Move of the Month

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0 height="100%"><tr> <td valign="top" width=200 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <I><U>September Archive</U></I></div> <div> <A HREF="id8.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Front Page"><U>Front Page</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id10.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Editorial"><U>Editorial</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id9.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Bellyworld"><U>Bellyworld</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id15.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Music"><U>Music</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="introduction_yoga.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Fitness"><U>Fitness</U></A></div> <div> Move of the Month</div> <div> <A HREF="id37.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Business"><U>Business</U></A></div> </td> <td valign="top" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><IMG SRC="16c87590.png" border=0 width="135" height="89" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></FONT><FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#CC0033" FACE="Berlin Sans FB" >  |    </FONT> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Navel Magazine"><U>Home</U></A></div> <div> Move of the Month</div> <div> <B>The Sugarplum Maya</B></div> <div> <I>by Taletha</I></div> <div> <I><IMG SRC="15bb30c0.jpg" border=0 width="179" height="268" ALIGN="LEFT" HSPACE="20" VSPACE="0"></I><FONT SIZE="2" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><I>A Colorado native, Taletha's artistic journey first began with classical music. She attended the University of Colorado - School of Music where she studied, music history music theory, piano, and flute performance. It was not until February of 2003 that she discovered and quickly became obsessed with Middle Eastern Dance. Taletha has since devoted her life to teaching classes and workshops, and performing belly dance professionally.</I></FONT></div> <div> <A HREF="http://taletha.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://taletha.com"><U><I>http://taletha.com</I></U></A><A HREF="http://taletha.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://taletha.com"><U><I> </I></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.crescentmoondancers.com " TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.crescentmoondancers.com "><U><I>http://www.crescentmoondancers.com</I></U></A><A HREF="http://www.crescentmoondancers.com " TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.crescentmoondancers.com "><U><I> </I></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.tl2productions.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.tl2productions.com"><U><I>http://www.tl2productions.com</I></U></A></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>Style:</B> Any</div> <bR> <div> <B>Difficulty:</B> Intermediate to Advanced</div> <bR> <div> <B>Traveling in Relevée:</B> While traveling in relevée (on the balls of your feet), it is important to remember a couple of things. The first is to use the muscles in your abdomen to help you keep your balance, by pulling them in slightly toward the spine. The second is to use your calf muscles to help you travel. This will free up the muscles you need for your isolation so that they can do their job. Be sure to keep the feet close together when traveling. Large steps may make isolation execution difficult and clumsy.</div> <bR> <div> It is also important to remember not to move your heels up and down as the idea here is to glide along the floor at one level. Not only that, but you must train the muscles you use for your isolations to work independent of the feet.</div> <bR> <div> <B>The Feet:</B> Go up onto the balls of your feet with one foot, your leading foot, in front of the other. Let's assume you are moving to the right. The right foot is in front and will take the first step. Step right, then left, placing the left foot behind the right. Remember, you want this to be a graceful movement. I call it the “Sugarplum Fairy” footwork. You can use this footwork and do this movement forward, backward, and side to side. Note that you can switch your feet if you like when moving forward and backward, or you can keep one foot forward as your leading foot.</div> <bR> <div> Practice the footwork itself for a bit, first at a medium speed, then faster. Keep your posture as straight up and down as possible with the chest open.</div> <bR> <div> <B>The Hips:</B> The maya, for those who know it by another name, is a vertical figure 8 which moves up, out to the side, and then down. A quick break down: right hip up, then to the side (still lifted), then downward with control. This will lift the left hip, which then moves out to the side (still lifted), then downward with control.</div> <bR> <div> Now it's time to layer the hips over the feet. As you take your step with the right foot, lift the right hip using the lower abdominal muscles, oblique muscles, and the glute muscles, and slowly bring it out to the side in the lifted position, then downward to create that half of your maya. Now step with the left foot, placing it behind the right, lifting the left hip, and creating another downward and outward circle for the other half of your maya.</div> <bR> <div> This movement can be executed with one step per side (i.e. right side over right foot, left side over left foot), or it can be executed with two steps per side (step right, left over the right side of the maya, then right, left over the left side of the maya).</div> <bR> <div> Remember, a smaller movement done correctly is many times better than a large movement done incorrectly. So don't push yourself to make the maya huge. Oftentimes, small movements executed properly and with grace are what make this dance beautiful.</div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>