The Husband of a Bellydancer Story.

Ok, so it is not what you were thinking. My beautiful found her way to belly dance a few years ago. Initially it was Egyptian style that caught her eye. Then one day, she fell in love with the movement, costumes and adornments of American Tribal Style. She was hooked. She signed up for the classes at Belly Up under the guidance of the Mighty Valizan. My journey really begins there. Her transformation has been nothing short of enlightening. Her grace and self confidence have flourished in those classes. Not only through the life filled with dance, but the bonds that have grown with Valizan and the others in the classes, studio and indeed the entire belly dance community. I have been dragged into this life with her, although not unwillingly. She has been the core of my support these many years, giving my support to her and dance has been a thrill ride. Through this, we have both developed a very strong friendship that lives on outside of the dance world. All of this is fostered in the studio. Joharah has created such a beautiful home for these women to relish in each others common love. Everyone is welcome, everyone is encouraged. All of us are blessed by this new found family. John Hobbs Husband of a Belly Dancer

Cindy - My Journey into Bellydance

My journey began while looking for something to help alleviate the stress caused by a very rough period of time in my life. I also wanted to restore some quality time with my daughter. I tried going to a local all women's gym which had somewhat helped but I got bored. I tried yoga and pilates but still nothing was settling my mind. I saw an ad in the local paper offering bellydance classes My daughter and I bravely signed up and wonder of wonders it was the most amazing thing I have ever done! I finally found the ability to concentrate on something other than the bad things that were going on. I started to feel alive and come out of my shell I had been hiding in. I started to interact with others again. I spread my wings and flew! My daughter humoured me and danced alongside me (I think she knew I needed someone to hold my hand) for a little while but felt she needed to move on in another direction. One of the biggest things I've learned is that its okay to be any size or shape, and feel good about it! I've also discovered that the music can take me away to a magical place that helps me escape the reality of day to day doldrums and it's a healthy thing to do! Sure, problems continue to come and go but I now I feel better equipped to discern what's worth worrying about and what I can let go.

Marlee's Journey in Bellydance

Belly dancing has become my identity. It's my creative outlet, my life's passion. And, as with any passion, mine as been kept alive through new challenges, the quest for self improvement, and inspiration from my teacher and fellow dancers. When I joined Bellyup I was not a total beginner. I had had some experience in my twenties and again in my mid-fifties. But, when I reflect on what has transpired in the past three years, I am in awe! Back then I was really feeling the limits of my age. I was afraid to over-exert myself in case of injury. I thought my back was too fragile to handle deep hip circles. Three-point turns terrified me, and "cute" or "sexy" moves made me feel as if I looked ridiculous! Over time, with Joharah's encouragement and my own determination, I have become the dancer that never in a million years I imagined I could be! And it's not about the quality or calibre of my dancing --- it's all about the growth and improvement. It's been gradual and subtle, but the improvement is what continues to amaze me. I'm no longer fearful of new challenges that seem beyond my capabilities. I'm even starting to "let loose" on the dancefloor! Dancing is what keeps my spirit alive. Attending classes, and practicing and performing with my equally passionate dance "sisters" has enriched my life beyond words. Turn the music on and the smile on my face says it all! Marlee

Share Your Bellydance Story with Us!

BellyUp wants to feature the stories of your journey into bellydance. Whether you’re a beginner, an advanced student or somewhere in between, if you have a story to share with us about what bellydance means to you, or has done for you please share it ! Your story is guaranteed to inspire others and we love to hear them! We’ll be featuring your story on our BellyUp Blog and our web site. And if you have a photo of yourself that we can use please share that too and we can include it with your story. Email to info@bellyup.ca We look forward to hearing from you.

Summer is an awesome season to learn a new art form. Come learn Bellydance at a one-of-a-kind studio that is dedicated to teaching it and celebrating it as an art form! Classes for all levels. Check out the link below for what's happening at BellyUp this Summer! http://myemail.constantcontact.com/Countdown-to-Summer-Bellydance-Classes--Start-July-4th-.html?soid=1102010861709&aid=4VooWCPvoaY

You Never Forget Your First Time!

