Sara Shrapnell is available to teach workshops throughout the UK.  She regularly teaches for Celebrating Dance, and many other festivals, aimed at Bellydancer, dancers of other styles and general interest.  Sara is a full time bellydance teacher and international performer.  She qualified with City and Guilds and ASMED in 2003, and then spent 4 years mentoring other teachers as they trained.  As well as continued study in the UK she makes an annual trip to the US for intensive work with some of the best teachers in the world.  Her workshops are known for mixing her proven techniques in teaching for all different learning styles, with history, emotion and lots of humour and fun.  All the workshops below can be adapted as a One on One or Private lesson, see here for details.

 

Below is a list of suggested topics, although workshops can be adjusted to suit the attendees.  Bookings need to be made as early as possible--please contact Sara via email to check availability info@letsbellydance.co.uk

 

 

NEW FOR 2010 !

 

Dance from the Heart, NO REALLY ! - Improvers - 1 or 2 hours

So often we hear that this dance comes from the heart and that we need to feel the music.  To some this makes perfect sense and comes naturally, but for others you might as well be asking them to dance on the ceiling.  This workshop takes us back to our basic moves and explains how to power them more centrally, how to build energy, without feeling like a hippy, how to stretch and contract to give that look of dancing from the heart.  As we work the body to dance from the heart, so the mind is opened up to the idea and we can begin to really feel the music.  Essential for those who learn more physically, or who tend to over think.

 

Desert Hero - Beginners/ Improvers - 1 hour

Possibly the sweetest choreography you have ever danced ! - Just listening to this Ron Goodwin piece will have you flirting and fluttering your eyelashes.  Although all these moves should be familiar to you the choreography has been put together to make use of levels, directions and all parts of the body, making it appear much more complex than it is, giving us lots of opportunity to play around.  As a short solo its perfect to add into your dance set, or perform at a Hafla.  It can also be easily adapted as a duet or group number.  Mix and match in with my Preparing for Performance or Duets workshops below.

 

Running a Troupe - Advanced/ Teachers / Troupe members - 1 or 2 hour (discussion)

Running a troupe can be a thankless task and one that often falls in your lap, just as you take on more performing, classes or students.  In this workshop we will clarify roles, talk about setting aims, objectives and rules and still keeping your troupe fun for you and your members.  Sara has spent 6 years building up Mersin, during which time there have been many difficult transitions, which has lead her to evolve as a troupe leader and director.  She now also uses these skills to lead her student troupe Nashida Abla, and her Tribal Fusion group.  This workshop can also be hugely beneficial as  a one on one session,.

 

Party Games for Bellydancers - All levels - 1 hour

Perfect for the end of the day or just before your Hafla !  Lots of interaction, loads of bellydance, a bit of brain gym, some competition and a buckets of laughs.  Using moves that are familiar we spend the whole hour playing around.  Can you and your partner See Saw ?, which team will steal the flag ?, and can you spot the Figure 8 murderer ?  Great for team building, drilling, co-ordination..... Ok, really its just loads of fun !

 

 

Workshops available--2009/10

 

 

Technique

 

Group Improvisation - Don’t Panic ! - all levels - 1 or 2 hours.

Using the groups favourite moves learn how to move like a flock without having to pre-plan or choreograph.  Not only a hugely useful skill for dancers but also a relaxing and inspiring way to dance with others.  Aimed at helping groups gel together, you will learn how to dance together even when everything that can go wrong has gone wrong.  Making sure the audience never suspect a thing--a must for every troupe !

 

Frame and Flow - Improvers - 1 or 2 hours.

What to do with your arms!  A session of finger, hand, wrist, elbow, shoulder and arm exercises aimed at freeing the arms to flow with the music.  How to use framing to lead the audiences eye to where the action is and what to do with them while they are framing.

 

Stop right there ! - Improvers/Intermediates--1 or 2 hours.

Continuing with the veil, experiment with each stage of the unwrapping process to see what moves work with each framing position.  Learn to tuck and un tuck at different points to enhance your costume or choreography, where to turn and where to hold the pose.  This workshop is best done in a room with mirrors, and as well as veils, students would need to bring clothing with shoulder straps (bra/vest) and a waist band.

 

Duets, Sparkling Stars  - Improvers/Intermediates - 2 hours.

The advantages of Duets are too many to list, but dancing with a good friend can be one of the most rewarding ways of using your knowledge of Middle Eastern Dance.  This workshop focuses on duets, but the techniques can be used for any group dance.  It covers writing for a duet, learning your dance, framing each other, shifting the focus and the chance to "rough learn" a choreography that you can take away and improve.

