Cairo 2005- How to Eat, Drink, Sleep, and Breathe Raqs Sharqi Part Two of Four: Dance Lessons in Cairo by Andrea
Ahlan family and friends! I've much to report and muse upon since my last missive. I'll try to stick to the most entertaining and interesting stuff. First of all, thanks to all of you who sent me good health wishes via cyberspace. I am feeling much much better, I'm left with only an intermittent cough, but I haven't let it stop me from getting down to business! Second, the subway rocks; I go everywhere I can by subway. Even though from where I'm staying I have to cab it to the subway, I'd rather do that than take a taxi all the way into Cairo. The subway is fast, cheap, and doesn't smell of exhaust. I love Cairo’s subway, it's the way to go! I wish I had discovered its wonders last year.
I was strolling around Korba, which is a swanky shopping area in Heliopolis, and was surprised to stumble upon a CD store! I felt like I had found King Tut's treasure! The clerks must have thought I was crazy. I heard one fellow say to the other incredulously, "She's American, but she speaks a little bit of Arabic. She wants Arabic music!" Because I've spent a significant amount of time watching music videos thanks to my cold, I knew which artists I liked. I also asked the clerk which ones he'd recommend for dancing (No! I did not tell him I'm a ra-assah. I gave him the impression that I wanted it for parties). He played his selections, and I bought every one of them. I bought 14 CDs, then went back the next day and bought nine more, and I am not nearly done with my CD purchases.
Thus far, I've had three dance lessons. Yay! I've had two with Nagwa Sultan. She deserves some kudos though she is relatively unknown. She really is a good teacher, and she can still dance, too! She also possesses ease, power, and musicality that has me in hot pursuit. (I videoed her, dancing to Tamra Henna, so y'all can see for yourselves.) What I like about her is that she is PURE SHARQI, no folklore in her style. Hers is the style of the old greats: Taheyya Carioka, Na'ima Akef, Suhair Zaki, Samia Gamal. Sure, the folklore school has produced many talented and famous dancers, but in my opinion we need more teachers of pure sharqi style out there to balance out our perspective and education. On a side note, I learned that she actually taught in Raqia's festival this year, although last year, she debunked it. I don't blame her. She probably made lots of money from it! I still stand by my opinion that one-on-one private lessons are better than taking classes at the festival. Just be prepared to have your technique and style meticulously scrutinized, because you will get all of the teacher’s attention, but then, what better way to tighten those screws? For instance, she told me that Americans (myself included) and Europeans tend to hurry through their dancing. Her young son Ahmed accompanies the lessons on his drum. All of you going to Egypt should look up Nagwa Sultan. In spite of her eccentricities, she's fun. We have a tentative date this week to go to a casino, smoke sheesha, and watch the dancer at 3 a.m. I can't wait! Also, she taught me my new favorite phrase “chic aowie” (very chic). My third lesson was with Aida Nour. She speaks good English and has an air-conditioned studio in Giza. At one point, she got mad at me for not doing her choreography exactly as she told me. Hey, I wasn't changing things, I just had to turn around because I ran out of space! She was not pleased, so I made sure that happened only once. (In Nagwa's class, if you do something different from what she showed you, she'll not have a cow as long as it goes with the music.) In the end, the class was good, the price was nice, the choreography was beautiful, and Aida was pretty patient and responsive to my questions. She also said that I can shimmy well. I'll go back tomorrow and not mess up this time! I'll do everything exactly as she teaches it. I feel like I have to redeem myself. Oh, by the way she is one of the Nile Group festival organizers. When I asked her about AWS, she gave me the impression that she didn't agree with it or with its organizer. That's all I'll say about it! Coming
soon! Have
a comment? Send us a
letter! Ready
for more? 5-5-05 Initiating Dance Dialogue: Current Trends, The Panel Discussion at Carnivals of Stars Festival, transcribed from video by Andrea, Panel members included: Heather as moderator, Monica Berini, Shira, Barbara Bolan, Amina Goodyear, Debbie Lammam. 2-11-06
What Kind of Snakes are Good for Dancing?
by Neferteri 2-9-06
Rhythm
and Reason Series, Article 9, Can't
We All Get Along? Dancers and Musicians by
Mary Ellen Donald 2-6-06
The Peace Belt comes to Tucson
by Lucy Lipschitz |
I'd
like to start with a funny anecdote about the language barrier.
I went to Groppi in Central Cairo with Erika and Outi to buy some
chocolate. Erika wanted to buy a mix of different chocolates
for a friend. The clerks did not speak English, so it was
up to me with my limited Arabic, to facilitate the transaction.
The conversation went something like this: 
Do
you know what I love here? I love the dramatic eye make-up.
In Egypt, if a woman is only going to wear one item of make-up,
it will be black eyeliner. I'll see a young woman with higaab
(hijab) and baggy clothes that belie no human form, and
she'll have black eyeliner around her eyes. Even the maid
who cleans the apartment comes with her lower rims lined.
It just gets more dramatic from there with thicker lines, smoky
eye shadow all around the eye, and sometimes highlighter below
the brow. Some women wear lip-gloss or foundation, but here,
if your eyes are done, you're set! The women in the music
videos go over the top wearing: thick, black, smoky blended
line around the eyes and dark shadow on the upper lids.
It really makes the eyes “pop out.” I think
I've found a way to blend in a bit more—I wear more eye make-up!
