How to belly dance like a pro
ESSENCE OF BELLYDANCE™ - Free Online Belly Daning Classes
ESSENCE OF BELLYDANCE™ - Free Online Belly Daning Classes Join over 28.000 women in our Online Bellydance Classes Do you ever wonder how some women seem to move so effortless and
confident? Learn to move like a pro.
Join our online belly dancing classes - it’s free!
Start now
ESSENCE OF BELLYDANCE™ Online ClassesYou can dance with us for free! We have published the basic belly dance moves and regularly upload new videos for you. All workouts are playlists of several videos and contain a complete body warm up and a relaxing cool down Tell me more
Bellydance Class #1entry level
Start your training with this entry level class. You learn the fundamentals of belly dance: posture, seesaws, side sliding and mayas with your hips and chest.
Bellydance Class #2Beginner
Do the moves fromclass #1 already feel smooth & juicy? In class #2 you'll learn more belly dance basics: tilting internal circles and vertical circles with your hips and chest. The afro with pelvic floor integration is our specialty.
Beginner
In class #3 you'll learn more of the essential belly dance basics: sliding forward and classical Egyptian horizontal circles with the hips and chest.
Bellydance Class #4Beginner
In class #4 you'll learn more belly dance basics: camels with the hips and chest and your first sharp hips accents initiated by your gluteus muscles.
Bellydance Class #5Beginner
In class #5 you'll learn more belly dance basics: twists and horizontal eights with pelvic floor integration as well as some basic arm movements like the snake arms.
Bellydance Class #6Advanced
In class #6 you'll learn some advanced belly dance moves: hagala schimmy and variations as well as arm movements that lead up to the snake arms.
Advanced
In class #7 you'll learn some advanced belly dance moves: hip drops, accents, elegant eights with foot lifts, layered with chest camels and hip drops, as well as the secrets of a great hip shimmy.
Bellydance ChoreographyIntermediate - Advanced
Learn my beautiful belly dance choreography step by step! It's my interpretation of a classical Egyptian love song "Daret Al Ayam" (Days go by) by Um Kalsoum.
Bellydance all movesBeginner - Advanced
Here you have an overview of all the belly dance moves you have learned so far. Step by step instructions.
Bellydance all DrillsBeginner - Advanced
Here you have an overview of all the Bellydance drills with music. Dance for as long as you can!
Tips on Dance & HealthAn overview of Coco's tips & the home of her new interview series Free Woman.
Have fun!
An overview on full length bellydance classes that we've recorded for you here in Berlin. The German video contains subtitles.
Sensuous Dance WorkoutEverything about Coco's Sensuous Dance Workout program - your personal wellness program at home: TV-shows, reviews, interviews.
COCO's Bellydance ShowsHere you can see a collection of Coco's belly dance shows. Enjoy!
Teacher TrainingListen to what our graduates have to say about our teacher training and watch the scholarship entries.
Fun Travel, interviews...An overview of all interviews, travel vlogs and other videos from and with Coco.
Join over 28.000 women in our Online Bellydance Classes Do you ever wonder how some women seem to move so effortless and
confident? Learn to move like a pro.
Join our online belly dancing classes - it’s free!
Start now
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- Join our free online belly dancing classes
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Table of Contents
Belly Dance TechniqueThere's more to belly dancing than moves. Knowing how to do a hip drop or belly roll doesn't mean you know how to belly dance. You also need to learn musical interpretation, emotional expression, Middle Eastern nuance, stage presentation, and more. But these instructions will guide you in one piece of it - technique for doing selected moves.
Developing Related Belly Dance SkillsThe articles in this section cover a variety of skills that belly dance performers need to know, including musical interpretation, emotional expression, Middle Eastern nuance, stage presentation, and more.
Belly Dance Home Practice & Study
Belly Dance Instructional Book & Video Reviews
Copyright NoticeThis entire web site is copyrighted. All rights reserved. All articles, images, forms, scripts, directories, and product reviews on this web site are the property of Shira unless a different author/artist is identified. Material from this web site may not be posted on any other web site unless permission is first obtained from Shira. Academic papers for school purposes may use information from this site only if the paper properly identifies the original article on Shira.net using appropriate citations (footnotes, end notes, etc.) and bibliography. Consult your instructor for instructions on how to do this. If you wish to translate articles from Shira.net into a language other than English, Shira will be happy to post your translation here on Shira.net along with a note identifying you as the translator. This could include your photo and biography if you want it to. Contact Shira for more information. You may not post translations of Shira's articles on anybody else's web site, not even your own. If you are a teacher, performer, or student of Middle Eastern dance, you may link directly to any page on this web site from either your blog or your own web site without first obtaining Shira's permission. Click here for link buttons and other information on how to link.
