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About the Dance...
Oriental dance is a beautiful and feminine art form born on the shores of the southern Mediterranean, nurtured on the Nile, and today performed worldwide. The term "belly dance" comes from the nineteenth century French "danse du ventre" ("dance of the stomach") and is a simplified term for a dance that involves the whole torso, especially the hips. The Arabic name is "Raqs El Sharqi," literally translated as "dance of the East;" hence, "Oriental dance." Perhaps 5,000 years old, the dance traditionally adorns celebrations and weddings in the Middle East.
Contemporary Oriental dance can contain elements from areas as diverse as Persia, India, the Middle East and North Africa. It can be found from turkey to Morocco, but in recent years it is the Egyptian styling that has been extensively studied in the united states. The top Egyptian dancers perform with 30-piece orchestras in five-star hotel night clubs in Cairo. Films, recordings, and television have enabled a few dancers to reach superstar status.
Music and dance are deeply ingrained in Middle Eastern culture, and women and men learn to dance at an early age from attending family celebrations. Arabic music is the essence of oriental dance, and the drum is its heart. The classical women's solo is an improvisation in which the dancer uses her body to create visual and emotional interpretation of the music by isolating various body movements to capture the rhythmic structure of the music. Though there are traditional steps and movements associated with oriental dance, the way in which the dancer uses them comes from her soul. The dancer's spectrum of expression ranges from vigorous and playful to subtle and sensual.
Oriental dance has been an integral part of Middle Eastern culture. It has been appreciated by both sexes and all ages for centuries.

The Global Dance Arts Center teaches women's dances from Egypt, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, and Turkey.  

Our classes feature a variety of dances that might be found on a program in a Cairo theater, including American interpretations of oriental dance.

More about classes...