Italian-born singer-songwriter Elisa, a multi-platinum, award-winning star in her native country, will launch her first tour of the United States and Canada on October 29, 2008.

As acclaimed internationally for her powerful live performances as for her inspired, emotionally direct pop-rock recordings, Elisa has appeared on various world stages with music legends including Andrea Bocelli, Luciano Pavarotti and Tina Turner. To date, though, her only North American engagements have been singing the Italian national anthem at the closing ceremony of the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics and two sold-out shows at NYC's Joe's Pub in April 2008.

Elisa's highly anticipated upcoming tour is in support of her North American debut album 'Dancing', which was released July 15 on Sugar/Universal.

Elisa - Dancing on amazon.com

Dancing [Us Import] on amazon.co.uk

The itinerary kicks off with a show in Toronto on the 29th followed by one in Montreal the next night. The remainder of the tour encompasses coast-to-coast dates in the U.S., beginning with a Boston-area show at Great Scott in Allston on November 1, as well as another venture into Canada at Vancouver's Biltmore Club on November 23. Highlights also include bookings at the Bowery Ballroom in NYC (11/5), Martyrs' in Chicago (11/11), the Roxy in Los Angeles, CA (11/19) and San Francisco's Café Du Nord (11/20).

Stateside fans first became familiar with Elisa when Dancing's title track was featured in a breathtaking routine on So You Think You Can Dance in June 2007. Organic fan reaction from that airing has since accumulated over 1 million views of the clip on YouTube, and propelled the song to the Top 20 on iTunes, where it reached close to 100,000 paid downloads prior to the album's release. Another stand-out track from 'Dancing', "Rock Your Soul," has also been featured on the hit program.

Watch video - "Dancing" from So You Think You Can Dance:

Other album highlights include the ethereal, hypnotic ballad "Rainbow," which has a new video spotlighting Lacey Schwimmer, who originally danced to "Dancing" when it captivated music lovers on SYTYCD. Also featured are the passionate album opener "The Waves," the heartbreaking "Broken," the rock-flavored "Stranger" and an elegiac take on Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah." Another cover, Elisa's dreamlike rendition of the Rolling Stones' "Wild Horses," is available exclusively on the iTunes version of the album.

To date, Elisa's artistry has been honored with major awards including five from Italy's prestigious Festival di Sanremo, an MTV European Music Awards Best Italian Artist win and a Tenco Award for Best Debut Album for Pipes And Flowers ('97).

With her North American album and touring debut, Elisa is poised to win honors and hearts in the new world as well. "Having the opportunity to play here, especially, is very important because for me, it really comes down to the face to face with an audience," says Elisa. "I'm very curious about what that will be like on the tour. I believe that we are all the same, that the world is one place. I want to see if that is true."

Elisa October/November 2008 North American tour dates:

(Dates and information subject to change.)

Wednesday October 29 Toronto, ON The Mod Club
Thursday October 30 Montreal QC Le Savoy

Saturday November 1 Allston, MA Great Scott
Tuesday November 4 Vienna, VA (D.C.) The Barns at Wolf Trap
Wednesday November 5 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
Friday November 7 Philadelphia, PA Johnny Brenda's
Saturday November 8 Pittsburgh, PA Club Cafe
Tuesday November 11Chicago, Il Martyrs’
Wednesday November 12 St. Louis, MO Off Broadway Nightclub
Thursday November 14 Denver, CO Soiled Dove
Saturday November 15 Salt Lake City, UT Bar Deluxe
Monday November 17 Solana Beach, CA Belly Up Tavern
Wednesday November 19 Los Angeles, CA The Roxy
Thursday November 20 San Francisco, CA Café Du Nord
Saturday November 22 Portland, OR Doug Fir Lounge
Sunday November 23 Vancouver, BC The Biltmore Club
Monday November 24 Seattle, WA The Triple Door

For music and more information, go to:

Elisa Toffoli Official Website
Elisa MySpace