Dance tip, learn bellydance, veil, ZeoT, Zurich
Alia McKenzie-Murdoch
Tips for belly dance with a veil

One of our favourite accessories to dance with is the veil, the theme of our A and A/M choreographies in our next course period (KP2) starting March 4th 2024. Veils can be used to frame movements or become an extension of the dancer’s body. Dynamic, dramatic or dreamy, the movement fills the space around the dancer in colour and shape, as the veil adds a new dimension to the performance.

Tips for belly dance with a veil
ZeoT, Zurich
Alia McKenzie-Murdoch
A YEAR IN OUR NEW DANCE STUDIO IN ZURICH

It’s hard to believe that we’ve already danced a whole year in our new studio in Wipkingen. It’s time to look back and celebrate how we achieved our crowdfunding goal to help fund building work and how we’ve filled the space this year with energy, creativity and fun! The new ZeoT dance studio is more than a dance school; it’s a beautiful space for our community to meet, dance, be creative and feel at home.

A YEAR IN OUR NEW DANCE STUDIO IN ZURICH
Alia McKenzie-Murdoch
HAFLA IM ZEOT ZÜRICH

Lass dich vom Zauber der mittleren bis fernöstlichen Tänze mitreissen! Der Eintritt ist frei! Es gibt eine Kollekte zu Gunsten des Kampfes gegen die Kinderprostitution.

Samstag, 4. November, ab 14.40 // Eintritt: Gratis

HAFLA IM ZEOT ZÜRICH
Alia McKenzie-Murdoch
HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE ZEOT ZÜRICH SHOWCASE 2023

On May 13th, 2023, students and teachers from ZeoT Zürich performed at the Aula Rämibühl, Zürich to a full house. Here are a few visual and written impressions of a wonderful evening where, once again, the women of ZeoT showed the power of dance to unite and transform.

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE ZEOT ZÜRICH SHOWCASE 2023
Alia McKenzie-Murdoch
Shine - dance and transformation through ...

ALIA, originally from the UK, is the creative director and owner of ZeoT dance studio in Zürich, Switzerland. Here she talks about the motivations and inspirations behind her world of dance.

Shine - dance and transformation through movement
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HOW TO DANCE LIKE A CHAMPION

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HOW TO DANCE LIKE A CHAMPION

The most valuable things in life can only be learned by doing them a lot. You can read every book on Ghandi and still not be a leader. You can read cookbooks cover to cover and still not be able to serve up a gourmet meal. You can watch every belly dance video on youtube and still not be able to shimmy! If you want to get better at something there’s no magic ingredient - it’s about drilling the basics again and again until it becomes automatic.

Maybe you’ve been coming to class regularly but you feel frustrated that after practising for hours you’re not getting better or getting the results you want? Then it’s time to think about whether you’re practising in the right way!

“Champions are brilliant at the basics” - American basketball player John Wooden

Mastery in nearly any endeavor is the result of deeply understanding simple ideas. For most of us, the answer to becoming better leaders, better chefs or better dancers is consistently practicing the fundamentals, not brilliantly understanding the details. You can find more ideas and tips on how to practise here.

On 22nd October we'll begin KP 6 studying various Middle Eastern and North African folkloric dances. Join us on a colourful journey stopping off in Tunisia, Egypt and the Gulf states. We’ve included some more tips in our newsletter on how you can learn a choreography more easily and you’ll also find a special offer (free private lesson) for all new Abo holders in KP6, which might just help you find the best way to practise with intention and not just effort!

Highlights KP6 (more info in newsletter):

  • ESRAA WARDA // FROM MOROCCAN CHAABI TO ALGERIAN CHAOUI 

  • OZGEN // TURKISH ROMAN DANCE, DRUM SOLO & SUFI INSPIRED VEIL CHOREOGRAPHY

  • GEORGETTE DUTOIT // "ON YOUR FEET" - FOOT FITNESS WORKSHOP

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5 TIPS TO IMPROVE YOUR DANCE TECHNIQUE IMMEDIATELY!

