workshops

2026 Winter/Spring Island Teacher List

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Vancouver Island Dance Teachers 

Nanaimo

Lynette

www.lynetteharper.ca      dancetarab@gmail.com   250-797-7953   

LET’S DANCE    With apologies – My weekly multilevel classes are postponed until later in the year. All classes at VIBE Studios, Nanaimo 

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Pynksy Shell aka Tania Amaral

https://www.facebook.com/tania.amaral.1253/  pynksyshell@gmail.com 

Afro Fusion Sharqi Danceᵀᴹ

Fridays 6:30 Level 1, VIBE dance studio 

www.afro-fusionsharqidance.ca 

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Ramona 

ramona.passarello@gmail.com  250-616-3824  

Available for private individual and private group lessons.

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Taissia 

778-269-0922  Dance and Wellness classes   Available for privates and workshops.

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Other Island communities, listed alphabetically:

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Cortes Island

Meinsje      250-895-1052  

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Courtenay/Comox/Cumberland/Denman Island/Union Bay

Bridget Salas  bridgetsalasdance.com 

Beginner Indian fusion Tuesdays 5:45-7:00

Datura-style bellydance Tuesdays 7:15-8:30

Datura-style Zills Tuesdays 7:15-8:30

Magnoliamovementarts.com

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Cathy Stoyko   Call or message (250)218-0704

Available for private classes on Denman Island or in Cumberland 

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Emily Johnston – Forbidden Dance Company  

https://forbiddendancecompany.com  778-246-3639 

Belly dance levels 1-4 Thursdays 6:30-7:30pm Cloud 9 studio, Courtenay

“So you think you can belly dance?” Levels 5+  7:30-8:30pm

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Heather Hilberry 250-898-3123 (call or text) 

Teaching on Hornby,  Denman and in Union Bay  

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Linda Doerksen  halima.dancer@gmail.com    250-703-0494   

Contact regarding future classes in Courtenay. 

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Duncan/Cowichan Area

Darlene Gunkelmann gunkelmanndarlene@gmail.com

12 week Duncan series starting Feb.16

Beginners Foundations 5 -6:15 pm, Multi-Level 6:15-7:15 pm

Studio B (behind Spinning Ninny). 

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Karensa Camplair   saidisistersstudio.godaddysites.com  karensabellydance@gmail.com      250.715.7541   

Facebook.com/SaidiSisters      

FCBDStyle® (Improvised Style), Sword, Fusion, F.U.N. Belly Dance, and Musicality & Choreography

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Lara   https://www.facebook.com/lara.brunschot, or drop by her store Spinning Ninny at 310 Duncan St, Duncan

Classes for adults and children. 

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Parksville

Kim Hammett  raven_55@icloud.com   778-679-3082

Mix of Americanized and Fusion style bellydance at Bradley Community Centre.

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Qualicum Beach

Belly Laughs Navel Academy/Elaine De Rooy 

https://www.facebook.com/BellyLaughsNavelAcademy   bellylaughsnavelacademy@shaw.ca  250-752-3750 

Contemporary fusion in-studio classes Wednesdays, Thursdays, Sundays for Beginners, Intermediate and Advanced students.

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Saltspring Island

Sarah Allen  ssisarahlouise@gmail.com 

Alternating a 4 week series with Rasha Gad, Tuesdays 7 to 8:15pm Feb to Jun 2026 and Sept to Nov 2026 at the Ganges Yoga Studio  https://gangesyogastudio.com/

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Rasha Gad  rashargad@gmail.com

778 993 3406 https://www.artspired.ca/unveil-the-movement

Middle Eastern (belly) dance weekly classes. Egyptian style with cultural context, focus on the connection to the feminine and unique expression. Alternating a 4 week series with Sarah Allen, Tuesdays 7 to 8:15pm Feb to Jun 2026 and Sept to Nov 2026  at the Ganges Yoga Studio  https://gangesyogastudio.com/

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Victoria 

Bashirah Middle Eastern Dance Studio, Victoria    

https://raksbobbie.ca/classes/winter-2026-class-list.html raksbobbie@shaw.ca   

Extensive range of online and studio belly dance classes at Bashirah Middle Eastern Dance Studio, 137 Skinner St.Victoria

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Candace Aldridge   https://candacealdridge.com/dance-classes/

A fall schedule of live and online classes, featuring Belly dance for multiple levels, Yoga, and more. 

