Gothic belly dance

[3] Originating in the Middle East, South Asia (India), and North Africa,[4] the art of belly dance arrived in the West with the trend of Orientalism.

In addition, the rapidly expanding global access to free online video resources at YouTube and similar sites has allowed artists to unify and combine their efforts in promoting and developing their genre — unconstrained by national borders, scarcity of funds, or lack of support from their local communities.

In 2007 Southern California-based dancers and instructors, Tempest and Sashi, launched the annual Gothla, described by the L.A. Weekly as "a "Gothic hafla" that combined weekend-long workshops with a Saturday festival featuring 12 hours of performances and merchant booths where dancers could find costumes and accessories.

"[10] Gothla UK was also first held in 2007, in Leicester, England, and is now a highly successful festival covering three days, usually in July.

International teachers are joined by UK teachers such as Lucretia (Christine Emery), Fulya (Lynn Chapman), and Akasha (Heike Humphreys) to offer a range of themes not often covered by general belly dance events from Steampunk and 1920s to zombie and vampire belly dance.