Plus Size Dancers

LuLu

New member
I am a full figured belly dancer and proud of it. My teacher says wonderful things about all her students. I can't imagine a rude teacher. Look up WildCard Belly Dance on YouTube they have several full figured dancers that are just as lovely as thinner dancers.
 

LuLu

New member
Yeah. What Gia said. I took a class with a person who repeatedly made weight-related remarks about other people (this person was a former fat person and apparently needed to reinforce her newfound feelings of superior thinness). One of the other students finally shut her down by turning to her and saying coolly, "What a mean spirited thing to say," then walking away to continue class in another part of the room, as if the atmosphere around the first person was simply too dismal to breath.

A lot of things go into making a dancer, and body size is not the most important.



Mine doesn't even allow us to make size ore weight related comments about ourself she turns up the music or does something to draw attention away from the negative comments.
 

psychobilly5

New member
I'm a plus sized dancer. Granted I'm plus sized because I got into bad eating habits lol. I recently discovered I'm prediabetic and need to start changing my diet and excercizing. I've been on both sides of the coin regarding weight and comments. In my early 20's and as a budding dancer I received comments that I was too thin. Usually from larger people. Back then I was slender but I don't believe I was too thin for my frame. Now I'm nearly 40 and weigh a lot more now. I have either overheard myself or been told by friends who've heard rude comments about being a "fat belly dancer". Usually by those thinner than me.

What I learned is that there will always be somebody with insecurity issues that'll project onto you no matter your size. I say be healthy, be beautiful, and just dance!
 

Ahava_Melantha

New member
excellent! funny how the wisdom hits us after we've gained weight, lol. I have pcos and it got bad after i started losing weight after my twins. yeah, 20# weight gain in 2 weeks. abruptly. and this was when I was eating REALLY well and walking miles, lol.

now when i have to lose lots, my former dance instructor has told me how beautiful and what a hot dancer i was. lol. I thought i was fat!!!! yeah . . . so now back to exercise, lol.
 

LunaXJJ

New member
Nothing pisses me off more than people who say someone is too small, or big for belly dance.

Saying "not curvy enough" is one of the worst. Ummm, how are male belly dancers supposed to get womanly curves? Most people who say stuff like that know little about actual belly dance.

Youtube you should just avoid commenting on. lol. A lot of people wanting to see "sexy dancers" few wanting to really admire the art.
 

Ahava_Melantha

New member
yes I realized that. some of the really good dancers and their performances will get bad comments. and some horrible dancers will get nothing but rave reviews. wtf?
 

Avariel

New member
yes I realized that. some of the really good dancers and their performances will get bad comments. and some horrible dancers will get nothing but rave reviews. wtf?

LOl this has started happening in my community, actually. People are always sooooooo supportive of you and your Dancing and then once you've become good enough to " threaten " them, you might as well hear crickets chirping after a performance. People will always rave about you as long as you're safely mediocre.
 

Rania

New member
Sometimes Im leary about what defines plus size. What the media considers plus size nowadays is still quite small.

I like the look of full-figured belly dancers. They appear to be well feed and healthy.

I recall seeing a traveling troup that was for plus size girl and women only. I just cant remember teir name If I find it again Ill let you ladies know.

Any one know Yasmine, I believe shes on this site
Hip Hop Belly Dance Fusion - with Yasaman - YouTube

Shushanna
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ewia-xY1SzQ
 
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LadyLoba

New member
I have absolutely no problem with someone HAVING an opinion or preference about anyone's size, shape, weight, hair color, hair texture..or the shape of their fingers if you're that particular. Beauty is subjective...and there are people who find all types of features beautiful and not beautiful. Just check out Miss Vega's "Hot Guys" thread...or have a conversation with any group of randomly selected people about appearance and attractiveness...

Yes...we are judged at least partly on the way we look...especially in the performing arts...like dance, acting, etc...and it is very possible that someone may not hire you or may not hire you for the position you want because of the way you look.

But none of that is an excuse to berate or insult somebody and try to make them feel that NOBODY is going to find them attractive just because YOU don't. Or to make them believe that they can't belly dance, just because that's not what YOU like to see in a belly dancer.

A teacher would never dream of doing that about anything else about a person...and if they did...they'd know full good and well they were going to get in a lot of trouble for it.

Take me for example. I am truly horrible at mathematics and the natural sciences. If your idea of "intelligent" is "someone who is good at science and math"...well them I'm afraid you will think I'm stupid.

If I took a Biology class and the teacher made comments suggesting that the only type of intelligence that was true intelligence was knowing a lot about Biology...told me that "everybody" was going to think I was stupid because nobody thinks Language Arts people (like writers) are intelligent...etc...the way so many people seem to think is ok to do with the "here is what I find attractive, so that's what IS universally considered attractive"....once I closed my mouth from the shock...I'd be right in the admin building of that school speaking to the Dean of the Faculty. There's no way I'd tolerate that type of treatment about my intelligence....and it isn't acceptable to do it to people about their looks either.

