Trip to Shahrzad's www.bellydancestore.com
Saturday November 14th. Meet at the dance studio at NOON if you're carpooling; back at JHU by 5pm
Those who are picking out their first bra and belt set please keep in mind that while we have a wide variety of bra and belt sets in the troupe to which we do try and stick:
     Beaded sets (more beads than sequins although sequins are welcome), i.e. this style or this style or this style, and not this style or an entire bra and belt set made with the larger sequins you see in not this style.
     Circular skirt/Panel3-4 Panel Skirt/Petal skirt/Gored skirt/Flared skirt; chiffon or other material; 0-4 slits, i.e. not this skirt and not this skirt
     Note that you can sew your own skirt fairly easily;
     I don't recommend trying to set a bra and belt--even with sequin tape it takes forever
     Remember that Sharzad does do layaway and that EVERYONE WILL HAVE TO ALTER THEIR COSTUME--it never fits perfectly so please budget time for this. Note that if your costume is a bit small on the top or shows more cleavage than you would like, you can usually use your head/wrist bands to fill that in a bit.
     There are always other troupe members and members in the DC/Baltimore Bellydance community looking to sell old (but perfectly usable) costumes to buy new ones--so if $195 is out of your price range, think about buying a used one, or speaking with me about finding one you can borrow for the show.
     Your entire costume should include Bra, Belt, Veil, and Skirt; note when you are buying your costume whether or not you will have to buy or make a skirt if it does not come with the bra and belt. Please pass pictures onto me before you buy anything online. Keep in mind that shipping WILL take longer than expected (especially from the Middle East--plan 4 months ahead) and you will have to alter your own costume once you receive it. Luckily we've hit you in time for a holiday gift (usually we have more time to worry about this before the show).
Other recommended websites:
     BHUZ costume swaps--resale
     Topkapi starting at $199
     Neckelmanns starting at $225
     Atlanta starts at $90
     Turkish Emporium starts at $60
     Lila starts at $160
     BellydanceShop starts at $199
      starts at $199
     BellydanceShop starts at $179
     Pyramid Imports starting at $198
     Unicorn starts at $200
     SalomesTent starts at $195 can't seem to find the new link; maybe site's down for a bit
     DancingRahana starts at $195
     Dahlal starts at $165, but really this is just for drooling
If this is all still too much, please feel free to check out ebay (just pass pictures through me), or ask classmates/troupemates if anyone is looking to sell an old costume while looking to upgrade this year.

Class X: November 14th

Movement Vocabulary: Floorwork
     Head; accents, slides, circles
     Chest; accents, slides, circles, figure-eights
     Shoulder; accents, shimmy, snake arms
     Hips; ups, down, slide, figure-eight, maya, guici, circle, umie
     Floor circles
     Turkish Walk
     Knee slide-together
     Backbend
     Undulations and body waves
     Bellyrolls
     Shimmy (with and without backbend)
     Side, rolling, and upside-down work if time
Props: Sword optional for Advanced students
Choreography:
Tribal floorwork and leader/follower clip courtesy of Janice
Cabaret floorwork--including backbend layered hip slide, and un-kneepaded knee circles...
Fitness:     2 Rep Abs, 3 Rep Glutes

Class XI: November 21st

Movement Vocabulary: Add Zills
     Mirror exercise with levels
Props:Zills
Choreography: None
Cultural Reference:     Beladi/Baladii/Beledi/Belady in addition to a specific move and style in bellydance, this is the most pervasive Middle Eastern rhythm in modern bellydance. It sounds; Dum-Dum-tek a tek-Dum-tek a tek (tek a) and repeats. It is a more folksy version of the basic Middle Eastern maqsuum rhythm and translates roughly as "of the country" or "old fashioned.". Listen to clip of Beladi rhythm and attempt to tap along with it. More information about all the basic Middle Eastern rhythms, their simple and filled-in sounds can be found here for those who may be interested.
Fitness:     2 Rep Abs, 3 Rep Glutes

Class XII: November 28th

YES CLASS IS MEETING after Thanksgiving if you want to shake off some calories
Movement Vocabulary: Add Canes--come even if you don't own a cane
Double cane for older students
Review/learn Dili Duduk Choreography (which works as double cane)
     Mirror exercise; try to blur lines of "leader" and "follower"
Props: Canes
Choreography: Dili Duduk
Fitness: 3 Rep Abs, 3 Rep Glutes

NO CLASS DUE TO SNOW Class XIII: December 5th

Last class of the semester

Class XIV: December 12th

WE WILL HAVE CLASS for those who feel like dropping by
Finish/brush-up Marionette choreography
Blast through Dili Duduk choreography
Mirror exercise continued; 4 corners
Mirror exercise extrapolated
Props: For those who already own them: Zills and Canes
Choreography: Dili Duduk and Marionette run-throughs
Fitness: 3 Rep Abs, 3 Rep Glutes

Sunday December 13th at 4pm

Annual Shriver Show meeting and holiday party--Potluck style so sign up and bring something!
The meeting is MANDATORY for all who want to be in the show. This will be the time when we vote on the name of our show this year (be thinking of suggestions!) and assign jobs for the show. Everyone in the show must also do a job for the show! We will also likely be discussing my transition from troupe director to artistic director and be assigning troupe jobs as well. After that, we're going to party! There will be a potluck dinner, so please bring a dish or something to drink. You can invite others to come along if you wish. It will feature performances by the advanced class. If any intermediates are also interested in performing, please let me know. -Dori