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Improv

infallible
infallible Posts: 14 Member
edited November 8 in Social Groups
Does anyone here do Improv? I'm in my 1st session of classes for it (7/12 weeks) and I find when ever I get up there to lead my mind completely blanks.

Replies

  • exotike
    exotike Posts: 5
    What's "Improv" ? (i'm french)
  • infallible
    infallible Posts: 14 Member
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Improv_Tribal_Style_Belly_Dance
  • Bellyroll
    Bellyroll Posts: 316
    I do,actually that is all I do. :)
  • AmyOwl73
    AmyOwl73 Posts: 45 Member
    Improv is something I'm working on. It's terrifying! I've been "caught" just mindlessly dancing during class, and told to keep going... LOL! Apparently, I do fine when I don't think I'm being watched.. As soon as I know, **Screeeching halt**
    Gotta remember the saying: Dance like no one is watching.
  • mattdrury
    mattdrury Posts: 1
    Totally, with just a hint of fusion. It's my passion. How did your classes go?

    (<--- updated my photo: with Dance Mama Paulette of Gypsy Caravan, at a workshop this month!)
  • aerochic42
    aerochic42 Posts: 843 Member
    Two things that have helped my improv. one is to figure out which moves are your favorite and put those into default mode. try to do variations on the- traveling, layers, vary the arms, speed, etc. The other is to learn some combinations - a series of moves that fills a couple of measures. Some people feel that combos are cheating as you aren't creating your dance entirely from scratch, but if it helps you to stop freezing, I don't see the harm. They allow you to get through to next chunk of music.
  • Khaduja
    Khaduja Posts: 2
    It takes time and a bit of confidence, but that whole going along just fine until I realize I'm being watched still happens to me too.

    It's not necessarily about how big your vocab is, it's more about how comfortable you are with each movement. Aerochic had a great point, find the move(s) you are most comfortable with and use them as your "motors always running" while you are trying to think of what should come next. Since this is new to you this could be the first move you learned. I personally fall back to 3/4 ghawazee if I get a little stuck.

    Believe me when I say that leading might not be the easiest thing right now, but if you stick with it there will come a time when you don't even think about leading it just sort of happens.
  • dancerom
    dancerom Posts: 174 Member
    It is normal for most beginners to struggle with improv. Just go on dancing. But this advice sometimes doesn't help, as your mind goes blank and your body freezes
    I have to strategies I give my students to do improv.
    1) This helps to stop thinking and let your body taking over:
    put on some favorite music (maybe oriental or whatever) and just dance or move. Don't think about right or wrong - oriental or not - beautiful or not... just move and don't stop. Do what your body feels like doing on this music. Shaking, jumping, stretching your arms up and bring them back in, moving your spine... go... whatever impulse comes to your body - flow with it! I do this often in my classes, but you can also do it alone at home, when no one's watching.
    2) To bring the oriental movements and style in your improv:
    Pick one (!) movement you like and learned, e.g. hip circle, put on some oriental music and do hip circles. Now start to put them on the music - slow, fast, big, small, go a bit down in your knees or up on your toes and so on, but only hip circles (and only one kind of hip circle!!). Do this for a song and try matching the music. Then start adding arms to your different hip circles for another (or the same) song again.
    Then do this with the next movement. If your comfortable with the two start to mix them and find ways to flow from one to the other without stopping the energy.

    I hope this helps. If you have more questions just feel free to ask!
    ENJOY!
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