Thread: Old-school sideways 8 move?

I did a quick Google search of the forums but couldn't find any posts discussing this. Can anybody break down the old move where you layered a Maya (over-and-down vertical figure 8) on top of SuzyQ footwork (the pivoting shuffle where you toe in, heel in, toe in, heel in,...). I can do both independently, but when I put them together, I get a horizontal twisting motion that isn't supposed to be there. I notice that if I am traveling right, I am carrying most of the weight on my right heel and left ball (and reverse to go left), so I don't know if that is part of the problem. How does the hipwork synchronize with the footwork?

I just learned this move last month! It's so cute (though it's very tribal-fusiony, I'll probably never get to use it in my Egyptian style. I think it would look best with stripey tights).

I'm traveling right. I maya with my right hip when my toes go in, maya with my left hip when my toes go out.

Almost any time a student gets an unwanted twist in one of my classes, it's because her hips are coming untucked (pelvis tipping forward, booty jutting out). Maybe the squattiness of the move is causing you to lose your neutral pelvis?

if its the move im thinking of, theres a great example of it in part 2 of suhaila dances for the sultan, where she is in the gold pharoanic outfit.

I've been trying to do this for 20+ years! (Not to discourage you; I've got bad feet and that makes the suzyQ part difficult) Just wanted to throw out there-NOT Tribal fusiony at all! A grand old part of Vintage Orientale; my first instructor back when first tried to teach me. And Tribal was barely a blink in the eye up here in New England.

It's the classic way to move a Maya since it doesn't interfere with the up and down movement. It looks spectacular under a skirt that covers the legs-it gives the appearance of floating.

Good luck! I WILL make it work!

I'm having a hard time envisioning this. If anyone has video of this, please post. I'm dying to figure out what you all are talking about.

..c::but.. what is a Suzy Q ??? It might helps if I only knew!

Originally Posted by picotine

..c::but.. what is a Suzy Q ??? It might helps if I only knew!

I learned it as an uzbek step. Your feet are together with heels together then toes together. Feet like \/ then /\. I'll see if I can find a video quickly :)

Really? Wow! I must've learned kind of an 'extreme' version with very bent knees (like that pseudo-Bollywood squat?) that looked very TF -- it was a TF class, so I'm sure that was intentional.

With the legs hidden under a skirt, I think it'd be simpler just to step, toe-heel, with the maya. For me, I mean.

Originally Posted by Lauren_

Really? Wow! I must've learned kind of an 'extreme' version with very bent knees (like that pseudo-Bollywood squat?) that looked very TF -- it was a TF class, so I'm sure that was intentional.

With the legs hidden under a skirt, I think it'd be simpler just to step, toe-heel, with the maya. For me, I mean.

Oooh - interesting! The version I know (not tribal) is soft knees, legs close together so your feet scissor in and out as you slide to the side. It gives a similar, but more grounded feel than the float step - same smooth quality, but difference between floating and sliding. I have see the tribal fusion versions with legs closed before, but not with the squat...That sounds painful, but it must take a lot of skill!

The way Mahsati describes it is the way I learned it. The temptation (and the way I see most people cheat!) is to end up with toes and heels moving in the same direction // \\ which feels easier but still ends up with a slight level change.

Like the original poster, I can do one or the other just fine! Yes, knees remain 'soft'; I can't imagine doing this in a squat. But, then, I can't imagine doing most of this dance is a squat!

I don't know for sure if I'm talking about the same move but I think Jillina does it in her Lebanese Choreography DVD. It's a harder move and I tend to want to do an inverted maya as opposed to an outward.

I learned it the cheaters way. So correct me on this move - both feet point in as one hip (right hip) starts the maya? Then both feet point out as the left hip finishes?

I learned this move many years ago in Jamila Salimpour's classes. I can do it best in one direction, it kind of falls apart when I go the other way. I understand it to be a very "old" move, based on footwork known all along the Silk Road, though I've never heard that called Suzy Q before. Thanks for reminding me of this move, I'm going to bust it out again some time soon!

Originally Posted by jasani

I learned it the cheaters way. So correct me on this move - both feet point in as one hip (right hip) starts the maya? Then both feet point out as the left hip finishes?

That's the way I just learned it, yes.

Mine don't want to do that! It's a nice effect! It's interesting to know it is old-school.

Interestingly, I learned to slide sideways like that *not* as in out in out, /\ \/, but in in out out, one foot at a time, so I suppose the pattern goes more like \/\/\/. This is *very* smooth. I'd love to be able to put a maya on that.

It's interesting that some people associate it with tribal dance. I've only heard it mentioned by dancers who remember the old nightclub days. I tend to think of it as one of those "I Dream of Jeannie" things, although it isn't what the cartoon Jeannie actually does at the intro to the show.

