We previously have held pre-registered small group classes on Thursday evenings at 6 pm.  These have been fun, but they’ve required students to commit to and pay for the entire course up front or by payment arrangement, and we thought that might have prevented some interested folks from being able to participate.

So, for 2012, we’ve changed things up a bit!  We’re still going to have a small group class at 6 pm on Thursdays, and it’s still going to focus on special topics, but it’s going to be a drop-in class!

We’ll go through various topics (in segments of 2-6 weeks, depending on the topic and other factors).  Please see the event calendar to see what topic is going at any given time – I’ve just put up the proposed schedule for all of 2012!  There are a lot of great things – veil, tribal improv with balanced props, tribal improv with fire props, zills, shimmies – all kinds of fun stuff!

The class size will still be kept at 6 people or fewer (if we are blessed with a crowd, we’ll split the special topics into multiple classes), and the price will stay comparable to our small group focused courses.  The big differences are that you can drop in on single classes, you don’t have to pay in advance, and you can use your class card (which means you get to take advantage of bulk discounts on class cards).

Special topics classes that involve fire will be $20 per (or 2 punches on your class card).  In addition to the small class size and dual instructor format, we will be providing props to borrow if you don’t have your own, an outdoor space for lit practice during class (once enough material is covered), as well as fuel and safety equipment/monitoring.  The class is also just a smidge longer to allow time for preparing and cooling down props, etc.

Special topics classes that do not involve fire will be $15 per (or 1.5 punches on your class card).  These will have the usual small class size and dual instructor format.  There will be props to borrow if you don’t have your own for veil, basket, and zill classes.

The special topics classes also include performance opportunities at our monthly student showcase at Satchel’s, and at haflas held at the studio.

We are excited about the new opportunity to study special topics on a drop-in basis, and hope to see you there!

Last Friday we had the honor of visiting a local girl scout troop meeting here in Gainesville, Florida to provide a short introductory lesson in Tribal Belly Dance, and give a mini-show.  We had a group of about 10 people, some members of the troop and a few of their mothers, and together we went through a 30 minute lesson.

The girl scouts joined us for a group photo after the lesson!

During the lesson the students warm up, learn some basic isolations, and then learn 2 tribal belly dance moves.  These moves are taught with their associated cues, and practiced briefly as a group.  After both moves are covered, the students get a chance to try them out in the tribal improvised dance format when the instructors lead a short dance using the moves and isolations covered in the lesson.

After the lesson was completed, there was a brief question and answer session, and Julia and I (Heather) gave a very short performance in order to demonstrate how the larger vocabulary of tribal belly dance moves are used to create an improvised group dance.  We had a great time!

A quick pose during the mini-show.

We have a really fun weekend ahead of us!  This Saturday (9/17) we’ll be hosting a workshop – Super-Basic Introduction to Belly Dancing with Fire – and a Hafla!

The Workshop

The workshop will introduce torch adaptations for a small collection of tribal belly dance moves, that will allow students to give the torches a try during the hafla after the workshop if they are interested and ready.

There will also be a primer on fire safety and basic considerations for using the torches. We’ll even have a few pairs of spare torches (from our weekly fire class) available to share during the workshop and at the hafla so that everyone can have a chance to try them! (with supervision, of course)

For more information about the workshop, check out the Facebook event listing: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=112031548902891

The Hafla

The party is really the fun part!  This is our second hafla, and we hope that folks had such a good time last time, that we get even more folks this time (especially since the weather is a little cooler now).  The students from the Intro to Fire – FIRE PALMS – Level 1 course that is just finishing up will have an opportunity to show their friends and family what they’ve been working on.

In addition to that, students from the workshop earlier that day will get a chance to try the torches out in a supervised environment.  Julia and Heather will be performing, and we’ll hopefully have a guest performer or two as well!

For more information on the hafla, see the Facebook event listing here: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=102525563188302

And remember, if you are interested in lighting up at the hafla, for safety reasons please wear clothing made of natural fibers (such as cotton) and have your hair pulled up and off the face. (Polyester melts and loose hair is risky! Safety first!)