Greetings from the Shadows of the Pyramids! – June 29, 2010
Wow! It has been such an amazing trip to Egypt so far! My friends and colleagues in the dance world are here and it is so good to see everyone again. My heart is filled with joy and love – and I know the special feeling of magic that is part and parcel of Egypt is what calls to my spirit and brings me across continents and oceans to be here on such a regular basis. I love this country and I love belly dance.
The girls who came with me have had an amazing time! Debbie, Lynn and Joy went on so many excursions – from visiting Alexandria on the Mediterranean Sea (where they saw the catacombs, the world famous library, the light house and ate lunch by the sea) to visiting the Pyramids and the Sphinx, as well as Saccarra, to a day trip to the Egyptian Museum and then the Old Church world, their days during the first week were absolutely complete! My camera has no more charge, so I will post photos when I get back to the States.
Lynn stayed for only a week and enjoyed the tour part of the package. She was such a treat! Lynn picked up a college course on tape of ancient Egyptian history so she was able to put all of the excursions and sights into context. Our guides from Ahlan Wa Salan travel have been the utmost professional and knowledgeable – as always! I have come to Egypt many times and the people who make up the travel company – Yassir, Bassem, Sameul, Mustofa, Regaey and all – are among the finest tour groups in the world. I always feel safe with them and have never experienced any problems whatsoever.
The dance festival began last Friday. The gala show was fabulous, as always! The show opened with a great band that featured five Tanora (sp??) dancers – these are the male dancers that spin for what seems like forever. The crowd went wild!!! It takes such amazing control and grace to be able to spin and NOT get dizzy and fall down!
After the Tanora dancers came this really cool Nubian ensemble. There was a live band and dancers that both danced on the ground – as well as about four men that dances on STILTS that were at least ten (10) feet tall! Complete with dancing horses (people dressed up like horses), this show had everyone out of their seats and shimmying along.
A new designer, Fernando from Argentina, followed with an amazing display of his new costume line. He creates beautiful modern costumes and I have to say that each and every one is absolutely gorgeous! With the World Cup going on and a strong showing of dancers in the festival from Brazil, one of the top hits was his Brazilian-inspired costumes – very beautiful!
Katia from Russia followed the fashion show. She is a nice dancer and set the tone for the evening. Her costume was very nice and she did a very good job with her dancing. It was nice to watch her performance – I have taken several of her classes over the past several years and it was my first time to see her in action with her 19 piece orchestra.
Sorraya from Brazil followed with her 23 piece orchestra and was FABULOUS! She certainly got the crowd up and involved – she is known for her shimmy and she certainly exceeded all expectations!!! Check her out on You-Tube and you can see just what a little dynamo this lovely woman is!
Dina from Egypt (yes, the famous super star) closed the show with her 29 piece orchestra. She was really amazing that night. Dina performed for about an hour and had four costume changes. Her dancing was strong and she connected with the crowd on a spiritual level that was felt by all. It is easy to see why Dina is considered the top dancer in all of Egypt.
On the first day of the festival, I taught my class. My students included dancers from Spain, Belgium, the United States, Morocco, Argentina and Croatia. One of the many beauties of our dance is that the language of our movements cross all cultures and language and what could not be understood through English was understood though the body. I taught an exciting drum solo that kept the dancers in high energy and lots of movement, and then followed with an hour of technique and patterns from my new DVD, Experience the Magic (TM) Advanced Technique and Playful Patterns, Volume 1.
That evening featured the Teachers Show. I had the amazing honor to open the show and am so thankful to Madame Raqia for making my dreams come true. With six of the seven continents represented and dancers from more than 35 countries, I danced to Nancy Ajram’s “Be Patient With Me” and a drum solo. The crowd was so receptive – their clapping and cheers inspired me so much that I was floating on air for the next three days! I will always remember that evening as one of those moments that is frozen in time because of the passion, the excitement and the experience of living a dream!!! Madame Raqia – thank you, thank you, thank you. I will post video footage of the dance when I return to the States as I am experiencing some difficulties with the power and my computer here.
The next few days were filled with workshops and of course, shopping! I took Angelika Nemeth’s “Passion and Drama” workshop – she taught an amazing choreography to a new song from Tarkan, a very popular Turkish singer. It was my first time studying with Angelika and she is an excellent instructor. She clearly breaks down movements and patterns, provides individual feedback to dancers in the class and has a fun, engaging teaching style.
