The Art of Bellydance
MEDIA CONTACT:
Melissa Kaupke
Insight Mgt - Nashville
615-758-4588 / 630-220-8008 cell
insightmg8@aol.com
Lisa A. McCowan
Office 817-410-3195 / Cell 817-504-0079
lmccowan@GrapevineTexasUSA.com FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WORLD-ACCLAIMED BELLYDANCE SUPERSTARS TO UNVEIL VIBRANT NEW PRODUCTION, “THE ART OF BELLYDANCE,” ON U.S. TOUR
Breathtaking dance extravaganza coming to Grapevine – Feb. 34 & 24
Grapevine, Texas (Jan. 22, 2009) – “The Art of Bellydance” – the exhilaratingly vibrant new show from Miles Copeland’s world-acclaimed Bellydance Superstars – will debut when the troupe deploys on a very special 2009 U.S. tour, set to arrive at GRAPEVINE’S PALACE ARTS CENTER ON FEBURARY 23 and 24, 2009.
Tickets to the 8 p.m. shows are $32 in advance, $38 at the door, and $20 for children. Tickets are available online at www.bellydancesuperstars.tickets.musictoday.com.
The Bellydance Superstars have been at the forefront of the dramatic worldwide growth in prestige and popularity of the art of Bellydance itself, taking this once largely solo dance and ancient art of Middle Eastern culture into the 21st Century mainstream as a major theatrical dance extravaganza appealing to a wide spectrum of dance enthusiasts.
Featuring bold new choreography, exquisite costumes and new production elements, “The Art of Bellydance” builds on the troupe’s renowned reputation in highlighting a variety of bellydance styles and unique fusions, painting bellydance with a broad palette in a way the world’s major stages have never played host to before.
The All-Star Winter/Spring 2009 Bellydance Superstars cast includes: Sonia, Petite Jamilla, Sabah, Kami Liddle, Adoré, Nathalie, Colleen, Ebony, Zoe Jakes, Lauren, Samantha Hasthorpe, Moria, and Issam Houshan. Rachel Brice will perform with the troupe from February 6-15, and Adoré will join the troupe for the first half; Bozenka for the second. All cast members will perform during the Los Angeles four-night stand, which will be filmed for TV – the “Babelesque” production will be performed for the last time on the first two nights to be filmed and captured for posterity. “The Art of Bellydance” will be performed on the last two nights.
Ever-evolving, ultra-innovative and mega-popular, the Bellydance Superstars have continued to wow crowds and break new ground in 2008, proving the troupe can compete head on with the likes of mainstream dance shows such as Riverdance.
Worldwide TV interest spiked in 2008 with PBS stations broadcasting the troupe’s Live in Paris show – filmed at the famed Follies Bergère, the Documentary Channel airing BDSS doc “American Bellydancer” in November, and DirecTV in Latin America airing both shows in October to strong response. The special, Dissonance and Harmony, featuring the Bellydance Superstars, also debuted on PBS in November as part of the Crossroads series, again noting the efforts of BDSS and Copeland to promote a bridge between cultures via entertainment.
Other hallmarks celebrated by the BDSS in 2008 included its first shows performed in the Arab world to rave reviews, a highly successful tour of Italy and Spain (with re-bookings already flowing in for 2009), and acclaimed performances in Dubai and Morocco (returning to Morocco in late 2009 for shows in Casablanca and Marrakesh).
In addition, the BDSS launched four new annual Bellydance festivals in the year: Raqs LA and Tribal LA in Los Angeles, TribaLondon in London and Raqs America in Washington D.C. Universal Music & Video, which has been distributing the BDSS line in the U.S. for five years, signed on to distribute to the rest of the world with the first releases hitting the market this past October.
Even more doors are set to open in 2009 with the first Bellydance Superstars tour of Japan in May, a tour of Scandinavia in November and BDSS’ inaugural Raqs event in Italy, Raqs Italia, May 29-31, in Bologna.
Referred to as “the most important dance troupe in the world” by London’s Sunday Times, the Bellydance Superstars is the realized vision of Copeland, legendary music business mogul (The Police, Sting, I.R.S. Records). Comprised of America’s best-known, most sought-after bellydancers, the troupe has performed over 500 shows (including many sell outs) in 20 countries in the last five years, wowing over one million enthusiastic fans in venues and 100 million on television, with their fascinating live performances.
“There is something quite special about a show that appears to break all the rules of what should be happening in the world today and succeed beyond all the entertainment pundits’ wildest imaginations,” Copeland explains. “I feel like Barack Obama must feel winning the Presidency against so many odds and like Barack must have had, I had faith the quality of the ‘product’ would shine through in the end and the Western ear and eye would ‘get it’ if given half a chance. That they more than ‘get it’ is both a tribute to the skill and dedication of the BDSS dancers themselves as well as to the open minds of our audiences. Of course, we have benefited by the explosion of interest worldwide in Bellydance itself as the fastest growing dance art today. Some credit us with adding essential fuel to this fire. True or not, we like the warmth of this flame and see it burning for a long time to come.”
www.bellydancesuperstars.com
For more information about this and other events in Grapevine, please contact the Grapevine Convention & Visitors Bureau at (817) 410-3185 or visit GrapevineTexasUSA.com.
