Asata has been bellydancing for more than 10 years. After living and travelling through Egypt and the Sudan she returned home and created Divvadance Productions to address the needs of women of color, full-figured women and older women who have the desire to learn and perform the ancient art of bellydance. She teaches in the East Bay. To learn more about classes and performance opportunities see Asata's listing in OPEN EXCHANGE's Dance category.

The magic in dance is the power it has to transform how you see yourself. This time of the year I always feel a yearning to learn something new. It's probably a throw-back to my childhood days when after the summer we returned to school. Whether it's taking up an art or photography class, signing onto yet another exercise regiment or searching out a new kind of dance form to pursue; this time of the year seems to bring out the student in all of us.

It was at the end of one of those particularly long summers that I decided to search for a belly dance class. I was surprised to learn how hard it was to find a teacher and the right class for me. Initially you'll probably have to shop around and try out different classes, styles and teachers. You might decide that privates work best for you. You might need the comfort and suppport of the group learning environment. It's important to give any new style of dance that you incorporate into your life time to settle into your bones. Give it some time.

Now that I've been bellydancing for more than 10 years, I still find it hard to believe that this particular dance has stayed interesting enough to make it into my daily practice. I use it for exercise, for meditation, as a creative outlet and as a means of income. It feeds my soul in a way that other dance forms did not, though I still love watching any kind of dance.When the world seems to be turned upside, down I dance. When chaos threatens to knock me into the pits of despair and confusion, I dance. After I've watched the news on yet another bombing in the Middle East or hear of another shootings of a young person in Richmond, I dance. When joy overflows in my heart and I feel I can soar, I dance. It seems as humans we have always danced whether ritualistically, in preparation for battle or for the sheer love of it. We enjoy participating in and watching dance.

As a student and now teacher of dance here are some tips I've picked up on how to approach a new dance class and more specifically how to survive in a belly dance class.

Take care of you. Be gentle and patient with yourself. Don't compete with or compare yourself to other women in the class. Some students will keep themselves in a beginner class way too long. Keep that in mind when you see the same students up in the front looking like they know more than the teacher. It is important to find the right class and the right teacher for you. There is no reason to stay in a class where you feel uncomfortable or don't feel a connection with either the teaching style or the class. There are lots of good teachers out there. If a teacher binds you to her she isn't necessarily doing you a favor. There are teachers out there that actually make their students feel guilty if they venture beyond their classroom. Don't buy that. It's good to go out there and take classes with other teachers. Everyone has something to teach you. Explore the different styles of the dance. Classical egyptian...tribal...gypsy, folkloric, etc.

Get out of your head. For me, the basics didn't come easy. I, like many of the students I've worked with, lived in my head. I felt safe there. Over the years I had learn to disconnect from my body. I did what I had to do and didn't stop to think about how my body moved through space. I was like a head floating through my day. Also, thinking too hard gets in the way of executing even the simple moves. I remember learning snake arms. My teacher would say "lift from your elbow". I forgot how to move my elbow, okay! It was like she was speaking to me in arabic....I often have to tell my students that dancing is not always a "think thing"it's a "do thing". Your body knows naturally what to do. Release and get out of the way.

Sacred Spaces. Create your own special dance space to practice in. Of course you can't learn to dance if you don't practice outside of the classroom but you knew that, right? Initially, I set up a small corner in my bedroom and worked on isolations where you move just your arms or chest or just your hips, etc. . I put one of those narrow mirrors up against a wall, put on one of the two bellydance cd's I owned and did what I could remember from my classes. Dance time became sacred time for me. A note about the mirror...don't get mesmerzied by it. Though for some of us I have to say falling in love with your image in the mirror is a good way to begin to turn around all the negative images and views we oten have of our bodies as women. But, we can also spend too much time criticizing everything we do or what we look like. It's good to just dance freely around the room.

Make time for you. Initially, the warm-up moves feel hard, strenuous. In the beginning I felt like "Damn, I'm so out of shape". Do not push yourself during the warm-up stretches. Take your time. Do conscious stretching. Let your body warm and melt into the stretches. Don't hurry through them. Let all the stress from the day fade into your stretches. The change will be really noticeable, I promise. Especially with the after work classes I always needed a moment to call my energy back into my body. A good warm-up stretch will energize and feed you.

Start where you are. All of us come to this dance in different degrees of fitness but, we all start somewhere. During my early bellydance classes, I felt ridiculous. I'm just being honest. Standing with my arms out to the side, my pelvic tucked in and my knees soft...just plain ridiculous! Eventually, that stance began to feel more normal. Sure, I was out of shape and stiff when I started. My shoulders were all hunched up into my neck and earlobes and at times my whole body felt like one big knot. Little by little my body began to relax. And fact it, we live in a stressful world When you feel stuck or sore...relax and breathe. But don't give up.

Posture...Posture...Posture. Not just when you are dancing but, all of the time. Remember to tuck! Lift your chest. Elongate the torso. Open your chest. Breathe. Pull your shoulders down. Take up some space. Open your arms. Soft, spongy knees. There are lots of reasons why women learn to take up less space. And, we feel vulnerable when we have to lift our chests and open our arms. It is the process of opening up to our own selves that makes this such a powerful dance...go with the flow. Take your space in the world.

Your own energy flow. Feel the lift. At the same time ground yourself and begin to feel more balanced and solid when you move. I found I became more conscious of the very space I moved through. We often move like we've got lead shoes on. We slam walk into room, check it out! Become more aware of your sides, your front & back and even how your feet hit the ground when you walk. Look around and notice which women moving around look like they are truly inhabiting their bodies and those who don't. It's a real shocker to discover you might be one of them.

Listen to music. All kinds of music. Bellydance music. Classical music. Jazz, hip hop...Don't just put it on as background...really listen to it! Pay attention to the drum(s). Feel how the other instruments (including the singers) weave and flow through the music. The more familiar you become with the sounds and energy of middle eastern music the better. The music is the key. If you feel intimidated by the music or just can't find the "beat" consider taking music, drumming or finger cymbal classes along with your dance classes. Get your veil out and just swing it all over the place to the music. All of these will enhance your dancing and enjoyment of this art form. When you dance you and the music can become one. It's a beautiful thing I tell you.

Dance for the sheer joy of it. Sometimes it will be a particular rhythm that moves you or inspires you to put the new moves you are learning into little choreography. I know I've got a new dance when a particular piece of music raises the hair on the back of my neck. I just have to dance to it. I listen to a piece of music over and over and over....before I dance to it. Music is like air to a dancer. Some music moves me to tears. I can't rest until I perform to it. Other music makes me feel like I can fly. Experiment with music and see what it does to you.

Check out other dancers. You can always find a bellydancer dancing somewhere. Visit restaurants with dancers. Go to festivals. As you learn the moves, you will be able to identify what the dancer is doing and appreciate how she puts it all together. Understand that the dancers that make it look easy are probably the every ones who practice a lot. Be an appreciative audience member. Be supportive of other dancers. Come to terms with the fact that she is she and you are you. As a belly dancer you have the chance to develop your own unique style. How it looks on you isn't how it will look on me and it's important to develop an appreciation of the diversity of women (and men) who perform this dance.

Keep an open mind. If one form of dance doesn't work for you try a different one. Don't stop moving. As we get older it's even more important to find some form of movement we can incorporate into our daily ritual . In fact I'm going to add another dance to my line-up. I'm starting a adult ballet class this month. I feel a little bit intimidated but ahhh the stretch of it all. Happy Dancing.