Lovely Hilde and Last London Classes

Hello lovelies,

As many of you are no doubt already aware, this Wednesday and Thursday will be the last classes I'm teaching in London the near term. My husband and I are headed back to my homeland, San Francisco, for a while, where I will hopefully soak up some sun and some new dance learning. While I will be sad to leave my students and friends here in London, I have made sure that my classes are covered by an absolutely wonderful teacher, the lovely Hilde from Brighton.

You may already know Hilde from classes she's been teaching in London and Brighton, or in her capacity as an organizer of fantastic workshops with top teachers from around the world. Since 1996, Hilde has been passionately involved in dance. Originally from Belgium, Hilde moved to Brighton (UK) in 2004 to pursue her career as a dancer. Being a fusion dancer at heart, she finds inspiration in different dance styles, such as street dance, contemporary dance, jazz, ballet, flamenco, tribal fusion and Egyptian dance techniques. Currently she is studying at Laban, one of the world’s top dance schools. She is director of the Masmoudi dance company and has hosted many sold out shows in Brighton. For more info visit www.hildebellydance.co.uk

Hilde's continuation of the classes at the Urdang Academy will commence in the second week of January. I'll send out a reminder nearer to the time, though I'd also recommend you visit her website to join her mailing list and keep up to date on her performance and events schedule.

Finally, it would be lovely to see you before I go! After class on Thursday night, I will be going with my Combinations & Experimentation class to get dinner and drinks nearby in Angel, so feel free to meet us at the Urdang Academy if you can come. And I know I'll be seeing some of you this weekend in Rome, for the Roma Tribal Meeting where I will be teaching and performing! :)

Thank you so, so much for your encouragement, support and enthusiasm for my work over the past few years! It has meant so very much to me, and it has been an honour to teach and perform for you. I am very grateful to have met a lot of gorgeous people while dancing in London, and I hope to see you all again when I visit and teach workshops and here in the new year.

Peace and beauty,

Kim

Hello lovelies,

This message is full of very interesting stuff! My next round of classes are open to book now and are live on the site. Also, October and November hold some really excellent events, starting this week! I've included All Visual Art's dazzling autumn group show here because, as some of you may know, I've been working with them the past few months. AVA is a tremendously exciting contemporary art organization, and I'd highly recommend getting down to Portland Place to check out Vanitas this week.

Additionally, this Friday sees the return of the truly fabulous Rumpus! If you missed the adult-sized ball pool and wonderfully eclectic mix of cabaret, dubstep, fancy dress and Balkan beats, you should clear your calendar for this one. I'll be performing alongside the Rubbish Sideshow and a whole host of fantastic acts... Follow the link to the Facebook event for more info.

In November, I'll be performing at Patrick Campbell-Lyons's book reading for Psychedelic Days, which is similarly full of surprises. I will also be heading back to Rome and the fabulous San Lo' studios for the Roma Tribal Meeting, which will be wonderful.

Okay, here are the details of classes. Please note--Elemental Movement is required for all new students, and often sells out. If you'd like to attend, please book early!

Classes:

27 October - 24 November - Elemental Movement* @ the Urdang Academy (6:30-8:00pm) *All new students must register for Elemental Movement before attending other courses!

27 October - 24 November - Pure Drills @ the Urdang Academy (8:00-9:30pm)

28 October - 25 November - Combinations & Experimentation @ the Urdang Academy (6:30-8:00pm)

Full details at http://www.kimberlymackoy.com/site/Classes.html


Events:

12 - 17 October - Vanitas: The Transience of Earthly Pleasures - 33 Portland Place, London W1B 1QE
Following the huge success of The Age of the Marvellous exhibition, which attracted over 4,000 visitors during Frieze Art Fair last October, All Visual Arts (AVA) is pleased to announce its upcoming fall show Vanitas: The Transience of Earthly Pleasures. Conceived and curated by Joe La Placa and Mark Sanders of AVA, the exhibition is a contemporary update on the four hundred year old theme of the Vanitas first developed in Holland and Northern Europe in the mid to late 17th century. The exhibition will take place in the sumptuous setting of the former Sierra Leone Embassy on 33 Great Portland Street during this year’s Frieze Art Fair from October the 11th until the 17th. http://www.allvisualarts.org