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Exercises you can do to gain control over your abs.
Variations on the basic Figure 8.
Placed online November 25, 2019.
A few easy tips for upping your game.
Use "glowing green goo" to lead your audience's eyes through your dance. 
Natalia Bekker, world champion in belly dance, choreographer: “A girl of 16 cannot say anything with her dance, she has not seen this life yet” | 74.
ru Share
Share
True beauty is timeless and knows no boundaries. It is like music, the smooth outlines of the female body, movement, the brilliance of gold and stones. It's like... a belly dance. But bellydanse is not only a beautiful sight, but also a sport and a way of self-expression. And for the world champion in belly dance in 2004, the head and teacher of the most titled school-studio Oasis Dance in Russia, choreographer Natalia Bekker, bellydance is, perhaps, life. Natalia came to Chelyabinsk with her master classes from St. Petersburg and managed to talk about what a real belly dance is and why the dancer's not quite young age in it is only an advantage. nine0003
– Natalia, tell me, why did you start belly dancing?
- This is nostalgia for childhood. As a child, she lived in Krasnoyarsk, and then Indian films were very popular, but there were no Indian dance schools. I really wanted to do these dances.
Also, it seems to me that today belly dance classes are dictated by time.
Even the most successful business woman wants to remember her feminine essence. Apparently, because of this, this direction especially attracted my attention. For me, dancing has become a necessity. nine0003
– Who was your first coach?
– Katharina Djumana. I studied in Berlin.
– Why exactly there?
Share
– I often had to go on tour, because by education I am a choreographer-choreographer and a “populist” (I danced Russian, gypsy, Japanese, Spanish folk dances). In addition, all my relatives live in Germany. In Europe, belly dance schools have existed for about three decades, unlike in Russia (in our country, the dance direction is only gaining momentum). There have already developed their own teaching methods, the names of teachers are known far beyond the borders of their own countries. Since I am a professional, you need to learn a new dance direction from professionals in good schools. Visiting relatives once again, I tried to find out which schools are the best in this country.
I studied with Haracio and Beata Cifuentes - they are one of the strongest dancers in the world. nine0003
- How to get into the belly dance championship? Do you need to be a member of a league?
- If you mean just some kind of competition or championship, then you do not need to have membership in a league or in the All-Russian Dance Organization, but simply a desire. You choose the nomination and the direction in which you want to perform, choose the level (beginner, advanced, open class of amateurs ...).
But you need to get into the professionals, that is, win among amateurs, and then you are awarded this title of professional. As for international championships, then, of course, you must first get into the Russian team, gain a certain rating and get into the top ten best dancers or dancers in Russia. nine0003
– Are there any age limits for belly dancing? How old can they be?
- You can endlessly practice belly dancing in groups, fitness clubs (I don't mean professionals and stage performances).
Seven years ago, when I first went to Katharina Jumana's school, I saw a woman there who was then about eighty years old. Until now, I periodically come to study with her and still see this woman there. Imagine how old she is and she is in the continuing group - these are quite large loads, and her level is good. It is very pleasant when women of advanced years pay attention to themselves, their feelings, emotions, their female energy. Without this, belly dancing will not work. This is not a mechanical performance of certain exercises, this is an emotional action. And it's just great when a woman at that age is able and wants to present herself to society in such a way, to please herself. In our country, too, there are such quite old dancers. But from the age of 35, a woman is already considered a “signora”, although in fact this age is ridiculous for belly dancing. nine0003
– So?
Share
- There is a level of amateurs, if you take the competition, among older ladies.
There are such nominations as “signora” and “grand signora”. At 35, a woman is in her prime. It's no secret that with certain external data, belly dancing at 16 and at 30 are completely different weight categories. A thirty-year-old woman will certainly look much more advantageous than a girl at 16. Unfortunately, in our country everything is much more shifted towards the young. nine0003
– The older the woman, the better she dances?
- Yes. Because a girl at the age of 16 will not be able to say anything with her dance, practically nothing, except mechanically performing actions to beautiful oriental music. She has nothing more to say, she has not yet seen life. Belly dancing is the dance of a woman and the dance of life.