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Caro Aisha Carof   carisfranco@hotmail.com  250 884 0653

Private classes and group classes from beginners to advanced levels.

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Darlene Gunkelmann  gunkelmanndarlene@gmail.com

Victoria Classes: 12 Week Series  starting Feb.17

Beginners 5-6:15 pm, Intermediates Choreography 6:15-7:30 pm

Wild Roots Studio. 

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Mira –  Asmira Dance  

mirabellydancer@gmail.com

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Negma  

negmadance@gmail.com   https://www.negmadance.com 

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Taiya Curle 

Fusion Bellydance classes Monday evenings 6:00pm-7:45pm

At the Victoria Truth Centre

For details taiyacurle@gmail.com   250-361-5122 

Workshop Resources: Ghawazee & Turkish Oryantal Dance

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Leah and Lynette perform at the International Belly Dance Conference of Canada, Toronto

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GHAWAZEE  RESOURCES

Terrific dance scenes and interviews can be viewed in this 1981 video “The Romany Trail: Gypsies of Africa” – Please note, the narration is dated and sometimes simply wrong (particularly about the Zar). The Banat Maazin dance at 11.52, and another Ghawazee troupe at 21.40.

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Glimpses of “Ghawazee” costume history

Mid 1800s:

1890s:

1920s:

1960s Banat Maazin:

1960s Khairiya of the Banat Maazin

Recent image of Khairiya of the Banat Maazin 

This excerpt is from a 2017 wedding party featuring Khairiya, of the Banat Maazin family. She is the last one of their famous dance troupe who continues to perform. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RsNjyOYVXA

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You can find lot of information about the Banat Maazin and Ghawazee online eg. This wonderful first-person account of meeting Ghawazi in Egypt, with historical photographs and references. The six part article was written over several decades 1970s to 1990s by Edwina Nearing. The link below takes you to Part 1, with links to the other sections at the end, thanks to the dance magazine “Gilded Serpent”.http://www.gildedserpent.com/articles25/edwinaghawazich1.htm

Another inspiring article reviews 19th century historical travel writing: https://www.gildedserpent.com/cms/2012/04/16/when-victoria-was-queen-and-the-ghawazi-ruled/

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If you’d like to see more video, costuming, etc. about Ghawazi, check out this (and other) Youtube playlists:

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TURKISH ORYANTAL RESOURCES

Here are some video examples of Turkish Oryantal.  You can find many more by searching Youtube on an artist’s name or the dance form. (I particularly recommend everything featuring dancers Tulay Karaca or Nesrin Topkapi, even though the video quality is variable.)

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Vivacious Gigi Dilsah dances Turkish Oryantal in this video with lots of sparkle, drama, surprise, floorwork, and hair tosses! https://youtu.be/_QOgaJ1tQVc?si=dVOUNZUNVLEupMf0

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Here’s an Oryantal piece by Artemis Mourat, she starts with Turkish Roman and flows into an Oryantal performance. https://youtube.com/watch?v=1Lzf38FlQrU%3Fsi%3DW9FkgqIqYwfQiCZa

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Elegant, exquisite Tanyeli! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLjQe3IwXkY

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MUSIC SUGGESTIONS

For the Turkish Oryantal choreography, we danced with “Söylim Mi” (Shall we tell?) by Asena.

