Navel Gazers

Belly Dance Melbourne

Joyful Exotic Soulful

Welcome to Navel Gazers Belly Dance Melbourne where your Belly Dance dreams come true! Belly Dance Melbourne is one of the premier dance academies for traditional and contemporary Middle Eastern dance in Australia, with over 25 years in the industry. We offer very high quality, enjoyable Egyptian Belly Dance classes and Tribal Fusion classes and stunning professional performances.

The Movers and Shakers

Unleash your wild heart and embrace your sensual soul at Navel Gazers Belly Dance Melbourne!

Discover your passion for the beautiful, ancient art form of Belly Dance through encouraging, first-rate instruction from the very best in the business. Navel Gazers Belly Dance Melbourne classes are renowned in Australia for exemplary instruction in all levels of Egyptian Belly Dance and Tribal Fusion at two studio locations; Blackburn Nth and Malvern. Whether you're just starting out or you already have Belly Dance experience you'll find Navel Gazers Belly Dance Melbourne is a welcoming and transformative dance school.

The studio is run by director Melusina who is a powerhouse in the Middle Eastern dance world. For over 25 years Melusina has been one of the most sought after and influential performers, instructors and choreographers in Australia with a strong presence in Orientale dance internationally. Melusina has performed in Egypt, America and New Zealand and has studied under many masters in traditional Egyptian and contemporary Tribal dance styles. She has become known for her powerful, emotive stage presence and impeccable technical skill. Regarded as one of Australia’s foremost instructors and choreographers, Melusina is also known as one of the most generous and fun. She has taught in several countries and frequently travels around Australia teaching and performing her unique styles.

From 2000 Melusina was one of the principal teachers and performers at Underbelly before she branched out in 2009 with Navel Gazers Belly Dance Melbourne. She is artistic director and creator of the Tribal format, Red Belly Black which was one of the first Tribal Fusion formats to ever launch in Australia. In 2020 Melusina completed a year long Egyptian dance and music study course with Keti Sharif and is now a certified teacher in A-Z Original, A-Z Advanced, A-Z Teaching Courses and Somatics for Belly Dance.

Melusina's passion for Belly Dance and Tribal Fusion and her vast wealth of knowledge and experience allows her to enrich her students, many of whom have become well known teachers and performers.

Belly Dance Classes

Belly Dance Melbourne Classes

New term dates will be announced once lockdown eases and dance studios can reopen. For up to date info join our mailing list or visit the Navel Gazers Belly Dance Melbourne Facebook page.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions all classes must be pre-booked/pre-paid to secure your place. Physical distancing and a high level of hygiene will be maintained at all times.

In the event of a Coronavirus lockdown all classes will be taught as Video Classes.

Monday Classes (Malvern)

6:20-7:10pm Beginners Belly Dance
7:10-8:00pm Intermediate Belly Dance
8:00-8:50pm Advanced Belly Dance
8:50-9:40pm Tribal Fusion Adv Lvl 3

Thursday Classes (Blackburn Nth)

6:20-7:10pm Beginners Belly Dance
7:10-8:00pm Intermediate Belly Dance
8:00-8:50pm Tribal Style Foundations Lvl 1*
8:50-9:40pm Tribal Fusion Moves & Drills Lvl 2

Friday Private Lessons (Blackburn Nth)

By appointment. Contact melusina@bellydancemelbourne.com to make a Private Lesson booking

* Tribal Style Foundations requires a minimum of intermediate level Belly Dance experience.

Discounts on Multiple Shimmies

If doing only one course of Belly Dancing or Tribal Fusion per term is not enough shimmying for you then you can do multiple Full Term courses and save! One course is $110 but if you book into two courses it’s $200 (save $20) and three courses is only $300 (save $30). To benefit from these fabulous savings on multiple courses contact melusina@bellydancemelbourne.com and indicate the courses you’d like to book in to. You’ll then be sent a prompt to secure your bookings at the discounted rate via the Navel Gazers Belly Dance bank account. THE MORE YOU SHIMMY THE MORE YOU SAVE

Class Pricing

FULL TERM – 6 x 50 minute classes: $110

HALF TERM – 3 x 50 minute classes: $58

CASUAL CLASS/TRIAL CLASS – 1 x 50 minute class: $22*

PRIVATE LESSONS - 1 x 60 minute class: $80 (includes studio hire)
Fridays by appointment at Blackburn North Studio.

