The chairs in the Student Union ballroom were pulled to the perimeter, light Middle Eastern music snapped on and about 50 students were turned loose onto the floor. The International Committee of the Student Activities Board hosted the first part of its two-part “Dance the Night Away” series Tuesday night. The free, two-hour session was a study in traditional Middle Eastern belly dancing.Marci Armour, an instructor at Bayou Shimmy Studios, led the session. A two-year student of belly dancing, she also performs with Troupe Zohar, a Louisiana dance group, in festivals and venues across southern Louisiana.Jennifer Abraham, head of the Oral History Center of the Middleton Library, assisted Armour. Abraham said she has been studying belly dancing at Bayou Shimmy Studios for the past few months. “Belly dancing builds self-confidence and a stronger bond between women in the community,” Armour said.The students who attended took a while to warm up to a room filled with strangers, but as they practiced the basic steps, the music in the room mixed with laughter.”I just wanted to try something new and fun in a laid-back setting,” said Kristen Vaughn, psychology sophomore. “If I’m available, I’ll definitely show up for the next session.”Armour detailed the tenants of belly dancing with demonstrations and simple similes. She encouraged the students to think of hip-bumps like closing a car door and to imagine a beach ball between their rib cage and abdomen when standing.Between practicing basic routines, students hip-bumped independently or asked the instructor specific questions of the instructions. Armour and Abraham laughed with the women and gave them personal instructions to help first-timers.”I wanted to see how I liked it so I can decide whether or not to take it as a new dance class,” said Misty Mauduit, kinesiology freshman.While the women tried their best to follow Armour’s moves, the few men in attendance stood near the door holding their friends’ purses.”I’m really interested in the Middle East and its culture,” said Aaron Elsea, history senior. “I came to see how this is done and what it looks like.”Elsea, who tried to keep up with the women for a while before retiring to the sidelines, said belly dancing was better designed for women.Though no one walked away from the session an expert, the diverse gathering of women left energized and excited.”It really awakens peoples’ spirits,” Armour said. “It allows people to explore different forms of communication through dance.”The second session of international dance lessons will be held Tuesday in the Union Ballroom. Students will be instructed in the basics of Latin salsa dancing.—-Contact Adam Duvernay at [email protected]