Soloists & Troupes

Gothic Belly Dance can be performed solo or in a group. The soloist must be capable of having considerable stage presence. Even if a given piece is more introspective, the audience must be able to come long with the dancer, like welcomed voyeurs. Within a group structure Gothic Belly Dance's theatrical nature can be greatly emphasized, and a story is unfolded. It's not about dancing in synchronocity so much as the overall visual and emotional effect--the energy that is created or moved or changed. It's about the interaction between the performers and the visual that they create for the audience.

Cabaret or Tribal?

A general misconception is that Gothic Belly Dancers are Tribal Dancers. I would say that perhaps this is true for about 60% of the GBD population, due to Tribal's general appeal to more alternative folks. However, the Gothic subculture precedes Tribal, and is (and was) present throughout the world, before Tribal spread out from California. There are many areas where some form of Cabaret is the only style available to learn, and that's where the "blending" has occurred --cabaret and goth. And there's also a fair amount of Goths who are into the Cabaret style purely by choice. And then there's tribaret...

So, for the record, that's 60% Tribal, 40% Cabaret. And that split seems to be getting more even with the spread of the concept of Gothic Belly Dance.