15 October - Rumpus! Vol. 2 - Special Edition!
Super Secret Venue 2 Minutes' from Brick Lane (Venue details sent with tickets)
£10 in advance, £15 on the door, £12 in costume.
Tickets from here: http://rumpusparty.eventbrite.com/
(To buy tickets without paying a booking fee, pay directly through Paypal to contact_santiago@hotmail.com)

Five rooms positively bursting at the seams with more unadulterated, high-octane fun than you could shake a very big stick at – the best live bands, a Circus Show and Dubstep, Electroswing and Balkan DJs. As if that weren’t enough, we’ve also got a speakeasy serving up handmade cocktails and featuring yet more live music, a cinema, and even an art exhibition! We’re somehow fitting all of this into one single venue to give you the ultimate indoor festival fun, and 8 hours to play, dance and party. Get dressed up for a discount at the door, and come and join us!

Facebook event: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=147712355264387&ref=ts


4 November - Psychedelic Days - A Book Reading by Patrick Campbell Lyons
Filthy McNasty's, 68 Amwell Street, London EC1R 1UU
The night will commence at 7pm and finish late, and is absolutely free!

Patrick Campbell Lyons is an interesting fellow. He formed innovative, baroque pop/psychedelic outfit Nirvana with Alex Spyropoulos in 1967 and they became the first UK band signed to Chris Blackwell's Island label. In fact, they went on to score a number of firsts...first narrative concept album in 1967 with 'The Story of Simon Simopath', pre dating The Who's 'Tommy' by two years. They were the first (and only) band to have appeared on French TV with Salvador Dali - who proceeded to splash blue paint over them – as they performed 'Rainbow Chaser'. And of course, first to come up with the band name...Nirvana. Long, long before Kurt Cobain and Co.

In 2008, Patrick began writing some songs about his life and times in 60s London and had the sudden realisation that his memory of those times was ‘crystal clear’ (which is pretty remarkable given his lifestyle at the time). His initial realisation has spawned an extraordinarily entertaining, time-machined-psychedelic-trip of a book, aptly entitled Psychedelic Days. So, we are delighted that Patrick will be doing readings from his book, bringing his vivid memories to life.

Also on this splendid night we have live acoustic performances from The Garden City Project, Great Western and St Johns Wood Affair, who will be performing their own take on Nirvana classics. And thats not all... joining them onstage will be Patrick and very special guest, the wonderful (ex Sneaker Pimp) Kelli Ali, who will be performing the song 'Tiny Goddess' (originally recorded by Francois Hardy). http://www.psychedelicdays.com/



19-21 November - Roma Tribal Meeting - San Lo' Studios, Rome http://www.romatribal.com/

For centuries, the gathering of community has been the wheel of evolution.

We are encouraging artists to congregate in Rome with the idea of sharing and developing an International Community based on traditions and new innovations of Tribal Bellydance.

Within our Oriental Dance network, individual and group expressions give light to new styles and new artistic, captivating creations. American Tribal Style and Tribal Fusion are at the crossroads of change in the panorama of contemporary bellydance throughout the world. From this consciousness of change, we desire to harness and nurture artistic expressions during the Roma Tribal Meeting. It is the first gathering in Italy where ideas of authenticity and fusions are simply an opportunity to grow and become aware of this dance movement; a moment when musicians and dancers can collaborate and recognize their own artistic research.

This event is enriched by the presence of an important part of Tribal beginnings through music; the musical group, Helm, will provide a rich platform of expression reflective of the traditions of the Middle East through classical, folkloric and original compositions.


That's all for now! I hope all is well with you, and if you need more information, get in touch!

Kim

www.kimberlymackoy.com

A Cautionary Tale...

So, something's been bugging me lately. I've been thinking about whether or not to say anything, and have ultimately decided to speak up because there are areas of deafening silence regarding ethical conduct in the world of bellydance. While I would prefer to just truck along and do my own thing, pretending nothing's up, that actually aids the lack of transparency that allows this stuff to go on. Instead, I protest.

