Think you've got belly dancing all figured out? Well, think again.

A new monthly event in West Roxbury has arrived to educate people and challenge ongoing misconceptions about the art form – and it surely is an art – by bringing belly dancing to an as-yet-untapped community.

The event is called "A Dancers Oasis: A Monthly Belly Dance Showcase" and it will be held at the Theodore Parker Unitarian Universalist Church on Centre Street; the next one is scheduled for Sun., October 24, 6-7:30 p.m. It's been organized by a pair of Boston's best-known belly dancers, Zehara Nachash (which is Hebrew for 'Bright Serpent') and Sabrina Tarulli (usually just 'Sabrina').

The two met through the (surprisingly) busy network of New England-area belly dancers and struck up a friendship several years ago. By offering differing takes on their specialized brand of dance, together they comprise a well-rounded view of the many things belly dancing is… and isn't.

 "First and foremost, belly dancing is viewed as entertainment," Tarulli said during a recent phone call. "But for the dancers, it can be spiritual, much in the same way any creative person feels about the process of working. There's a meditative quality in concentrating on one thing for an extended period of time. To me, anything that makes you happy or makes your body useful in a positive way has a spiritual aspect to it."  

"I hate to use the phrase 'Goddess energy' because it's so hippie-dippy sounding, but I do feel a greater connection to my spiritual world when dancing," Nachash offered, noting that, "there's a detachment from the physical, which allows more room for spiritual freedom."

While both ladies concede that there's a sensual component to the dance form, whether it should be filed under "adult entertainment" is a matter of venue and purpose. "It's definitely sexy and sultry, but Hollywood has perpetuated a myth about its sole purpose as a tool for seducing men, much like being a stripper – not so," said Nachash, 29, who is the founder/director of Troupe Alankara, a non-traditional 'fusion belly dancing' ensemble that often incorporates modern pop music with classic belly dancing techniques. She also teaches a belly dancing class at the Parker church where the monthly West Roxbury event is held.

"It's not soft-core pornography. On the contrary, the dance was created by-women-for-women in the Middle East over a thousand years ago," she explained. "Since men and women are socially segregated in those cultures, women began belly dancing for each other as a form of platonic entertainment."

"It also better prepares the body for childbirth," she continued. "The stomach undulations, hip movements and strengthening of the pelvic area replicates some of the same things the body goes through while giving birth."

Perhaps it's just a matter of experience. Nachash grew up learning Russian gypsy dances from her grandmother and calls herself a 'sideshow belly dancer.' Her performances are only a portion of her work week, which also includes an admin job at Seasons Hospice in Newton. But as a primary in-house belly dancer for 15 years at Cambridge's famed Middle East Club in Central Square, Tarulli approaches the topic more matter-of-factly. Her nightclub tenure has kept her tuned into the reality of what draws an audience less interested in theater.

"It's definitely an aesthetic environment," she said. "By the time you've busted your butt and perfected your art you realize you're not 20-years-old anymore. Insofar as entertainment is concerned, a younger skinny girl is what people want… it's the nature of the beast."

Tarulli left her coveted Cambridge gig last year, but she remains a full-time dancer. She says it's the 'where and how' that are changing; she's begun teaching, performing as a mentor in student showcases and working in theater. "It's about being more of an artist and less of a showgirl," she said. "I've been very lucky. I've worked hard and have a huge following; I'm the exception to the rule."

Nachash, deems the skinny factor a misconception and wants the Dancer's Oasis Showcase to attract women of all shapes and sizes. "There used to be more places for dancers of all levels and all styles to perform, like an open mic format. We realized that there wasn't a forum for that anymore," she said, noting the ladies' mutual desire to attract first-timers to their event.

While Tarulli is using a change of venue to expand her creativity, Nachash has added more attractions to her ever-evolving sideshow: fire eating, glass dancing and snake charming are all on the menu.

Although on hiatus while she plans her summer 2011 wedding, she presides over a traveling neo-vaudevillian entity called Kalliope's Karavan. "I've always been intrigued by oddity," she said. "And belly dancing made its way here via carnivals, so the sideshow element is already built-in. It makes the performances more versatile since I can incorporate multiple routines into one gig. It challenges the predictable by bringing unexpected drama and a fear element to my shows. It's all 100 percent real, and yes, sometimes things go wrong," she said with a chuckle. "The train wreck analogy is valid."