Belly Dance Lessons My name is Alyssa and I recently moved to Mississippi in February. Belly dance lessons will be starting in May in Ocean Springs at River Rock Yoga studio. There are two classes offered. Classes are suitable for beginners and for those who have a few years experience. For more information, please visit my website: www.GulfCoastBellydance.com  

Ok, I so want to do this who wants to join? 

I have a friend in NY that teaches this and she loves it. I've gone to a few show's i think they are called hopfa's or something like that. Beautiful dances. 

Hi, this is Alyssa and I teach the bellydance lessons. Pre-registration has begun and the classes are almost full. If you are interested, you can click here to register for class online. I have six spaces left in the beginner class that starts on Tuesday, May 5th. Click here to find out how to win FREE bellydance lessons! Yes, Connie, they are called haflas and they are filled with great food and dancing! 

I knew it was something like that I just got the spelling way off. Thanks for clearing that up for me. It's been a long time since i've been but they were some great shows. 

where do you buy your hips scarfs from looking for a reliable place to get one. Thanks 

shimmysista.com is a great place for those of us who are not size zero! LOL. I make my own. 

OHHHH THAT SOUNDS FUN!! I WANT TO BELLY DANCE. :) 

I tried for about a month. It is great and an intense workout, but you must have stamina & coordination. I lacked both. I often referred to my efforts as a flapping chicken lol I encourage everyone to try it for the experience. My daughter was actually pretty good at it. 

I actually get my hipscarves from Joharah.com. She's a lovely lady who travels four times a year to the Middle East for them. I have bought them for years through a former teacher of mine, so I am familiar with the quality and looks of them. She has a MUCH larger selection than is pictured on her website, so just give her a call. I advise not to get hipscarves off of Ebay because many will come from China and are of poor quality. 

Christine, I remember when I first started, I too lacked the stamina. I couldn't even keep my arms up for the whole class. Just like anything, it takes a few sessions to develop it, but it comes. It's the same with coordinating movements. Sometimes it is like the "pat your head rub your tummy," but practice makes perfect. Skills don't come overnight (at least not for me!), so just keep at it. :) 

Since the beginner session sold out in just two weeks, I have added an additional location and additional sessions. New sessions will start in June at River Rock Yoga and The Mary C. O'Keefe Cultural Arts Center, both in Ocean Springs. Day classes will also be available. For more information, please visit: www.GulfCoastBellydance.comnull 

Want FREE belly dance lessons? Come visit me at Mayfest in downtown Ocean Springs on May 16th between 10 am and 8 pm. Enter the drawing for your chance to win a FREE session (6 classes) of belly dance classes at River Rock Yoga. Second prize is a FREE hipscarf! I will also be giving FREE mini-lessons each hour on the hour. No experience is required. If you stop by, please let me know you are a friend from biloxiunderground.com. It's nice to get to know people! 

I was wondering. Are your toes always painted when you dance? I think it would look better if they were. 

Why do so many belly dancers find it neccessary to have large bellies? 

kindly deleted :-) 

Your comments are very rude and do not belong here. 

Your comments are very rude and do not belong here. His was rude but the fat one wasn't? Hmmmm? Sounds like a double standard to me. 

I was just wondering. Are you a Muslim or practice Islam? I would think you do since you are doing a Middle Eastern dance. The Lord will pass judgement on you and it will not be pretty. I will pray for you. 

Your comments are very rude and do not belong here. Thank you for trying to maintain dignity and manners. For anyone who doesn't understand the art form of Eastern Dance, Women's Dance, Raqs Shaq, or Belly Dance. Please Google it and read the history and place it has in other cultures. It can be a beautiful art form and it should be treated with respect. I loved my lessons because they taught my to honor my self as a beautiful woman. For the first time in my life I didn't have to be anything... but interested in the class... I didn't feel judged because of my appearance at all. I am a plus sized 40-something and I was in class with other sisters who ranged from tiny 20 year olds to grandma's, mother-daughter students, and everything in between. We had a blast! 

I refer back to my original question. 

I would be led by your question that you are among the many who are mis-informed about the history of "Belly Dance". It is NOT a form of erotic dance. It was not culturally intended to be what Hollywood portrayed it to be in the 1920-30's films. In fact those belly baring costumes are not at all culturally or historically appropriate for the dance! That was a Hollywood ploy to get around the strict codes in the "old days" and to sell more seats! The image also was distorted by Little Egypt at the World's Fair and by others who wanted to sell tickets and make money... Those images are not the true roots of Belly Dance. If you are bothered by the ladies who do not cover their midriffs while dancing, you are focusing on the wrong thing!!! The dance isn't about how you judge the dancer...it is about how the dance allows the dancer to love her self. 

Have you ever been to the part of the world where this is prominent? Have you ever been to a genuine show in one of these countries? I doubt it. I've been there cupcake. I've seen the real deal. 

cupcake Sorry, I'm so much more than a cupcake! If you've truly seen the "real deal" then you would truly understand and I wouldn't have to be writing this now would I? I'll never pretend that American Belly Dance, Tribal or Tribal Fusion, Cabaret Dance or any other Western interpretation of the dance is what you would see in the East. Keep in mind...we in the West are dancing an interpretation of the dance. Just like a Conga Line at a party or a Hula at a Luau...I doubt anyone at either of those venues would know the entire culture, history, and background....but it's still fun! 

To address everyone at once, No, I am not Muslim, nor am I Middle Eastern. I do not have to be to enjoy a dance form either. The words "Middle East" refer to a region geographically speaking, not a religion. It's not called Muslim dance. I do not have to be Hispanic to like Salsa, I do not have to be African to like African dance, etc. and that's why dance is considered a universal language. There are many Christians in the Middle East, so you do not need to be Muslim in order to enjoy dance movements that are original to the Middle East. Religion has nothing to do with it. It's mostly a cultural thing and dance changes as people move around. SquirrelMom is very accurate on what she says. Not only do I study the dance, but I am studying dance ethnology as it relates to it. Both of your arguments have valid points. Yes, the 2 piece sparly costumes American bellydancers wear are not historically accurate pre-1900's. They are now, but it's a Cairo thing. Yes, Egyptians wear this same outfit today because tourists going to Egypt in the early 1900's wondered where the costumes were that they had seen in early Hollywood movies (which was completly made up). As any good business person would do, they dressed to appease the tourists who brought money into their country. The dance and costumes you see today if you go to Egypt are made FOR THE STAGE. It's entertainment. It's hyped up, just as a Las Vegas show would be here in this country. The real ethnic steps are similar to what is on stage in Cairo, but most Egyptian women do not dress like that, nor do they move their hips in public like that (except the Hagalla women). The movements have been exagerated FOR THE STAGE. Don't get me wrong, Egyptians are proud of their dancers, but they are seen as their celebrities and are not like "normal" people in Egypt. As far as the large bellies question, I have never heard of someone gaining weight on purpose in order to dance. America is a very image-oriented culture. This wouldn't occur. I would be happy to answer any other questions about this dance form, but please let's all show one another respect with our questions.