Dance in Egypt
Dear Deanna,
I think that Dina has the right to worry, but really, belly dance has seen good and bad times in Egypt and every other location before. I think this is a part of the phase that the dance seems to go through everywhere. In the 1970s when I started, there was an upswing phase from the 60s, and then in the 80s it kind of leveled off. In the 90s and up until about 2 years ago, it was really, really popular and my dance classes were filled. Now it is leveling of again and I am seeing less numbers in classes, especially beginning, which was always about 15-20 people and is now about half that much of the time.
In Egypt there is currently a strong radical Islamic trend and this is affecting the societal attitude toward all kinds of entertainment. But, you can not kill what the people want and they consider this dance to be a part of their heritage. Let's give it 10 years and see what is going on in Egypt before we worry.
Regards,
A'isha
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