Here's what happened: Recently, another tribal fusion teacher came and set up a directly competing class at my home studio. She didn't get in contact to ask what my thoughts or feelings might be, or if I had any advice about studio space she could hire in a pinch. She did write to tell me she'd set up her course--once the ink was dry on the paperwork--however she said it was only for six weeks.

Now, lest you think me oversensitive, London has literally hundreds of spaces that could be used for dance. By contrast, I could probably count on one hand the number of dancers in London who are teaching tribal fusion. Statistically, there's very little chance of two instructors of this niche form accidentally setting up shop in the same building.

Additionally, the building in question has been the home of my classes for over three years. The staff there are friends of mine; we exchange Christmas cards, and they have helped me develop my classes for years now.

I was not impressed with the situation with the new tribal fusion class, but, as the teacher had assured me that the situation was temporary, I set aside my annoyance and took her at her word when she said that after six weeks she would be in her own space.

Imagine my surprise when, without even an email to let me know she had done so, she extended her tenure across autumn and winter.

Tribal fusion is a really new dance form. There are not that many people who are established in it to the point of being able to teach; as I said, I could probably count on one hand the number of teachers in London. It seems to me that if one of those teachers has been established in a particular venue for a few years, that teacher's relationships to her students and her venue should be respected.

I slowly worked my class offerings up from one class, to two, to three, each step of the way waiting for space to become available. Waiting for studio space is part of the game in London, as any dance teacher can attest.

To try and circumvent that by setting up a directly competing class in a rare dance form within the building of an established teacher is at the least not very considerate, and, at the more sinister end, quite an aggressive tactic. It amounts to piggybacking--for years, I have spent money on advertising my courses, which has in turn brought hundreds of students though the doors. This makes it really easy for students to swap nights to novel class, conveniently at a studio they already know. Indeed, this has happened, and I don't think it's cool--while I always hope my students will learn with whomever catches their fancy, it's not my intention to inadvertently subsidize a competing teacher with my advertising budget.

I am a small enterprise; the inconsideration of this teacher has put pressure on my relationship with the venue that I've worked with happily for years, and on personal relationships that have grown over three years of me consistently teaching weekly classes there. It's disrespectful, disingenuous behaviour, and I think bellydancers can do better.

Supply + Demand x Love

So I hadn't planned on kicking off a journal entry this way, but Dita von Teese mentioned something on Twitter that set me thinking:


I've been contemplating a blog post for some time that would start to open up a window on my experience of the whole life/work/dance escapade, especially where those things hit the financial intersection, but it's such a delicate topic. It's easy to be evasive, woeful, deceptively optimistic or overly single-minded in such a discussion, but since it's such a wide terrain and universal moan, I've felt it best to just sit back and think on it a little longer.

Thankfully, Dita posted that, and I think it kicks of a really powerful train of thought. The fact is, performance, art, writing, whatever creative thing you like, always hangs in that delicate balance between essential human impulse and slippery commodity. I've been walking my own path to reconcile those aspects of who I am, and it's caused me to form some very definite opinions. I'm not going to try to unpack all of that here and now--there'll be future time for thought on all this to evolve and focus--so instead, I'm going to focus on the concept of supply and demand, as modified by love.

...

I love dance. In particular, I love tribal fusion. I love it for being a place to apply practice and dedication to thoughtful experimentation. I have made things since I was old enough to hold a crayon or knot a piece of yarn, and I love that I am involved in a dance movement that prides itself on originality and hand-crafted individuality. For over a decade, I have been making jewellery and experimenting with making other works of art, be they costuming or sculpture. I started dancing when I was five, I think--I was really little when I began ballet, and after we moved away from my previous teacher, I kept making my own choreographies, plays and puppet shows on my own in the countryside of the American Midwest.

All of this is to say that these things are essential to me. I happily make things happen in my own world, and I have been doing it not because I am essentially a performer, but because this impulse to make and do and develop ideas is how my imagination works. I would be a dancer or designer in my own living room, quietly, quite happily; I don't see sharing these things publicly as the completion of the cycle, only as one possible outcome.

