excuse for making sure your costume will stay put and you won't accidentally kill an audience member with a flying accessory. And one of the best things about dress rehearsal is that it gives you another chance to dress up in your finest and dance. Sometimes that ten minutes on stage just isn't enough to make up for the two hours it took to get ready, and you'll enjoy that second chance to rock your costume, even if it's just for your troupe mates.

Workshops, Intensives, or Classes?

I've had the good fortune to have access to quite a few different belly dance teachers in my short 4 and a half years of dancing, so I've experienced several different types of classes. From the three hour workshop to the multi-day intensive, to the 6-week class format and the beginning/intermediate/advanced class levels, I've been taking notes for when I eventually start my own teaching.


Workshops
I love workshops because they give you a chance to get a taste of something completely new. A local-ish studio used to host several workshops, and I would sign up for about 2 or 3 of them per year. I also started taking workshops at Cairo Caravan this year, and learned about Indian fusion dance, adding some knowledge about spins and turns to my repertoire, and I learned about conditioning myself to do crazy things with my body. What I've really learned, though, is that if you don't take what you learn in your workshops and apply it to your practice, you'll soon forget it. There's at least one workshop I've taken, unfortunately with the lovely Sabrina Fox, where I don't actually remember what it was about. And I even took notes! But since I never applied it to my practice, it didn't stick in my memory. If you're going to take a workshop, decide beforehand what you want out of it and how you will apply it to your practice or performance.


Intensives
I recently had the opportunity to take a 4-day intensive with Carolena Nericcio and Kristine Adams of FatChance Bellydance, and while it was the most exhausting thing I'd ever undertaken, it was also the most fun I've ever had as a dancer, second only to Cairo Caravan. I got the change to spend 5 hours a day with some great dancers, from all over the country and even one from halfway across the world, and even though we were swamped with tons of new information, I learned a lot. Even my teacher commented that the intensive improved my skill. My brain was fried after, but it was completely worth it. That being said, I think intensives should be a once-a-year thing. You might wind up overloading your brain if you do too many of them, and because intensives are usually packed full of new things, you'll be hard-pressed to find ways of applying all that new knowledge to your practice and performance.


Class Format
When it comes to classes, I do have a preference for the level class format over the 6-week format. With the level format, it's up to the teacher to assess whether or not you're ready to advance to the next stage. Everyone learns at a different pace, and moving everyone up after 6 weeks does a disservice to all the dancers, regardless of skill or talent, and to the teacher, who may end up having to teach to the lowest lowest level dancer. You'll end up with advanced dancers who are bored with the material, and lower level dancers who feel pressured to advance quickly, resulting in injury and high drop-out rates. And ending a "session" after 6 weeks doesn't give the dancer the right opportunity to perfect the moves, and she might end up losing her confidence as other dancers who have time to practice a little more or who are naturally talented seem to grasp concepts faster than she can. However, the level format does require a teacher who really knows her dancers, and can tell when someone is ready to move on. Unfortunately, the only place a teacher will learn that skill is through experience.

When I start teaching, I want to use the level class format. Not being an advanced student myself, my concentration will be on taking beginners by the hand and showing them the basics. I want to give them the confidence to start performing earlier, and to seek out more knowledge from other teachers and dancers. I'd like to start doing workshops one day when I sort out my performance style (though, strength-training for the belly dancer comes to mind), but I don't feel that I have enough to offer for the intensive. Leave the intensives for the innovators. I just want to share my love for the dance.

Dialing Down Your Ego

A few weeks ago, thinking I was hot stuff, I put in a ballet workout DVD to work on leg strength and work on some of the finer points of my posture.

Instead, I was beaten by the DVD about halfway through the warmup. Now, I know ballet is hard, but it's harder still when you find out that you're not as flexible, strong, or as good as you thought.

I found a saying once, when I first started belly dancing, that went like this: "Beginning belly dancers want to be good enough to dance with everyone, even the advanced dancers; intermediate belly dancers are too good to dance with anyone; and advanced belly dancers are so good they'll dance with everyone, especially beginner dancers!"

I guess that would put me squarely in the intermediate dancers.

It's important to remember to humble yourself as a dancer. I'd say it's important to stay humble, but that's a lot harder than it sounds, especially when you're getting praise from all sides, are performing regularly, and practicing frequently.  So how do you humble yourself?

