Our special session to finish the year is 5 classes for $65, Nov 7 - Dec 5. Learn technique, combos, and explore props and special topics. Details and registration are here.

You went to the workshop, learned a choreography, and now want to perform it. Sounds good! But what about giving credit? Did you pay for it? Are you going to make money from it? Did you learn it from YouTube? Do you want to teach it to another dancer?

Hopefully you paid to learn the choreography and the instructor was clear about permission to perform and/or teach it. Paying to learn a choreography does not give you permission to do whatever you want with it. You paid to learn the combinations from the instructor, you did not pay for the rights to the actual composition. Choreographies are protected intellectual property. While in the bellydance world we generally expect to be able to at least perform a choreography we've paid to learn, that is not always the case in other dance styles. Make sure you ask the instructor to clarify this.

1. If you are a professional performer and/or teacher, please ask for permission before using the choreography for financial gain (competitions, paid shows, teaching to students). Do not be surprised if the choreography author does not give you permission to financially benefit from their composition. Some authors may grant permission, but will require a fee and have parameters.

2. With permission given to perform, give credit, when possible. If there's a program for a show you're dancing in, include "choreography by" or "choreography inspired by" (if you've altered it) in your bio. For informal haflas, there often isn't an opportunity for printed recognition, but give credit when asked and absolutely cite the author/composer when sharing videos on social media (same goes for the music you are using!)

3. Do your best to represent the chorography well. If it's not quite the right "fit" or there are challenging sections prompting you to alter the choreo, that's okay! I can only speak for myself, but that's actually what I want my students to do with my choreographies if they want to use it for a solo - make it fit their style, use it as a springboard, etc. Maybe you are only using a couple of combos from the original and then changing the rest. Yay for you! Again, my personal goal for my students is to connect with the music in a way that makes sense for them and let their movements flow through.

Have some thoughts to share? I'd love to hear from you on this.

The Sameeha Bellydance Collective will be performing in the 7 pm show on Friday, July 22, as part of the 2022 Performing Arts Festival. This annual event is hosted by Dance Matrix Company in Fredericksburg, Virginia. 

Join us for an afternoon of performances and fun activities!