For Ansuya Rathor, there was no questioning whether belly dancing would be a part of her life. Her mother, Jenaeni Rathor, was a blonde, blue-eyed belly dancer in the 1960s and '70s — an anomaly that ...

In the 1960s, Tiffany Madera’s parents fled Cuba during the revolution. Like many other refugees, they landed in Miami and started a family. Madera and her bother were born here and grew up in Coconut ...

In the 1960s and ’70s, Los Angeles had a thriving Middle Eastern-themed club scene. Venues like the Fez, Haji Baba’s, and the Seventh Veil (now a strip club) boasted live bands, elaborate decor, and a ...

When Jamila Salimpour created the Bal Anat belly dance company to perform at the 1968 Northern California Renaissance Pleasure Faire in San Rafael, she was already a foundational figure in a style ...

Ever considered belly dancing to ease pregnancy? Middle Easten women have been belly dancing during pregnancy and labor for years. In fact, that's how belly dance started said Emily McKeon,34, who ...

Suzy Evans has spent a significant chunk of her life debunking myths about belly dancers. “There were so many times when I came across people who thought that belly dancers were like strippers,” she ...