Ask Your Teacher
Now, don't start out by asking her to tell you what you did wrong. Instead, go to her honestly, see if you can arrange for a private class, or even just some time before or after class, and ask her for pointers. Tell her you're looking to get better and want to know what you can improve, or what you can do to perform better. Chances are, she already has a list of things she thinks you could improve on and didn't want to do an info dump on you. If you think that's the case, make sure you bring a notebook first, so you can take notes on everything you tell her. This has the added benefit of showing your teacher how serious you are about your practice, and how willing you are to take advice and instruction.

Fight Your Weakness
Is there something you've been struggling with? It doesn't have to be something you've been banging your head against--even something that you know you don't do as well as you'd like will work. Commit to a performance that consists of mostly that one thing you're struggling with, and then practice it constantly. My teacher likes to tell us of the time she committed to performing with zills even though she was struggling with them, so she forced herself to practice every day until she mastered them. Maybe your shimmy isn't as good as you'd like, or you've noticed that your arms aren't always perfect. Commit to a choreography with whatever your weakness is, and battle it until you come out the victor.

Try Something New
Take a new dance class, try yoga or pilates, start strength-training. Do something that's not belly dance, that you've never tried before. Trust me, all your belly dance training will not help when it comes to a completely different style of exercise! By the end of your class, you'll come out feeling like a beginner again--and maybe even with a new hobby!


Take an Advanced Class
Try one of the advanced classes offered by your teacher or studio. Even dancing with the advanced girls for one class will show you how much more you have to learn. Another advantage to this is you'll probably be shown things that, as an intermediate dancer, you wouldn't have access to. If you do take an advanced class, make sure to take notes and apply it to your regular practice.

A Final Note
Whatever you do to humble yourself, make sure it's not discouraging. The last thing you want to do it try something that's so hard you feel like giving up dancing entirely. If you find yourself getting discouraged, think back to the days when you were a beginner dancer, and 3/4 shimmies seemed completely beyond you. Remember what it felt like to be a beginner, and how eager you were to learn. Regain that beginner's mind, and forge ahead to new dancing heights!

Bellydancer, belly dancer

I took a workshop with Frank Farinaro during Cairo Caravan 2011, and he said something interesting about belly dancers. He said that he had heard from another dancer that there is a difference between a belly dancer and a Bellydancer.

A belly dancer is a hobbyist. He or she takes maybe a class a week, doesn't really practice, just does it for the fun of it or for exercise or whatever. A Bellydancer is a professional.

Because belly dance is such an informal style, it's sometimes hard to tell the Bellydancers from the belly dancers. When I think of a Bellydancer, I think of Rachel Brice, Frank Farinaro, Sharon Kihara, Ariellah, Steven Eggers. People for whom belly dance is a full-time job, and they spend all their time practicing, rehearsing, putting on shows and workshops, traveling all over the world.

And I certainly know some belly dancers. They are the women who don't show up to class every week, or don't practice at home, or joke around in the back when the teacher is talking about a concept she's trying to fix inside our heads. And that's where the grey area is. Some of the women who don't show up to class every week have reasons: they don't have enough money to pay for class, or they have to work, or there's something else going on at the same time as class, or they're so tired when they get home from work or there's too much to do and they can't practice. And I wonder, is this really worth it to them? Do they really want to dance that badly?

Because I do. I make sure I have money every week to pay for my classes--for awhile, I even had a budget specifically for dance class, and now I have an account that's specially earmarked for future workshops fees and conferences. I make time to go to class, and I've turned down social engagements--hell, I've turned down family dinners--in order not to miss class. Sure, I've made exceptions. I have a book club that meets once every 6 weeks on the same night as class, and to me, the book club and the time I spend with the people are as important to me as dance class. So I am fine with missing class that one day, every 6 weeks.

So I guess, using our definition, that makes me a Belly Dancer.

And my question is, how badly do you want to be a Belly Dancer? Because if you really want it, if you dream about it and dance about it and write about it and talk endlessly about it...there is no excuse. You can't say you want to be a Belly Dancer and then, in the same breath say "But I can't afford class, and my friends are going out that night, and I have to work, and I'm so tired from working all day."

If that's your excuse, you'll always be a bellydancer.