* All new students are entitled to a $22 Trial Class. After the Trial Class, if you wish to continue, that $22 goes towards a Full Term payment.

DISCOUNTS available for multiple course bookings.
Contact melusina@bellydancemelbourne.com for multi-course bookings and info.

All classes must be pre-paid to secure your spot in class!

ENROL HERE

Class Descriptions

BELLY DANCING is a mesmerisingly beautiful ancient art form originally from the Middle East. Egyptian Belly Dance is distinctive for its sinuous undulations, rhythmic accents & curvaceous movements. Belly Dancing allows each dancer to create expressive movements that reflect their own individuality, musicality, & passion. Popular for health, fitness, sensuality & fun, Belly Dancing is accessible for anyone at any age. It is a relatively low impact dance which helps to strengthen & tone muscles whilst allowing for personal and spiritual growth & enjoyment. Belly Dance Melbourne classes strive to provide quality, uplifting Egyptian Belly Dance lessons for everyone.

Beginners Belly Dance (0 - 3 months) introduces you to the foundation movements that make up the basic Egyptian Belly Dance repertoire. Technique is explained & demonstrated clearly & each movement related to historical, cultural & musical context. All movements are danced to music at the end of each class to enable students to practice & get a feeling for the dance form. Ideally all students complete at least 2 terms in Beginners Belly Dance before progressing to Intermediate.

Tribal Style and Fusion

*Prerequisite: Beginners Egyptian Belly Dance*

TRIBAL STYLE BELLY DANCE is a popular modern innovation originally developed in America & is often called ATS (American Tribal Style). It is largely an improvisational style danced in groups & combines folkloric Middle Eastern, Modern, & World Dance steps to create an exciting new dance form. The style repeats simple moves & symbolic gestures in patterns cued by leaders, building with the music & the interaction between dancers. At Navel Gazers a format of moves, variations & cues are taught in this style called Red Belly Black. An eBook about this distinctly Australian take on the style & listing all the moves was written by Melusina to help students learn Tribal. Tribal style is powerful & elegant & often challenging but well worth the effort! It has a strong Flamenco-like posture & gorgeous Gypsy-style costuming. Tribal style is suited to dancers with a good grounding in regular Belly Dance & who love dancing together with others.

TRIBAL FUSION is a cutting edge, ground breaking new style fusing Tribal (ATS) with Contemporary Dance/Ballet, Belly Dance & Street styles. The moves are often serpentine & muscular with sharp accents & smooth, rippling isolations coupled with graceful leg extensions & turns. This style is very new & often quite deliciously dark & has evolved from traditional Tribal Belly Dance as its rebellious half-sister. Fusion is more of a soloist, choreographed dance form that uses contemporary music. The Red Belly Black dance format also covers Fusion so all the moves we use can be found in Melusina’s eBook which can be purchased here: Tribal & Fusion Belly Dance eBook

Malvern Studio

Monday Classes held at:

Hit The Floor Studios, Level 1, 245 Glenferrie Rd, MALVERN

Blackburn North Studio

Thursday & Friday Classes held at:

Suite 1, 36 Joseph Street, BLACKBURN NORTH

Latest News

New Times Days and Studios

Navel Gazers has just undergone a massive timetable re-vamp with changes to class times, days and locations being implemented. Now all group classes will be held on two huge nights of dancing (Mondays in Malvern and Thursdays in Blackburn Nth) plus Fridays especially set aside for Private Lessons. Check the timetable for the new schedule because your favourite class may have changed. One of the great things about the new schedule is that with 4 classes to choose from on group classes nights you can do multiple classes and get more shimmying done at once. Remember, there is now a discount available for students wanting to book in to more than one course per term so now you can get more Hip Drops with a price drop.

