Saturday, March 17th
in Berkeley CA

"Tribal belly dance has evolved into an art form far beyond current definitions and we wanted an event that recognized and encouraged the aggressively progressive nature of this broad spectrum of styles
we are now calling ‘tribalternative’ dance."
- Amy Sigil

About Tribal Throwdown 2007

Dancers in the San Francisco Bay Area the weekend of Saturday, March 17 will want to take part in a ground-breaking new event that promises to re-invent the festival format. Tribal Throwdown 2007, dubbed “West Coast Riot”,
will feature 20 unique workshops by 17 of the top teachers in belly dance, bhangra, burlesque, goth, yoga, drumming, and hip hop. In addition to these intimate workshops at the Live Oak Center in Berkeley, Tribal Throwdown 2007 will also deliver over 10 hours of stage performances by amazing dancers from the area and across the country, over 30 tables of shopping with an amazing array of jewelry, costuming, music, and much more at the Jewish Community Center just one block away.

Best of all, admission to the performances and shopping will be completely
free to the public, without any charge! And 3 of the workshops offered will also be free of charge, just drop in and learn from top teachers.

Other additions include a dance-off contest to name the Top Throwdown Artist among all the stage dancers, with the winner invited to open the big Nouveau Nights afterparty show at the Oakland Metro that night, an enlightening Q-and-A panel with top names in the dance community moderated by Holly Gibson of Tribe.net fame, an uncommonly delicious assortment of fresh food served on the premise, and hourly raffles of seriously valuable vendor swag all day long.

Workshop staff scheduled to teach include such major talents as Ultra Gypsy director Jill Parker, Zoe Jakes of Belly Dance Superstars and The Indigo, Urban Tribal director Heather Stants, Goth goddess Ariellah, The Nekyia’s Kristina Canizares, Atash Maya director Sabrina Fox, and a special advanced/intermediate session with local legend Mira Betz. Event organizer Amy Sigil of red-hot Unmata will be teaching sessions, as well as other big names in the dance community.

The event is being staged by three veteran members of the dance community: Meliza Wells, who has danced with Ultra Gypsy, Lotus, Lapsus and is currently co-director of Bastet. Joining her is Amy Sigil, director of the break-out fusion troupe Unmata and Hot Pot Studios in Sacramento and producer of the annual Blood Moon Regale event. Rounding out the team is Brad Dosland, owner of Taboo Media, which helps produce Kosmos World Music and Dance Camp, the annual Undulation afterparty, and, most recently, Ultra Gypsy’s Medusa and Machine movie project.