There are a great many inspiring Turkish musicians and ensembles. Here are some that I used for warm-ups, stretching exercises, learning Oryantal vocabulary, and improvisation activities during my workshops: Burhan Ocal and the Istanbul Oriental Ensemble, John Bilezikjian, Ney Defteri, and the albums Second Nature by Minor Empire, and Gypsy Fire by Omar Faruk Tekbilek & Richard Hagopian.

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Spring Workshop in Kelowna 2025

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Notes on Lynette’s dance interests:

Lynette has studied Ghawazee dance since the 1980s with luminaries Aisha Ali, Jalilah, Khyriyya, and others, and through archival research. Her troupe Ghawazee choreographies have been staged in Vancouver theatres, Toronto (International Belly Dance Conference of Canada), Seattle (Mediterranean Fantasy Festival), Courtenay, Nanaimo, and many other BC venues. 
Lynette became entranced by Turkish Roman dance in the 1990s, and has developed a distinctive personal style for teaching and performing both Turkish Oryantal and Roman dance based on studies with Reyhan Tuzsuz, Gigi Dilsah, Artemis Mourat, Ferda Bayazit, Sema Yildiz, Ozgen, and others. 
In recent decades Lynette has led weekend dance intensives and 5 day retreats in spectacular locations eg. Dance Vallarta (Puerto Vallarta), DanceAway Mexico (La Manzanilla), Hollyhock Retreat Centre (Cortes Island), Oasis de la Dance – Studio Denise Enan (Quebec), Denman Island Dance Retreats, Smithers Dance Camp, and other BC locations (eg.Victoria, Tofino, Thetis Island, Quadra Island, Gabriola Island, Cumberland). She regularly presents classes and workshops on and around Vancouver Island.

Fall Belly Dance Teachers Showcase & Bazaar 2014

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MANY MANY THANKS to our wonderful dance community, for supporting the 2014 Teachers Showcase and Bazaar with such energy and enthusiasm! You raised almost $800 for Haven Society this year, and shared the joy of the dance with well over 100 participants, dancers, drummers, and Haven volunteers. Thank you all.

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FIVE half-hour dance workshops by mid-Island teachers – a sampler of ideas, approaches and styles from the mid-Island! Plus opportunities for your own dance performance and vendors, and the very popular consignment sales tables.  Lots of fun for a good cause in our community – all proceeds to Haven Society.  $5 at the door, under 12 free. Workshops by donation. 

WORKSHOP SCHEDULE
11:20 am- Elaine M. De Rooy * Basics with Belly Laughs
12:15 pm- Lynette *Go with the flow! Dancing Tarab 
1 pm – Genya * Anatomy of a Shimmy & Finishing Touches- Combinations, layers & transitions
1:45 pm – Suzanne Kay * Tribal Fusion – Saidi Sisters Style
2:30 pm – Cathy Stoyko * Persian Bandari & Ecstatic Dance
3 pm – Ramona * Zar for Stage
3:20 pm – Burt Levy & Robin Shackleton * Belly Dance Rhythms for Drummers and Dancers

Call for volunteers – needed to set-up, take-down, and during the day including the consignment table!

More info please contact bellydancenanaimo@gmail.com  or dancetarab@gmail.com

OPA Showcase 2013

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So glad that OPA is hosting this popular event again this year! Get more details on the Facebook page

OPA Proudly Presents:

The Vancouver Island Bellydance Showcase 2013

Saturday, November 23, 2013 •

Royal Canadian Legion (411 Gorge Rd East)

10:00am ‘Spins and Turns’ with Shari Nakagawa (Victoria) Spinning is not just for ballerinas. Learn some basic techniques that will have you adding twirl to your belly dance vocabulary. Please wear dance slippers, foot undies or socks.

2:00pm ‘Sevillana Tribal Fusion’ with Debra Shields (Ladysmith) Learn Flamenco technique to add style to your arm movements and a fun 6/8 foot pattern.