Video Classes Available

During the COVID-19 lockdowns here in Melbourne we continued classes via pre-recorded video. All videos remain available via a private You Tube link for any students wishing to learn in the comfort of their own homes. There are about 35 Videos in different levels (Beginners, Intermediate, Advanced) and different styles (Egyptian Belly Dance, Tribal Improvisation, Tribal Fusion) covering technique, mini-choreographies, sequences and cardio workouts. For example, there is a full set of 9 thirty minute lessons for Beginners covering all the basic moves. For more information about the Video Classes contact melusina@bellydancemelbourne.com

Contact

Business Name: Navel Gazers Belly Dance Melbourne

Teacher: Melusina

ABN: 93982668148

For more information contact Melusina

Phone: 0424 867 775

Email: melusina@bellydancemelbourne.com

Belly Dance CLASS ENROLMENT

Links

For the best Melbourne web designer: Coolcat Web Design

For the best dance studio in Malvern: www.hitthefloor.net.au

For Amazing Body Art & Henna Tattoos: lauriefaulkner.com

F. A. Q. S

Testimonials

A pleasure that lifts the spirit

After a year of Navel Gazers belly dance classes I can’t say enough about how impressed I am with Melusina as a teacher. Her ability to skillfully explain techniques combined with her warmth and humour make every class a pleasure that lifts the spirit. She has total empathy for every student’s level and confidence in their dancing. She corrects us very considerately and clearly loves to see us improve. I have had dozens of dance teachers in other styles over decades and Mel is outstanding among them as well as being a beautiful dancer and soul.

Marion Jamieson

Melusina’s teaching style is fun, professional and thorough

Melusina’s teaching style is fun, professional and thorough. Melusina is so committed to her school, she puts on concerts twice a year which are so magical and a wonderful way to demonstrate all we have learned through the year. My dance class is often one of my favourite times of the week and I’m so grateful for all that Melusina does to make this possible.

Arcadia Clover

Mel is a fantastic teacher

I’ve been dancing with Melusina at Navel Gazers for at least 3 years now and I cannot rate the classes high enough. Mel is a fantastic teacher who not only has helped me to rebuild confidence in my dancing abilities but has also pushed me outside of my comfort zones in the most supportive and loving ways possible so I can reach my potential every time..! Thank you Mel!

Adela Savu

I keep going back.

I have done two terms of belly dancing with Mel, and I found her an absolute gem. Informative, positive and an all-round great teacher. I have done a couple of different classes with different teachers over the years, and I really love her classes. I keep going back. What more is there to say!

Annette Cashleigh

A welcoming and fun space

I’ve just finished my first term of tribal fusion with Melusina and I feel like I’ve already learnt so much, I absolutely love it! Mel is a talented, thorough and captivating teacher and I’m so excited to continue dancing with her and this tribe. Can’t wait to work my way through the levels as I’m happy to have found a welcoming and fun space to sink in and learn this beautiful art form. Big love!

Stephanie Sivani

Highly recommended!

I love Navel Gazers Belly Dance!! Mel is such a beautiful natural teacher and person, it’s a joy to learn from her! Her classes are fun and relaxed, and with lots of variety. As well as dance, she’s always sharing interesting bits of the history of belly dance. Highly recommended!

Karen Field

Mel is a master and an inspiration.

Highly recommend Navel Gazers! Mel is a master and an inspiration. As a student I always feel at ease and well-supported, and I am constantly learning new things. There is a lot of variety and Mel puts much thought into teaching us both the techniques and the theory. The classes are great fun and I leave each time feeling brighter and more energetic.

Kun Zhao

Inspired and empowered.

I have been attending Navel Gazers Dance classes for a few years now and I am always learning something new. I felt welcomed from the first class and always have a lot of fun. As a dancer of some years I look for a challenge, professionalism and safety in dance classes and Melusina delivers. I walk away from every class inspired and empowered.

Daniel Hayward

I always leave class happy!

I have been having classes with Mel for about a year. I’ve always loved dancing, but never thought I was coordinated enough. Mel is great at breaking the moves down and building everyone’s skills. I always leave class happy!

Sarah Sage

An exceptional teacher

I’ve been dancing with Mel for around 12 years now!!! She is an exceptional teacher, stunning performer and total legend of a woman!! I can’t recommend classes at Navel Gazers enough!!! 12 years and still coming back doesn’t lie!

Kerry Whittle