– What do you talk about in your dance?
– About what? About the mood that is at the moment, about my dreams, about the work of the soul that goes on in every woman, about love, about hatred ... About life! Belly dance is the dance of life.
nine0003
– Do you design and sew costumes for performances yourself?
– I have a whole tailoring studio at my school, where technologists work to develop models. Because it's one thing to come up with an image in your head, and another thing to technically embody it. What kind of fabric is attached to what, how it will look ... There are also masters in embroidery and there are artists who glue stones. Now they no longer dance in costumes where metal coins rattle. Today, almost all costumes are decorated with Swarovski stones, but sticking them up is also a great art, artists do it. And I make models. nine0003
- Why did they say no to coins?
- There are simply folklore trends in oriental dance, where a woman wore everything she had (including an infinite number of coins, bracelets on her hands) during the dance. Coins came to us from the past. And if we dance just such a folklore dance, we use it. If we dance a classic belly dance, the decorations are fundamentally different.
All costumes, music, the dance itself (dance vocabulary) are definitely developing. It's like a language. We do not speak with you in the language of our great-grandmothers, great-grandfathers. Oriental costume designers follow fashion trends. nine0003
– Do you stage the dance yourself too?
– Yes, of course I put on dances. In fact, it rarely happens that a performer is both a director, a teacher, and a tutor at the same time. These are different professions. And to combine them in one person is almost impossible. I get it. The only thing I don't work with beginners is that I don't have time.
- Did you play other sports?
Share
– Yes, I came from sports. She was engaged in rhythmic gymnastics, figure skating, choreography. It is imperative for belly dance (especially professional performance) that a base of classical dance is needed. Well, I always say, especially for little girls, not to start with belly dancing, but with some more serious exercises - rhythmic gymnastics, for example.
To stretch the bones, prepare the children's body, build it with a good muscle load, and at the age of juniors (from 11 years old) you can start belly dancing. nine0003
– Is there a special diet for belly dancing?
- No. There is no special diet. Of course, you do not need to specifically nurture the stomach. (Laughs.) In principle, all criteria of body aesthetics are acceptable for belly dancing.
- They say that belly dancing has a good effect not only on health, but also on the psyche of a woman, makes her more confident, relaxed. This is true? Maybe we should do some kind of dance therapy for shy girls?
- Yes, it is. Self-esteem becomes different in a woman. To go out and dance, you need to overcome your complexes. Belly dancing helps to walk through life without complexes and with confidence. This is extremely important. I don’t know about dance therapy ... It seems to me that when attending classes, stiffness goes away on its own.
nine0009
– Bellydance came from Arab countries, but it is believed that Russian women dance it best of all. Do you agree with this?
- Yes. It cannot be said that bellydance came from an Arab country. The origins of its origin are still not exactly known. Someone says that the Indian gypsies brought this dance to the Arab countries and the wives of the pharaohs learned from them to dance for their husbands. But the fact that today Russian dancers are the strongest in the world is a fact. Because we have a very serious choreographic base. Here, every second girl is engaged in rhythmic gymnastics or a children's dance club. We were initially formed choreographically. And when the ability to dance an oriental dance is superimposed on this knowledge, a good result is obtained. nine0003
– What do you think about the rivals from other countries?
Share
– Each country has its own nuances. Dancers from Arab countries may have a less developed dance culture and no classical choreographic base, but they have the call of blood .
.. We, in our northern cities with little sun and heat, of course, do not have enough of this. Therefore, we travel, attend classes, learn from these teachers.
There are also very strong dancers in America, but they can compete with us, because this dance has been developing there for more than 30 years and there are good schools and teaching methods. Every country has something to take. But in general, Russian dancers are more technical, and our stage dance culture is very high. nine0003
- There are capital cities for judo, boxing and other sports. That is, the cities where these sports are most developed. Is there a city where bellydance is especially developed?
- Yes. There are cities in which, over the past four or five years, fairly strong belly dance schools have developed: Yekaterinburg, Chelyabinsk are gaining momentum, which is good. Moscow, Petersburg, of course. And Lipetsk.
- After you finish performing, what will you do? nine0010
– I have a school, there is an ensemble based on the school.
We tour with this ensemble, they perform at international festivals and forums. I myself am the director of the international "Oasis-Festival". In any case, my life will be connected with dance. I am the President of the Europe-Asia International Charitable Foundation for the Development of Bellydance, which is engaged in the development and popularization of dance.