11:00am

‘Slinky, Sultry Serpentine’ with Candace Sanchez (Victoria) Move with grace, find fluidity in your move- ment and create energy within you as you dance through space and time. Learn slinky and sultry combos that will have you moving with waves running through your body.

3:00pm ‘Dancing the Dance’ with Lisa Jordan (Vancouver) It’s only technique until you add yourself. In this workshop we put technique aside and focus on “dancing” elements, transi- tions, breath, arms, expression, emotion and energy.

12:00pm ‘Sassy Saiidi’ with Bobbie (Victoria)  Learn more about the history, costuming, rhythm and technique that characterize one of the most common folk dances of Egypt along with some lively, energetic combinations that can be danced with and without canes. Bring a cane if you have one.

4:00pm ‘Bellydance: Fact & Fiction’ Seminar with Lynette Harper (Nanaimo) Is bellydance an ancient ritual of childbirth, a dance of seduction, a global phenomenon? What does it have to do with gypsies, Arabs, Turks, tribes, and feminists? Is Orientalism a good or a bad thing? Examine myths and evidence in a lively seminar for dancers.Pricing:

(OPA Member Price/Non-Member Price) Before October 31, 2013: One Workshop: $15/$18 All Six Workshops: $60/$75

After October 31, 2013: One Workshop: $18/$20 All Six Workshops: $70/$80  *Sorry no refunds

More info on Facebook OPA Presents: The Vancouver Island Bellydance Showcase 2013 

www.OPAsociety.com

Evening Showcase! Please join us for an evening showcase featuring the workshop instructors and local dancers.

Doors at 7:30 Show at 8:00  Pay at the door: $5 for OPA members $10 for non-OPA members

Showcase details

Dance Vallarta 2013

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Five days of dance and sun in the Yoga Vallarta studio of Puerto Vallarta, February 5 – 9 2013. Thanks to my co-instructor Debra Shields of Saidi Sisters, the beautiful dancers who attended, Alma our studio host, and the restaurants that welcomed our evening dance parties!   See our Facebook site Dance Vallarta 2013 for photos and video links.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Turkish Roman music/video

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Music from my past workshops

All cd’s listed here are available on Amazon.com, some through Chapters Indigo, and one from iTunes.  All of them are terrific!

Performed by Turkish Roman (gypsy) musicians:

Selim Sesler  – Road to Kesan: Turkish ROM & Regional Music Thrace       track: Tulum 5:01

Selim Sesler and Brenda MacCrimmon – Karsılama    tracks: Daracik Sokaklar 5:29 and  Karcigar Köçekçe 1:55

Ahmet Kusgoz Ve Arkadaslari  – Gypsies of Turkey   – also available through iTunes –  track: Tulum Roman Havasi 3:06

Mustafa Kandirali –  Caz Roman   track: Mastika 7:19

Popular Turkish Roman tunes performed by non-Romani Turkish or Turkish-Canadian musicians:

Minor Empire  –  Second Nature    track: Yuksek Yuksek Tepeler 4:42  ( Leah, Kalina, and I performed to this track in Victoria’s Bellydance Showcase Hafla)

Candan Erçetin – Aman Doktor    track: Cadirimin Üstüne/Sürüverin Cezveler Kaynasin 4:23  (I didn’t play this during the workshop, but it offers another dynamic interpretation of a popular song)

Kalina, Lynette, and Leah perform at OPA’s Bellydance Showcase, Victoria September 2012

Youtube videos of Turkish Roman dance worth watching

I wish I’d been at this village wedding in Turkey!  Fortunately, the video is very clear, aside from the extra digital effects:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=4eIPhZ_g8Xk&feature=endscreen

My current favourite Roman dancer. I’m inspired by her expressive face and gestures, and the underlying structure of her performance. It looks like the same wedding and videographer as above:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=wCTiViIr1xg

A very different venue, two dancers, two distinct personal styles:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7sXnk3ATd9g&feature=related