I will have to try the suggestions that have been posted. Sometimes I can get it going, but I am staggering the footwork into four counts instead of two. I guess that's kind of a variation of cheating.

Originally Posted by dunyah

I learned this move many years ago in Jamila Salimpour's classes. I can do it best in one direction, it kind of falls apart when I go the other way. I understand it to be a very "old" move, based on footwork known all along the Silk Road, though I've never heard that called Suzy Q before. Thanks for reminding me of this move, I'm going to bust it out again some time soon!

Allow me to date myself--I first heard the term "SuzyQ" used to describe the toes-in, toes-out shuffle when the cast of "Pippin" was on "Wonderama." We used to call the parallel one just plain "shuffle."

Just out of curiosity, does anybody know a connection between these foot movements and the sort of one-legged traveling that men use in raqs al tahtib?

Originally Posted by jasani

I learned it the cheaters way. So correct me on this move - both feet point in as one hip (right hip) starts the maya? Then both feet point out as the left hip finishes?

I've always done the opposite, toes pointing out when starting the right hip, toes pointing in when the left hip finishes the maya. It's doing it to the left side first that messes me up.

What's the cheater's way?

do you mean the thing Rachel Brice does in the beggining of the dance in[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXvq2ZmCXQo"] this video?[/ame]

hmm...it looks a bit like the footwork you would do for a choo-choo shimmy...

I am still interested to see how this is done.
I did a search on you Tube for SuzyQ dance steps and did not find anyhting that is close to what you are talking about. Help! thank you :-)

ok...I just tried to do this as described and I feel like a total klutz! I'd love to see a video or someone breaking this down.

me too...

me three

This sounds like such a cool idea! If I'm not mistaken, is Rachel even moving her hips above the footwork? She looks like she is undulating her upper half, essentially sliding her ribcage over in the direction that she wants to go and then moves her bottom half while her upper half goes the other direction, if that makes sense, so it looks like she is smoothly undulating sideways across the floor, like a sidewinder

It looks to me like Rachel might be doing the SuzyQ footwork, but I agree with Amira, I only see ribcage movement, not the maya layered over.

I looked for a clip but no luck so far.

Originally Posted by Athenaserpent

do you mean the thing Rachel Brice does in the beggining of the dance in this video?

hmm...it looks a bit like the footwork you would do for a choo-choo shimmy...

I've never actually seen it done by someone who's mastered it, but, no, I don't think what Rachel is doing is it. There's supposed to be both gliding footwork and a full vertical figure 8 going on with the hips, and to me, it looks like she's undulating sideways on top of a float. I don't even think she is doing the toe-in, toe-out footwork, just moving to the side with small steps. It's hard to see with the lighting and camera angle, though.

We drill this in class every once in a while. You HAVE to keep your thighs pressed together to achieve that 'floating' effect. If your knees part you'll bounce just a bit and yeah, it would look funny to boot. Wear socks or dance shoes when you practice this as that helps alot too.

Rachel does the footwork with snake arms in the BDSS Monte Carlo DVD. I can't wrap my head around how this would work with vertical 8's, but maybe that's because when I do the footwork there is some rotation of the leg in the hip socket, which I imagine would account for the twist the OP is noticing.

Gosh, I wish I could visualize what you all are talking about. So far I've had mental images of Mayas while traveling to the sides, zig zag feet, and the Aziza floaty step.....all layered on top of each other.

Regards
Priscilla

Originally Posted by jessedan

Gosh, I wish I could visualize what you all are talking about. So far I've had mental images of Mayas while traveling to the sides, zig zag feet, and the Aziza floaty step.....all layered on top of each other.

Regards
Priscilla

Oooh - it's so hard to explain without a video. I'll try to break one of the simpler foot variations and 1 way to put the maya on it.

1. Start with your feet with heels together, toes apart \/
2. Lift your R heel and your L toe
3. (these happen together, but I am writing them separately)

1. a. Pivot your R foot with the heel lifted and place back flat - so looking at just the R foot, you would go from \/ to \\ if you left your other foot in place
2. b. Pivot your L foot with the toe lifted and place back flat - so looking at the L foot, you would go from \/ to // if you left your other foot in place
3. c. Since both happen at the same time, your feet transition from \/ to /\

4. Lift your R toe and your L heel to star the next pivot from /\ to \/


Putting the maya on top -
1. When feet \/ do vertical circle on R side for first 1/2 of maya
2. When feet /\ do vertical circle on L side for 2nd 1/2 of maya

Smooth all of this together so that you are gliding the feet and hips at the same time.

Hope this helps!

bravo!