I graduated from university a couple of years ago into one of the worst economic dips of memorable history. No jobs anywhere. I was very lucky to have studied tribal fusion with the masters in San Francisco before embarking on my London adventures, so I'd been hired to teach bellydance by the University of London Union while I was studying. I was lucky to have very well-attended classes, to the extent that I was able to keep my university job as a dance instructor into the days and months following my graduation from the School of Oriental and African Studies. I was asked to do performances, and I was lucky to sometimes have those performances lead on to other interesting opportunities.

However, my sights always had to be on getting a day job--one does not graduate as an international student from the University of London without an enormous amount of debt. To sketch a picture, I paid £10,000 per year for three years in tuition. Each year, I had to buy hundreds of pounds worth of books, study packs and photocopies. I also had to borrow money for food and rent--and I had to borrow a sufficiently high amount of money to convince the UK Home Office that I wasn't going to starve to death or become homeless on their watch.

This doubled the amount of money I needed to borrow for each year of school, and the majority of those funds came via loans from private lending companies with unsubsidized interest. If you haven't had the wonders of compounding interest unleashed upon your future, I envy you. In the end, once the compounding interest and the passage of time have unleashed their full potential on my financial out put, my education will have cost me three times again what I actually borrowed. (If I think about it too much, it makes me nauseous.) If you want to do the math, you can work it out, but suffice to say that my student loan debt is into six digits, whether you figure it in dollars or pounds.

In case you're curious, I got my degree in Development Studies and Social Anthropology, and I did quite well.

...

Now, about performances: They need to make money. As I said, part of me is essentially a dancer. But being a performer is a different thing--it's work, which takes time, effort and resources. I've put literally thousands and thousands of pounds (and dollars before I moved to the UK) into my dance education. I learned from the best of the best, and then invested thousands upon thousands of hours into practicing, thinking on and implementing the lessons I learned. I put thousands of hours again into making my concepts and costumes come to life, not to mention the financial output on materials.

I will share all this. But you have to ask. I can't read minds. I work on a system of grassroots democracy, wherein I know I'm doing the right thing by devoting myself to this art form when I get asked to share it. The best thing that can happen is that I'm asked to share in the most respectful way, where someone can envision the effort and knows that I need to eat and live.

Each month, my student loans cost me as much as most of my friends pay in London rent--no joke. And while I would always do this artful stuff for my own soul's sake, it is one part of my life. It could be my quiet hobby and not my job. I have to work; if I get to earn money by devoting effort to dance and art, that's wonderful. But that only works so long as there is demand. If I am not invited to perform, not desired as a teacher, the performances and the lessons go away as I am forced to apply my working hours where they are valued. This is how most things work--where there is demand, someone will work to supply the in-demand.

So if you love an artist, and you support what they do, help engage in that grassroots democracy wherein those artists who are loved get the encouragement to persevere. Be vocal about who you'd pay to see develop their artistic voice, and be prepared to vote with your wallet. Invite artists to perform, and help spread the word to people that may be able to help them find work. The public output of an artist is effort in conversation, which is either encouraged or discouraged based on responses over time.

Hello all,

As many of you may know, I'm in San Francisco at the moment; as of
this morning, it seems I'm going to be here a bit longer than planned.
The volcanic ash has caused my flight to be cancelled, so I'm on a new
flight for early next week.

Since I'm stuck, this week's classes are going to be postponed until
next week. This will shift the class dates as follows:

April 28 - June 9* - Wednedays: Elemental Movement (6:30-8:00pm) & Pure
Drills (8:00-9:30pm)

April 29 - June 10* - Thursdays: Combinations & Experimentation (6:30-8:00pm)

*No class on May 26 & 27 due to an event at the Urdang Academy

Apologies for the disruption to the schedule--I never guessed that a
bit of the Earth would blow up between San Francisco and London while
I was out here, and it's obviously not a situation that the airlines
are very practiced at dealing with, either. It sounds like my
rescheduled return to London is likely to happen, so we should be back
on course to relative normality next week.

I know some of you are similarly marooned and awaiting a flight
home--here's hoping that the acts of God or the airlines level out
soon and don't cause too many problems for you as you're trying to
make your way back.

Please get in touch if you need more information or have questions.
While I'm abroad, my internet access is pretty unpredictable, so if
you need a quick answer you can email hq@kimberlymackoy.com to reach
James, who is on the scene in London to help out.

