About Tribal Fest's TRUTH IN ADVERTISING Policy

Please note that The Producer, Kajira Djoumahna, shall continued her practice of Properly Naming the Various Styles of BellyDance and Dance seen and taught at Tribal Fest.

Thank YOU for being committed to helping Tribal Fest and Kajira in her mission to educate all about the importance of proper dance terminology!

Kajira believes strongly in TRUTH IN ADVERTISING and ETHICS in all she does, so has provided you with the following list of definitions of Belly (and/or) Dance styles you will find offered at TF in classes and in our Show. She feels strongly that we all deserve to see and get what we expect, not something else that's called the name of another style if it is not that.

The stylistic titles (or categories) below are not arbitrary. They come from 17 years in the vast field of Middle Eastern Dance and BellyDance study, among other styles of movement arts.

It's actually extremely amazing to realize that non-indigenous "Tribal Styles" are the ONLY dance styles on Earth that do not consistently define themselves properly, even though all other dance styles DO, including all other styles of BellyDance! (Such as: Egyptian, Turkish, Lebanese, etc. - and we can all tell the difference, just like we should be able to with the various sub-groups seen at Tribal Fest!)

What determines any belly/dance title/category is each styles' unique language of dance. The type of movements, use of traditional Middle Eastern hand percussion or not, musicality, improvisation, choreography and sometimes type of music and costumes are examples of what helps to determine styles in any dance form and is why we can tell Modern Dance from Modern Ballet and Classical Ballet, for example.

Kajira does not find fault with her wonderful Instructors (or those who didn't know about this issue yet) or she wouldn't hire them. This service is to help all of us to truly think honestly about what we study or present in order to not mislead the students and public. Like Kajira, many of her peers in dance teach and perform more than one style of dance, so the categories below used for each class may not be that teacher/s only style.

Kajira knows some of you have come into the world of Belly/Dance after ATS hit the scene, and may simply not be trained well enough or long enough with knowledgeable teachers to understand what she's talking about and why it is important, or even how to tell one "Tribal Style" from another, so she's provided you with the below to aid you in your class choices.

You will find a slash / between the words Belly and Dance often - "Belly/Dance" - following several styles' names because they can be done with "more or less belly dance" - and that, of course, can change correct titling.

Possible Stylistic Categories for Tribal Fest with Definitions:

* American Tribal Style (ATS) BellyDance (BD) a.k.a. Group Improvisational Style Tribal Bellydance. Traditional folkloric, "Old World," "Ethnic" Belly Dance and this style was what Tribal Fest was originally created for, because none of the other styles below had made a mark in the bellydance community and many didn't even exist yet. MANY were developed because ATS happened and gave others a glimpse of what can be possible in any dance form. It is the first style of "Tribal Bellydance"and still the only style of dance in the world that employs Carolena Nericcio's incredible breakthrough technique of how to dance in the moment with others, in synchronized groups. This was previously unheard of anywhere in the world of Dance! It is also the style Kajira's spent 10 years working on innovations for and still does, after 8 years under Carolena. Tribal BD is very easily recognizable as Bellydance because of the use of real Belly Dance steps and real Belly Dance hand percussion (finger cymbals) when appropriate. With additional influence from dance forms from along The Rromany Trail and for the sake of group improvisational choreography, some steps needed adaptations, but never to the point of no longer being BD (by utilizing the language of various BellyDance styles). It continually evolves within the framework that defines it (its language of dance) and from ATS came many other new styles, such as:

* Choreographed Tribal Style Belly Dance -looks like the above except it's completely (not just "skeletally") choreographed. This seems to have happened originally in places where dancers had little personal training in how to do ATS correctly or didn't care to take the time involved to learn.

* Tribal Fusion Belly Dance - as originally conceived, this style is a mix of ATS and Cabaret Bellydance, period. This is still Belly Dance because both of its parent forms are. Both "parents" provided actual BD movements and the use of finger cymbals, which are intrinsic to any form of BD from any country.

* World Fusion Belly/Dance - this popular style has simply strayed from the "Rromany Trail" and the MidEast to incorporate more dance style influences than Tribal Fusion BD does. Therefore, this style may OR may not include enough of the language of bellydance to be decipherable as such, dependant upon the range of outside influences, use of finger cymbals and traditional BD moves. You can tell by whether I've titled it as "Belly Dance" or "Dance."

* Gothic Belly/Dance - draws inspiration from the Gothic subculture

* Vaudeville-influenced Belly/Dance - draws inspiration from Vaudeville

The following styles were around before ATS:

* Your own name for your own creation that is none of the above and TRULY reflects what it is you are presenting. (Yay! No strings attached!)

* Interpretive Belly/Dance - has even more stylistic leeway and can be within the realm of recognizable Bellydance or not. Again, watch for the Category to read "Belly Dance" or "Dance."

* Alternative Belly/Dance - much the same as above.

* Theatrical Belly/Dance - much the same as above, usually with a more theatrical approach.

* Storytelling Dance - tells a story using theatrical means mostly through use of props, costumes, masks, mime and dance.

* Sacred Belly/Dance - has The Divine in Mind! It is often presented as a form of Interpretive or Storytelling Dance.

* Burlesque-or-influenced Belly/Dance - probably more in the "dance" category than "bellydance" - depends upon how much influence from either art form is incorporated .

* Traditional Folk Dance - is a traditional dance done by people of various countries. This can be anything from line dances to harvest dances. Some types can be athletic, but all folk dances are less refined and less difficult to learn than:

* Traditional Classical Dance - this style does include Classical Egyptian or other "Cabaret" Belly Dance Styles, except that they are not allowed at Tribal Fest because this is the reason I created it - to fill that need we had "way back then." This was the first event just for us Tribal and Alternative types!

Thanks again for reading and for caring. We hope this makes your dance experience from now until you leave Tribal Fest a more thoughtful and informed one!