Dance Tips by Saqra

Learning to Belly Dance

• How to Get the Most out of Practice Time. Tips for organizing your practice time for best results.
• Wearing Coin Scarves to Workshops. Insight on when you should, when you shouldn't, and why.
• No Need to be Afraid of Private Lessons. Saqra offers a belly dance tip on how to take the fear out of private lessons through preparation.
• Keep Asking. Why some moves seem especially difficult to master, and offers tips on what to do about it.
• Learning Choreography. Easy-to-use tips for learning a choreography.
• Connector (Transition) Steps for Belly Dance Improvisation. One of the techniques you can use to learn how to dance freestyle, without choreography.
• How to Get Your Money's Worth from a Choreography Workshop. How to make use of what you learned, even if you don't plan to perform it.
• Horrible Workshops. No matter how disappointed you are by a workshop, it's possible to gain something of value. Here's how.
• No Need to Be Intimidated by Workshops! Saqra takes the fear out of attending a workshop by explaining why you don't need to worry.

Musical Interpretation

• Drum Solo Builds. How to build the energy in a drum solo.
• Holding Accents. After the accent, then what?
• Belly Dancing to Fast Drum Solos. Musical interpretation for drum solos, by Saqra.
• Different Musical Sections, Different Moods. Advice on choosing music to showcase your range of dance skills.
• Preparing Performance Music. Tips for editing music for your performances.
• Performing to Alternative Music. Insight into how to create a compelling performance to non-Middle-Eastern music.

PHOTO CREDIT: Photo by Sarah Selwood, Leeds, United Kingdom.

Dance Technique

• Exploring Undulations. How to create an endless variety of undulations in your dance.
• Walk Like a Belly Dancer! How to place your feet gracefully for walking and dancing.
• Belly Dance Spins Without Vomiting. Several tips for taming nausea when spinning.
• Belly Dance Tips for Arms. Tips for graceful arm technique, costuming, and posing.
• Hands Off Hips for Rib Cage Isolations! Why you need different hand placement for rib cage circles and other torso movement.
• Drum Solo Accent Chains. How to build sequences of accents that make sense together.
• Pop, Drop, & Lock Technique in Drum Solos. How to use accents in ways that enhance your dance.
• Alternatives to Shimmies When Dancing to Drum Solos.
• Dance Technique for Lovely Hands. How to hold your hands attractively when you dance.
• How to Improvise in Floor Work. Use this simple format to make your dance flow beautifully.
• Using Your Hair to Extend Movements. How to use your hair, real or imagined, to bring extra life into your dance movements.
• Becoming the Best Belly Dance Performer You Can Be: Part 2, Technical Skill. Checklist to help you become a better performer through assessing your technical dance skills.
• Finishing an Extended Leg Pose. How to do it, and why it matters.
• A Few Quick Tips for Double Veil. Here are a few ideas to make double veil easier to learn and perform.

PHOTO CREDIT: Photo by Michael Baxter, Santa Clara, California.

Belly Dance Lifestyle

• Belly Dance Serendipity Bag: Have Costume, Will Dance! Travel with a costume in your car or suitcase, just in case...
• Lighting for Your Belly Dance Photos and Videos. Preserve your dance memories by avoiding common pitfalls in using your camera.
• Travel: Photographing Art. Tips for taking photos of art in museums and tombs.

Performing Skills

Starting to Perform

• Easing Stage Fright. Technique to feel more comfortable with your audience.
• Simple Calming Technique. Useful for not only stage fright, but also other stressful situations.
• Choosing Costume & Acts Appropriate to the Situation. By Saqra. How to be welcome at events and increase your popularity with audiences.
• Appearance Anxiety in Belly Dance Performance. By Saqra. Why your performance helps other people.

Captivating Your Audience

• Facial Expressions for Performers. How to maintain appropriate facial expressions when performing.
• The 70% Rule. How to use restraint to keep your audience captivated, by Saqra.
• Continuity of Movement. Use "glowing green goo" to lead your audience's eyes through your dance.
• Entrances, Song Transitions, and Stage Presence. Make the connection with your audience and your music.
• Making Your Prop Dancing Memorable. How to make your prop performances more exciting and compelling for the audience.
• Saqra's Four-Part Checklist for Becoming a Better Performer — Use these checklists to assess yourself and look for ways to make yourself a better performer:
  • Part 1, Appearance. Checklist to help you become a better performer through assessing your costume and makeup.
  • Part 2, Technical Skill. Checklist to help you become a better performer through assessing your technical dance skills.
  • Part 3, Entertainment Ability. Checklist to help you become a better performer through assessing your abiity to entertain people.
  • Part 4, Content of Your Routine. Checklist to help you become a better performer through assessing how your dance routine fits together.
• Belly Dance Commentary: Flash vs Soul. Saqra offers thoughts on different performance styles - high-energy as opposed to lyrical.

