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Raksanna Productions Receives 2011 Best of Aurora Award
NEW YORK, NY, October 25, 2011 – Raksanna Productions has been selected for the 2011 Best of Aurora Award in the Health & Fitness The USCA “Best of Local Business” Award Program recognizes outstanding local businesses throughout the country. Each year, the USCA identifies companies that they believe have achieved exceptional marketing success in their local community and business category. These are local companies that enhance the positive image of small business through service to their customers and community.
This is the first year that a business has qualified as a Four-Time Award Winner. Various sources of information were gathered and analyzed to choose the winners in each category. The 2011 USCA Award Program focuses on quality, not quantity. Winners are determined based on the information gathered both internally by the USCA and data provided by third parties.
About U.S. Commerce Association (USCA)
U.S. Commerce Association (USCA) is a New York City based organization funded by local businesses operating in towns, large and small, across America. The purpose of USCA is to promote local business through public relations, marketing and advertising.
The USCA was established to recognize the best of local businesses in their community. Our organization works exclusively with local business owners, trade groups, professional associations, chambers of commerce and other business advertising and marketing groups. Our mission is to be an advocate for small and medium size businesses and business entrepreneurs across America.
SOURCE: U.S. Commerce Association
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(originally published in the international periodical Zaghareet)
Faten Salama. Her name rolls off the tongue with excitement and respect. Quintessentially feminine, supremely sassy and very lovable, she is known and revered across the world. Her performance vitae boasts of being a principal dancer for Egypt’s National Troupe, performing as both a troupe member and a soloist for royalty, dignitaries and audiences with several thousand attendees. As a teacher, she has taught beginners through professionals in six of the seven world continents, known for her fun-loving and nurturing style that blends just the right mixture of firmness to let you know she expects nothing but the best from you.
And … the belly dance scene is totally in luck.
This year, Faten Salama debuted her most recent masterpiece Al Massraweay: The Real Egyptian Certification. This 18-hour certification program combines history, firsthand experience, secondary research, culture frameworks, geography, dance theory and practical application into an intensive immersion that leaves participants with a solid education, a strong foundation of excellence in Egyptian style dance and the knowledge of how to apply folklore to Oriental dance.
Recently, I had the distinct honor to present Faten Salama and the Al Massraweay certification in Chicago. Nearly thirty (30) dancers from four states gathered to study with this dance master to become more educated and skilled in Egyptian style dance.
Debbie traveled from North Carolina for the workshop. “Before Faten’s certification, I had been studying belly dance for a number of years,” she remarked. “I was going with Raksanna to Egypt to tour and participate in the June 2010 Ahlan Wa Salan festival in Cairo. I felt Faten’s certification would help me prepare for the upcoming trip both as a person and as a dancer, especially because she offered so much in terms of historical and cultural information. I am happy to say that this program achieved this goal!”
A Labor of Love: More than One Year of Research, Writing and Compilation
It took Faten a little over a year to develop the curriculum. One of today’s foremost authorities on folkloric dance, Faten wanted to make sure to provide a strong foundation for dancers interested in Oriental dance. “In order to be a good Oriental dancer, it is critically important to know the folkloric movements, rhythms and cultural context,” she said. “Without this knowledge, a dancer can only go so far. Oriental dancers with the depth of folkloric knowledge stand head and shoulders above the rest because their vocabulary of movements and musical interpretation is rich, textured and educated.”
“Being Egyptian and having the experience of the National Troupe gave me many years of first-hand experience from which to draw,” reflected Faten, “but I still spent many hours of research, asking myself ‘why are things this way,’ ‘how does this fit into the big picture,’ ‘what is the meaning of this.’ When I did not have the answers from my own experience, I researched history books, academic journals, credible on-line sources and discussed ideas and topics with my colleagues to find the answers. Then, I incorporated the information into the program.”
Setting the Foundation: Culture, History and Education
As the name Al Massraweay indicates, this program is a deep dive into Egyptian dance. In order to give dancers the education needed to understand the dance, Faten presented a brief lecture of Egyptian history. She discussed the four great Egyptian civilizations and the manner in which each of the eras impacted our art form.
Then, her discussion moved to how the inner relationship of movements, costumes, tools, geographic environment, necessity of life, regional beliefs, environment, society and the inner aspects of a dancer, such as emotions, impact the dance. For example, she presented Sinai and Nubian dance, explaining how and where the people lived, the differences and similarities of daily life and then tied it in with dance by contrasting different movements, costumes and music, highlighting various elements and how they created a specific uniqueness to the dance.