In addition, it is very good that belly dance assumes a later age even for stage performances. If in Latin or ballet 36 years old is the time of retirement, then in belly dancing at 30 years old they are just starting to really make a career. nine0003
– So you can retire from ballet, gain some weight and dance bellydance?
– Absolutely right! (Laughs.)
Natalia Bekker, world champion in belly dance, choreographer: “A 16-year-old girl can't say anything with her dance, she hasn't seen this life yet” | 74.ru
Share
Share
True beauty is timeless and knows no boundaries.
It is like music, the smooth outlines of the female body, movement, the brilliance of gold and stones. It's like... a belly dance. But bellydanse is not only a beautiful sight, but also a sport and a way of self-expression. And for the world champion in belly dance in 2004, the head and teacher of the most titled school-studio Oasis Dance in Russia, choreographer Natalia Bekker, bellydance is, perhaps, life. Natalia came to Chelyabinsk with her master classes from St. Petersburg and managed to talk about what a real belly dance is and why the dancer's not quite young age in it is only an advantage. nine0003
– Natalia, tell me, why did you start belly dancing?
- This is nostalgia for childhood. As a child, she lived in Krasnoyarsk, and then Indian films were very popular, but there were no Indian dance schools. I really wanted to do these dances.
Also, it seems to me that today belly dance classes are dictated by time. Even the most successful business woman wants to remember her feminine essence.
Apparently, because of this, this direction especially attracted my attention. For me, dancing has become a necessity. nine0003
– Who was your first coach?
– Katharina Djumana. I studied in Berlin.
– Why exactly there?
Share
– I often had to go on tour, because by education I am a choreographer-choreographer and a “populist” (I danced Russian, gypsy, Japanese, Spanish folk dances). In addition, all my relatives live in Germany. In Europe, belly dance schools have existed for about three decades, unlike in Russia (in our country, the dance direction is only gaining momentum). There have already developed their own teaching methods, the names of teachers are known far beyond the borders of their own countries. Since I am a professional, you need to learn a new dance direction from professionals in good schools. Visiting relatives once again, I tried to find out which schools are the best in this country. I studied with Haracio and Beata Cifuentes - they are one of the strongest dancers in the world.
nine0003
- How to get into the belly dance championship? Do you need to be a member of a league?
- If you mean just some kind of competition or championship, then you do not need to have membership in a league or in the All-Russian Dance Organization, but simply a desire. You choose the nomination and the direction in which you want to perform, choose the level (beginner, advanced, open class of amateurs ...).
But you need to get into the professionals, that is, win among amateurs, and then you are awarded this title of professional. As for international championships, then, of course, you must first get into the Russian team, gain a certain rating and get into the top ten best dancers or dancers in Russia. nine0003
– Are there any age limits for belly dancing? How old can they be?
- You can endlessly practice belly dancing in groups, fitness clubs (I don't mean professionals and stage performances). Seven years ago, when I first went to Katharina Jumana's school, I saw a woman there who was then about eighty years old.
Until now, I periodically come to study with her and still see this woman there. Imagine how old she is and she is in the continuing group - these are quite large loads, and her level is good. It is very pleasant when women of advanced years pay attention to themselves, their feelings, emotions, their female energy. Without this, belly dancing will not work. This is not a mechanical performance of certain exercises, this is an emotional action. And it's just great when a woman at that age is able and wants to present herself to society in such a way, to please herself. In our country, too, there are such quite old dancers. But from the age of 35, a woman is already considered a “signora”, although in fact this age is ridiculous for belly dancing. nine0003
– So?
Share
- There is a level of amateurs, if you take the competition, among older ladies. There are such nominations as “signora” and “grand signora”. At 35, a woman is in her prime. It's no secret that with certain external data, belly dancing at 16 and at 30 are completely different weight categories.
A thirty-year-old woman will certainly look much more advantageous than a girl at 16. Unfortunately, in our country everything is much more shifted towards the young. nine0003
– The older the woman, the better she dances?
- Yes. Because a girl at the age of 16 will not be able to say anything with her dance, practically nothing, except mechanically performing actions to beautiful oriental music. She has nothing more to say, she has not yet seen life. Belly dancing is the dance of a woman and the dance of life.
– What do you talk about in your dance?
