Beginners

Basic arm positions for all movements (framing by hips, above head or one out to side)

Basic Posture and Stance

Hip side to sides (single, double, travelling, pivot turns)

Hip Rotations (size, speed and pivoting)

Basic Hip figure eights (forward to back)

Reverse hip figure eights (back to front) (with no heels lifting initially, then when they all have the move they can try with lifting heels)

Boats (single hip scoops) with travel

Hip circles (vertical plane only) direction and pivoting

Hip drops (central, half moon, triple, depth, travelling)

Hip Lifts (central, pivoting, single and double in place, travelling)

Hip swerves (mainly forward accent, flat and on ball, pivoting, travelling)

Grapevines and basic walking steps (pacing ,pauses etc)

Kash La Maar (aka forward and back step, sphinx, Arabic) – basic, with lift, side to side action, linear travel and pivoting.

Basic hip and shoulder shimmies (including walking at the same time)

Stomach accents

Rib cage slides and rotations

Shoulder accents

Basic arm and hand movement (snake arms, wrist curls etc)

There will be elements of history and costuming, introduction to the different styles of ME dance and music. There will also be a video evening, a short and simple choreography taught and also small group work on producing a 1 minute choreography in class to present to the rest of their group.

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Improvers
(6-18months)

Review of all the moves covered so far. If necessary a recap on certain moves will be done before starting any new ones.

Egyptian walks - basic, travel, speed and size

Kenyas

Hip Camels – basic, travel, pivoting

Introduction to rib cage camels

Vertical figure eights

Mayas

Turning and travelling movements (e.g. linear hip drop walk, panther)

Breaks

Horizontal hip circles

Rib cage figure eights

Stomach isolations

Rhythm recognition

Instrument recognition

Increased shimmy skills and layering techniques

New arm movements

Veil techniques – walking, twirling, spinning, catching and letting go, ways to wear, ways to discard, throwing and catching.

Throughout this time the dancers will increase their own improvisational skill, become more confident and aware in their use of arms and space through working with the veil.

Choreography will be taught to be performed (optional) at a local haflah, and students will be encouraged to start attending workshops.

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Intermediate
(18 months-3/4 years)

From now on students will be encouraged to develop themselves more fully by attending workshops and being taught by different teachers. Learning is a life long process

Generally throughout this time span I will do a review course on the moves to date as a refresher but also add some new moves and combinations in. We will cover zills, stick, musical interpretation, introduction to baladi, examine different styles in depth (classical and modern Egyptian, Egyptian folk, Turkish, Lebanese, ATS, Khaleegi, Rai, Persian, fusion and Arabic pop etc), arms, hands and gestures and in depth rhythm and instrument analysis.

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Advanced
(4yrs plus)

Advanced props (shamadan, double veil, sword, tambourine, jugs, multiple props etc)

Advanced technique (moves and combinations)

How to choreograph

In depth baladi

In depth study of the different styles