Thread: More Spinoff: Students, what were you EXPECTING from your first classes?

Okay, still another spin-off!

We've had a great response to all these related threads ("what do you want/need?" and "why did you start taking BD?"). So here's another.

Once again, everybody is welcome to post -- from beginner to veteran -- just remember that you need to go back to what you were thinking before you took any lessons.

So what was it you were expecting from your first BD classes?

This is kinda a loosely-worded question and can be answered in varying ways, for example:

1) types of movement you were expecting (would it be like Polynesian or East Indian, etc?)

2) class format

3) class content, aside from movement vocabulary (did you expect history, culture, music/rhythms/props, etc?)

Use these possible topics as a springboard to the memories of your own experiences!

Thanks again!

Deborah

Nothing really, just to have fun.

Now this is a question I'm really interested in hearing the answers to!

I don't recall having any expectations about movements or format, having never, ever danced before or attended any kind of dance lessons (actually, come to think of it, I did have a morris dance lesson once but I don't think that counts).

Because I initially went with a friend who didn't want to go by herself, I didn't think of the classes as 'for me' and therefore didn't think much about what might be involved.

I think I had 2 vague expectations:

1) That it would be tough, exercisey and complicated and that I wouldn't be able to do any of it.

2) That it might somehow be a bit 'naughty', at least that was my friend's main expectation and it rubbed of on me a bit.

Looking back, what hooked me on lesson 1 was:

1) Finding that I could do much more of it that I expected and what I could do made me feel good.

2) That it required engagement of brain in terms of the music and cultural element.

3) My teacher's gorgeous demonstration. As soon as I saw that, I absolutely wanted to be able to do it myself.!

My initial reaction was to think I had no expectations what so ever, I didn't know anything about the dance other than what I'd seen on holiday in Turkey and in restaurants. I went just to try it 'cos I'd tried all the other dance classes at the gym.

On reflection I think I did expect to be moving my hips a lot. And because I had taken dance classes before I had an expectation that they would follow a certain format - warm up, teach the technique of steps, drill steps, possibly do a choreography (we always did in ballet), cool down.

That's it really.

Ahh, my memory is all so hazy...but I do remember that I was shocked at how laissez faire the class was, how unstructured and rambling, and that really annoyed me. So I must have expected that bellydance class would be like the ballet classes of my childhood - disciplined and demanding!

I remember thinking that everyone was going to be young, tall and gorgeous, and that I'd feel like the troll under the bridge. But of course, nothing could be further from the truth.

Since the class was offered at my university, I expected a really young, sort-of-experienced teacher who could be one of my classmates.

I expected the class to be of a more follow-the-leader, workout style with little correction and didn't expect any attention to detail (mood, expression, emotion, eye gaze, etc).

At that time, I didn't think you could repeat the final level indefinitely and still learn lots, so I also wondered what I would do for the rest of my life after learning everything there was to know about BD in two semesters. ..l;,

I was pleasantly surprised in the end!

I was expecting ...I'm not quite sure! I think I wasn't expecting too much regarding the dancing, but I was more concerned about what my classmates looked like! I didn't know what to wear.
I was hoping for Turkish pop because I had discovered Tarkan at that point, but we had more low-key music for learning the moves.

I had fun though and came back for more!

Originally Posted by laura 2

I remember thinking that everyone was going to be young, tall and gorgeous, and that I'd feel like the troll under the bridge. But of course, nothing could be further from the truth.

One of my long-time students felt just like this -- in the opposite direction!

She somehow had decided to take lessons, but she had also decided -- as a way out, I'm sure -- that if the teacher was a darling petite little thing, that she'd finish out the session but wouldn't return for more. She is 6'0" (plus a little bit, I think) and slim, with fairly broad hips, but without much fat.

Well, she took one look at me (about 5'9", slim with broad hips and not much fat -- at that time, anyway!) and decided she would be hanging around. I was the only one in the room anywhere near her height, which made her believe that this dance was for her, too!

Funny how we are, huh?

Deborah

I can't remember at all!

I'd worked at home with videos, so I guess I had some idea what to expect. I don't remember being surprised by anything in particular.

What a great thread! Bhuz is on a roll.

Originally Posted by casbahdance

One of my long-time students felt just like this -- in the opposite direction!

