Mirage Belly Dance Troupe

Along with providing a long history of belly dance shows in Austin, Mirage has also been teaching belly dance classes through UT’s Informal Class program, practically from day one!  So, if you haven’t had a chance to enjoy the experience it’s not too late to register for spring classes starting this week.  Classes are just $55 for UT affiliates and $64 for general registration, and the cost of classes covers 6 sessions, 1 1/2 hours each…such a great deal!  You can register online at www.informalclasses.org

The following is a list of classes offered through UT this session:

Beginner Belly Dance: 

• Mondays, 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. (Jeanette)
• Tuesdays, 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. (Jeanette)
• Wednesdays, 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. (Katarina)

Intermediate Belly Dance

• Tuesdays, 4:30 to 6:00 p.m. (Nisaba)
• Saturdays, 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. (Najla)

I know, over 40,000 of you in the Austin area tried to get a ticket to the debate this Thursday evening, and most of you will be sitting home, feeling excluded and unlucky because you couldn’t score admission to that event.  Well, Mirage feels your pain and wants you to know that we have unlimited tickets available for this Thursday’s show.  That’s right, no waiting…and no debating.  Consider us the ‘all inclusive’ candidates, who’s platform really is a stage (with a pretty backdrop) and we’ll do everything to get your vote for the best Belly Dance Show in Austin.

Now, in case you’re wondering about traffic at UT this week, don’t worry…we’re on the other side of campus and you can easily find parking in the garage located at 24th and San Antonio (next to Whole Earth Provision).  It’s well lit, close to the Texas Union Showroom and only costs $3 after 6 p.m. each evening.  If you look carefully you can follow the trail of coins, rhinestones and glitter right to our stage.

If you worried about missing the debate please remember, you can TiVo them, but you can’t TiVo us.  Really, this is an important distinction…if you miss the show, you can’t see replays, you hear people debate over which dancer they loved the most (well, this may still happen).  But truly, come watch us dance and trust in the fact that the news media will make sure you’re up to date on any debate topics.

Okay, enough of the logistics….we’re excited to have Midnight Breeze from Wimberly as our guests for this show, in addition to the lovely Elizabeth.  The lovely ladies from Wimberly will be bringing seven dancers with them and performing two sets in our show, so you really do get two troupes in one this week!

The show is always free, starts at 7:30 p.m. so mark your calendar, hit the record button on your home electronics…and exercise your right to watch some of the hottest belly dancing in town.!

Our next show, February 7 is stuck right in the middle of several important dates.  We’re a couple of days past Super Tuesday primaries and Fat Tuesday (and the following Ash Wednesday) and our show coincides with the Chinese New Year (it’s Year of the Rat if you didn’t know).  So, choosing some cute theme to play off of this week was tough because for the life of me I couldn’t associate belly dancing with presidential elections, lent or rats…so think of this show as the lead in for a sweet, romantic, sizzling Valentine’s season.

Our guests this week include Marlena and students from Desert Passion’s Middle Eastern Dance Company.  To close the show, Mirage is setting the stage on fire with an exciting new choreography to “Entrance of the Stars”.  We had a preview of the number last weekend and got rave reviews.  This week the full ensemble will be here performing, so come early, get a good seat and prepare to be wooed and romanced by all the lovely dancers on our stage.

 The show is always free (tips are appreciated though) and starts at 7:30 p.m. at the Texas Union Showroom (24th and Guadalupe).  $3 parking is available after 6 p.m. at the garage located at 25th and San Antonio (next to Whole Earth Provision)

Well, if you haven’t heard the news yet, Mirage has grown a little over the holidays.  No, we didn’t indulge in too many holiday treats, but we did expand our numbers to a total of nine beautiful, talented, stunning dancers!  And yes, we’ve got our share of blondes, brunettes and red-heads.  In addition to troupe members Nisaba, Jeanette, Najla, Katarina, Rania and Sherry we’ve added three talented dancers to the group.  If you haven’t had a chance to see them perform before, don’t miss out on the opportunity to watch them on the Mirage stage.  Who are these lovely ladies?  Please welcome Dana Winn, Eva Tennessee and Zanjabil to the group.  They bring new energy and style to the group and we can’t be more pleased.  Hmmm, maybe this is an excuse to pass out cigars to celebrate their ‘arrival’, but we’ll stick to rhinestones!  If you want to read a little more about them check out our blog!

We’ve had such a fun and exciting semester this year, and our last show of
the season is our belly dance blow-out and holiday show. Really, I can’t
think of any other belly dance show in December that will come anywhere
close to this one…so come early, get settled in, and sit back and enjoy
the fun.

The show is packed (literally) with amazing, beautiful dancers (for many of
them, this will be their first Mirage performance) . Our guests include:

Najla’s Intermediate Class
Sharla
Yamina
Kan Zaman Dancers
Dana
Angie
Eshta

And to top off the evening, we have a rare treat for everyone: Mahmoud
Velveeta and Susu Creamcheese. If you haven’t seen this dynamic duo, your
Middle Eastern Dance experience won’t be complete…it’ s classic music and
dance you won’t find on any other stage in the U.S.