 

Adding fast combinations into your Tribal Fusion dance - Improvers/ Intermediates (with some knowledge of a Tribal style) - 2 hours

Fast combinations can be breath taking when put into a Tribal improvisation of any style, but where to start, how to get the balance right and how to cue them in ?  In this workshop you will learn how to write a fast combination, drill it and then place it into the group improvisation with confidence.  During the second half of the workshop sub-groups will work on their own.

 

Also available :

Layering - Improvers/Intermediates - 1 or 2 hours.

Dance on Glasses- Advanced -  1 1/2 or 2 hours

Preparing for performance - Improvers/Intermediates - 1 or 2 hours.

Introduction to Tribal style - Improvers - 1 or 2 hours.

Basic Veil - all levels - 1 or 2 hours.

Stick dance, Sword, Costuming, Travelling moves, Character dances and one on one performance assessments.

Email Sara for more details : info@letsbellydance.co.uk

 

 

Choreographies

 

 

Mine--Improvers/ Intermediates--2 hours

Using cool combos that are drilled at speed learn the core of this choreography that can then be performed in a leisurely and elegant way.  Best done as a group dance or duet this number is modern Turkish pop meets show stopping staging.

 

Afrahou Gannouth--Beginners/ Improvers--1 or 2 hour

Full of emotion, this choreography is a great introduction to projecting feeling into your dance.  Can be fully structured or we can explore different emotions by changing the directions of travel, angles of the body and arm positions.

 

Ariftu Albi Lamin - Intermediates - 2 hours.

A great choreography for co-operation and team work.  While focusing on the moves, dancers will have to improve their timings to work in tight groups for this choreography.  More suited to those who want to improve their technique and timing rather than have an energetic workout.

 

Raks Musri  - Beginner/Improver/Intermediates - 1 ½ to 2 hours.

A classic, golden age choreography, which includes more musical interpretation and is a good start for dancers wishing to link different atmospheres.  A 40-minute set reduced to 3 and a half minutes!  It includes work on entrances, movement, Taqasim, hits and finishes.  Suitable for all levels, where dancers can adapt the movements to fit their abilities.

 

Technique and Choreography

 

Wow with Hips and Zills !!! - Improver/ Intermediate - 2 hours

So many dancers in this country think that dancing with Zills is an unachievable skill, and while they might take years to master this workshop will have everyone dancing and playing interesting Zills by the end of the session.  There are no patterns to learn, no marching and no remembering silly rhymes - Just a good honest drum solo choreography where the zills match so beautifully they just become part of the dance.  The music is short and sweet, lending itself perfectly to being added to your usual dance set.  Bring a set of four zills, segat or finger cymbals, with the elastic fitted and four small safety pins in case you need to adjust.  No prior experience needed of Zills.

 

Betwannis Beek - Intermediate/Advance - 2 hours

First we work on turns, adding power and control.  Then we learn this beautiful choreography to the Hafla favourites The REG Project, adding veil as we go.  The end result is a beautiful dance, where the veil enhances the dancer, the turns look natural and comfortable and we can loose ourselves in the mix of soft gooey phrases and upbeat shimmies.  Please bring a veil, preferably hemmed or weighted.

 

 

 

Other Options

 

 

Discussion groups - all levels - 1 ½ to 2 hours

Give your students the chance to talk to each other!  A good facilitator can lead the groups through an interesting and thought provoking discussion while giving everyone a chance to have their voice heard and their opinions shared.  Topics would depend on the group but could cover dancing for ourselves, conveying emotion to an audience, planning and building a character number and sex and sensuality - where we draw the line.

 

Talks and lectures - Beginners/Improvers - 20 minutes to 1 hour

Covering anything from an introduction to Belly dance in the UK through my experiences as a dancer and performer to the origins and use of props in our dance.  Each talk would be tailored to the audience and could include demonstrations or audience participation as required.

 

My "Styles of Bellydance" lecture is always popular, for which I can present either the most basic 10 styles or up to 40, depending on the level and interest of the students.  This can be accompanied by video clips, or (as seen at Celebrating Dance 07) a group of dancers can be asked to dance in each style.  Lots of fun and an enjoyable way to round off a hard day of workshops (up to 2 hours).

 

Private lessons

Sara is happy to tailor a private lesson to your needs.  Please contact her with an outline of what your aims are, both long term and short, your experience level and the time you have available.  All of the workshops above are available for a private lesson, you can mix and match, or ask for something completely different.  If you would like a choreography written for you then you will need to book two sessions a week or two apart  If you would like an assessment then please provide a video clip two weeks in advance of your session.  More details are Here.

 

Booking

 

To book please email Sara direct to confirm availability.  Saturdays tend to book up early in the year, while Sundays are more readily available, Monday and Fridays are an option subject to practice space being available.  info@letsbellydance.co.uk

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