I hope all is well where you are, and looking forward to seeing you all soon!

Kim

Thinking of Breanna...

The other day, I was sorting through my photo library. Over the past few years it has become a massive, sloppy repository of memories, and there are duplicates and thumbnails and extra shots from when I was trying to get the light just right... So I decided it was way past time to go through it all and get organized.

As I was sifting through pictures, I found a lot of shots from the months just before I moved from San Francisco to London, including the one attached here. This was a really magical time in my life--I was on a major adventure, fueled by love and excitement about the future, surrounded by a wonderful group of friends who cheered me on as I ran toward the unknown. One of these friends was Breanna LeVine.

Having just looked at photos from parties we went to together, I was surprised to see yesterday that Dusty Paik had posted a picture of Rachel Brice and Breanna together at a soiree around New Year's in 2005. This very party was when I introduced James to Rachel and the madness of the scene I was reveling in, so I was amused by the coincidence that this was on someone else's mind as well, but I didn't think much of it.

When I woke up this morning, I drowsily picked up my phone and saw that there were some new posts from people I follow on Twitter, including Stellamara. My heart skipped a beat--they had posted a song to "honor of the passing of our dear, sweet friend, Breanna LeVine." Yesterday's surprise photo posting was recast in a somber tone. It made sense in the worst way.

The last time I saw Breanna was when she came to stay with me in Cambridge just after she came to vend at Glade in 2007. Before I moved to London two years before, Breanna and I went to dance classes and parties together, brewed up a few crazy plans together and just generally ran around like blithe young things in the thrall of life. It was awesome--we seemed to just stumble into one serendipitous situation after another.

By 2007, things had shifted a bit. Her visit coincided with a fairly busy and stressful time in my life; I was absolutely broke, had just finished my second, hellish year of university against all odds, and was struggling to keep everything together. Unfortunately, she was in a really different headspace, and most of her visit was spent with us being frustrated with each other--she felt I had become cynical, and I felt that she was taking advantage of me at a time when I had little to offer. When we talked, we seemed perpetually at cross purposes, and it made me really sad; I'd been so thrilled to see her, but by the end I just felt trod upon.

We weren't really in contact after that. It made me sad, and more than once I felt the urge to send an email or do something to try to regain the positive connection from before. But I didn't, and she didn't, and time went by... I saw the occasional blip on a social networking site about what she was up to, and would be happy to see her doing some cool new project, but that was the extent of our interaction.

I've spent some time today trying to find out what happened to her, just trying to get some picture of the trajectory of my estranged friend. We have enough shared friends and acquaintances that the mourning of her passing is visible to me everywhere--I've seen so many pictures of Bre, songs posted in loving memory of her, heartbroken writings trying to make sense of her absence. My corner of cyberspace is festooned with remembrances of her, and it all feels so sad and alien.

Tomorrow I will get on a flight to San Francisco, and it will be the first time that I'm there and she's not. Looking at photos the other day, I wondered if it would be a good idea for me to get in touch, see if we had grown together again and if the playground days of dance classes and funky parties could be resurrected once more. Her old number is still in the phone I use when I'm Stateside... The possibility is so tantalizingly there, but fictional. My heart and head just don't quite get it yet. Now, on my itinerary for San Francisco is some time to say goodbye to a friend who helped me leap across the Atlantic Ocean in pursuit of love and crazy dreams.

I hope that somewhere out there, her spirit knows that I never stopped thinking of her, and that she will live on in my heart.

Breaking News!! New class, schedule change and class cards!

Hello once again!

I have lots of really exciting news: Starting on April 21st, there will be an additional class to choose from--Pure Drills, from 8:00pm-9:30pm on Wednesday nights! Full info below.

Please note, there has also been a schedule change on the April courses which will now have a week off in May, on the 26th and 27th. This makes the last week June 2nd and 3rd for the classes, due to an event at the Urdang Academy. Please email me if you need more information.

And... You can now buy pre-paid class cards in addition to courses on the Classes page of my site, for either £60 for 6 classes or £120 for 12 classes. Class cards are good for 90 days from the date of purchase, so they give you more flexibility while also letting you get the prepaid rate. (Please note: Class cards don't guarantee you a place in a class, they simply allow you to drop in at a reduced rate. For classes that are sold-out, the usual drop-in policy applies: drop-in students may attend as space allows.) Class cards may be purchased online until March 31st, at which point they'll be taken down until I return from San Francisco on April 21st, since they must be dispatched by post.

