Stallings, NC Indoor Activities

Yasmine or one of the talented protégés in her troupe of hip-swivelers will lead your class. She and her team have spent years studying and performing multiple dance styles, including Middle Eastern dance, ballet, tap, and the safety dance. Women of all fitness levels are welcome to participate in the introductory class. This gently paced lesson imparts the basic twists, turns, and moves that allow dancers to shimmy on stage and out of haunted hedge mazes. Forgo carnation-laden mother-daughter banquets in favor of a heartfelt bonding and hip-shaking session with the masters at Yasmine & Magic Hips. The comfortable atmosphere of the studio is an ideal environment for anyone's initiation into this artful combination of fitness and femininity.

Lotus offers a fun and supportive workout environment for women of all shapes and sizes. You needn't have a svelte tummy to engage in belly dance's ancient arts; in fact, it's an excellent way to tone tired torsos and increase overall core strength. Classes with Lotus's instructors offer a private space to learn belly rolls, hip pops, shoulder shimmies, and candle-arms, among other animated inanimate-appendage techniques. The schedule is set to run classes continuously in four-week sessions; feel free to mix and match times to meet your schedule's needs. Options are available for untrained tenderlings and spicily seasoned belly veterans alike. At the end of every four-class session, one free session of Intro to Bellydance is offered, to touch upon the fundamental fundamentals.

The Light Factory's snapshot savants school camera wielders of all skill levels about basic lighting and composition techniques before shepherding them through uptown Charlotte on a guided two-hour photo expedition. First, instructors help participants get the most out of their frozen moments by reviewing basic camera techniques such as adjusting shutter speed, framing shots, and accurately placing bunny ears. Then groups of up to 100 shutterbugs will venture into uptown Charlotte's tangle of streets to trap the souls of its modern buildings in confining rectangles, creating carefully composed photographic keepsakes. Escape work early to attend the excursion at 4 p.m. on your chosen date, or opt for the 10 a.m. sojourn to capture cold-blooded buildings as they climb nearby rocks to bask in the morning light.

Masters of kinetic self-expression, the instructors at Charlotte Latin Dance teach progressive-style salsa, cha cha, bachata, and merengue to dancers of all experience levels. Students should dress in a comfortable outfit, or at least a freshly oiled suit of armor when attending the regularly scheduled four-week courses (though sneakers are not recommended), and can indulge in a game of dress-up at the monthly events that end with a three-hour dance party. Sessions are open to anyone aged 14 or older and are conveniently set in studios all over Charlotte.

An affable red-footed tortoise named Confucius and a gentle black rat snake named Oreo greet visitors at Cold Blooded Encounters as founder Sean Amidon, a former reptile handler at Disney's Animal Kingdom, supplies a steady stream of compelling facts. Secluded and multispecies habitats house more than 150 species of amphibians, fish, reptiles, and invertebrates, including fire salamanders, jewel cichlids, Kenyan sand boas, and whip scorpions. Annual memberships grant gift-shop discounts, guest passes, and a family photo posed with an animal. Cold Blooded Encounters also reaches out to school groups from preschools to colleges with effusive educational programs and sends ambassadors to birthday parties, where children can help feed turtles or pose for photos with 8-foot snakes.