Bal Anat, is the longest-running belly dance company in the world. The groundbreaking and globally-influential company was created in 1968 by Jamila Salimpour, who drew from her experience as a performer with the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus. Jamila Salimpour created Bal Anat for the Renaissance Pleasure Faire in Northern California, and the ensemble featured at least 25 performers, each performing a different dance, each with its own character and origin. Now under the direction of her daughter, master choreographer and dancer Suhaila Salimpour, the original dances have been replaced with all-new choreographies. Bal Anat still retains the intoxicating spirit reminiscent of it’s birth in the 1960’s, but with the fresh and ever evolving perspective of Suhaila Salimpour.
Bal Anat will be celebrating 50 years of traditional, folkloric, and fantasy bellydance with an evening-length commemorative performance in El Cerrito, CA on Saturday, August 4th. The evening will include dance tableaux from the Middle East, North Africa, the Anatolian Peninsula, and Persia, performed by a cast of over 50 dancers from across the United States, Canada, East Asia, and Europe. With its groundbreaking blend of the traditional, folkloric, and fantasy, Bal Anat is a truly unique and exciting entertainment experience, that will continue to unite bellydancers for generations to come.
