Kalaa Bellydance
About
With more than 30 years of dance experience, Kalaa offers well rounded expertise to her students. From beginners to professional level dancers, mentoring, competition preparation, private lessons, performance critique, and more, Kalaa's award winning dancing, instruction and choreography have made her one of the premiere instructors and dancers from Florida to DC. Based in Southeastern Virginia (Hampton Roads), Kalaa frequently travels to Richmond and DC, to the north, and all the way to New Bern and Charlotte, NC, to the south, for private lessons, performances and workshop instruction. Kalaa's award winning students can't say enough about the attention to detail and genuine care given to their individual growth. And her audiences frequently comment on her authenticity, grace and ability to communicate through music and dance.
Highlights
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Frequently asked questions
What is your typical process for working with a new student?
My goal is to always make my students feel comfortable. I will typically share a bit about myself and how I became a bellydancer. It is important to me, and has proven effective over the years, to just be myself. Learning something new, in any forum, can be intimidating. If I can break the ice, and any walls that may have been put up, by being true to myself,l and sometimes a little silly, my students tend to relax and maybe even have a little bit of fun.
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
As a teen, I became interested in dance and trained for several years in jazz and lyrical. After having my second son, I found bellydance. After a year of training, I moved to Virginia and found an amazing teacher, woman and friend, Taaj fi Qalbi. She was such an inspiration and truly what i modeled my own teaching style after. In 2008, I went through a rigorous training program and became the first Certified Bellydance Trainer. I have continued to travel and study with many wonderful teachers over the years. In 2007, I had my first intensive weeklong endeavor with Sahra Saeeda, who became my mentor and still is today. Through her, I have received many certifications, including Journey through Egypt 1 and 2, as well as the full course of Saidi certifications. Sahra is a dance ethnologist specializing in the dances of Egypt.