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Class Structure

What separates our classes from those of other teachers is that we teach belly dancing exclusively through choreography. To us, this is the best way, because we have seen that dancers develop their talents much faster when they have something very practical and real to take home, practice & master. Each choreography we teach helps you to develop different skills & through learning the choreographies you develop as a dancer.

We progress through the choreography each week during class, and at the end of a course, you have an entire dance from start to finish! Thus, every time you finish a six week course, you get a real sense of accomplishment, because you have a beautiful dance to show for all of your efforts. It is very gratifying indeed!

Instead of giving you arbitrary and unconnected moves or combinations, which you may have a difficult time putting to use, we teach you a solid useable choreography, which is easy to take home with you and practice. We provide choreography notes for the dance you will be learning & sell all of the music to which you will be dancing. We also sell choreography videos for many of the beginners' level dances as an additional tool for practicing at home. We provide you with all of the things necessary to succeed, you need only to come to class and be committed to practicing at home.

If you are looking for a good workout, you will definitely get that in my classes, and practicing at home is a great and easy way to continue your workout and get in shape! A workout that is fun, creative, and goal oriented. What could be better?!

If you are a student whose goal is to perform, my methods will put you on stage and dancing beautifully much sooner than other methods. You can be showing off your newly acquired skills in no time! We give interested students the opportunity to perform in organized shows as members of beginner level student groups and, for those more committed students, as a member of my dance troupes.

We offer different Levels of Classes

BELLY DANCE TECHNIQUE CLASS

Due to popular demand, we offer a beginners' level TECHNIQUE ONLY class. Here we will go over basic moves with you in great detail -- breaking down individual moves & showing you ways to improve your belly dance technique. It is recommended that you take at least one regular choreography class before taking the technique classes. It is not necessary, but the class will be more beneficial if you already have had some choreography training and know what your challenges are.

BEGINNERS' LEVEL CHOREOGRAPHY I CLASS:

These classes are designed for the absolute beginners. No previous dance experience is necessary to take any of the beginners' level choreography classes. Each choreography you learn helps to develop different skills & through learning the choreographies you develop as a dancer. You will progress through the choreography each week during class, and at the end of a course, you have an entire dance from start to finish! Thus, every time you finish a six week course, you get a real sense of accomplishment, because you have a beautiful dance to show for all of your efforts.

BEGINNERS' LEVEL CHOREOGRAPHY II CLASS:

This class is designed for beginners' level students who have taken at least 3 beginners' level courses & would like to prepare to enter the Intermediate Level. If you would like to learn more challenging choreographies and be among more serious students, this is the class for you.

INTERMEDIATE LEVEL CHOREOGRAPHY CLASS:

This class is designed for intermediate level students who have taken at least 5 beginners level courses. The pace is faster, and you will learn longer and more challenging choreographies in these classes. This class is for the more serious students, and are expected to practice extensively at home.

ADVANCED LEVEL CHOREOGRAPHY CLASS:

This class is designed for advanced level students and is open by invitation only. This class is for troupe members and Schadia's advanced students. Complex group and individual choreographies are covered. We also create and stage our own dances here. This class is ongoing (i.e. not a 6 week course) and less structured than the beginner/intermediate levels, i.e. if we don't like a particular move, we change it on the fly. Students here are highly motivated and involved in the studio.

WORKSHOPS:

We offer "one day" workshops on an irregular basis at all levels. Typically done on a weekend, we meet for 4+ hrs and cover one dance in its entirety. Special workshops - we are the only studio in Atlanta that offers special workshops on how to become a Restaurant Belly Dancer and how to make money with Bellygrams.