Dance Theory: Starting with the Basics
If you grew up in dance lessons, such as ballet, chances are that your training includes Labonation, preserving dance steps and choreographies through writing. With more than four decades of teaching and performance experience, Faten knew the majority of belly dancers do not have the benefit of this type of formal dance training. She also knew how important this aspect of dance theory is to preserving Egyptian dance. So, Faten began her certification program with the basics.
“As I created the program,” said Faten, “I decided that it was important to build the theoretical foundation with dance essentials. That way, people can leave the weekend with the skills of how to write down each step, down to the smallest of details, in the way the choreographer intended. ” She lectured from the podium on how to write down directions, arm placements, movements, patterns and so much more.
Zerlina, a dancer who came to Oriental dance with a dance background, remarked that “Faten’s presentation of Labonation is an absolute necessity for any dancer. Oftentimes in the West (America), belly dance is not seen by other forms of traditional Western dance, such as ballet and jazz, as being on the same level or having the same credentials. Faten’s incorporation of Labonation and dance theory raises our art form exponentially because it raises the level of professionalism of any belly dancer who takes the course, understands the theory and applies it. We can talk the same language as ballet and be taken more seriously. ”
Exploring Egypt through Dance
Once Faten set the educational foundation for dancers, she moved into the different folkloric dance styles. In total, she presented more than eight different genres: Zar, Saidi, Shamedan, Nubian, Philahe, Eskandari (Melaya Leff), Bedouin and Simsameya (Suez Canal). She also touched on Kahleegy and dances from both the North and South Sinai region of Egypt. In addition to the styles, Faten discussed costuming and cultural aspects to each genre.
The dance portion of the certification included a regional overview, a demonstration of the movements, and a presentation of the specific music, followed by folkloric dance patterns and technique. Once dancers had a good grasp on the technique and movements, Faten then explained how to apply the folklore movements to the Oriental dance – and taught dancers how to do so.
Erika Ochoa, a prominent dancer based out of Chicago, was attracted to the certification not only because Faten is someone she greatly admires, but also because of this aspect of the certification program.
“I have trained in both folkloric and Oriental style for many years,” Erika said, “and firmly believe that for any dancer to be a great Oriental dancer, he or she must know their folklore roots. It is where Oriental dance originates – the movements, context, culture. Faten did a fantastic job of presenting so many different folklore styles and then applying the technique to Oriental dance. I feel I am a much stronger dancer – both in folklore and Oriental – because of this program.”
Monet Parker is a dancer from central Illinois. She just started belly dance and decided to take the certification program so that she could start off in belly dance with a solid education. “I am so happy that I committed the money and time to this workshop,” said Monet. “While I have danced professionally in other dance genres for many years, I am a baby belly dancer. This program gave me the knowledge in my body and the education for my mind that is a solid, authentic foundation to build upon. Faten is a delightful teacher and I recommend this program to anyone who is interested in taking their experience to the next level.”
Creating Her Legacy
When I asked Faten her inspiration for creating the program, she paused for a moment and then quietly said: “There comes a point in each artist’s life where you ask yourself what you can give back to the art, what you want your legacy to be and what you want to be remembered for. As I searched my soul for the answer to these questions, I realized that to me, the most beautiful dancers are the ones with the ones who have the education and knowledge as well as the movement in their bodies.
“Artistically and personally, I became aware that I wanted my contribution to our art to be a comprehensive program that is both broad and in-depth, providing the background, history, cultural meaning and context of Egyptian dance to preserve the art form of Egyptian dance – so that dancers who invest the time and money in the certification walk away with both the physical movements in the body and the education in their minds. By doing so, the art form is elevated by the creation of educated, well-informed dancers who understand and embrace the true spirit of Egyptian dance.
“Al Massraweay became a labor of love, the result of a lifetime of experience, research and cultivation that I drew upon. It took over a year to consolidate, create and develop … and as I roll the program out, I am overcome with joy and am humbled by the great extent to which dancers from across America have embraced this program, absorbed the knowledge and allowed this knowledge to live on through their dance.”
What Makes Faten Salama’s Al Massraweay Certification a MUST for Any Dancer?
As a professional Middle Eastern dance artist and educator, my continued education and training has taken me across the oceans to different continents and throughout our beautiful nation to workshops and certifications too numerous to count. Each of these programs has its own specialty and uniqueness, providing value and benefit to any dancer who completes these courses.
What makes Faten’s certification different from the rest and simply a MUST DO?
