Thread: Need advice, teaching at bachelorette party on Saturday!

A friend of mine have asked me to teach at a bachelorette party she is throwing her friend, this saturday.

I've never teached at a bachelorette party before, so I need some ideas!

I thought that I could teach some basic steps, and teach them a small combo?

And have them show what they have learned at the end of the "class"?

I want to do something fun, but i really have no idea what to do.

She asked me if I had an outfit the "bride to be" could wear, and what the rest of them should be dressed in.

I really want to be well prepared, and I want them to have lots of fun.

Any ideas?

Oh, and I thought I'd bring my hipscarves, to lend out for the class?

Any suggestions will be much appreciated!

Originally Posted by EliAnn

She asked me if I had an outfit the "bride to be" could wear,

"I'm inviting Mario Andretti to speak at our fundraiser. Does he have a race car I could borrow to drive to the event in?"

"We've asked Steven Spielberg to be the guest of honor at our annual banquet. Could he bring one of his Academy Awards so everybody could pose for pictures holding it?"

"Michael Jordan is going to be the honorary referee of our charity basketball tournament. Is he going to bring his old Bulls uniform so everybody can try it on?"

If you want to loan veils or hip scarves, whatever, but do not loan your costumes. Costumes are a sign that you have achieved enough mastery of the dance to wear an expensive, handcrafted garment when you perform. They are your professional uniform and a tool of your trade. They are also a personal garment that you sweat in and don't wash after each wearing, but not everyone is equally put off by that.

Loan a costume once and expect that you will be asked to loan it again. Do you really want to deflect requests for something a non-dancer will wear to spice up her honeymoon or use as a Halloween costume? What would you do if your costume got ruined while someone else was wearing it? It's not inconceivable to spill drinks or food on clothing or bump into a lit cigarette at a party.

No. Respect the traditions of the dance, respect the work that someone put into making your costume, and respect your own financial investment. Do not let others, especially non-dancers, borrow your costumes, unless you know and trust them well enough that you would also let them drive your car and babysit your children.

and what the rest of them should be dressed in.

Regular clothes, unless you are planning on pulling out all of the stops and teaching a movement-intensive mini-workshop where exercise clothes would make more sense.

One thing I do is find out what the bride's favorite song is, and then choreograph an easy mini-routine to that song. I teach the movements first in the "workshop" portion (using Middle Eastern music), followed by the choreography. Usually there's one main combo for the verses, one combo for the chorus, a slow movement for the bridge, and repeat them all as necessary. Then the participants leave feeling like they've learned something tangible. Plus, it can be super cute and a lot of fun.

It is actually quite normal, at least around here, to have something for the bride-to-be to dress up in. The dancers that frequently do bachelorette parties have some bra and belt set that isn't too precious and only use it to lend out at these occasions. It is not an outrageous question at all. If you don't have anything to lend her then I am sure they will accept that as well. It would be superfun for them to borrow some hipscarves if you are willing to do it.

Have fun!

I have a bag of cheap hip scarves that I let the ladies wear at bachelorette parties. I consider it an added benefit to my clients that increases my sales and it's factored into my price. I have found it to be worth the investment. If you plan to do more of these in the future, it might be worth it for you, too.


I do not offer a special outfit for the bride and I would not even consider letting her wear one of my costumes for the reasons others have stated above.

If they just want something "special" for the bride, perhaps a simple circle skirt (maybe an old one you don't wear anymore), with a blingy necklace and/or some of those thin metal bangles from the dollar store would be an easy, cheap way to add some bling to the bride. If you could find some super cheap bling, it might make an easy, inexpensive keepsake for the bride.

I tell people to wear something comfortable, and be prepared to remove high heels.

I usually teach few simple moves, then at the end we all do a "follow the leader" choreography using the moves they just learned. Keep it light, make a few jokes. As long as people are doing the moves safely, I don't do much correction. My goal is to try to make sure everyone is having fun. I like to teach them to zaghareet at the end :)

I agree that you should not let others wear your professional costumes. You have worked hard to be able to wear them and it would be sad if anything happened to it.

I do think it is perfectly acceptable to allow the bride-to-be to wear a skirt, a head piece and a hip scarf. You can bring safety pins so you can help her pin up her shirt to look like a belly dance top. I have a collection of hip scarves I bring to events like these. I let the coordinator know that people can purchase the hip scarves if they like. I save one to give to the bride-to-be as a present.

Women love to shimmy! I do lots of shimmies when I go into a group like this. They normally bring out a lot of laughs. Plus women normally can't wait to make their hip scarves jingle.

HUGE thanks to everyone!!! :D

The favourite song idea is GREAT! And so are all the other advice!

I'm thinking of maybe borrowing the bride one "ebay" bra, and a chiffon skirt and hipskarf? Is that ok?

I see that some of you give the bride a gift, like a hipskarf, do you think she would appreciate a mixed CD with middle eastern music? and a hipscarf?

