New York Belly Dance Festival 2026
Created by Samantha Diaz. Featuring Mistress of Ceremonies Queen Esma and instructors Sadie, Lebanese Simon, Diva Darina, Oscar Flores, and Tommy King
Laurie Beechman Theatre, 407 W 42, NY NY 10036 & EPA Studios, 320 W 37, New York, NY 10018
March 20 - 22, 2026
Photo Credits: Sophy Holland, Hideki Arno, Stereo Vision, Anthony Michael
Some artists perform. Others create something closer to a sanctuary.
When I first learned about Samantha Diaz and the New York Belly Dance Festival, what struck me was not just the scale of the festival or the talent it attracts. It was the intention behind it. In a world that often treats art as entertainment alone, Samantha approaches dance as something sacred.
Before our interview even began, I found myself saying what I was already feeling: gratitude. Gratitude for artists who use their work not just to perform, but to heal, to hold space, and to remind others that their stories matter. By any measure, Samantha’s story is one of resilience, artistry, and purpose. She is not only a dancer, producer, and cultural curator. She is a woman who transformed profound personal trauma into a living, breathing platform for healing, community, and creative expression. At the heart of that transformation is the New York Belly Dance Festival, now entering its second year, and a philosophy that sees dance not merely as performance, but as prayer and healing.
Originally from Peru, Samantha arrived in New York City at just 17 years old. Like many immigrants drawn to the city’s restless energy, she found herself inspired by its cultural diversity and creative intensity. It was in New York that she discovered belly dance, an art form that immediately resonated with her.
“Belly dancing was one of the art forms where you don’t need much,” she explains. “It’s just you and your essence. It’s about self-expression, culture, and presence.”
With a background that included hip hop, flamenco, Brazilian samba, and other global dance styles, Samantha saw New York as the perfect place to weave these traditions together. More than 20 years ago, she founded Dance Soul Entertainment, a dance and production company born from her desire to create opportunities not just for herself, but for other dancers navigating the city’s competitive arts landscape.
From the beginning, her vision extended beyond the stage. Samantha was deeply invested in helping dancers transition from hobbyists to professionals, providing paid opportunities, mentorship, and platforms where talent could truly be seen. Samantha’s career eventually took her far beyond New York. She was hired in China to teach and perform and soon became one of the directors of what was then the largest belly dance festival in the world, Belly Dance China, a massive competition where winners drove away with cars.
“That’s where I really learned how it’s done,” she says. “I surrounded myself with people who were already working at that level. I pushed myself to understand production, structure, and scale.”
Those experiences sharpened her skills not only as a performer but as a producer, someone capable of building environments where artists could thrive. Then, everything stopped. During a performance in Times Square involving fire props, a tragic accident left Samantha with burns over 40 percent of her body. What followed were three months in the hospital, four surgeries, and years of recovery. She had to relearn basic actions most people take for granted: walking, eating, brushing her hair, brushing her teeth.
“For dancers, our bodies are our tools,” she reflects. “The costumes, the skin, the image, everything I thought defined me shattered in an instant.”
Yet even in the depths of pain, Samantha made a conscious choice.
“I wasn’t going to be a victim,” she says. “I chose healing.”
Listening to her describe this period, I was struck by how often artists are asked to perform strength while privately navigating unimaginable pain. Again and again, the artists who move us most are the ones who transform that pain into something communal. In Samantha’s case, dance became something deeper than performance. It became prayer. A form of devotion to survival, to presence, and to the possibility that movement itself can carry healing into a room.
Her recovery became a deeply intentional process, blending medical care with faith, mindfulness, and self-love. She speaks of talking to her body, working with it, honoring moments of despair without letting them define her.
Nurses noticed something extraordinary: she was healing at an unusually fast rate.
“You’re healing like a 15-year-old,” they told her.
Her response was simple: determination. After the accident, Samantha returned to dance, but it was no longer the same.
“I can’t dance just to entertain anymore,” she explains. “Now, when I dance, it has to have intention. It has to carry a message.”
Dance, for her, became prayer. A form of transmission. A way to communicate healing, resilience, and presence to those watching.
At the same time, her role as a producer expanded. While still recovering and wearing compression garments for years, she was invited to help produce the Orlando Belly Dance Convention. She accepted, and for the past five years, she has been one of its driving creative forces.
Through that work, she witnessed something powerful: children, elders, dancers of all sizes, colors, and backgrounds sharing the stage.
“That’s when I knew,” she says. “This is bigger than dance.”
Inspired by the sense of community she helped cultivate in Orlando, and hearing dancers say they didn’t want to wait a full year to see one another again, Samantha realized something was missing in New York City.
So she built it.
The New York Belly Dance Festival launched last year and sold out in its inaugural run. For Samantha, it wasn’t just a success. It was confirmation.
“People were grateful for a safe space,” she says. “A place where women could express themselves, rebuild community after COVID, and feel seen.”
Now in its second year, the festival is expanding while staying rooted in its core identity: New York City itself.
The festival’s theme is unmistakably New York, its grit, its diversity, its rhythm. Each gala reflects that identity, from Belly Dance in the City to Empire Raks to The Big Apple.
Dancers travel from across the country and around the world for the chance to say, “I danced in New York City.”
“That credit means something,” Samantha says. “New York holds weight. It holds energy.”