A dynamic male dancer, presenting Roman dance at a Hidrellez festival in Turkey – a virtuosic solo turns into a delightful duet!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLPtt2KsOT4 

Brief clips of social dancing at Hidrellez celebrations around Turkey.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hn909jWv0k4

Turkish dance workshops

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Turkish Roma (gypsy) dance

Celebrate the passionate and dynamic rhythms, movements, and spontaneity of Turkish Roman/Gypsy dance. Distinctive steps and sinuous movements will provide a base for exploring ornamentation, layering, and expression. Learn the meanings and role of gestures, experiment with a wide range of musical moods, and develop some powerful gypsy “attitude”.  Teaching level: Multilevel, some dance experience recommended (novice through advanced levels)

Turkish style: Oryantal and Roma dance

Compare  the earthy Turkish style of Romani social dance with performance-oriented Oryantal stylings. Learn distinctive moves and phrasings that complement the sensuous and expressive qualities of Romani music, and  innovative approaches used by Oryantal dancers. Teaching level: Multilevel, some dance experience recommended (novice through advanced levels) Length: 2 or 3 hours

“Let me tell you exactly what inspired me! I have always thought of Turkish music as a bit fast and somewhat chaotic but you made me see a totally different side of it, how grounded and earthy it really is. And how it can lend itself to flowing movements. ” 

(Anita Hoffman, Victoria, 2007)

VIVA ROMANI ! ! ! (Go Gypsy)

A daylong workshop exploring the passionate and lyrical stylings of Turkish Roman dance.

Part 1 Turkish Roman (Gypsy) Basics Learn expressive movements to 9/8 and 4/4 Turkish rhythms. An inspiring intro for beginners, a refresher for intermediate, advanced and experienced dancers. Length: 2 1/2 or 3 hours

Part 2 Turkish Jaz Focus on improvising and crafting dance to match the dramatic flair of Turkey’s master musicians Mustapha Kandirali, Burhan Ocal and others. Refine, expand, and elaborate on Turkish Roman techniques and ideas. Length: 2 hours  (4 1/2 hours for both workshops combined)

Romani dance workshops

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Ghawazee Sparkle & Turkish Soul

A short introduction to movement in two distinctive Roma styles. Strengthen your dance vocabulary, skills, and knowledge in a session contrasting the sinuous embellishments of Turkish dance styles with the quivers, shimmies and “earthquake tremors” of Egyptian Ghawazee dance. Read review. Teaching level: Multilevel (beginner through advanced) Length: 1 1/2 hours

Arab dance workshops

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TARAB – Arab music and spirit of the dance

Explore the soul and vitality of Arab music as inspiration for dance improvisation and choreography. Teaching level: Multilevel; works well for mixed levels beginner through advanced. Read review. Length: 2 or 3 hours

From Countryside to Cabaret: Egyptian Saidi and Raqs Sharqi styles

Build your technique, movement vocabulary, and understanding of two popular Egyptian dance styles. Discover the links between the informal village dances of Saidi, and the performance-oriented precision of glamorous Raqs Sharqi dance. Teaching level: Adaptable to any level, or multi-level teaching.  Length: 2 to 5 hours.

Zar: Dancing with Spirit

Zar is a type of spirit, an illness caused when spirits possess humans, and a ritual conducted to pacify the spirits. For Arab women, zar is not an exorcism but a way of “realigning” their daily world with the spirit world. Learn about the zar and its rituals, then explore traditional zar movements and their creative possibilities for dance performance. Options: May be accompanied by a lecture and a-v showing, and/or a folkloric dance choreography with the Egyptian song “Salamit’ha Um Hassan”.  Teaching level: Multilevel.  Length: 1 1/2 for basic introduction, movements, and simple choreography. Up to 3 hours with additional options.

Improvisation, skills and technique workshops

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Discover the joy of dancing in the moment. Develop your confidence and skills in movement, improvisation and creating choreography with techniques and exercises to expand your range of movement and expression in both traditional and currently popular dance styles.

