deanna

Have you seen this article from The National? Paints a grim picture of belly dance in Egypt...

Here's one of her quotes: “I see no hope or future for belly dancing in Egypt,” she said. “Ten years ago we were so many. Each one had her own style and audience, whether first-class belly dancers, or second and third class. Now I look around and see nobody.”

If the link doesn't work, I also link to it from my belly dance blog at Scribbling Gypsy.

--DeAnna

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DeAnna Cameron

Tarik Sultan

Basically says something I've tried to point out for a long time. There are aspects of how the dance is presented that goes against the grain of Egyptian culture, it always has. As Dina said one of the main problems is the costume. It isn't a part of the culture and must have been a really big shock when it was adopted in the 1930's. To me the solution would be to wear more covered costumes. A covered costume can be very elegant and beautiful. However, this is only one issue.

I think the biggest problem is the fact that its out of the reach of the average person. Nightclubs are very expensive and with the decline in the economy only a very few people can afford to watch a show. Also the fact that among those who can afford it, their kids are more western in their tastes and want to go to discos instead of watching dancers. Gypsy once pointed out this fact. There are many things that have contributed to the shrinking client base.

Aisha Azar

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

deanna

Hi, A'isha-

That's interesting that you're seeing a decline in belly dance interest in your area. Here in Southern California, interest is still on an upswing, and it's been growing pretty steadily since my first class in 1990. I agree with you, though, that in general, interest seems to be cyclical. It just seems unfortunate that the dance form seems to be struggling the most in its birthplace... and I admire Dina all the more for persevering...

Best,
DeAnna

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DeAnna Cameron

Aisha Azar

Something added here so that the computer will accept the post. Real message below.

Best,
DeAnna



Dear Deanna,
I would not really use the word "decline" exactly, since there are still four or five teachers in the area and we all are generally getting enough students to make it worth our while to continue, but the numbers are definitely smaller. Also, it seems there is still plenty of belly dance in Egypt, but not as many Egyptians dancing, which seems pretty sad. So many of the people dancing there just do not seem to have that magical cultural essence that the dance is really all about at its heart.
Regards,
A'isha

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DeAnna Cameron[/quote]

Dipali

Dear Forum

I think Dina is also some how responsible for making Belly dance a controversial thing in Egypt. She loves controversy , that’s what I think after what I see and have read about her. At the moment many radical movements are on the rise in Egypt and other places that will attempt to impose pressure to cover up and stop anything that sounds or looks sensual , also as Tarik said economic meltdown is a big cause , I was watching an independent programme about the food crisis in Egypt and the current situation when an average person has to think twice before spending any money on daily life.

Re - Belly dance is still somehow an underground culture in Western countries. Although I see a rise of people wanting to do Belly dance or want to learn about the dance but it seems Belly Dance never presented itself as a brand in the mainstream culture. I know many people don’t want their art to be commercialised but to keep this art alive you just have to do what others are doing. A perfect example is Yoga from India, When Indian people presented that to the rest of the world they presented it as a brand , most of the time the spiritual aspect is missing which is one of the main elements in yoga , but you know what a new Yoga class gets more publicity than a new Belly Dance school , well at least in Australia. People show great interest and they don’t mind talking about it to their friends but When it comes to Belly dance , a lot of people don’t want other people to know that they are Belly Dancing. Maybe that’s one of the reasons its difficult to propel this art form forward in the West.

Regards

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Australian Belly dance store - Belly Dance Costumes, Accessories ,Hip scarves

Tarik Sultan

You make some very good points. I think where Dina's concerned, there is a part of her that is controversial and provocative because its her way of protesting the hypocrisy and double standards of the society. On the other hand, wisdom says when there's a fire, you don't throw gasoline on it. Egyptian society is very conformist. They don't like having things thrown up in their faces. Some people may adopt this tactic in the hopes of gaining acceptance, but it usually ends up back firing. Mahmound Redda realized this when he created his company and regardless of how I may feel about his dances with regards to the male dancer, it did gain a certain amount of acceptance from society. I don't think I've ever heard anyone voice objections over the propriety of a woman dancing in The Redda Troupe.

For the performance style to survive it needs to evolve. It needs to be more accessible to the general public. Luxury night clubs and tourist barges won't cut it anymore. Not that I'm saying they need to do away with them, but that they need other venues and contexts in which to present the dance. However, given the current state of the economy, I don't know how that would happen.

As for the dance here???? I know what you're saying, but at the same time I fear seeing the mainstream do to it what Ballroom Dance has done to Latin Dances, where they have no resemblance to the actual Samba, Mambo, Merengue and don't even use the ethnically correct music. God help me, but I can't even watch one episode of Dancing with the Stars. How the hell can you call something Salsa Dance when you don't use Salsa steps and you do it to Hip-Hop music? Where is Cuba and Puerto Rico in all that? Yet Ballroom classes are full to the brim. Can you believe they even want to enter it into the Olympics? So now its not even dance anymore, its a sport! I don't want to see that happen with Oriental. I'd rather it stay a sub-culture if that's the case.

jenc

Having just been to a student hafla I echo your concerns about what would happen if the dance were more mainstream. I already wonder what image some people have in their heads about the dance. For example, when someone is recommended as a good dancer - who turns out to use the music, keep time but almost without any identifiable ME moves eg hipwork

Suheir

Ugh. That reminds me of a particular Western dancer who is raved about in some quarters but in her clips I just see foot-led, un-Middle Eastern dancing to Arabic-lite elevator music.

Aisha Azar

Dear Dipali,