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Aisha Azar · 04-01-2008, 01:31 PM

Dear Aya,
As with all things, no matter who we study with, we still have to use common sense. Fortunately, I have never been told that women dance in the streets in Alexandria, and if I had been told that, I would just go and ask my friends from Alexandria because it would sound wrong. Personally, I would also take with a grain of salt Mr. Gadawi's statement that the dance a "choreographic interpretation" of the way that women move in the streets in their melayas.
He may have put it that way because of not knowing the exact English. Rather than mimicing the movement, I would say the dance combines stronger Beledi movements with concepts of flirtation and a LITTLE bit of what might be natural movement for wearing melaya. And mostly, women would not have just been walking around in melaya for fun, they would wear them because they were outside and it is like their coat, and they would probably be doing something, like carrying the baby, or food, or doing some kind of work. They certainly would not swing them around or do other movements that Reda Troupe and others seem to do.
Like much of what Reda does, Melaya is theatre and fun dance, not to be taken as a reality of the culture in action, but of the fundamental feeling of the culture, if that makes sense. I do think that Mr. Gadawi hit the nail on the head when he talked about it being culturally representative, because it is TOTALLY representative of how the Egyptians would stage their own dances for theatre, and in this the cultural essence is retained.

Dear Suheir,
I would say that 9/10ths of what we hear is impossible to prove one way or the other, and most Arabs like a good, romantic story as well as they like the "truth" if there is such a thing.
Yhey would not consider themselves to be lying, but merely making the "facts" a little more interesting. In there somewhere is the meaning and that is more important than dry facts in the Arab mind. It's a very different approach to what we are used to and it does take awhile to appreciate it as another way to pass down what is the real "truth". Perhaps the truth, then, lies in the feeling behind the story, rather than the story itself, if you get my meaning...???

Regards,
A'isha

04-01-2008, 01:31 PM	#3 (permalink)
Aisha Azar V.I.P. Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Pacific Northwest USA Posts: 4,780	Dance etc. Dear Aya, As with all things, no matter who we study with, we still have to use common sense. Fortunately, I have never been told that women dance in the streets in Alexandria, and if I had been told that, I would just go and ask my friends from Alexandria because it would sound wrong. Personally, I would also take with a grain of salt Mr. Gadawi's statement that the dance a "choreographic interpretation" of the way that women move in the streets in their melayas. He may have put it that way because of not knowing the exact English. Rather than mimicing the movement, I would say the dance combines stronger Beledi movements with concepts of flirtation and a LITTLE bit of what might be natural movement for wearing melaya. And mostly, women would not have just been walking around in melaya for fun, they would wear them because they were outside and it is like their coat, and they would probably be doing something, like carrying the baby, or food, or doing some kind of work. They certainly would not swing them around or do other movements that Reda Troupe and others seem to do. Like much of what Reda does, Melaya is theatre and fun dance, not to be taken as a reality of the culture in action, but of the fundamental feeling of the culture, if that makes sense. I do think that Mr. Gadawi hit the nail on the head when he talked about it being culturally representative, because it is TOTALLY representative of how the Egyptians would stage their own dances for theatre, and in this the cultural essence is retained. Dear Suheir, I would say that 9/10ths of what we hear is impossible to prove one way or the other, and most Arabs like a good, romantic story as well as they like the "truth" if there is such a thing. Yhey would not consider themselves to be lying, but merely making the "facts" a little more interesting. In there somewhere is the meaning and that is more important than dry facts in the Arab mind. It's a very different approach to what we are used to and it does take awhile to appreciate it as another way to pass down what is the real "truth". Perhaps the truth, then, lies in the feeling behind the story, rather than the story itself, if you get my meaning...??? Regards, A'isha Last edited by Aisha Azar; 04-01-2008 at 03:33 PM.