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5 TIPS TO IMPROVE YOUR DANCE TECHNIQUE IMMEDIATELY!

Read our 5 goals for focused learning. Our tips will help you be fully engaged in dance class so that you can more easily learn and retain a choreography or improve your technique.

Why Oriental Contemporary?

Why Oriental Contemporary?

The title of this article and the name of my style of dance was put to me by a student of mine at the end of a class I was giving. She said, "Rachida, this is not just bellydance, what you do is oriental contemporary!"

Since then I've adopted this name for what I do. I began to mix different techniques spontaneously as I was learning them and it was more a bodily and expressive need than an intentional idea to innovate. At that time I took classical, jazz and contemporary classes to compensate the work of oriental dance, a work that is characterized by its sinuous movements, isolations, work of the internal musculature and feminine energy. Working with the corporal lines of classical and jazz and integrating the play of weight and impulses of contemporary dance, helped me to find a new way to express myself and also to feel. Now I realize that in a world in constant change, you can also change your needs and your way of expressing yourself.

NORTH AFRICAN/MAGHREB DANCE: The cornerstone of Amazigh, Andalusian, and Arabized Movement

NORTH AFRICAN/MAGHREB DANCE: The cornerstone of Amazigh, Andalusian, and Arabized Movement

“Oriental Dance”,“Raqs Sharqi”, or “Belly Dance” has very little to do with the Maghreb or North Africa (sans Egypt). Often North Africa is lumped into the acronym “MENA” - meaning “Middle East and North Africa” because of the commonly believed notion that there is a so-called “Arab world” accompanied with a unanimous understanding of an unified Arab identity and corresponding dance culture. This is a misconception! Dancers interested in learning about Northern African/Maghrebin dance should understand a few basic concepts in order to enjoy the diversity and nuance. This article, written by Esraa Warda especially for ZeoT Zürich, explains more about these fascinating dance styles, music and culture.

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SOMMER-WORKSHOP-WOCHE & WIE MAN SICH EINE CHOREOGRAFIE BESSER MERKEN KANN

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SOMMER-WORKSHOP-WOCHE & WIE MAN SICH EINE CHOREOGRAFIE BESSER MERKEN KANN

Probier diesen Sommer einen neuen Tanzstil aus! Wenn Du neue Dinge ausprobierst, bringst Du Dein Gehirn in einzigartige Situationen, die es zum Denken zwingen. Das regt die Kreativität an, welche auch auf andere Bereiche Deines Lebens abfärbt. In diesem Sinne bieten wir Dir eine grosse Auswahl an Workshops, an denen Du während der Sommer-Workshop-Woche vom 20.08. bis zum 25.08. teilnehmen kannst. Von Schleiertechnik bis Shimmy, von Muwashahat bis Baladi, hier hast Du die Chance, etwas Neues zu versuchen!

Die regulären Kurse pausieren während der Sommer-Workshop-Woche, bis wir am 27.08. in die Kursperiode 5 starten, und uns dem Raqs Sharqi - dem klassischen orientalischen Tanz - widmen. Lies unseren Newsletter und finde heraus wie Du eine Choreografie leichter lernen kannst.

Parallel zu unseren Choreografie-Kursen kannst Du ins Ballett, oder in einen unserer Kurse für orientalische Tanztechnik, um an Deiner Haltung oder Technik zu arbeiten. Du wirst erstaunt sein, wie sehr Du Dich durch eine zusätzliche Tanzstunde pro Woche verbessern wirst.

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SUMMER WORKSHOP SPECIAL & HOW TO REMEMBER A CHOREOGRAPHY BETTER!

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SUMMER WORKSHOP SPECIAL & HOW TO REMEMBER A CHOREOGRAPHY BETTER!

