Mythic Dance Artistry

Tempest pulls from her visual arts background, literary tendencies, and global inspirations to create dance that crosses the boundaries of time and culture.  Her compellingly artful performances exemplify her distinctively theatrical, unique, and expressive style that are rooted in oriental dance technique with a transcendent approach. Tempest's fascination with sacred and ritual dance lead her to bellydance over 20 years ago, and the exploration of Myth is an important and recurring theme in her work.

Together with Nathaniel Johnstone and Davis Petterson, she is one third of the band The Mechanist & The Star Goddess - an incredible live music and dance experience.

Tempest is recognized globally as a major pioneer of Gothic & Steampunk Fusion Bellydance. Her Nouveau Noir Dance explorations were among the very first to fuse Art Nouveau, Art Deco, and other vintage 20's and 30's styling with modern bellydance in the early 2000's. She has long been referred to as the "Goth Mutha" for her groundbreaking work in dark fusion. 

Tempest also has heavily focused on crafting community,  producing Waking Persephone - a fusion dance event (2012-2016) and Tapestry Dance Retreat, which focused more on the sacred and folkloric aspects of the dance. Tempest is the founder and primary author of The Gothic Bellydance Resource, which tracked the progress of the movement as it developed worldwide, and was co-producer of the largest festival devoted to Gothic Bellydance in North America - Gothla US from 2008-2010.  She also maintained a well-read blog on dance called Tempest's Teapot until 2016.

In addition to dance, Tempest is a professionally trained visual artist, receiving her BFA in Printmaking from the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), and having trained at Fleisher Art Memorial in Philadelphia and the South Carolina Governor's School for the Arts. Her artwork has received awards and honors worldwide, and has been published in numerous books and magazines.  Her costume designs have revolutionized the look of modern bellydance, and continue to inspire new and old generations of dancers alike.  She is also the author of several books on Witchcraft published by Llewellyn Worldwide.

She lives in New England with her husband, musician Nathaniel Johnstone, and works full-time as an artist, author, designer, and dancer.

Tempest's Biography