Fleur
Frascella
Fleur Frascella began dancing in 1992. She performed as an apprentice actor at the Pennsylvania Renaissance Faire. As part of her "Gypsy" character she was taught 4 hip figure-eights.
At Hampshire College she met Lily Copenhagle. Lily had spent the previous year studying with Gypsy Caravan’s Paulette Rees-Denis. Lily taught Fleur many of Paulette’s moves and her philosophy. After Lily’s interests changed, Fleur teamed up with another student, Marti Pomputius, and taught classes.
In 1994 Fleur auditioned for the Middle East restaurant in
Philadelphia Pa. Over the next few summers Fleur subbed for other dancers
at the restaurant.
Later that year she traveled to London to study acting. She also
studied make-up design and Fight Choreography. While in London, she performed for a medieval banquet.
When she moved back to Philadelphia, she learned that the Middle East Restaurant was closing. She got a job working at the Fez, where she worked consistently for 2 years.
The Nile restaurant opened. Fleur danced there for the next 4 years.
Fleur wanted to get back to her dream of dancing tribal style, so she performed a solo at the 1999 Philadelphia Fringe Festival.
Fleur spent 1997 and 1998 training to be an Alexander Technique teacher at the Alexander Foundation in Germantown, PA under Bruce and Martha Fertman.
The first duet of Philadelphia Tribal bellydance was presented at the Philadelphia Free Library with the band Gyupsophilia. It was performed by Fleur and Cheryl Brouse, her first company member. (Ms. Brouse is now a member of Urban Berber troupe of Gypsy Caravan.)
In the summer of 2000, Fleur spent a month in Egypt. .
She moved out of Center City Philadelphia to West Chester, PA.
In the fall of 2000 she opened Philadelphia Tribal Bellydance with a concert at the Philadelphia Fringe Festival.
In the summer of 2002 Fleur began attending summer intensives with dance anatomist Irene Dowd
In January of 2003 Fleur completed her teacher training for Levels 1 and 2 with Paulette Rees-Denis, artistic director of the Gypsy Caravan in Portland, Oregon.
In the summer of 2003, Fleur founded her student troupe "Generations," an intergenerational tribal bellydance troupe. In the summer of 2004, Generations became Philadelphia Tribal Bellydance.
In November 2004, Fleur became a certified Pilates trainer. She began a career that not only incorporated all of her previous education but would also be invaluable to her dancers.
In January of 2005 PTB moved to its own studio at the West Chester Wellness Center, thanks to an invitation from Julie Senko.
As of April 2007, Philadelphia Tribal Bellydance consists of 7 dancers and 3 musicians.
Fleur Frascella is PTB's Artistic Director.