I like a lot of the suggestions on the thread...about finding some examples of belly dancers that have a similar body type to you....and who PLENTY of people consider great dancers....and great looking.

And if a teacher is being cruel or allowing cruelty from other students...Id drop the class and give my money and my time and energy to somebody who could behave like a professional instructor.
 

Ahava_Melantha

New member
this reminds me of a review i read for ranya renees "beledi set" dvds. they were judging her rather harshly on her figure. which i don't think shes fat. but because she wasn't skinny or very slim or whatever, they were judging her. Not judging on her beledi set (awesome btw).

those things dooo peeve me.
 

LadyLoba

New member
That is too bad...one to not even mention the content of the dvd..and two...to act like that's automatically bad.

Plenty of people like curvy female figures. If I caught an appearance genie, I'd make them give me either Shakira's figure with a fuller bust, Kat Dennings figure with fuller hips, or Sadie's figure....and men have thought Dolly Parton was attractive for about 50 years..and some people like very full figures....certainly not everybody prefers a skinny shape....just some do...though Im sure most of those reviews stated it like her not being as skinny as they prefered meant it was an automatic strike against it.
 

Sirène

New member
That is too bad...one to not even mention the content of the dvd..and two...to act like that's automatically bad.

Oh yes, I know exactly what Amazon review Ahava_Melantha is talking about. :rolleyes: Believe it or not, the reviewer does discuss the content of the dvd set, and in the process makes it abundantly clear that she (or he) knows nothing about oriental dance. How does that Mark Twain quote go...

Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.
 

Ahava_Melantha

New member
sorry about that I might have forgotten her "judgement" on the dvd set. But its just incredibly weird to me about all of this. I have seen critical opinions of people saying that Princess Farhanna having fat rolls and that belly dancers shouldn't have fat rolls. Or that Asharah has a fat belly. ughh.

When I was 15 and I first started to belly dance one woman told my mother that i was too big to belly dance. yeah, I was 15 and I had just lost 20 pounds and i lost another 30 pounds later. yeah, they told her you "need a belly" to belly dance.

but yeah. I just like the dance. I have known of belly dancers that were very petite and thin, some who were tall (my dance instructor was 6') and some who were short, some belly dancers very plus ssized or average. and frankly, i just wanna enjoy the dance. I hate how it has to be marked with fighting over bodies
 

LadyLoba

New member
I actually prefer to watch dancers of different shapes, heights, sizes. I like to see what the moves look like on as many different people as possible. I might have a "my dream figure" but that doesnt make someone of a different type a bad dancer. I have a few male celebities I find attractive too...but that doesnt make anybody else any less good at their jobs.

If it's belly dance and my choice is watching a dancer whose figure I envy but is a bad dancer and watching a dancer with a figure I don't envy who is good...I would rather see good dancing that I can enjoy and learn from.

Sadly, I think there are some people who would hire a belly dancer who wasnt as good bec they preferred her figure over a better dancer who didnt appeal to them. To me that seems stupid....if Im paying somebody to do something...I want them good at what Im paying them to do. I can stand around and look at somebody and go "he's hot" or "I wish I looked like her" for free. If I were going to pay a belly dancer...I want to see quality belly dancing.
 
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Yame

New member
I find that most judgmental comments about plus-sized belly dancers come from outside the belly dance community.

Not that there aren't some people within the community who hold these same kinds of opinions, but generally speaking because the community is so small these people will keep their thoughts to themselves or share them with close friends only, and not go around posting these sorts of things online.

Either way, in my experience I've found that these people are a minority within the community. The belly dance community has many flaws, but I do think that we're much farther ahead of the GP in terms of having a healthy body image and accepting diversity.
 

Ahava_Melantha

New member
I won't agree there Yame. Even though I have had some serious, but not really THAT bad self/body image issues. With belly dancing my view of my body isn't really skewed. othere girsl in high school would be like, "ughhh, my thighs are shaking when I run, its soo gross" and with me, I'm learning how to shimmy so it didn't bother me much lol.

I think a lot of dancing accomplishments have helped me "love" building more "physical" acccomplishments if that makes sense. you learn to love what your body CAN do.
 

Yame

New member
I won't agree there Yame. Even though I have had some serious, but not really THAT bad self/body image issues. With belly dancing my view of my body isn't really skewed. othere girsl in high school would be like, "ughhh, my thighs are shaking when I run, its soo gross" and with me, I'm learning how to shimmy so it didn't bother me much lol.
.

I think you just proved my point? LOL!
 
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