A lot of students have been looking for a level in between the Elemental Movement class and Combinations and Drills. Pure Drills will be devoted to drilling the basics: Undulations, taxims, mayas, chest figure-8s, arms and on and on. This class will pick up where Elemental Movements leave off, taking the ideas of good technique and putting them into practice to polish and refine the essentials for tribal fusion dance. Pure Drills is great to add to your practice, and may be taken along with one of the other courses, on its own, or on a drop-in basis as space allows.

This will also change Thursday nights, which will be devoted to learning more complex combinations and movement pathways. This class is only open to students who have completed the Elemental Movements course and feel comfortable with the essentials drilled in Pure Drills. Thursdays will become Combinations and Experimentation, where we'll explore combinations, theory and complex movement pathways that string together moves weird and wonderful.

Before I go, I'll be running Tribal Fusion 101 again, so if you want to come and drill the essential moves then register for March 31st. Tribal Fusion 101 is also an excellent taste of things to come, as the new later class on Wednesday nights, Essential Drills, is a very similar format that will be ongoing.


27 March - ENCORE! at Southwark Playhouse
31 March - Tribal Fusion 101 @ Urdang Academy
21 April - 2 June: Pure Drills @ Urdang Academy
21 April - 2 June: Tribal Fusion Elemental Movement @ Urdang Academy
22 April - 3 Jun: Combinations & Experimentation @ Urdang Academy

Full details below...

ENCORE! - ROCK THE CASBAH!
10pm - 3am; Southwark Playhouse, Tooley Street, SE1 2TF; Nearest tube: London Bridge
Grab your harem pants and put your fez at a jaunty angle, for a Morrocan fusion evening in the dusty train tunnels of the Southwark Playhouse. Specially decorated for the night, the space will host belly dancers, snake charmers and fire acts galore PLUS Music so good that your hips won't lie with special guest djs LES APACHES and live bands.
Tickets (£6)are available in advance via the Southwark Playhouse website at:
http://www.southwarkplayhouse.co.uk/whatson_detail.php?record_number=182


31 March - Tribal Fusion 101
6:30pm - 8:00pm @ Studio 6, The Urdang Academy
£12; Advance booking required - To register, click HERE.

"What's the difference between the Wednesday and Thursday classes? Am I ready to move on to Combinations and Drills? Can I come to the Thursday night classes if I have limited experience with bellydance?" --These are some of the most common questions asked by students, and this one-night special class intends to answer them.

All students should attend at least one course of Elemental Movement before moving on to Combinations and Drills, and students are encouraged to take Elemental Movement as many times as they feel necessary to get comfortable with the roots of good technique. But how do you know where you stand with the elemental movements?

Tribal Fusion 101 is a great chance to try the essential moves we put into practice on Thursday nights without taking the leap of registering for the full Combinations and Drills course if you're unsure. In Tribal Fusion 101, class moves at a brisk pace, drilling all of the basic moves in the hips, core and chest with minimal explanation. The aim is to put these moves into motion, drilling them thoroughly and precisely to feel one's own confidence with the basic technique. At the end of Tribal Fusion 101, you can get feedback about which class would be the best fit for your skill level.


21 April - 2 June: Tribal Fusion Elemental Movement @ Urdang Academy
Wednesday nights, 6:30pm-8:00pm; 6-Week Course £60, Drop-in £12 (if space allows--this class consistently sells out, so drop-in attendance may not be possible) - To register, click HERE.


21 April - 2 June: Pure Drills @ Urdang Academy
Wednesday nights, 8:00pm-9:30pm; 6-Week Course £60, Drop-in £12 - To register, click HERE.

This class is for nailing down the essentials, and polishing them through practice until they shine. Pure Drills focuses on the basics: Undulations, taxims, mayas, chest figure-8s, arms, umis, chest circles, etc. This is a chance to put the ideas for good technique into action, carrying the information from the Elemental Movement over into a regular focused practice similar in format to Tribal Fusion 101.

