The World Famous Pontani Sisters are a dance act and

burlesque A burlesque is a literary, dramatic or musical work intended to cause laughter by caricaturing the manner or spirit of serious works, or by ludicrous treatment of their subjects.

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, consisting of three sisters: Angie Pontani, Tara Pontani, and Helen Pontani. They have been billed more recently as Angie Pontani and the World Famous Pontani Sisters. The three sisters, who had danced and performed informally since childhood, got their professional start during the late 1990s swing revival craze, as a side act of the popular swing band

The Flying Neutrinos The Flying Neutrinos are an American jazz band from New Orleans. The band consists of Ingrid Lucia (vocals), Dan Levinson (saxophone), Matthew Munisteri (guitar), Todd Londagin (trombone), Jim Greene (double bass), and David Berger (drums). Dav ...

. They have since taken part in burlesque-style performances and revues on the East Coast and throughout the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The sisters dance in a wide and eclectic variety of styles covering much of twentieth century dance, but often in a high-energy " go-go" style to instrumental

Rock and Roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

. The sisters perform in a variety of exotic costumes featuring ostrich feathers, tassels, sequins, and fancy headdresses, many of which they design themselves. The act was conceived by performer/costume designer/choreographer Angie Pontani, the youngest of the three dancing sisters. She described the beginnings of the act in an interview: "The Pontani Sisters were literally born dancing on the boardwalk in Coney Island. I had been performing in a burlesque show in Manhattan almost direct from high school. When that show closed, I didn't know what to do with myself, so I turned my curtains into costumes, made three headdresses out of my

plastic fruit Food models, also known as fake foods, food figurines or "food samples" (), are scale models or replicas of a food item or dish made from plastic, wax, resin, or a similar inedible material. They are commonly used as mockups in restaurant display ...

kitchen table centerpiece, threw them on my sisters and we went to Coney Island and danced on the boardwalk. Within a month we were performing four nights a week throughout NYC. It was really kismet." There is also a younger sister in the family named Dana, who, according to the Pontanis' official website, occasionally performs with her sisters as a singer. The sisters have toured

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and the United States extensively, often with

Los Straitjackets Los Straitjackets is an American instrumental rock band that formed in Nashville, Tennessee, United States, in 1988. Originally comprising guitarists Danny Amis (formerly of the Raybeats), Eddie Angel and drummer L. J. "Jimmy" Lester under the ...

. The Pontanis appear on the cover of the Los Straitjackets album ''Twist Party!!!'', also credited to "Los Straitjackets with the World Famous Pontani Sisters and Kaiser George", and appear on an accompanying DVD. They have performed several times with Los Straitjackets on ''

Late Night with Conan O'Brien ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show is the second installment of the ''Late Night (franchise), Late Night'' franchise originally established by David Letterman. Hosted by Conan O'Brie ...

''. The Pontani Sisters were the subject of a 2004 documentary film by Rebecca Shapiro, '' Showy and Five Foot Two.'' The Sisters have released two DVDs combining dance instruction with

aerobic Aerobic means "requiring air," in which "air" usually means oxygen. Aerobic may also refer to * Aerobic exercise, prolonged exercise of moderate intensity * Aerobics, a form of aerobic exercise * Aerobic respiration, the aerobic process of cellu ...

exercise- "Go-Go Robics" & "Go Go Robics II". Since 2008, Angie Pontani has also been performing as a solo artist, and all three World Famous Pontani Sisters have been prominently involved in a movement to save historic

Coney Island Coney Island is a neighborhood and entertainment area in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Brighton Beach to its east, Lower New York Bay to the south and west, and Gravesend to ...

in New York from developers. The Pontani Sisters were awarded the title, "Best NY Based Dance Company", in 2002 by Show Business Weekly, "Best Super Hot Dancing Trio", by The Village Voice in 2006 as well as "#1 Burlesque Attraction in the Nation" in 2006 by AOL.com.

Footnotes

External links

Pontani Sisters website
*Paul Harri
Who said burlesque was dead?
Guardian {{DEFAULTSORT:Pontani Sisters, The World Famous American neo-burlesque performers Women in New York City 21st-century American dancers