Sample topics, appropriate for multiple levels:

Improvisation and Expression – Warm up with basic improvisation techniques, and develop your repertoire with improvisation strategies including: working with combinations, dance steps and techniques; creating dance phrases and combinations; shaping dance; dynamic energies; and traditional dance vocabularies. Learn techniques that will help you LET GO in your dance!

Enhancing Your Dance – Build on basic dance and improvisation skills by exploring inflections of mood and texture; creating coherence and meaning in your dance; working with symbols, characters and imagery; respecting regional styles; and more inspirations for dancing solo and with others.  Teaching level: Multilevel for students, dancers, and teachers.

Phrasing – Construct sequences of movements that create dance phrases, the “building blocks” of improvised dance and formal choreography. Develop your ear for Arab music phrasing, learn and experiment with short movement sequences, and use them to construct longer dances

April Point Retreats, Quadra Island BC

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2013 Dates TBA – Gypsy Spirit Dance Retreats with Lynette

at April Point Resort & Spa on Quadra Island (3 hours north of Victoria) –

Discover your “gypsy spirit” with Gypsy (Romani) style bellydance. You’ll quickly learn the basic moves to passionate music and lively rhythms.  Celebrate the informal spontaneity of traditional Romani dance styles from Turkey, Spain and Egypt, with distinctive steps and sinuous movements you can blend with any other dance style.  This workshop blends bellydance warmups and fundamentals with Gypsy/Romani dance to provide a gentle total body workout that is easy on your joints, increases flexibility – and is a lot of fun!

This multilevel class is designed for beginners to intermediate levels – or teachers/performers who wish to expand their repertoire.

About April Point Resort & Spa

April Point Resort & Spa is an island getaway away from the crowds, featuring the elegant yet laid back atmosphere of the west coast. Enjoy wildlife tours, kayaking, fishing, spa treatments, island tours and sumptuous meals, all enhanced by the stunning natural beauty of Discovery Passage. Guests also enjoy the amenities of Painter’s Lodge in Campbell River, connected by a complimentary scenic water shuttle. For reservations or more information, please call 1-800-663-7090 or visit obmg.com.

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Past April Point Retreats:  2008 & 2009  

Belly Dancing: The Art of Middle Eastern Dance

April Point Resort & Spa on Quadra Island (3 hours north of Victoria)

Discover the joy of Middle Eastern dance, an art that has inspired and empowered people for millennia. Learn the fundamentals of this graceful, energetic dance in a supportive environment suitable for a range of ages and abilities. This year you’ll learn bellydance fundamentals that merge traditional folk dances with contemporary moves and music; and explore earthy Roma (gypsy) dance, Latin Arabian dances that mix Latin flair with Arab moves, creative dance exercises, and freeflowing dance with veils.  Bellydance provides a gentle total body workout that builds strength, is easy on your joints, and increases flexibility. And, it’s fun too!

 

 

Traditions, Tribes and Fusions – Nanaimo workshops

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May 15, 2011

Dance with Arab Rhythms – LIVE!!!!

Guest drummer Robin Shackleton of Sylvan Temple joins Lynette for a dynamic and energizing multi-level workshop.  We’ve booked a large bright and NEW studio in downtown Nanaimo, to fill with drumming and dance!  Develop your dance vocabulary and music understanding, as we work creatively with beledi and other 4/4 rhythms, lively Egyptian 2/4, and inspiring 8/4 rhythm patterns.  Learn rhythm-savvy combinations, tips for working with drummers, and inspiring ideas for improvisation and your own choreographies. You’re welcome to bring your own drum and finger cymbals!

