American Tribal Style and Gothic Belly Dance
From September we'll be offering more regular sets of workshops for both American Tribal and Gothic Belly Dance in Swindon.
To kick off these new classes we're running a set of four weeks starting Tuesday 15th through to Tuesday 6th October inclusive.
The Bell (The Lounge above The Bell)
24 High Street
Old Town
Swindon
SN1 3EP
Add your name to our list to be updated via email or keep browsing the web pages till we update them.
To join the beginner level of these groups you don't need to have learnt belly dance before as we'll be presuming no previous experience. For non-beginner levels you will need to have previous knowledge of belly dance rather than just 'winging it' from a general dance background.
A half hour class which builds your basic understanding of belly dance with a short routine to put your new skills within. I'd advise all ladies who are new to belly dance to take this class to prepare your body and give you all you need to progress to the more demanding skills of the Tribal / Gothic fusion to come. In this class you'll learn the famous shimmy group of moves as well as undulations, isolations and muscle control that are the icons of Raqs Sharki (belly dance).
Even if you've never belly danced before you can add the next level up as each class will build on skills learnt in the previous group so you'll never feel out of your depths.
This the class for those who already have belly dance experience or who have taken the previous class and who want to explore the wonderful world of Tribal / Gothic fusion. During our initial four week course we'll be encountering the essential elements of Tribal belly dance and looking at how they cross over to the Gothic side of dance. Coming soon will be footage of previous classes we've run to give you a flavour of what to expect.
You don't need to be a Goth or dress up for this class but you can be sure we won't stop you if you feel that Tuesdays with some dressing up would be a good way to break up the week.
See below for more details about each style of dance.
American Tribal 
I came across Tribal style very early on in my belly dance career and was lucky enough to take lessons with
Kajira Djoumahna and The Domba
(now sadly disbanded but I do hear rumours they're reforming) and have taught Tribal style in Wiltshire where it is becoming popular with new and established dancers alike. New for me is a Tribal dance troupe which is formed with students and footage will be going on YouTube soon.
You don't need to dress up to come along and learn either style of dance but please remember to wear something comfy on your feet as we don't encourage bare foot in public places - you know it makes sense!
As Tribal is generally taught as a group improvisational dance with troupes working together to create mesmeric choreographies which change depending on the participants it is important to all know what each movement entails, it's cues etc. so please join the beginner level even if you are an experienced belly dancer. This ensures you have the prerequisite prior knowledge to join an 'improv' without feeling out of depth.
Gothic 
So I'm guessing you might be a Goth or like dressing in Goth clothing or just 'Goth curious' (tee hee) and you didn't know that there was a Gothic style of belly dance. Well, surprise... there is! The good news is that there's also an entry on Wikipedia to peruse:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_bellydance
Our students perform Gothic belly dance at haflas and events and I'm looking forward to having a more regular dance night for both the gothic and Tribal styles as they're great fun and a total excuse for dressing up and being outrageous. Don't miss the the footage of our next crazy goth' / vamp / burlesque choreography which is coming soon.