http://www.elle.com/beauty/health-fitness/beyonce-choreographer-dance-moves?click=main_sr
BEYONCÉ'S CHOREOGRAPHER TEACHES US HOW TO SHAKE IT LIKE BEY
When you get the opportunity to learn dance moves directly from one of
Beyoncé's choreographers, you strap on your stilettos and go.
By Alyssa Bailey
Health & Fitness
September 4, 2014
Fact: I will never be able to dance like Beyoncé though I, like most
everyone else, dream of being able to move my hips with her godly
perfection. Instead, I'm the Taylor Swift of my friends, the girl who
awkwardly (though I like to think adorably) shakes her head from side to
side. Still, when the opportunity arises to learn dance moves directly from
one of Beyoncé's choreographers, you strap on your stilettos and go.
Luam Keflezgy, who is responsible for that shoulder-shaking opening number
in "Run the World," is also putting her moves on New York Fashion Week. She
choreographed Athleta's debut fashion show, a high-energy spectacle that
included models doing back flips, running in the air on harnesses, and
break dancing on the runway, all in the line's bright athletic wear. She
also gave us a dance lesson.
Turns out, there's a trick to good dancing: just listen to the music. "Just
kind of lose yourself in it because everybody has their own pocket, their
own rhythm," Keflezgy said. "If you sync in with the music, I promise
always you will look good doing what you do well."
And Keflezgy is an expert at making people look good—she's worked with many
pop stars including Britney Spears, Kelly Rowland, Alicia Keys, and of
course, Queen Bey. Beyoncé, she says, is a “a very hard worker...people are
sitting down, she’s up there still practicing." And she's always in
stilettos. "She lives in heels. She definitely wants to make sure that she
rehearses as she’s going to perform."
Related: 33 of the Best Beyoncé GIFs Ever
Of the opening sequence to "Run the World," Keflezgy told us Beyoncé wanted
"something really feminine and strong." "In our culture [Keflezgy is
Eritrean], just dancing with the shoulders, there’s this really, really
powerful dance that the women do, and I just kind of brought my own mother
to rehearsals!" she told us. Beyoncé got into the cultural inspiration,
too. "She really took it on [and] embodied it."
And the spirit of Beyoncé was present in Athleta’s show, where models
danced to one of the singer’s hits mid-way. Keflezgy broke down one of the
moves from the routine forELLE.com plus shared two others that are as easy
(and ***flawless) as they look.
Related: 5 Tried and Tested At-Home Workouts
>From the Athleta Routine:
"Basically it’s about throwing your hip from right to left, and each time
you throw your hip, you can add a head or you can add an arm. We always
look feminine doing it, and it works to any song."
>From "Run the World:"
"Put your hands on your hips, stand up tall and then bounce your shoulders
straight up and down as fast as you can and then on a beat, you’re going to
swing your head, one, two; three, four; five, six — right to left — seven,
eight. And that’s it. But you’ve got to keep your shoulders going. Don’t
stop!"
And one of Keflezgy’s favorite go-to moves, from Kelly Rowland’s
"Motivation:"
"It’s just a hip rock. You just want to throw your hips to the right on the
top of the beat. So one, two, throw your hips, throw your hips, just roll
it and then you want to give a little lean back so it’s kind of sexy and
then whatever you want to do with your hands, it’s on you."
Photo and GIFs: Tyler Joe
Received on Thu Oct 09 2014 - 22:47:09 EDT