The styles of Belly Dance vary with the region from which the music and moves originate. Today many dancers perform a range of styles or fuse styles of Middle Eastern Dance with each other or with different forms of dance. Arabian Nights Belly Dancing performs a range of styles of Belly Dance using different costumes, music, staging and expressions. These styles include:

Cabaret

Cabaret is a modern nightclub style of belly dancing. Costumes are very glitzy and sparkling with elaborate beads and sequins. Modern Cabaret belly dance incorporates sound mix, orchestra, and drum machine, seasoned with lively vocals. Today belly dancers usually perform a multi-faceted routine, sometimes on a raised stage (to afford the audience a better view).

Folkloric This style of belly dance incorporates dance movements of the people. Popular ethnic folk dances such as the Fallahin (Egyptian farmers) and others are used as a framework for introducing the folkloric roots of eastern dance, from which belly dance emerged. Reed cane and stick dances are used by belly dancers in routines for a folkloric flair.

Tribal Pacifica

Tribal Pacifica is a unique local spin on a group improvisational style of belly dance.   Participants learn a common vocabulary of movement, and through subtle cueing and a lot of practice to develop non-verbal communication, dancers can create a performance in the moment that, to the audience, appears choreographed. Tribal movement has a strong emphasis on isolations. Specifically keeping portions of the body firmly erect and still while other portions move with marked precision and a greater degree of repetition. Costuming is often colourful and involves many layers, with large full skirts and/or full pantaloons, Indian-style cholis, hip scarves, shells, flowers, wooden beads, tassel belts and/or long fringe, and some sort of detailed head wrap, decorations, or turban.  The tribal philosophy is for the dancers to think and act as one unit. Precision is needed as slight moves or variations act as cues to signal the next move. There is no room for egos as the leader equals the follower and the lead constantly changes.

Raks Gothique Gothic Belly Dance (Raks Gothique) is an exciting fusion between belly dance and gothic dance. Middle Eastern dance rhythms have long been used in gothic music for their evocative qualities, exoticism, and beauty. Raks Gothique shares the expression of an ultimate fantasy and feminine ideal, high drama, accompanied by a range of moods, as well as elaborate forms of make-up and costuming. As with any belly dance fusion style, it is important to first learn traditional belly dance techniques, which of course takes time and practice. Only then can the two styles properly merge. In performing and promoting Raks Gothique, Arabian Nights Belly Dancing is striving to make people think and see the dance form in new ways. One of our teachers and performers (Corrosie) is a leader in this style of dance.

Raks Al Assaya

Sometimes spelled Raqs Al Assaya. This is the Arabic term for the cane dance. This dance originated in southern Egypt , in the region known as the Said or Upper Egypt . Raks Assaya is performed by men and/or women and shows off a more acrobatic version of handling the stick. The women's version of the stick dance is, of course, much more feminine and graceful, and can only lightly imitate the Tahtib. This female version of the Tahtib, is not about combat but rather but is more flirtatious, with softer movements and more about the village girls making fun of the men. Today we see many women performing at restaurants and functions using metallic/sequin covered canes, which is more from the influence of Hollywood and the movies made with Middle Eastern dance in them. The second version of the cane dance is done by the Baladi people, using a walking cane. When the ladies dance it is very coy, playful as well as a demonstration of strength, independence and imitating the men in a cynical way. The women wear a Beledi dress with a belt or scarf around the hips and a veil on the head.