Bloopers

• Handling Bloopers. What to do next if an embarrassing blooper happens.
• Dealing with Your Hair in Your Face. By Saqra. How to handle the situation gracefully.
• Stuck on Stage? How to Escape! What to do if you want or need to leave the stage before the expected end of your set.

Other Things to Consider

• Adrenaline Effects on Belly Dance Performance. How your body's chemistry affects your dancing.
• Go to the Light! How to be aware of lighting when you perform and use it to your advantage.
• Live Music Will Not Kill You. How to partner with live musicians to create a show you can ALL be happy with!
• 3 Basic Tips for Choosing Music for Your Performance. Tips for working with your collection of belly dance music and choosing which to use for performances.
• Writing an Introduction or Bio for Yourself. Make the audience look forward to seeing you dance!

PHOTO CREDIT: Photo by Michael Baxter, Santa Clara, California.

Costume, Appearance, Hygiene, Grooming

Costume

• Securing Clear Bra Straps Under a Costume. How to keep the straps hidden without damaging them.
• Are You Sure Your Costume Isn't See-Through? (You Might Be Surprised!) A word to the wise.
• About Persian Lace. Saqra provides background information about this fabric used in many belly dance costumes in the 1970's and 1980's.
• Belly Dance Costume Checklist. Points to consider when deciding which costumes to buy, or which to use for upcoming shows.
• Belly Dance Costume Maintenance: Prolonging the Life of Your Sparklies.
• Cheap Costume Jewelry for Belly Dancing. Some tips for using it.
• Why Wear a Cover-up at a Show? Saqra explains why it's important.
• Tips for Tall Belly Dancers. Props, posture, costuming, and more.

Makeup and Grooming

• Color Levels: Teeth and Skin. How far should you go in bleaching your teeth or tanning your skin?
• Hygiene vs Dance Opportunities. Public service announcement to avoid losing gigs.
• Belly Dance Makeup to Go With Your Costume. Things to consider when choosing makeup colors and deciding how much to apply.
• Four Stage Makeup Tips for Older Belly Dancers. Suggestions for applying stage makeup to camouflage some of the signs of aging.
• Tips for Making Eyeliner "Wings" in Stage Makeup. By Saqra.
• Becoming the Best Belly Dance Performer You Can Be: Part 1, Your Appearance. Checklist to help you become a better performer through assessing your costume and makeup.

Teaching Belly Dance

• Finger Cymbals. Saqra explains why it is important for belly dance teachers to introduce finger cymbals to beginners, rather than waiting.
• Voice Control for Dance Classes. By Saqra. How to use your voice when teaching belly dance classes to create a comfortable classroom experience for all.
• Keep Asking. What new teachers need to know about helping students learn the moves.

Events

• Why Many Belly Dance Events Ban Flash Photography. Insight for belly dance event organizers on how improve quality of videos and photos for performers.

PHOTO CREDIT: Photo by Michael Baxter, Santa Clara, California.

Business and Promotion

• Selecting Photographs to Use for Promotion. By Saqra.
• Protecting Against Fraudulent Inquiries. By Saqra. How to separate legitimate inquiries for classes and gigs from schemes to cheat you out of your money.
• Our Value to the Public as Belly Dancers. By Saqra. Reflections on what your performance is really worth, financially speaking.

Musing

• Passion in Belly Dance. Thoughts about passion in belly dance performance, how trends set by high-profile dancers affect it, and cycles.
• Appearance Anxiety in Belly Dance Performance. By Saqra. Why your performance helps other people.
• Our Value to the Public as Belly Dancers. By Saqra. Reflections on what your performance is really worth, financially speaking.

Just for Fun

• Advice to Chickens on How to Do Belly Dance Entrances. A playful version of Saqra's dance tip on entrances, written for people who love birds as much as Saqra does!