Thread: Taught the dance majors this morning!

I'm so high right now it's like a manic episode.

In case you missed my earlier posts on the topic, I was hired to teach the dance majors at a local university a one-day class. Actually two classes. Today was the day.

I had them for an hour and a half in the morning during their regular Modern classtime, then another 1.5 hours during ballet.

I was intimidated (I have no classical dance training & started dancing at age 35) but sooo excited to get to introduce these future dance pros to our art form!

I showed them a video clip (moi) while they stretched out and showed them how different rhythms trigger specific moves from folklore (Saidi & Zar). Then we worked our way through one of my beginner choreos-- a drum solo. We covered everything from posture to ending pose in an hour and a half. They had some trouble with posture & technique, but they asked great questions. We talked about harem fantasies & musical interpretation. We had a ball!

After lunch, I had planned on doing more in-depth technique work & musical interpretation, but I hadn't realized that 1/3 of the class would be new people who weren't there in the morning so I had to improvise. I showed them Lucy's clip (our Lucy, from DC, doing Umm K). They were so fascinated, and they SO got it! The emotional expressiveness, everything coming from center... Then I showed them Rachel Brice - there were audible gasps. They loved both clips.

I taught a second beginner choreo. They ate it up so fast! Great core strength & choreo memory & ability to ask for clarification. I noticed that they all gazed straight ahead when we danced, they weren't making eye contact with me much at all, and they were SO serious. So I had them do the choreo one last time with a partner, making eye contact & communicating (no 4th wall in bellydance!) There was much laughter & fun, lots of improv. Lots of the students opted to hang out after class for a while for 'show & tell." I let them see one of my costumes and try on coin scarves, then we played with silk veils a bit.

Oh, and when we came back from lunch, their ballet instructor introduced me to the new ones and told them I was a great instructor and they were in for a real treat (he observed the first class). Whoopeeeee!

So there's a new generation brought up right. They got that it's a real art form, ethnically based, not just shaking your ass.

AND, thanks to Bhuz, I asked for & got full workshop rates (befitting a noob WS teacher).

Cool!

Any guys?

Congratulations, Lauren! It sounds like you gave them a wonderful introduction and a really fun day!

Two men in the first class. One was also in the second.

Zorba, you'd have been proud of me I think. At one point one of the guys seemed uncomfortable with an especially feminine arm position. I stopped to address that, spoke about male dancers in the BD world and in the middle east. We discovered one of these guys could layer a shoulder vibration over a shoulder roll, he was awesome!

Anyway, I told them that some male dancers prefer not to adapt the movements but rather let the fact that they *are* men be the masculinizing factor. Other men prefer to make adaptations (and I spoke about the typical arm carriage I've seen when ME men dance socially). I showed them a possible adaptation for this particular arm posture. One male student chose to adapt, the other didn't. They both looked great & had a blast!

What a great experience, Lauren! So happy for you. I bet some of those students will be showing up in your BD classes shortly.

congrats! sounds like a great success

Way to go, Lauren! Congrats!

I am glad thing went well for you!

Congratulations, Lauren! I knew it would go well for you, because you put so much effort into being well-prepared and thinking about how to make the experience more than a little butt-shaking! You gave them a little taste of many important topics - musical interpretation, cultural background, differing styles of dance - how great!

That sounds like a blast for you AND the students! Whoopee! :)

Thank you (bows repeatedly).

I've always felt a little inferior to classically-trained types. An acknowledgement from a university ballet instructor that I'm a *good* dance teacher gives me Biiiiig warm fuzzies. I know I shouldn't need that acknowledgement (and I was doing OK without it) but it sure feels good. I've worked hard to try to be a good teacher, I'm more proud of my teaching skills than my dancing, really.

But more importantly: I hope this becomes a trend! I hope more and more of the world's *serious* professional dancers get exposed to ME dance as part of their curriculum, and carry some respect into their careers. Real theaters, real studio space.... *boggles*

Originally Posted by Lauren_

I hope more and more of the world's *serious* professional dancers get exposed to ME dance as part of their curriculum, and carry some respect into their careers. Real theaters, real studio space.... *boggles*

I think it's possible . . . and I'd like to see it in my professional life-time!

Knew you'd be well-prepared (to say the least!) and that you'd do a super-duper great workshop!

Yee-haw!

Deborah

I'm sure a big part of why they took it so seriously and respectfully is because you were such a fabulous representative of our art form. You put a ton of work into this, treated it equally as important as Western dance, and they couldn't help but understand the validity of MED. You are such an asset to our community, Lauren - bravo!

.w.:
gosh.

That is awesome! Had it been someone other than yourself, perhaps the experience would have been completely different for them. I have to agree with Laura 2 here, that youv'e done a wonderful service to the bd community. I've been dying to know how it would go. I had tears in my eyes reading your post, you must feel amazing!

I DO feel amazing! I was so scared.

Oh, and thanks to Penny, Samira, Loren & all the other dancers at Momo's in Clayton! The ballet instructor had been there a few times & seen the dancers, if they hadn't been top notch I doubt I would've been welcomed with such open arms.

Fabulous Lauren!!! Do you get to go back again?

Go Lauren! Go Lauren! Go Lauren!

I'm so glad you enjoyed yourself, they enjoyed themselves, AND you did such a good job representing us all. I'd be worried/nervous/intimidated too going into a class full of "proper" dance majors, but it sounds like everything went just great!

Perhaps more University teaching might come out of this for you, eh? ..g.:

Yay Lauren!

Any chance this could be a recurring gig for you? I hope so!

Congratulations, Lauren! It sound like it was a huge success!

Yes, what Laura2 said! Brava! (and it sounds like this was a much needed experience after your feelings about yourself after the competition!)

WOW... congratulations! I wish someone could do such things all over the world so everybody who studies dance could see it as an artform.

I think the dance instructors would be happy to have me back, but no more than annually.

Problem is, I was booked through the dance majors student group, and my two points of contact are seniors. So I'm not sure how to encourage the whole thing to happen again.

I am going back in the spring to do a beginner workshop for all students as a fundraiser for the dance group, maybe I'll ask them then for contact info for next year & see who I might stay in touch with. Surely there's a faculty member involved?

So cool and what a great idea. Hope you get more opportunities like this one. Sounds like you did a great job and had an excellent time!

You go Laura! I hope you get many more opportunities like this, especially since you obviously did such a wonderful job educating the classical dancers!

Yay Lauren! I hope you do this more, too! I'm just getting back in the caneswing of things after my dance maternity leave. My alma mater now has a BD club that hosts a workshop each year. I have a friend whose sister is a dance major and takes classes with my teacher when she's home for the summer. Here's hope that MED will be as welcome at my kids' schools as ballet dancers were at mine!

Jenny