This class will involve yoga- and pilates-based conditioning, so come dressed to move and bring a bottle of water.


22 April - 3 June: Combinations & Experimentation @ Urdang Academy
Thursday nights, 6:30pm-8:00pm; 6-Week Course £60, Drop-in £12 - To register, click HERE.


That's everything for now! I hope all is well with you, and hope to see you in the near future, and if you need more information, let me know.

Kim

www.kimberlymackoy.com

Hello!

Hooray for spring! This weekend, I'll be performing at the Southwark Playhouse for their ENCORE! night. This promises to be a lot of fun, and they've extended a lovely invitation to add my guests to the list for reduced price entry all night. So, email me to RSVP by Wednesday (the 24th) to be added to the list for £6 entry on the night. Alternately, you can book your £6 entry via the link below. (Normal entry on the door will be £8.)

In April, I'll be taking a short break in San Francisco to catch up with friends back home and swan around to some classes out there. This means that there'll be a little spring break of sorts for my classes here in London. The next round of classes resumes on April 21st, and registration is open online at http://www.kimberlymackoy.com/site/Classes.html

But before I go, I'll be running Tribal Fusion 101 again, so if you want to come and drill the essential moves then register for March 31st.

27 March - ENCORE! at Southwark Playhouse
31 March - Tribal Fusion 101 @ Urdang Academy
21 April - 26 May: Tribal Fusion Elemental Movement @ Urdang Academy
22 April - 27 May: Combinations & Drills @ Urdang Academy

Full details below...

ENCORE! - ROCK THE CASBAH!
10pm - 3am; Southwark Playhouse, Tooley Street, SE1 2TF; Nearest tube: London Bridge
Grab your harem pants and put your fez at a jaunty angle, for a Morrocan fusion evening in the dusty train tunnels of the Southwark Playhouse. Specially decorated for the night, the space will host belly dancers, snake charmers and fire acts galore PLUS Music so good that your hips won't lie with special guest djs LES APACHES and live bands.
Tickets (£6)are available in advance via the Southwark Playhouse website at:
http://www.southwarkplayhouse.co.uk/whatson_detail.php?record_number=182


31 March - Tribal Fusion 101
6:30pm - 8:00pm @ Studio 6, The Urdang Academy
£12; Advance booking required - To register, click HERE.

"What's the difference between the Wednesday and Thursday classes? Am I ready to move on to Combinations and Drills? Can I come to the Thursday night classes if I have limited experience with bellydance?" --These are some of the most common questions asked by students, and this one-night special class intends to answer them.

All students should attend at least one course of Elemental Movement before moving on to Combinations and Drills, and students are encouraged to take Elemental Movement as many times as they feel necessary to get comfortable with the roots of good technique. But how do you know where you stand with the elemental movements?

Tribal Fusion 101 is a great chance to try the essential moves we put into practice on Thursday nights without taking the leap of registering for the full Combinations and Drills course if you're unsure. In Tribal Fusion 101, class moves at a brisk pace, drilling all of the basic moves in the hips, core and chest with minimal explanation. The aim is to put these moves into motion, drilling them thoroughly and precisely to feel one's own confidence with the basic technique. At the end of Tribal Fusion 101, you can get feedback about which class would be the best fit for your skill level. Tribal Fusion 101 is the perfect time to drill the essentials and figure out which class is best for you.


21 April - 26 May: Tribal Fusion Elemental Movement @ Urdang Academy
Wednesday nights, 6:30pm-8:00pm; 6-Week Course £60, £12 Drop in (if space allows--this class consistently sells out, so drop-in attendance may not be possible) - To register, click HERE.

Aimed at the beginner or the more advanced dancer wishing to revisit and strengthen elementals, this course goes back to basics: over five weeks, we will become acquainted with the conditioning required to build the body for tribal fusion movement, and also be introduced to drills for building muscle memory of the fundamental movements.

By the end of the course, dancers will be acquainted with the basic components of the tribal fusion movement vocabulary, and will also have some practice integrating them into combinations. This class will involve yoga- and pilates-based conditioning, so come dressed to move and bring a bottle of water.


