Finding Femininity Through Dance

by Felicia Hodges

Walking into one of Sarah Bells belly dancing classes is like preparing for a night out with the girls - with a bit of a twist. In addition to laughter and chatter about family, the sounds of jingling metal coins, tambourines and middle-eastern music fill the room as hip-wraps are tied over sweatpants and shoes get kicked into the corner.

Women of all ages, shapes, sizes and abilities come to Sarahs classes  held six days a week in either Fishkill, Kingston, Middletown, Newburgh, New Paltz, Poughkeepsie, Warwick or Yorktown. The goal may be a little exercise or trying something new, but the smiles and sweat that appear on the dancers faces within minutes of starting to move seem to say that everyone has a good time.

What the class isnt: a room full of svelte 20-year-olds prancing around with their belly buttons exposed  although that image is one that is what is usually associated with the dance. It is also one of the reasons many wont try the class in the first place.

Some women may think they wont feel comfortable due to pre-conceived notions about what belly dancing is. They think theyll have a 25-year-old with flat abs leading the class, which isnt the case, Sarah says. Belly dancing is really about being full-figured and I explain that to the ladies right up front.

Sarah began study in ballet and jazz dancing at 18, but she loved Barbara Eden in the television show I Dream of Jeanie and soon discovered belly dancing as a result. Although she didnt start taking professional middle-eastern dance classes until she was
I danced my prayers and it kept me going, she says. Classes were the things to look forward to and my teachers were role models.

Dance remained a passion until 1989 when it became her profession after she was fired from a position in a transmission shop  one shed held for 14 years. I didnt think I could teach, but what I realized was that people were coming to me for my dance and my life experiences, she says. My class is really about loving the body within and loving ourselves as we are.

The moves that are par for the course in belly dancing  including figure eights and undulations  may be a little challenging at first, but Sarah says that by the second class or so, it becomes easier.

Its about dropping energy from the heart into the body which is why it is uncomfortable in the beginning, she adds. I always tell my students to do what [they]
Belly dancing offers more than just a good physical workout, though. Sarah says there are spiritual elements of self-acceptance and self-confidence built in. Some women find their center, causing them to start or end relationships or change careers as a result.

Women walk a little different after taking a class. Thats how powerful this is, she says. Every single lady will have a different story about how belly dancing has changed them.

And its never too late to start. Because there are so many moves in the repertoire that can literally be done by almost anyone regardless of age of physical restrictions, her students range in age from nine to 85 years.

It really does keep you young, she says. It does something that rejuvenates your soul as well as your body.

In the 20 years shes been teaching, Sarah says shes noticed that the need for the women to connect is strong  so much so that sometimes getting back to dancing is challenging because conversations about menopause, step-parenting, life after 50 and other topics always come up whenever she pauses to change the music or shift to another dance. The sharing of experiences has made her consider starting a womens support group in the near future.

I dont know if Im good at it  I just know I love to talk, she says.

In the meantime, Sarah says she will continue to perform and teach, sharing this sensuously feminine art with as anyone who wants to learn.

Belly dancing is about women coming together to share their lives through dance. We dance and we share, she adds. Thats what its all about.

For more information about Sarahs area classes, log onto www.dancingwithsarah.com.


Felicia Hodges is the editor of Tri-County Woman magazine.





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