So you think you know what belly dance is all about? Sure, you’ve been to a few Greek and middle eastern restaurants, and you have probably seen women clothed in sheer pastel colored costumes that brought back your Barbara Eden fantasy from your younger years. If you thought that’s what belly dance was all about, you’d be wrong. Of course these women practice a craft that is quite legitimate and requires years of training to perfect. But what if someone said there was more. Something darker, something more mysterious, something more...intense.

RaksBenazir is comprised of a group of women who believe belly dance could and should be an exciting and compelling exploration into the darker side of the art. Their performances have no comparison to what many have previously considered a novelty art form. RaksBenazir, while tipping their collective hat to tradition, cleanly break with conventionality to create not just a performance but an experience that will transform the perception of the familiar scheme of belly dance.

Combining traditional musical arrangements with the contemporary, urban sounds and rhythms of Gothic, Industrial and World Beat music forms, RaksBenazir refreshes and updates belly dance for a new, more eclectic audience. The passion and intensity of their performances are derived from a look to a darker and edgier component not usually found in this form of dance. Their American Tribal style incorporates elements taken from such sources as Flamenco, Gypsy, Egyptian, and Bedouin to name just a few. Their costuming, while dark and mysterious yet colorful and vibrant, culls together an additional myriad of styles and influences. They incorporate such properties as scimitars, fire dance and other special effects you will not see anywhere else. You have never experienced belly dance like this before.

RaksBenazir will leave you amazed, mystified and definitely wanting more.

Douglas B. Gould
Writer/Musician
Denver, CO