Oriental dance classes and shows in Tampere
Autumn 2025, 25.8.–25.11.
In Autumn 2025, I will organize oriental dance courses in Tampere for both beginner and improver levels. The beginners course is suitable for complete newcomers as well as those who have recently started dancing, while the improver level is aimed at dancers who are already familiar with the basics of oriental dance.
Both courses start in the last week of August and continue until the end of November. The courses are designed to progress throughout the autumn, but you can also join mid-season or drop in by paying per class or with a five-class card. See more about participation options below.
Course Descriptions
Oriental Dance Beginners
- Mondays 16:45–18:00
- Location: Tampere Social Dancing, Vellamonkatu 4, 33100 Tampere
- 12 × 75 minutes
- 25.8.–24.11., no classes on October 13 and 20
In the beginners course, we learn the basic movements of oriental dance and create movement sequences that utilize the entire body. We approach the dance through joy and emotion!
The beginner classes are intended for complete beginners as well as those who have recently started to oriental dance. You can join the beginner classes with no previous experience in oriental dance — or any kind of dance. However, it is a good option even if you have done a beginners course before, since building a solid foundation is essential and will certainly help as you move to more advanced levels.
New dancers! Don't be afraid to attend your first class. Everyone is in the same boat, and the best part of starting something new is that you can be proud of yourself just for showing up. You are warmly welcome!
Oriental Dance Improver Level
- Tuesdays 16:45–18:00
- Location: Suvi Salmi Dance Company, Pyhäjärvenkatu 1 C, 4th floor
- 12 × 75 minutes
- 26.8.–25.11., no classes on October 14 and 21
In this course, we'll practice key variations of basic movements, as well as layering fundamental techniques and movement. We'll also learn new step combinations and musicality – and of course, have fun!
You can move to the improver level once you've attended a beginners course at least once. This course is best suited for dancers who are already familiar with the fundamentals of oriental dance. However, you don't need to master the basics perfectly to attend, especially if you're also continuing with the beginner group alongside.
The improver level is also a great choice for those who have done oriental dance before and now want to return to it after a break. Since the course focuses on key variations of the basic movements, it also works very well as a technique class for more experienced dancers who want to focus on body control, arm movements, and refining their movement language.
Registration
Register for the classes by filling in the contact form at the bottom of this page. Please mention which course you want to register for, and include your name, email address, and home address for billing purposes. Registration is binding.
Pricing
I offer several ways to participate so you can find the option that best suits your lifestyle. You can join a full course or attend individual classes.
Season Passes
- One course (12 × 75 minutes): 195€. Absences can be compensated by attending the other course.
- 1½ courses (18 × 75 minutes): 260€. Great for those who want to dance a little more and go over basic technique while also getting new challenges. The 18 classes can be used freely between beginner and improver sessions.
- Two courses (24 × 75 minutes): 310€. Ideal for enthusiastic dancers who want to develop their skills. Attending both classes will yield the best results.
You can also join mid-season and pay only for the remaining classes.
Drop-In Options
To ensure no one has to miss out due to a busy schedule or shift work, I also offer the following options in addition to the season passes:
- 1 × 75 minutes: 20€
- 5 x 75 minutes: 90€
For example, if you want to attend seven times, you can buy a 5-class card and two single classes. If you get excited over the course of the season and want to attend more classes than you originally planned, the pricing will still be optimized in your favor — even if payments are made in parts.
If you already know you'd like to come even just once or twice, feel free to register now! Send a message to sjylhanlahti@gmail.com or use the contact form below.
Private classes
You can also book me for private classes either for yourself or for an event that you are organizing. If this sounds interesting to you, contact me so we can design a class according to your wishes!
About Sanni Jylhänlahti
I first went to oriental dance classes when I was 7 years old after my mother had started dancing. I found my happiness in the classes at Yasmine ry and I danced there happily through adolescence and emerging adulthood. Yasmine became my dance home and I was sad to leave it when I had to move out of my home town Oulu to Tampere for studies. Here in Tampere I luckily found a couple of dance groups which I was able to join and continued dancing here.
There are many reasons why oriental dance has kept me in its grip all these years. It has brought so many positive things in my life which I am grateful for. Dance has taught me confidence and bravery among other things. Dance forces us to try new thing and sometimes look stupid while doing it but this what builds confidence. This way you learn that you can be in a new situation and know that you will be fine and it's okay not to be perfect. Dance has taught me to appreciate my body for all the things it can do instead of how it looks. Oriental dance is in my opinion specially equipped for this since I think by its nature it very inherently promotes body positivity.
However, I don't dance just to accomplish things outside of dance like confidence, mobility, fitness and so on. I dance because when I do, I am free and I can just be and let my guard down. Through oriental dance I am able to express all my moods and feelings. When I am down, dance makes me feel relieved. When I am happy, dance makes me exhilarated.
So as you can probably tell, dance is very important to me and I consider it a huge source of strength that also enriches my life. As a teacher, my main goal is to offer this same experience to others and show that dance is so much more than just getting some movement in while listening to music. Instead dance can be a source of strength and happiness for your life also. And I suspect most of us could use more of those in our lives.
About oriental dance
Oriental dance, which is also known as belly dance, is a dance style from the Middle East. Often this term is used as a catch-all term for the variety of dance styles that are found in the Middle East. Most commonly it refers to a style of dance that originates from Egypt and incorporates both fluid movements of the torso and hips and also accents and shimmies. Even though the importance of torso and hips is often highlighted (as the name belly dance suggests) the whole body is used in oriental dance.
Raqs sharqi is the Arabic name for oriental dance and it refers to the performance oriented version of oriental dance, which is what is taught in oriental dance classes. Raqs sharqi originates from a social dance version of oriental dance (raqs baladi) which has been a part of Egyptian culture for centuries and still is today. Raqs sharqi as we know it today cannot however be traced back thousands of years unlike many people believe. It first emerged in the turn of the 19th century, when in Egypt dance performances started appearing in entertainments halls for the first time. As dance moved from social events to also stages, the nature of dance started to shift to performing and the social and performing version of the dance started to differentiate. During the next few decades after this shift, raqs sharqi continued to take shape to the style that we recognize today.
In raqs sharqi expressions, feelings and interpretation of music when dancing is essential and many consider this to be more important than technical skills. Especially in the more traditional or authentic versions of dance being present and authentic without trying to do too much is of the essence. This makes a lot of sense when considering the history of raqs sharqi as connecting with others and having fun is the core of social dance. Nowadays there are also many fusion styles of oriental dance where technique, atmosphere and music from different genres are combined with oriental dance.
Book a show
Want to add some sprakle, vibrancy or mystique to your event? Oriental dance can bring you all that and more! Contact me about your wishes and let's plan a show you won't forget.