– About what? About the mood that is at the moment, about my dreams, about the work of the soul that goes on in every woman, about love, about hatred ... About life! Belly dance is the dance of life. nine0003
– Do you design and sew costumes for performances yourself?
– I have a whole tailoring studio at my school, where technologists work to develop models. Because it's one thing to come up with an image in your head, and another thing to technically embody it.
What kind of fabric is attached to what, how it will look ... There are also masters in embroidery and there are artists who glue stones. Now they no longer dance in costumes where metal coins rattle. Today, almost all costumes are decorated with Swarovski stones, but sticking them up is also a great art, artists do it. And I make models. nine0003
- Why did they say no to coins?
- There are simply folklore trends in oriental dance, where a woman wore everything she had (including an infinite number of coins, bracelets on her hands) during the dance. Coins came to us from the past. And if we dance just such a folklore dance, we use it. If we dance a classic belly dance, the decorations are fundamentally different. All costumes, music, the dance itself (dance vocabulary) are definitely developing. It's like a language. We do not speak with you in the language of our great-grandmothers, great-grandfathers. Oriental costume designers follow fashion trends. nine0003
– Do you stage the dance yourself too?
– Yes, of course I put on dances.
In fact, it rarely happens that a performer is both a director, a teacher, and a tutor at the same time. These are different professions. And to combine them in one person is almost impossible. I get it. The only thing I don't work with beginners is that I don't have time.
- Did you play other sports?
Share
– Yes, I came from sports. She was engaged in rhythmic gymnastics, figure skating, choreography. It is imperative for belly dance (especially professional performance) that a base of classical dance is needed. Well, I always say, especially for little girls, not to start with belly dancing, but with some more serious exercises - rhythmic gymnastics, for example. To stretch the bones, prepare the children's body, build it with a good muscle load, and at the age of juniors (from 11 years old) you can start belly dancing. nine0003
– Is there a special diet for belly dancing?
- No. There is no special diet. Of course, you do not need to specifically nurture the stomach.
(Laughs.) In principle, all criteria of body aesthetics are acceptable for belly dancing.
- They say that belly dancing has a good effect not only on health, but also on the psyche of a woman, makes her more confident, relaxed. This is true? Maybe we should do some kind of dance therapy for shy girls?
- Yes, it is. Self-esteem becomes different in a woman. To go out and dance, you need to overcome your complexes. Belly dancing helps to walk through life without complexes and with confidence. This is extremely important. I don’t know about dance therapy ... It seems to me that when attending classes, stiffness goes away on its own. nine0009
– Bellydance came from Arab countries, but it is believed that Russian women dance it best of all. Do you agree with this?
- Yes. It cannot be said that bellydance came from an Arab country. The origins of its origin are still not exactly known. Someone says that the Indian gypsies brought this dance to the Arab countries and the wives of the pharaohs learned from them to dance for their husbands.
But the fact that today Russian dancers are the strongest in the world is a fact. Because we have a very serious choreographic base. Here, every second girl is engaged in rhythmic gymnastics or a children's dance club. We were initially formed choreographically. And when the ability to dance an oriental dance is superimposed on this knowledge, a good result is obtained. nine0003
– What do you think about the rivals from other countries?
Share
– Each country has its own nuances. Dancers from Arab countries may have a less developed dance culture and no classical choreographic base, but they have the call of blood ... We, in our northern cities with little sun and heat, of course, do not have enough of this. Therefore, we travel, attend classes, learn from these teachers.
There are also very strong dancers in America, but they can compete with us, because this dance has been developing there for more than 30 years and there are good schools and teaching methods.
Every country has something to take. But in general, Russian dancers are more technical, and our stage dance culture is very high. nine0003
- There are capital cities for judo, boxing and other sports. That is, the cities where these sports are most developed. Is there a city where bellydance is especially developed?
- Yes. There are cities in which, over the past four or five years, fairly strong belly dance schools have developed: Yekaterinburg, Chelyabinsk are gaining momentum, which is good. Moscow, Petersburg, of course. And Lipetsk.
- After you finish performing, what will you do? nine0010
– I have a school, there is an ensemble based on the school. We tour with this ensemble, they perform at international festivals and forums. I myself am the director of the international "Oasis-Festival". In any case, my life will be connected with dance. I am the President of the Europe-Asia International Charitable Foundation for the Development of Bellydance, which is engaged in the development and popularization of dance.