22 April - 27 May: Combinations & Drills @ Urdang Academy
Thursday nights, 6:30pm-8:00pm; 6-Week Course £60, Drop-in £12 - To register, click HERE.

Over six weeks, we will put technique into practice--honing moves through drills designed to get you improvising and building combinations for dance. Each class will deal with a handful of moves in detail, and through these we will explore concepts essential to constructing one's own choreography, such as musicality, transferring movement, and fluidity in improvisation.

Aimed at the dancer familiar with tribal fusion, this class is intended for students who have completed the Elemental Movement course and are seeking to expand their range of movement in the tribal fusion vocabulary and gain a sense of how movements work together. Classes may be taken as a course, or on a drop-in basis. This class will involve yoga- and pilates-based conditioning, so come dressed to move and bring a bottle of water.


That's everything for now! I hope all is well with you, and hope to see you in the near future, and if you need more information, let me know.

Kim

www.kimberlymackoy.com

Tribal Fusion Classes in February

Hello!

Just a quick note to let you know that the next courses, starting in February, are available to book at http://www.kimberlymackoy.com/site/Classes.html Here's what's happening:

10 February - Tribal Fusion 101 @ Urdang Academy
17 February - 24 March: Tribal Fusion Elemental Movement @ Urdang Academy
18 February - 25 March: Combinations & Drills @ Urdang Academy

Full details below...

10 February - Tribal Fusion 101
6:30pm - 8:00pm @ Studio 6, The Urdang Academy
£12; Advance booking required

"What's the difference between the Wednesday and Thursday classes? Am I ready to move on to Combinations and Drills? Can I come to the Thursday night classes if I have limited experience with bellydance?" --These are some of the most common questions asked by students, and this one-night special class intends to answer them.

All students should attend at least one course of Elemental Movement before moving on to Combinations and Drills, and students are encouraged to take Elemental Movement as many times as they feel necessary to get comfortable with the roots of good technique. But how do you know where you stand with the elemental movements?

Tribal Fusion 101 is a great chance to try the essential moves we put into practice on Thursday nights without taking the leap of registering for the full Combinations and Drills course if you're unsure. In Tribal Fusion 101, class moves at a brisk pace, drilling all of the basic moves in the hips, core and chest with minimal explanation. The aim is to put these moves into motion, drilling them thoroughly and precisely to feel one's own confidence with the basic technique. At the end of Tribal Fusion 101, you can get feedback about which class would be the best fit for your skill level. Tribal Fusion 101 is the week before the February courses in Elemental Movement and Combinations and Drills begin, so it's the perfect time to drill the essentials and figure out which class is best for you.


17 February - 24 March: Tribal Fusion Elemental Movement @ Urdang Academy
Wednesday nights, 6:30pm-8:00pm; 6-Week Course £60, £12 Drop in (if space allows--this class consistently sells out, so drop-in attendance may not be possible)

Aimed at the beginner or the more advanced dancer wishing to revisit and strengthen elementals, this course goes back to basics: over five weeks, we will become acquainted with the conditioning required to build the body for tribal fusion movement, and also be introduced to drills for building muscle memory of the fundamental movements.

By the end of the course, dancers will be acquainted with the basic components of the tribal fusion movement vocabulary, and will also have some practice integrating them into combinations. This class will involve yoga- and pilates-based conditioning, so come dressed to move and bring a bottle of water.


18 February - 25 March: Combinations & Drills @ Urdang Academy
Thursday nights, 6:30pm-8:00pm; 6-Week Course £60, Drop-in £12

Over six weeks, we will put technique into practice--honing moves through drills designed to get you improvising and building combinations for dance. Each class will deal with a handful of moves in detail, and through these we will explore concepts essential to constructing one's own choreography, such as musicality, transferring movement, and fluidity in improvisation.

Aimed at the dancer familiar with tribal fusion, this class is open to anyone seeking to expand their range of movement in the tribal fusion vocabulary and gain a sense of how movements work together. Classes may be taken as a course, or on a drop-in basis. This class will involve yoga- and pilates-based conditioning, so come dressed to move and bring a bottle of water.


That's everything for now! I hope all is well with you, and hope to see you in the near future, and if you need more information, let me know.

Kim

www.kimberlymackoy.com