Try out a new dance style this summer! When you try new things, you put your brain into unique situations that force it to really think. This stimulates creativity, which eventually rubs off in other areas of your life. With this in mind, we have a great selection of workshops for you to try out during the summer workshop week of 20.08. - 25.08. From veil technique to shimmy, Muwashahat to Baladi, here's a great chance for you to try your hand at something new!

Regular classes take a break during the summer workshop week until the 27.08. when we'll begin course period 5 studying the art of Raqs Sharqi or classical oriental dance. Read our tip in our newsletter to find out how you can learn a choreography more easily. Alongside our choreography classes, why not work separately on improving your posture or technique in ballet or in one of our several oriental dance technique classes? You'll be amazed by how much you can improve just by adding one extra dance class a week.

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DANCE TO THE RHYTHM!

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DANCE TO THE RHYTHM!

Mach mit in unserer Spezial-Rhythmus-Kursperiode und lerne Technik und Kombinationen zu verschiedenen arabischen Rhythmen, und profitiere ebenfalls von unserer Abo Promotion (mehr Infos unten).

Arabische Rhythmen zu lernen wird Dir helfen Deinen Tanzstil zu verbessern. Du wirst nicht nur lernen den Beat zu hören und im Takt zu tanzen, sondern Du wirst auch erkennen, welche Bewegungen zu einem bestimmten Musikstil passen. Das wird Dir in Zukunft das Improvisieren erleichtern.

Unser Stundenplan verschafft Dir einen guten Überblick über unser Kursangebot in KP4. Falls Du Dir nicht sicher bist, was das passende Niveau für Dich ist, hilft Dir unsere Kursstruktur-Seite sicher weiter. Oder melde Dich einfach bei uns, wir helfen Dir gerne.   

Überschneidet sich Dein Sommerurlaub mit KP4? Kein Problem! Da Du keine Choreografie lernen musst, kannst Du auch nach Deinen Ferien wieder ganz einfach in den laufenden Kurs einsteigen.

Wir haben auch einige tolle Workshops im Angebot! Bollywood mit Stuti Aga, Tango Oriental Technik mit Lya Elcagu und unsere Sommer-Workshop Woche mit dem ZeoT Zürich Team.  

Mit unserer Teilnahme am Zürich Tanzt Festival und dem Iranischen Filmfestival, und unserem ZeoT Showcase & CHROMA am 9. Juni können wir auf ein ereignisreiches Halbjahr zurück blicken. Herzlichen Dank an alle Beteiligten, insbesondere an die über 70 Tanzschülerinnen, die so intensiv gearbeitet haben, unsere Show zu einem großen Erfolg zu machen. Wir freuen uns schon auf das nächste Jahr und hoffen, dass noch mehr von euch teilnehmen werden. Save the date: Samstag, 22. Juni 2019!

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DANCE TO THE RHYTHM!

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DANCE TO THE RHYTHM!

Join us this summer in KP4 for our rhythm special! Learn combinations and technique to different arabic rhythms and don’t forget to benefit from our special summer abo promotion (more info below).

Learning arabic rhythms can really help to improve your dancing! Not only will you be able to hear and follow the beat, helping you to keep in time, you will also start to recognise what style of dance fits to the music and find improvising so much easier!

Get an overview of courses in our KP4 timetable and find the right level for you here. Still not sure? Don't hesitate to contact us for help! Away on holiday during Kp4? No problem since there's no choreo to learn in KP4 it's easy to catch up any classes missed whilst sunning yourself on the beach!

We also have some great workshops coming up! Bollywood with Stuti Aga, Oriental Tango technique with Lya Elcagu and our special summer workshop week with the ZeoT Zürich team.  

It's been an action packed year for us so far with our participation in Zürich Tanzt festival, the Iranian Film Festival and of course the ZeoT Showcase & CHROMA performance on the 9th June. We'd like to thank everyone who took part, especially the over 70 dance students who worked so hard to make this event a great success. We're already looking forward to next year's show and hoping that even more of you will take part. Save the date: Saturday June 22nd 2019!