Like most bellydance students they never forget their very first performance. Maybe it was a student recital or a friend's birthday party. No matter where it was it'll always be an important milestone in your life. I'll certainly never forget my first few times performing even though they are pretty blurry memories mainly due to nerves. As much as I was dying to perform when the event was 2 months away, by the day of the event my performance nerves (they weren't just jitters) were so bad I felt as though my legs were like rubber bands. Once I was performing though I didn't feel a thing and had a great time. I enjoyed performing and still do, it just took alot to get me out there. I'd go through days and days of anxiety and the day of the show I'd think "what have I got myself into" all day long. The aftermath of the performance was usually several days of beating myself up for what I didn't do or what I could have done better. Thank God those days are over and I'm alot more relaxed and happy about performing. What I realized is that I'm way too hard on myself and it took a long time to give myself kudos for doing what I was doing. Remember it takes guts and hutzpah to get all costumed up and get up on stage solo or with a troupe not to mention the dedication and commitment of time you'll devote to learning and rehearsing your choreography. So give yourself alot of credit for each time you perform. Look at every performance as training for future performances. Get your teacher to give you a few pointers on what to work on for next time but take it constructively not personally. Remember the more opportunity you have to perform, the more you'll learn. If you are a junior dance student interested in performing offer to escort a lead dancer at your studio so you can see how she handles the client, the audience and watch her performance. You'll learn a lot and she'll appreciate some extra help at her gig and the support. I'll never forget the areas that my teacher pointed out to me to improve nor the important insights I gained from more experienced dancers when I was apprencticing. To calm my nerves before going on, I do a good warmup. Sometimes I don't have space to warm up at the venue so I'll spend time at home doing some stretching especially for my lower back, legs and upper body before I leave for the show. Nerves tighten up the body so a warm up is really important. I want my shimmy to be in good form by show time and if my legs are all full of nerves that's not going to help me power up my shimmy when I need it most. While I'm waiting to go on stage I spend that time shimmying, doing figure 8's, circles and undulations to keep myself stretched and warm. I also spend time on my own just to collect my thoughts, have a few moments to reflect inwardly and do some breathwork. I need my focus and attention on the performance, my music and my audience. I also never, ever watch the performer ahead of me either. I used to and then ended up comparing my performance to hers and worrying if I would do as well. Remember your performance will be what it is because of who you are. You will not dance the way the girl in front of you will or the one that follows you. So just go out and do your personal best for you. That's what matters most. And that's the biggest thing I've learned out of many years of performing. If I can say that I gave it my best then I'm happy with that. And if I made some of my audience smile and get up and dance with me along the way then all the nerves were worth it! Joharah

BellyUp Raising Money for Egyptian Society of Mercy to Animals

Get ready for Friday, April 29th when BellyUp hosts an International Dance Day Celebration at our studio here in Oakville. We are raising money and awareness for EMSA and we'd like you to join us for a night of dance, friends, food, prizes and more with guest star Jim Boz from San Diego, Cassandra Fox and others plus BellyUp's very own Tarab Dancers, Tribe Maya Fire and Joharah performing. Tickets are on sale now at BellyUp. $30 per person.

Plus Sized Women's Bellydance Event

Curvey Divas Unite Friday, February 25th, 7:30-9:30pm. $22 in advance. $30 at the door. Tickets on sales through BellyUp. Bellydance is made for plus sized women and we've created an event to introduce the curvacious diva to the feminine, beautiful, empowering world of bellydance. Join us for this fun event. Click here for details.

BellyUp Fundraising Event for Egyptian Society of Mercy for Animals

Join us April 29th/International Dance Day at BellyUp for a gala Fundraising evening. Click here for more information.

New Year of Bellydance

Our new year of belly dance is well underway at BellyUp. Something about spending cold winter nights in the warmth of BellyUp's exotic studio environment that just makes the winter doldrums disappear week by week. Winter is certainly not my favourite time of year...I'm a big fan of summer so for me keeping myself busy with new challenges and creative projects is the best way to get through the cold days and nights. My thoughts of snow certainly disappear every day I enter BellyUp and teaching is of course my favourite thing to do. New students full of excitement fill the studio with so much enthusiasm. And it's so exciting and rewarding to see how my beginners of last year are now inspiration for the new students entering our bellydance programs. I spend lots of time listening to new music I've bought from Egypt and developing new choreographies for our troupes and our classes, and thinking up new and creative class plans for our ever growing student population. In addition, plans for new master workshops such as Faten Salama of Egypt in March and the amazing Nourhan Sharif of NYC are great events for all of us to prepare for and look forward to. I always enjoy our Open Houses that launch or new season of dance. Our January open house was a huge hit. Everyone was really charged up to get back to dancing after a long holiday season. People tell me that BellyUp's Open Houses are the best! Great energy fills the house always and everyone feels so at home ... they always say they don't want to leave. We just love what we do so much at BellyUp and it shows. This is more than just a dance studio ... it's a community of passionate people who come together to share their love of this art form. And if you're a newbie and have never experienced belly dance before you're sure to catch the fever or at the very least be somewhat captivated by what we love about this dance form. So as we move through 2011 with plenty of exciting experiences to share together we also have the highlight at year end of travelling to Cairo again for the Nile Group Festival . As I walk through the studio each evening I hear students talking about the propsect of attending and making plans for the big journey. There's quite a build up to travelling to Egypt and the anticipation is almost as exhiliarating at the trip itself. This year I'm looking forward to more new students exploring the land of Oriental dance together and returning with many from the previous year. More info on that to come. Joharah