Workshops in Newcastle, UK, with belly dancer Sara Farouk Ahmed

When I was living in Newcastle upon Tyne, in northern England, I studied belly dance with belly dancer Kay Taylor and I had the opportunity to attend several workshops with very famous dancers from Egypt, the USA and the UK. One of those dancers is Sara Farouk Ahmed. I attended two belly dance workshops with Sara Farouk Ahmed and both were great and they taught me a lot about belly dance, not only technically, but also in terms of culture and attitude.

Sara Farouk Ahmed is a belly dancer who started teaching Arabic dance in London, more than ten years ago, and now lives and performs in Egypt. Sara is famous for her passionate and sensual style of dancing and for her ability to express in bellydance the emotions conveyed by the Arabic songs she performs to. As a teacher she is also very passionate and teaches things that go beyond the simple techniques of belly dancing.

What I particularly remember from Sara Farouk Ahmed’s belly dancing workshops in Newcastle, in addition to the dance techniques, is her emphasis on the bellydancer’s attitude. She stresses the importance of keeping eye contact with the public and of ‘being there’ for the public’s attention as the dancer is donating something to people through her dance. Also, Sara’s understanding of Egyptian culture impressed me. She pointed out the importance, in belly dance, of expressing the feeling of the song (basically, acting while dancing) and if possible knowing the lyrics of the songs, in order to interpret then better.

Last but not least, what I will always remember from Sara Farouk’s workshops is the way she encouraged women to be proud of themselves and of their bodies while dancing. This is in line with what belly dance stands for: belly dance is a very feminine dance, which glorifies the feminine body more than any other form of dance, no matter what the shape and size. Sara Farouk’s workshops were a lesson in self-confidence, and gave me a very valuable insight into this old art form that is belly dance.
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