She somehow had decided to take lessons, but she had also decided -- as a way out, I'm sure -- that if the teacher was a darling petite little thing, that she'd finish out the session but wouldn't return for more. She is 6'0" (plus a little bit, I think) and slim, with fairly broad hips, but without much fat.

Well, she took one look at me (about 5'9", slim with broad hips and not much fat -- at that time, anyway!) and decided she would be hanging around. I was the only one in the room anywhere near her height, which made her believe that this dance was for her, too!

Funny how we are, huh?

Deborah

You know, this might have had something to do with my perception as well, know that I think of it. My first teacher was about my height, super curvy and nearly 20 years my senior. And let me tell you, she was (and still is) a great dancer in the classic AmCab Style, and absolutely gorgeous.

...

I didn't know what to expect from my first class. I didn't know much about bellydancing - but thought it would be fun to try so I just signed up and went.

I didn't have a lot of preconceived ideas, I don't think--I didn't know much about belly dance, but as a former anthropologist I knew there had to be more to it than the Hollywood image. I expected Arabic music, and I got that, in the somewhat Americanized form of George Abdo, Eddie Kochak, etc. My first teacher started us off with a bit of cultural background, and then she led very structured classes, which to me as a novice dance student felt very legitimizing. From the first class I could tell that it was going to be *work*, but deeply enjoyable work.

I had only one expectation. Learn how to belly dance. Then when my Instructor explained the type of belly dance we were learning. ATS, quote, "this dance is a group dance, danced by two or more women together." unquote. I said to myself, Oh ****! I'm in the wrong class cause I knew this was not the type of dance I wanted to learn and had never seen. I almost walked out of class right then and there. But I did not know of any other places that taught belly dance so I said, I'm here and its only six weeks, lets see how this pans out. I fell in love with it. That is until I met Rachel George and knew that was the kind of belly dancer I wanted to be. A soloist...

I had no clue about anything. Had not seen a belly dance performance until then. I had never been to a dance class, or even danced. I was sort of convinced that I had no rhythm.

I tried belly dance because I figured it wasn't so mainstream, so if I didn't succeed it was ok, because not that many people knew how to do it anyways. (i know it was negative and low sef esteem thinking, but like I said I was convinced about not having any dance skills). Had no expectations about movements, class format, or anything.

I was bright eyed with a thirst for infomrationso I soaked up everything I saw / heard (good or bad) - but at least I used critical thinking and hit the internet pretty hard to check up on things.
(for exmple: student: "what is tribal?"
teacher: "oh it's just some girls in San Francisco, who dress in black and dance Gypsy. They do a lot vulgar moves."
I googled it at home because it didn't make sense.
The teacher must have done the same, because in next class without asking, she corrected herself, claiming that she must have been lightheaded from teaching and didn't know what she was talking about !!!!

i always wanted to learn belly dance since years ago when i first watched a bellydance show. i had no idea what the dancer did and even tho she wasn't attrative (not look like a film star) i felt she was so beautiful when she moved and i always wanted to be like her - beautiful and confident and bring happiness. i couldn't dance and was always shy when i went clubbing and so i wanted to learn. went to a few hip hop class and jazz class at the gym and i always felt so bad that i was so ugly afterwards.

but then my friend told me there was a belly fusion class at the gym and wanted me to go together i thought ok why not and i went, secretly hoping i would suddenly become a butterfly and obviously i didn't. very fortunately, the teacher there explained at the begining that it wasn't a professional dance class but a class to have fun together and she didn't mind we couldn't do anything as long as we had fun and had big smile on our faces. so i did a lot of walking around without any hip movement what so ever but i came out of the class feeling good about myself thanks to the lovely teacher and that's what made me keep going back to the class, just to have fun and again secretly hoping that i would become beautiful somehow. it was at least a few months later (i went to 2 to 3 classes a week) that i had a vague idea what we were learning and i slowly fell in love with the music and now i don't know how i could have lived so many years without the joy of dance.

I basicly didn't have a clue. I expected it would be hard and I'd be blundering around quite a bit (true enough!), but otherwise I didn't know. I was *VERY* nervous (as most males are in their first class!).

I had no expectations, except that it would be fun.