With easy precision, Kelly Ferguson mimics her instructor's movements in unison with verbal cues. She bends one knee slightly, then the other, her hands by her side with palms parallel to the floor.

There were no hand cymbals or sequined harem pants, and no Middle Eastern music was playing in the background. And yet the rhythmic, wavy movements of an Iraqi woman's abdominal wall muscles resembled ...

Looking to firm up your belly or dance like the ancients? Tina Elkins is ready to help at the San Clemente Community Center, where she teaches belly dancing. A. I am a belly-dance instructor, ...

Hypnotic music from the Middle East pulsates through the room. Hips covered in sparkly skirts sway to the beat. Naked shoulders move up, then down, caressing the air. Arms gracefully flow in and out ...

Theresa Mahon has been teaching belly dancing in Nyack for 20 years %22You feel so beautiful when you put that costume on%3B there%27s a mix of sensuality and strength in belly dancing.%22 This low ...

It was a night like Don't Tell Mama had never seen before. Burlesque is a big part of the cabaret and concert community. A tried, true, and respected art form, all kinds of burlesque can be found in ...

If you're looking for a fun, low impact workout that improves your posture and helps with toning, belly dancing may be for you. Salit, founder of the Sheba Belly Dance School in New York City, joins ...

Amber Proctor, local belly dancer, performs Thursday at the Jazzhaus. Princess Farhana, a.k.a Pleasant Gehman, on the poster for filmmaker Steve Balderson's movie Underbelly. First of all, belly ...

Looking for a cardiovascular exercise that burns between 200 and 400 calories an hour, increases flexibility, wards off osteoporosis and is fun? Why not try belly dancing? Norma Schmidt did. Schmidt, ...

At 325 pounds – helmeted, padded, gloved with big hair, big thighs and big butt – Domata Peko doesn’t seem like the poster child for interpretive dance. But the hip rolling, belly rubbing, fun loving ...

I took the coin belt and wrapped it around my waist. A sky-blue, silky scarflike garment with silver coins dangling from it, the coin belt clashed with my forest green T-shirt. As I lined up with 20 ...

Sciatica drove Bettye Ames to belly dancing. Beset with back problems, and at the behest of a friend, the Dayton resident took up the ancient art 10 years ago to strengthen her abdominal muscles. The ...