- Faten is a native Egyptian. This fact gives her program an authenticity that other Egyptian style certifications taught by non-Egyptians can never have. To make an analogy, if someone who was born and raised in Chicago moved to Egypt and lived there, at the core, this person would still be an American with an American perception and filter. It does not mean that the American does not have a great wealth of information and expertise to offer; what it means is that Faten can teach the nuances and cultural context as only a native can. For dancers seeking to fine-tune and enhance their Egyptian dance, this native authenticity is an essential ingredient for a strong foundation.
- Faten’s dance credentials. There are only a handful of artists in the world whose resume can compare or even come close to Faten Salama’s. With more than forty years as a professional dancer that includes being a principal dancer for Egypt’s National Troupe, Faten’s life has been dedicated to the dance. She has lived and breathed it every day of her life and this perspective is an invaluable resource for any dancer.
- Historical and cultural accuracy. With the goal of preserving Egyptian dance, Faten not only drew upon her personal experience as a native Egyptian, she also spent countless hours researching numerous sources to ensure that the information she presents was well grounded in history facts and culturally context. This scholarship gives even more credibility to her program because the content is supported by academic research, intellectual publications and expert authorities that are outside of the dance world.
- Depth and breadth of information. Faten provides a global view of Egypt by presenting the big picture – a map of the country, the different regions of Egypt and the associated culture and customs of each region – and then dives into the details of each section of the country. By presenting the entire picture and then providing the details behind each area, participants leave with a holistic understanding of Egypt and her dance.
- Translation from Folkloric to Oriental dance. Arguably, the majority of belly dancers are focused on Oriental dance as their primary style. One of the many beauties of this program is that Faten teaches the folkloric dance – an absolute essential part of any educated dancers portfolio – and then applies it to Oriental so that dancers can expand and intensify their own portfolio and dance movement vocabulary.
I, for one, am extremely grateful to Faten for taking the time to develop such a course that gives so much to dancers.
Thank you, Faten Salama, for preserving the beautiful art form of Egyptian dance and enabling it to live on throughout time … like the Pyramids themselves.
Lynn and Raksanna at Chicago O'Hare, getting ready for take off!
June 19, 2010
I’m on my way to the world famous belly dance festival, Ahlan Wa Salan, sponsored by Raqia Hassan and held in Cairo, Egypt each year. As a returning featured instructor, I am very excited to be on the way to a fantastic event! More than 1,000 dancers from across the world, representing all seven continents, gather in the shadow of the Pyramids to dance, learn, tour Egypt and meet new friends and colleagues. Raqia does an outstanding job at bringing together to top instructors with a variety of styles, highly professional tours and a fun-filled festival for serious dancers and hobbyists alike! I am honored and blessed to have the opportunity to teach and be a part of such a great event.
Each time I visit Egypt, I come back a different, deeper person and a stronger dancer. One of the things I love so much about teaching at the festival is the inspiration I get from the students who share my passion for the beautiful art form of belly dance – and the joy that comes from bonding with each other through ancient movements and artistic interpretation of fantastic melodies, pulsating rhythms and gorgeous instruments! It is ALL good!
This year, I am taking a small tour group with me. Lynn, Deb and Joy decided to come with me across the waters to the continent of Africa, the cradle of civilization. Deb and Joy departed from their home town in North Carolina yesterday and will arrive at the hotel in Cairo about six hours prior to Lynn and me. We departed from the Windy City of Chicago and arrive tomorrow morning at approximately 1 am. It takes a full 24 hours (with flight time and lay over) to make the trek across the world.
Lynn and I are now in London, enjoying a late breakfast and several cups of coffee. Lynn is a great person and so excited to go Egypt. She is staying for one week and her itinerary is filled with exciting, spectacular tours of the country. Lynn picked up a lecture series on Egypt and has made it all the way from the birth of the human race to the time of Alexandria the Great. It is such fun to experience her excitement for the trip! I’m glad she decided to come along!
Well, I promised to blog throughout the next three weeks. Stay posted for photos, snapshots and journal entries so that you can “travel along” with me!
Happiest of shimmies,
Raksanna
NEW YORK, NY, October 25, 2011 – Raksanna Productions has been selected for the 2011 Best of Aurora Award in the Health & Fitness The USCA “Best of Local Business” Award Program recognizes outstanding local businesses throughout the country. Each year, the USCA identifies companies that they believe have achieved exceptional marketing success in their local community and business category. These are local companies that enhance the positive image of small business through service to their customers and community.