Giving Zumba a Try

Recently, a friend of mine has lost a lot of weight and looks amazing after getting heavily involved in Zumba.  I was thoroughly impressed by her efforts, and I had heard a lot about the classes.

Basically, Zumba is a high-energy dance-based class.  Though most of the elements are from Latin dances like salsa, cumbia, and merengue, there is also hip-hop, samba, and a little "belly dance" (I'll get to this in a second).

I had a Groupon coupon for the Oak Square YMCA in Brighton, and there were several Zumba classes to choose from.  So, I tried one out, and I must admit that I had a lot of fun.

It really is just like dancing around.  While some of the transitions need your concentration and it probably helps if you have rhythm (or if you don't care whether or not you have rhythm), it's really what you make of it, and it can be really quite fun.  I find myself smiling through most of it.

You can definitely work up quite a sweat from all the dancing around, and I can see how someone can lose quite a bit of weight if they dedicate several workouts a week to this cardio class.

Now, while there isn't a lot of Middle Eastern-style dancing in the classes, there are definitely incorporations of it.  I feel bad whenever this part of the class comes up, mainly because I get a bit critical about the moves.

I, of all people, understand and value the fusion of belly dance with other styles of dance.  I'm not forgetting that I still want to somehow fuse traditional Filipino dance with belly dance.  But I think that the fusion is more impressive when parts of the different dances are still visible, recognizable, and respecting of the different styles.  That's just my personal style and take on the whole thing.

So, when the Zumba instructor says that we're incorporating belly dance into the moves and it reminds me more of bangara or doesn't feel like belly dance, I find myself really struggling with understanding what is happening and really struggling with the specific moves themselves.

On some level, I feel proud to be able to distinguish different versions of the dance.  But on another level, I feel like a jerk because I know I'm being too critical of an already-fusion style of working out.

I should just not care, and go with the flow.  I should just not think about it too much.

But then I become really aware that a lot of the other folks in the class are not necessarily as educated about belly dance.  The little bit of exposure they have in Zumba class isn't enough for them to really understand what raqs sharqi really is.  With all the misconceptions there are about Middle Eastern dance, I personally feel wary whenever something is called "belly dance" and it doesn't feel "right" to me.

This isn't to say that Zumba instructors are in the wrong.  I do think that more education needs to be done about Middle Eastern music and dance before people just go around identifying snake arms or hip hits as the "belly dance."  Perhaps there is just a line between fusion and...not fusion?  Here is an example on youtube of a Zumba/belly dance routine.

I don't know if I'm explaining it well enough.  I don't want to come off as really snobby about it.  Hopefully the fact that I keep going to Zumba classes will mean something.

I do think it's important to be aware of your biases before you go into a Zumba class or any other dance class, for that matter.  Otherwise, just have fun with it!

Filipino Fusing with Middle Eastern?

Before I started belly dance classes, I decided that I needed to learn a bit about my own cultural dance first.  Though I was involved with the Filipino Student Association at my undergrad, I never made it in time to join the dance troupes.  However, there was a one-semester class for Filipino Dance.

As the class fulfilled a graduation credit, two of my friends joined me in the class.  Though it was a small group, it was quite an enjoyable class.  I learned a lot about the regional differences in the dances, and how most of the traditional dances are choreographed for specific stories or purposes.

For example, as the music and dance reflects the culture, there are Christian, Muslim, and Indigenous dances.  The Christian-style dances reflect the Spanish colonization, featuring a lot of 3/4 beat music and socializing dances.  Muslim-style dances reflect the influences from Indonesia and other Southeast Asian cultures, and mainly tells stories.  The Indigenous dances are more drum and kulintang-based, and are more ritualistic.

My favorite part about the dances was the focus on the hand and arm movements.  While it was so many years ago, I remember the teacher talking about the importance of grace in the arm movements.  However, there wasn't necessarily much room for improvisation.

Nonetheless, I'm suddenly struck with the idea of fusing traditional Filipino dance movements with Middle Eastern dance. 

I feel that I have to brush up a bit on the movements in Filipino dance.  I know there is a Fhilippine Dance Company in Boston, but it doesn't seem very easy to get in touch with someone who could point me in the direction of classes.  I might try to go through Boston University's Filipino Student Association, perhaps use my powers as an alum - no matter how minuscule they might be.

In the meantime, here are some clips I found on YouTube:

Traditional Southern/Muslim Filipino Dance:



Tribal Filipino Fusion with Belly Dance Fusion: