You don’t have to be in the studio to learn more about your favorite dance. You can jump online or on your mobile and download great audible content to listen to anytime, anywhere – FOR FREE! Listening to podcasts is a super convenient way to learn new things, like great advice from master teachers, ideas on improving your performance, or hear about another dancer’s research into various styles. Lots of good info you would otherwise have to get from a…
As a dance teacher, one of the roles we play is “therapist”. Perhaps more important at times than providing our student’s dance instruction, we provide informal counseling when it comes to dealing with the psychological issues that arise when our dancers are faced with performing. Many dancers lack self-confidence and/or self-esteem and ironically that may be the very reason they begin belly dancing in the first place – to help them build confidence. Sometimes they have doubts about their abilities…
What does it take to be a great teacher? DEDICATION The single most important characteristic of any teacher of any discipline is dedication. If you are not so passionate about your art that you cannot persevere through the hard times of growing your classes, slow seasons, dealing with difficult people, nor allocate time to study and practice your art yourself with a “show must go on” attitude, you will not make it as a really successful, well respected teacher. You…
I will be asking you 10 questions that will help you decide if you are ready to start teaching oriental dance. It’s important to be able to answer YES to all of these questions, if you answer No on some of them, at least you will know in what areas you may need more education before you are ready to begin creating and teaching your own classes… 1) Have you learned this art from a respected teacher(s) with a dance lineage who…
When we begin our dance journey, we spend a lot of time building a particular dance technique, usually the technique of our teachers or the general style of the genre we like the most. Once that technique is “hard set” in our bodies, we tend to approach new related dance forms with the same technique without first “clearing our cup” of what we currently know. We don’t always understand when we begin dancing that it’s so much more than muscular…
Watch the video below and learn who the top classic turkish oriental dancers are… in 40 seconds. Ozel Turkbas Saliha Tekneci Inci Birol Nimet Alp Ayse Nana Negris Mogol Nejla Ates Learn more about Turkish Orientale dance and Turkish Romani dance at Oriental Phoenix Arts in Houston, TX.
Some of the toughest seasons of our dance journey happen when we have become bored or feel uninspired with our own dancing and lose passion for the art. For some, this is a “sign” that dance may not be for them. They lose hope too easily and sometimes even quit dance altogether. More tenacious dancers understand the natural process of waxing and waning within life and art and may step back for a while, but eagerly await their passion’s return.…
Growing up, I always hated having my picture taken. Especially during my awkward teen years, I avoided the shutter at all costs. Taking a good picture seemed like an impossibility, I thought, as many others do, that I was just not photogenic and that I was doomed to look awful in pictures forever. When I started dancing and performing, taking good pictures became increasingly important. Audiences are always wanting to take your picture and other dancers enjoy taking snapshots with…
People that find themselves interested in belly dancing are usually a unique sort. They are often drawn to the art form because it satisfies their desire for the different and exotic. Belly dancers love to create, explore various cultures through movement and music, as well as try new foods and experiences. These characteristics are most apparent in the places we like to go to. Here are the top places in Houston we like to visit! Special thanks to the Houston…
As belly dancing competitions become more and more common around the US and World, many dancers are choosing to compete for titles. There are as many reasons for competing as there are dancers. However, training and preparing for competition, even if you are not planning to compete, is a great way to improve your overall dance ability and presentation. So, how does training for competitions actually help you improve? Well, it challenges you to really look at all of the…
