Myth #4 about Egyptian Dance (and its debunking)
The most common Myths about Egyptian Dance (and their debunking)📯📯📯
Myth #3 - Egyptian Dance is Easy.
Hmmm. Define "easy".
If by "easy", you mean that Egyptian Dance can be learned by everyone, as long as they can move and they´re willing to study it, then, yes, Egyptian Dance is easy.
If by "easy", you mean that Egyptian Dance is so basic it offers no challenge, no need for study or practice, no requirements from the one who´s dancing, we´ve got a myth going on.
Egyptian Dance is democratic in the sense that it´s meant for humans (and perhaps aliens, too; I think we´ve covered that). Egyptian Dance, when practiced with knowledge, awareness, and respect, is not easy.
Accessible, yes. Easy, not really.
A few years ago, a student who was teaching Egyptian Dance approached me to ask for my Private Coaching. I sent her the information and, seeing that she didn´t want to invest financially in her education and perhaps smelling the amount of challenge that was coming her way, she backed down claiming, and I quote, "I may not need it; I´ve learned how to belly dance on Youtube".
I. Learned. How. To. Belly. Dance. On. Youtube.
Those words resonated inside my head for days like a nightmare - well, years, because this happened years ago and I´m still dumbfounded by it. They hunted me and offended me and the respect I have for what I do.
It didn´t bother me that she discovered my Private Coaching Program wasn´t for her. It wasn´t. It´s not for everyone. It´s a luxury format where I work around a dancer´s unique characteristics, challenges, potential, and goals. It offers extraordinary and faster results but it also demands a lot from the dancer.
It bothered me that she believed her education was complete because she´d "studied on Youtube" and it bothered me even more the fact that she called herself a teacher and was charging students for classes.
As I usually tell my students, there are different levels in Egyptian Oriental Dance:
1. The Ignoramus level.
That´s the level of the person who "studies belly dance on Youtube" and walks around calling herself a "teacher" or a "professional dancer".
No knowledge, no awareness, no respect. Below simple. Just idiotic.
2. The Gym level.
This is the most basic level of Egyptian Dance. A few exotic moves thrown around with no sense, direction, meaning, or feeling, for the sake of a good workout and fun. Like Zumba.
Fun. Superficial. Not an art form. And, yes, simple.
3. The Dance Schools Level
This is a step above the Gym Level. In regular dance schools, you´ll learn the basics of Egyptian Dance with a little bit more focus on the music, on the meaning, and on creativity.
Students are not particularly challenged and, usually, there´s no Advanced Level available but a minimum of awareness and respect for the dance is offered.
Still, simple. Still, superficial. But way better than a gym workout.
4. The Egyptian Dance Schools Level
These are the schools specifically dedicated to Egyptian Dance and most of them are pretty serious about delivering the best education in the field of Egyptian Oriental Dance and, in some cases, Egyptian Folklore as well.
Depending on the talent, knowledge and experience of the teacher(s), students will receive a more thorough education in this field. There´ll be different levels of difficulty and students will be invited to develop themselves holistically.
Difficulty level: not so simple, anymore. Students will face physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual challenges. As they should.
5. The International Festivals & Specialized Events Level
This is the scene I knew best because it´s the one I´ve worked in for more than 20 years.
Depending on the level of the festival/event and the teachers/dancers involved, students can receive a highly specialized and challenging education.
In most cases, and sadly, all they receive is Dance Technique and Choreography - often, only Choreography - but if they´re lucky, they´ll be asked to develop their Musicality, Emotional Expression, Creativity, Identity, Sensuality, Knowledge of the Culture behind the dance, and more.
Simple? My answer is: try it and see for yourself.
6. Private Coaching (with a professional teacher who´s willing to work for you, not for him/herself)
You and me. In a room, physical or virtual. A dance program created around your identity, needs, challenges, potential and dreams. A dance program that´ll deliver a bit of everything in the realm of great Egyptian Dance Education - the dance itself, the mentality and culture behind it, the parallel dance skills that must be developed, and the personal development that allows you to bloom.
This is only for the hardcore lovers of Egyptian Dance; for the ambitious souls who wish to go deep into this art form and themselves. Not for everyone, that´s for sure.
Simple? Well. As simple as flying.
👉Egyptian Dance is easy. And it´s not. It all depends on how deep and high you wish to go in its practice.
I´ve been doing it, professionally, first in Egypt and then around the world, for more than 20 years, and I´m challenged by it every day.
Maybe I´m not talented enough. Or maybe I know what I´m doing.
Don´t search for the easy. Search for the excellence.
Dance, like Life, aren´t supposed to be easy. They´re supposed to be interesting and that, my darling, Egyptian Dance certainly is.
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