Solid Skills with Melissa Platten

Solid Skills: Clean, Precise Technique for Bellydance

Solid technique makes learning choreographies, improvising and creating your own dances feel less stressful and more fun. 

What dancer wouldn’t love a secret recipe to flawless bellydance posture and technique, clear and dependable shimmies, locks, undulations, willowy arms? What if the recipe might be as simple as:

a clear plan + time + accurate/compassionate review

In this two hour workshop Melissa Platten, owner and director of The Hive: Embodiment Education Center, will lead you through a technique practice that includes enough time between drills for brief reflection and note taking, and culminates in a home practice plan for solid technique. 

Melissa loves to make practicing technique fun! During the first 75 minutes get ready to drill isolations from head to hips, exploring different dynamics and texture for each isolation, strengthening muscle memory and building speed all along the way.

After we drill, you’ll get to create your own practice plan using notes from the technique portion of class while Melissa models her practice-planning-process in real time. You’ll then immediately put one of your practice plans to use to finish off class and leave with 3 practice plans: 10, 25, and 45 minute plans. 

This workshop is a great idea for dancers of all levels interested in:

· Exploring detailed bellydance technique and drilling through the lens of Hive dialect, applicable to any style bellydance. 

· Creating a practice plan that supports clean, precise technique

· A fun drill session

With 3 decades of teaching experience, Melissa Platten, owner and primary instructor of The Hive: Embodiment Education Center, creates supportive learning environments in which participants feel empowered to succeed. A Tribal Fusion Bellydancer since 2001, Melissa has traveled throughout the country studying with Rachel Brice, Zoe Jakes, Mardi Love, Jill Parker, Moria Chappell and Kami Liddle. As a dancer, she is known for her effusive stage presence, solid technique and musicality. Students in Melissa's classes appreciate her attention to detail, clear communication, and ability to break down complex ideas into manageable pieces. Melissa is currently developing curriculum for her personal style of Tribal Fusion Bellydance, Hive Style Fusion Bellydance.