This year’s festival features internationally renowned headliners including Diva Darina from Ukraine, Lebanese Simon, and Sadie, whose work has amassed millions of views online and who has recently choreographed for Shakira.
“These are dancers with global careers,” Samantha explains. “But what matters to me is that they share the space, with students, elders, first-time performers, and lifelong artists.”
From a seven-year-old child to an 84-year-old woman, the stage is open.
One moment stands out. Samantha invited a dancer who had inspired her years earlier, now in her mid-60s, to perform.
“She told me she was about to give up dancing,” Samantha recalls. “She cried and thanked me for reminding her that this art still belongs to her.”
The New York Belly Dance Festival is not just an event. It is a declaration: that art heals, that community matters, and that expression does not expire with age, trauma, or circumstance. Samantha may no longer dance the way she once did, but perhaps that was never the point. Some artists evolve from performers into architects of possibility. They build stages where others can step forward, find their voice, and remember why art exists in the first place. Watching Samantha’s work unfold, it becomes clear that this festival is more than a celebration of dance. It is a reminder of something artists have always known: when movement is rooted in intention, it becomes something sacred.
And when art is created from a place of healing, it has the power to heal others too.
WHEN & WHERE:
7:00 p.m. Friday March 20 - “Raqs in the City: Kick off Dinner Show for the New York Belly Dance Festival” at the Laurie Beechman Theatre, 407 W 42, NY NY 10036
9:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. Saturday, March 21 – Workshops and Panels, plus 7PM “Empire Raqs” opening show. All at EPA Studios, 320 W 37, New York, NY 10018
9:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. Sunday, March 22 – Workshops and Panels, plus 7PM “Golden Apple” closing show. All at EPA Studios, 320 W 37, New York, NY 10018
TICKETS:
Workshops, Panels and Gala Show packages $150-$399.
Raqs in the City: Kick off Dinner Show for the New York Belly Dance Festival at the Laurie Beechman Theatre – Tickets $25 (plus $25 food/drink minimum)
WEBSITE, REGISTRATION & TICKETS: www.newyorkbellydancefestival.com
Samantha Diaz (Creator, Festival Director, Instructor) is a director, choreographer, and producer with over two decades of experience in the dance and entertainment industry. She is the founder of Dance Soul Entertainment, which has been producing world-class entertainment for 20 years. As the director of the New York Belly Dance Festival and Orlando Belly Dance Convention, Samantha curates exceptional dance experiences, bringing together top talent from around the world. Samantha is also the founder of InspireGrace, a jewelry company that supports indigenous artisans in Peru, Colombia, Brazil, and Mexico, offering unique, handmade pieces with deep cultural meaning. As a burn survivor, her personal journey of resilience and healing through dance has fueled her passion to inspire others. Samantha’s commitment to wellness and personal growth shapes her work as a teacher, mentor, and creator of transformative dance experiences. Her leadership and dedication continue to shape the dance community, empowering others to embrace their unique voice through movement while promoting cultural connection, creativity, and resilience. www.samanthadance.com
Sadie (Performer/Instructor) is an inspiration and icon to her students and fans around the world and serves to empower people through the captivating art of Oriental Dance (Bellydance). She has produced dozens of bestselling instructional videos. She has represented the art of Oriental Dance in front of millions of viewers on the hit show “America’s Got Talent”. Sadie is the founder and director of the “Raqs Flow” training program, which enriches students with a strong foundation in technique while keeping them engaged and connected to the dance’s culture and historical roots. She recently launched a new clothing line of athletic dance wear and produces a variety of destination dance retreats around the world, taking her students on a deep journey and exploration of this incredible art form as well as their own inner selves. Sadie lives in Denver, Colorado. She loves spending time in nature, hiking, camping and adventuring with her family. Aside from dance, Sadie has a deep passion and commitment to living and creating a holistic, sustainable lifestyle and world. She loves to combine her passions in her retreats; bringing the power of nature, dance, music, conscious living and human connection together. When she is not busy traveling the globe she can be found teaching her award-winning bellydance classes and workshops as well as performing locally in Colorado.
Lebanese Simon (Performer/Instructor) was born and raised in northern Lebanon. With a natural passion for cultural arts, he found himself drawn closer to dance. Simon has traveled internationally to teach and perform. His style of Lebanese Folk Dabke is described as strong, captivating, and deeply heartfelt. Through oriental dance, Simon reveals his personal creative approach with a focus on technique and rhythms. His versatility in dance has brought him very close to the heart of a wide range of audience and followers around the world. Since 2010, Simon has served artistic director and manager for the Al Awtar Zaffa Group based in Houston, Texas. He is also the Executive Producer and Artistic Advisor of the yearly Gulf Coast Raks (formerly the Houston Oriental Dance) Festival. Settled in Houston, Texas, Simon is a Structural Engineer and enjoys horseback riding and great long walks in nature.
Diva Darina (Performer/Instructor) Diva Darina, born Daryna Konstantynova, is a Ukrainian oriental dancer and teacher known for her "DIVA STYLE" and unique teaching system that emphasizes safe muscle and joint use. She began teaching at age 14 and has since become a globally recognized performer, traveling to over 40 countries for performances and workshops. Beyond dancing, she holds a degree in physiotherapy and rehabilitology.
Editorial by Malini Singh McDonald.
Published by Theatre Beyond Broadway on March 3, 2026. All rights reserved.