The Brooklyn Papers / Rebecca Cetta

Shaping up: Belly dancing students at work at the Greenhouse Holistic studio in Williamsburg. Trisha McBride, foreground, leads the class.

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Were you ever amazed at a belly dancer’s ability to shake her hips, shimmy her shoulders, twirl her hands, twist and turn her stomach while glancing flirtatiously around the room - all at the same time?

I was.

I wanted to know how she managed to look graceful - even seductive - when an average person, in an attempt to do the same, would appear as though he or she were experiencing a series of spasms.

I have always wanted to know how to execute those impossible-looking moves, but was afraid to try - until last weekend. I am proud to announce that I have deposited two successful belly dancing classes into my limited bank of exercise experience.

Not exactly someone you’d call a fitness nut, I am more likely to cringe at the mere thought of going to the gym than stick to a strict regimen. But I am always looking for innovative ways that might encourage my inner fitness-o-holic to come out of its closet. And since I love to dance - which by no means implies that I know how to - I jumped at the prospect of trying out the art of traditional belly dance as a form of exercise.

I think I might have found my calling.

In her book "Bellydancing for Fitness: The Sexy Art that Tones Your Abs, Butt, and Thighs" (Fair Winds Press, 2004), author Rania Androniki Bossonis, an Aerobics and Fitness Association of America-certified fitness instructor and professional Middle East dance teacher, writes that belly dance is an ancient ritual dance rooted in the Middle East and North Africa.

This type of dance first reached the United States in 1893 during an exhibition of Middle Eastern dance and culture by Sol Bloom at the Chicago World’s Fair, where the term "belly dance" was created, writes Bossonis.

"It is characterized by articulated isolation movements, undulations, intricate patterns of hip isolations, ribbon-like arm and torso undulations, percussive locking movements, circular hand movements, and shaking or fluttering movements (shimmies)," writes Bossonis.

In addition to physical benefits, such as improved coordination, balance, muscle tone and posture, Bossonis lists a series of "social and mental/emotional" rewards of belly dancing such as reduced stress, opportunities to meet people with common interests and a feeling of accomplishment "from mastering a new skill."

Class One: Middle Eastern

Petite Autumn Ward, 32, could not look any less Middle Eastern with her fair, freckled skin, light eyes and strawberry-blond hair, which she wore in a long braid. But the moment she put on her costume - a red-velvet, torso-revealing top and a matching floor-length fitted skirt with a slit down each side to allow for unrestricted movement - let her waist-length hair down and started dancing for the camera, it was evident that she was in her element.

A former gymnast from Carlisle, Pa., Ward, now a Greenpoint resident, has been practicing belly dancing since 1997 and teaching it for the past six years, first in Washington, D.C., and now in New York.

"People in the class look like Brooklyn," said Ward of her Park Slope and Williamsburg student body. "They are mixed in ages, race, ethnicity and nationality."

Ward’s dance style and technique combines Egyptian and Iranian folk and social traditions with classical ballet influences.

"I would like to give the general public a better idea of Middle Eastern dance," she said.

Ward teaches four classes a week - an intermediate class at Spiral Flow in Williamsburg and three classes, ranging from beginner to intermediate-advanced on Saturdays at Spoke the Hub in Park Slope.

"What I like so much about [Ward’s classes] is that they are small," said Jennifer Gonzales, 21, after her third class. "If you need extra attention, she’ll stand there and help you." Gonzales said she likes that there is no pressure if you don’t know what you’re doing.

Although you don’t have to be a certain body type to belly dance, said Ward, you have to be fit, strong and flexible in order to properly execute the movements. (She is an advocate of pilates, too.)

In addition to improving flexibility, strength, stamina and poise, Ward said that belly dancing can also be spiritually rewarding in that it makes women feel better about their bodies.

Class Two: American Tribal

Trisha Ann McBride, 29, begins teaching her class at Greenhouse Holistic, in Williamsburg, with a 10- to 15-minute meditation session.

"I want people to come in and drop their excess baggage at the door," McBride said, adding that leaving their worries behind helps improve the flow of the dance movements.

A Salt Lake City native, McBride began her belly dancing career nine years ago in the American cabaret style, a blend of Middle Eastern and Western dance which involved glitzy, sequined costumes and the use of a veil.

McBride moved towards the American tribal style because she said that it empowered the woman. Leaving the glitz behind, the tribal dance employs more traditionally ethnic costumes and jewelry with influences from Pakistan, India, Afghanistan and North Africa, explained Bossonis in her book.

And the differences between McBride’s and Ward’s styles were reflected in the atmosphere in the classroom, the teaching style and the costumes the instructors wore. McBride’s black cropped shirt and the long flowing cotton black skirt was almost the exact opposite from Ward’s vibrant red stage costume.

(Ward does not teach in her costume, instead wearing a comfortable workout outfit, like the rest of the students, adorned with a bead- and coin-decorated hip scarf - to help them know if their hips are moving with the music.)

In addition to being all-female, there were also many other similarities between the two classes - starting with the instructors’ passion for belly dance, which was reciprocated by their students.

If I had to pick between the two instructors and their dance styles, I wouldn’t know which one to choose. Ward’s structured teaching technique of detailed explanations of every move helped me to see and learn exactly how the dancing is done the right way. She continuously moved from one side of the room to the other, tirelessly making sure that everyone was keeping up.

On the other hand, I liked the energy created by the fast flow of McBride’s class, which really makes you sweat. Even though I was not always sure if I was doing the right thing, we learned a great variety of moves that made for a fun dance. McBride also repeatedly provided us with very clear instruction.

Ward’s style was graceful and elegant with delicate - but at the same time intricate - moves while McBride taught a more raw and energetic dance style full of big powerful movement. What the two had in common is an air of feminine sensuality that makes the students in both classes come back for more.

"[Belly dancing] is amazing for female organs," said McBride. "It’s good for giving birth because it strengthens that whole area." It eases PMS and cramps, several students agreed.

But most importantly, belly dancing seems to improve a woman’s image of herself.

"I am so glad I never pursued ballet," said McBride. "I’d have a completely different body image."

She encouraged the class, "Ladies, shake it if you got it."

Autumn Ward offers new beginners, continuing beginners and intermediate/advanced belly dancing classes on Saturdays at 11:30 am, 12:30 pm and 1:30 pm, respectively at Spoke the Hub at 748 Union St. between Fifth and Sixth avenues in Park Slope and intermediate classes on Wednesdays from 6:30 pm to 8 pm at Spiral Flow Yoga studio at 302A Bedford Ave. between Grand and S. First streets in Williamsburg. Classes are $15 for one hour. For more information, call (917) 686-1622 or visit the Web site at www.brooklynbellydance.com.

Trisha McBride offers belly dancing classes on Sundays from 2:30 pm to 4 pm at the Greenhouse Holistic studio located at 88 Roebling St. at N. Seventh Avenue in Williamsburg. Classes are $14 each. For more information call (718) 599-3113 or visit the Web site at www.greenhouseholistic.com.

"Bellydancing for Fitness: The Sexy Art that Tones Your Abs, Butt, and Thighs" (Fair Winds Press, $19.95), which comes with a CD of Middle Eastern music, is available at, or can be ordered through, local bookstores.

©2005 Community Newspaper Group