I'm so nervous that they will be bored, or not have fun :S

Costume - no! I don't even take good veils to these since a heel high made a nice round hole in one. Expect party goers to be drunk - they might not be - but be prepared - spilt drink - and worse (I have heard of worse!)

Cheap hip scarves are a good idea. I have sewn fabric on mine to accommodate larger women (smaller ones can tuck ut away or wrap it around their bodies)

Pick 2 or 3 moves to teach. Some short combos and for the right party (and you won't know until you get there) a tiny choreography. I also do some follow the bouncing bum stuff.

I was once lucky enough to watch my teacher teach at a hen night (bachelorette) party once, and it seemed to be hugely successful so I'll share!

First, she did bring a costume to dress the bride to be in, but it was one of those cheapie butterfly costumes that are like a little crop vest that ties at the back and matching hip wrap. She also bought a load of cheap coin scarves for the other girls to wear. She started by warming everyone up to a bouncy little arabic pop song, then went through a few basic moves - hip twists, hip bumps, basic shimmy and shoulder shimmy - and put them together into a very short fun routine to 'Kiss Kiss' by Tarkan. All the girls then danced the routine together with my teacher, then we put the bride in the middle of a circle and the girls all danced around her.

Everyone had a great time!

Originally Posted by EliAnn

I'm thinking of maybe borrowing the bride one "ebay" bra, and a chiffon skirt and hipskarf? Is that ok?
I see that some of you give the bride a gift, like a hipskarf, do you think she would appreciate a mixed CD with middle eastern music? and a hipscarf?

Unless you are raising your price accordingly, extra gifts cut into your fee. A dancer who does this sort of party for $250 and leaves behind a $15 hip scarf effectively charged $235 for the gig. If you charge $250 and give the GOH $50 in swag, you've undercut the other dancer by $35.

I think one main present (e.g., a hip scarf for the GOH) with a card or a photo to commemorate the event is sufficient, and if you want to leave behind more, leave your business cards so they can sign up for classes and a list of trusted vendors where they can buy their own stuff on their own time and with their own money. If they're not interested enough to follow up, then they didn't really want or need the extras anyway. You're not doing much to evangelize the dance if your gifts end up shoved in the back of a closet or thrown away.

If you'd rather leave music, I'd suggest buying a commercial CD for the gig, BDSS or George Abdo or whatever floats your boat. You could either buy two CDs (one still wrapped to give) or one that you unwrap there (so the GOH knows it's new), and then ask if the GOH would like to keep it at the end of the evening, but don't make your own compilation CD. The idea "I am a serious, ethical professional" does not coexist well with music piracy.

You don't have to feel guilty for not leaving more than a modest token to remember the event. Nobody expects a magician working a party to leave behind half a dozen magic tricks and a top hat. When you make it more about the freebies than your skills as a dancer/teacher, you're undermining yourself. If they've hired you to entertain them and you've done that, everything else is extra. You're a professional performer, not Santa Claus.

I teach a lot of bachelorette parties, and always bring a costume for the hen - something she can either put on over her existing outfit, or wear alone. It's usually a cheapo coined or beaded top, and crop top, plus a skirt and harem pants, and a cheap coined hip scarf. A student or ebay outfit that I wouldn't wear for a pro gig can be quite OK for this. Elastic waits and ties are good to fit a range of sizes. I also have a big bag of colourful fabric scarves for other guests.

I teach some basic technique, and put it into a simple routine of two combos repeated. Hip flicks, lifts, hip and shoulder shimmies, hip circles, snake arms. I teach a few moves at a time, then have a follow-me dance to a music, then try some more moves.

If it's a large group where not everyone knows each other, I teach them a travelling move like a walking hip lift, then get them to do this around the room to some music. When I play the zills they have to find a partner to shimmy with and introduce themselves to at the same time. Repeat ad nauseaum. It gets a laugh and I get a rest!

Half-way through my sessions I give the guests a drinks break and perform one song for them. It's a good way of giving them a rest without losing their attention.

At the end of the session, I usually get everyone to dance for the hen - seat the hen at one end of the room and get the others to dance towards her in pairs. After they've 'enticed' her to dance, I get the hen up and lead her through some moves. If she looks confident, I'll get her to keep going on her own, then get her to take a bow.

So that's how I do it. The focus is on fun and interaction, with a little technique thrown in for good measure.

PS - at the start of your session, it's a good idea to ask the ladies to remove any high heels or slide-off shoes, and address the issue of what's safe if anyone happens to be pregnant (they may not be ready to announce that they are to the whole room yet).

Originally Posted by Starmouth

All the girls then danced the routine together with my teacher, then we put the bride in the middle of a circle and the girls all danced around her.

I like this idea. I'll have to appropriate it!

I've brought a number of cheapish coin scarves for guests to wear for the lesson, and then a white, blinged-out coin scarf for the bride.