Where:  ***NOTE NEW VENUE ** Omtown Yoga Studio,  43 Commercial St., downtown Nanaimo   (more parking around the back, off Terminal Ave)

When: 1:30 -3:30 pm May 15, 2011

Fee:     $30 drop-in;  $25 advance registration by email  or phone (250-753-1659)

Exploring Tarab with Lynette

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Spring 2007  OPA! News, Victoria      by Sidona

On February 18th members of Women of Widad piled into a van to take the trip up to Nanaimo to attend a workshop with Lynette Harper. 

 We were excited and all felt that we needed a burst of dance energy after the long winter and also to beat the February blues. When we arrived at the Harbour Dance Centre in Nanaimo we were pleasantly surprised by the sunshine streaming through the windows and bouncing playfully off the hardwood floors. One of the topics discussed was “Tarab” and none of us really knew what that meant.

Lynette started with a warm-up with all of us in a circle facing each other. We moved on to “Turkish Curves” using a smoky Turkish song that really got us into that slow syrupy movement. She started with some examples and then had each of us pick a part of our body to focus on for several minutes. IT was a real joy to explore our inner emotions and combine it with a dance. Lynette promotes dance as a whole woman experience. In her workshops you are pushed out of your comfort zone in a comfortable way. She then did a mini-Ghawazee workshop called “Ghawazee Sparkle”.

The rest of the afternoon was spent on “Tarab” which when translated means “Art is Feeling” or is also described as a “musically induced state of ecstasy”. The dancers were asked to describe what they felt when dancing and words were tossed back and forth like, Freedom, Revitalized, Divine Feminine, Health, In my Veins. We moved energy to different parts of our bodies and explored alone and with other dancers using “light” and “heavy” movements, infectious music and complementary movements. It was a delight and as a group we all felt richer as dancers and as women.

It is vital to express our full selves as we dance and Lynette facilitated in her warm and welcoming way an excellent day of playing in the sun. As we drove home we felt fuller and more complete as dancers. Thank-you Lynette!

Bellydancing makes another comeback

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April 9  2003 The Harbour City Star, Nanaimo      By Sandra Steilo 

This week I joined in on a trend that has been around for hundreds of years but now is suddenly new and hot again. I took a beginner belly dancing class with Lynette Harper at the Community Service Building. 

She got involved with belly dancing the first time it became trendy about 25 years ago and said she’s seen many ebbs and flows in its popularity since then. It’s on ah upswing now again. “It’s major right now,” Harper said. “I think people are looking for a fun work out without having to go to the gym – There’s also an interest in world music and cultures.” Harper’s mother is Lebanese and while she’s done many other kinds of dancing, belly dancing just makes sense for her. “It’s a great way to let people know about the Middle East besides what they see on the news,” she said. “It shows people the culture behind that part of the world. “And, it’s a wonderful thing, with belly dancing you can keep performing as you age.” Before the class Harper told me that belly dancing, unlike other forms of dance, is very improvised. This was a relief. I was joining in for the last class of the series and most of her students enjoyed the class so much they’d been coming regularly. I had taken belly dancing about three years ago and I was more than a little rusty. You need to have technique, Harper explained, (damn) but belly dancing has everything to do with expression and showing your own personality and people at all skill levels can do it. Yah! “It’s a wonderful way to come together with a group of people and have fun,” Harper said. “It’s very good for you to. It can be a great aerobic workout.”
She was right about that. The next day my sides hurt from all the movement in the hips. Those are muscles that don’t get worked a lot and isolating just your hips for a movement is tough. The drop-in class featured about 10 women of all ages and sizes and although I had never been to her class before I quickly felt like part of the group. I just kind of tried to fit in and shook my hips when it seemed appropriate, which was quite a lot.
We did part of a dance the class had been working on and while I improvised for about 90 per cent of it, I felt like by the end I was catching on. With the lively music and the fun, flirty movements it hardly seemed like a work out and the time flew by. “It’s addictive,” Harper said.
I can see how that would be and now with classes put on hold until Harper’s show Miraj, with her troupe Earthfire which is playing at Malaspina, April 11, is over with, I feel like I’m going through withdrawal.