The show runs from 7:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the Texas Union Showroom
located at 24th and Guadalupe. As always, the show is free but tips are
appreciated. Parking can be a bit dicey if you don’t find a spot on the
street. However, there is a parking garage located at 25th and San Antonio
(next to Whole Earth Provision) that only charges $3.00 after 6 p.m. It’s
well lit, and close to the Union…in fact you can probably follow the trail
of sequins to the door

We can’t wait to see you all there!

Najla

Okay, we know that Halloween falls in the middle of the week, so take it
easy this week, don’t overload on the sugar and get a get a good night’s
rest so you can enjoy the real treats at this week’s Mirage show. This
Thursday, November 1 we have a sweet and sassy show lined up for all of you
which is guaranteed to give you a rush that Halloween candy can’t (and we’re
much easier on the hips!). This week guests include Sahhira, Tamara, and
Melissa Amira and Troupe Amar.

Parking is available for $3 in the parking garage at 25th and San Antonio
after 6 p.m. so you’ll have plenty of time to find a spot and meander over
for our free 7:30 show.

Don’t forget to mark your calendars for our remaining fall shows…personally
I think you’ll want to make all of them (it will help you get on Santa’s
“nice” list…).

November 15: Guests include Desert Flowers, Rania’s Class, Eve, Drakon,
Candy, Sisters of Isis and closing the show, the fabulous Bahaia.

December 6: Guests include Yamina, Dana, Michelle, Najla’s Class, Kan
Zaman Dancers, Angie, Eshta and closing the show, one of the most sought
after Arabic Lounge singers … Mahmoud Velveeta, accompanied by the lovely and enchanting Susu Creamcheese.

I’ll be looking forward to seeing everyone soon, have a safe and spooky
Halloween!

Najla

Join us this Thursday evening for a truly special evening at Mirage. We’ve
always worked at planning our shows, and inviting guests to spend the
evening dancing on our stage. This week however, we’re turning the tables a
little by giving up our stage to one of our favorite dancers…so she can
create a special show. We did this because Mirage is more than a dance
troupe, it really is a venue and a part of the Austin Belly Dance
Community. And, we were curious to find out what would happen if Mirage
didn’t do Mirage…and we became the guests instead!

So, we asked the beautiful and talented Sonya to come up with a night of her
own, on our stage! She invited Belaharr (live music of course!) and guests
Jasmine and Alana Shea (this will be their first performance on our
stage), for this exciting evening. And, with our new stage and backdrop
you’ll feel transported for a night of dancing and drumming under an exotic
tent. You’ll want to come early and get a good seat for this one, because
if you’re lucky (and on the front row) we may even share treats!

The free show starts at 7:30 p.m., at the Texas Union Showroom at 24th and
Gualupe, this Thursday October 18, 2007. Parking (for cars and camels…)
is just a short walk away at 25th and San Antonio in the parking garage next
to Whole Earth Provision. Mirage fans and special guests can get a special
deal and pay only $3.00 after 6:00 p.m. We look forward to seeing everyone
(I’ll be counting…) this week.

The seasons are starting to change, and if you really want to experience all the glories of fall…there’s no better place than Mirage! Really, it’s one of Mother Nature’s true miracles, when Bellydancers trade in their summer sequins for fall rhinestones, and if you’re lucky you can watch as we start stockpiling hordes of veils, coins and hip scarves to keep us shimmying though the long winter months!

Come join us for another fabulous and might I say, spicy show this Thursday evening, October 4 at 7:30 p.m. In addition to your favorite Mirage dancers, we have really amazing and beautiful guests! This week’s show features Hope, Zanj, Adalia, Roubina, and Desert Flowers. So, come join the fun at 7:30 p.m. in the Texas Union Showroom located at 24th and Guadalupe. Our shows are always free (tips appreciated) and family friendly…so bring the whole crew out this week.

We’ll see you there!

For those of you who have been missing your Mirage fix, you’re in luck
because we have a great show planned this week…with lots of glitter,
sequins, and of course…shimmies!!!!! Our guests include Kendra, Adrienne
and Jaime. As a special treat, our star for the evening is the lovely
Lily…and it seems like only yesterday she performed her very first solo on
our stage. I know she’ll be the perfect ending for a great evening of belly
dance, Austin-style.

The show starts at 7:30 p.m. in the Texas Union Showroom located at 24th and
Guadalupe. For the “hip” fans and guests (hee hee), you can find easy
parking at 25th and San Antonio next to Whole Earth Provision. It’s $3
after 6 p.m. and since we don’t charge a cover for our shows…it really is
quite a steal for the evening, and quite convenient as well.

We hope to see you all soon!

Okay, you all probably know we’re starting our fall season this Thursday evening but here are some tidbits you may not be aware of.

We have a new look for our stage…I won’t spend time explaining (the Mirage elves have been sewing away), you just have to come see…and ooh and ahh!

We have a great semester lined up with a couple surprises…namely a show in October where Mirage doesn’t really do Mirage…stay tuned for that one.

We have a new blog, “More than a Mirage” which we’ll be filling with lots of great stories and belly dance insights…so come check it out. If you want to be subscribe to the blog, just sign up on our Mirage email list.

We’ve worked very hard this summer negotiating for a holiday appearance of the legendary Middle Easter singer Mahmoud Velveeta and the lovely Susu Creamcheese. Your holidays won’t be complete if you don’t come to our December show.

We hope to see all of you soon!