Bellydance Superstars February 3, 2006

Hailed as the next big dance show phenomenon to follow Riverdance by such respected publications as the Sunday Times, Daily Telegraph & Daily Express, the Bellydance Superstars are making their Bay Area debut at the Marin Center, Friday February 3 at 8pm. This touring bellydance troupe, known for enthralling performers and mesmerizing choreography, has garnered international acclaim from critics, instructors, dancers and fans alike as they take this ancient art form into the mainstream. The show features all new choreography, costumes and production. The performance will be on Friday 3, 8 PM at the Marin Veterans? Memorial Auditorium, Avenue of the Flags at Civic Center Drive in San Rafael. Tickets are $35 and $25; 418 students 18 and under and can be ordered through the Marin Center Box Office at 415-499-6800, Ticketmaster.com or Ticketmaster outlets throughout the Bay Area.

Comprised of America?s best-known and most sought after bellydances ? many of whom are expert bellydance instructors ? the troupe is the only professional dance company of it?s kind on tour, making their performance and workshops extremely popular affairs. Performing a cross-section of Tribal, Egyptian and cabaret styles, the Bellydance Superstars exhibit an intoxicating spectacle that transports the audience to a distant time and place while stimulating all the senses.

From their beginnings as part of the 45-city Lollapalooza rock tour in 2003 (performing to over half a million people and receiving praise in the pages of Rolling Stone), to their stint at the famed Folies Bergere in Paris in February 2005 and international 2005 Tour, the Bellydace Superstars have set a new standard for bellydance and proved, without a doubt, it?s wide appeal to a Western audience. Countless television appearances and impressive press coverage have added huge impetus to an already-growing interest in the most feminine and sensual dance art that celebrate all women.

The troupe is the brainchild of music business mogul and former Sting manager Miles Copeland, a legendary impresario who has served as manager, agent or record label chief for acts including The Police, The Sex Pistols, REM, The Moody Blues, Blondie, and a host of others.

?Bellydance as a respected dance art, not just a popular women?s exercise method is finally coming of age,? Copeland says. ?At the forefront are the Bellydance Superstars who have almost single-handedly accomplished this in less than three years. They have performed over 300 shows in 16 countries to over one million people live and sixty million on TV.?

The troupe has been chronicled in the fascinating documentary, American Bellydancer: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Dance, which was chosen for screening several film festivals including the Tiburon Film Festival. The film also debuted in thirty theatres across the United States earlier this year. The Bellydance Superstars also produce popular DVD, CD and merchandise products, which are sold at each performance and via their official website, www.bellydancesuperstars.com. The superstars will appear on the cover of the March issue of Global Rhythm, which hits newsstands in February.