Momo Kadous, one of my personal friends and mentors, taught a gorgeous Oriental choreography yesterday. Momo is such a fabulous artist and musician – he is so talented with bringing each nuance and element of the music to life! The room was jam-packed with dancers and every person walked out feeling fabulously inspired by his work. I look very forward to bringing him to Chicago from September 15-19 for ChicagoRaks (TM) 2010, where he is the featured artist teaching a 30-hour intensive workshop. For details and information, please check out the event under Events and Workshops. This is one workshop that is a MUST HAVE for any dancer who loves our dance and wants to develop him or herself. Momo will teach 5 new choreography’s, have a special section on drum solos and go in-depth on rhythms and musicality. The intensive is complete with a show that is certain to be a great experience!
Okay – you’re probably wondering about the … SHOPPING!!! Well, I can tell you that it has been a wonderful time so far. From a belly dance perspective, it is great to see Hanan Mahmoud, my primary costume designer. She is a wonderful woman and her family has been my friends for years. Hanan and Mamdouh (her husband) are a lovely couple with three children and one on the way very soon! They are good people and Hanan’s costume are extraordinary high quality, great designs and excellent prices. She has a new line here and as always, is absolutely wonderful. I have about 12 of her costumes (can you tell I love her!) and my professional dance company, Raksanna and the Desert Flames, are dressed in her lovely work. I think I spent half my mortgage payment with her on costumes!! (Shhhh! Don’t tell my husband!)
Hanan’s brother, Mohamed, just started his own line of costume designs. His style is reminiscent of Hollywood Glamour and is so sophisticated and beautiful. His hallmark is the “less is more” and I can tell you first hand with my gorgeous new costume, that he is someone to watch. Mohamed, like his sister, provides top line quality at great prices. His fabric is from Italy and all of the work is hand-made. He uses real stones, not plastic beads, and when you put on one of his costumes, you simply feel like a princess!!!! I can’t wait to choreograph a new piece and then dance in this costume!
Another designer that is an up and comer is George of Paris. His hallmark is a contemporary modern style that incorporates classic elements with the modern feel. His prices are excellent and he is also one to watch. My suitcase is bursting with yes, another costume that I cannot wait to dance in!
Outside of belly dance, Debbie, Joy and I have visited Khan El Khalil, the ancient market, that has not changed since its inception in the 1300′s. Shop after shop after shop features knicknacks and souvenirs – and of course, there is the world famous Mahmoud, whose three-story building is filled with belly dance treasures from Shamedons to Isis wings to hip scarves that are unique and top quality. We also visited a jewelry store that featured Egyptian gold at great prices, a carpet factory where the workers demonstrated how the beautiful Oriental silk rugs are made, to a cotton store for textiles and linens created out of the finest Egyptian cotton and more. There was also a stop to a perfume shop for great smelling perfumes at a fraction of the cost that you will find in the States, or elsewhere in the world.
One very special stop for me was a visit to Mr. Ibrahim at Atlantis Oils. Atlantis Oils is a healing center that has been operating for four generations. Mr. Ibrahim and his brother run the shop and they have a beautiful organic “farm” of flowers and plants located in the Baharia Oasis, about five hours from Cairo, in the midst of the Bedouin community and near the Crystal Desert. The flowers from the Oasis are brought back to the shop in Cairo (on Pyramids Street) to be pressed for their oils in the purest of forms. Each flower and plant has a specific healing purpose – and of course, can be used for perfume, if desired. In addition to the oils, Mr. Ibrahim and his brother are healers – meaning that they do massage therapy, chakra healing, Reiki and other energy work. As a Reiki master teacher myself, I can tell you that Mr. Ibrahim is authentic. I indulged in a much needed full body massage and a chakra healing – and left so grounded and energized that I felt as if heaven itself had touched my soul. Debbie and Joy enjoyed a foot massage with reflexology, a method that dates back to the ancient Pharonic times. Please, if you come to Cairo, please do yourself a favor and visit Atlantis Oils on Pyramids Street. You will be very pleased, I absolutely promise.
Well, it is off to the festival for me. Please keep an eye out for updates – my connection is rather limited here, but I promise to write at least once a week and fill you in on all the details!!!
Hugs and shimmies,
Raksanna
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
Raksanna with two of her mentors: Raqia Hassan and Faten Salama
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Tomorrow, I am sponsoring the legendary, world-famous Faten Salama and her certification in Egyptian dance: Al-Massrawey: The Real Egyptian Certificate Program. This eighteen (18) hour program provides dancers with an in-depth education on the history, geography and culture unique to Egypt and the art and dance that is specific to different tribes, areas and styles. Additionally, Faten is teaching “Labanotation” – the study of how dance steps are explained and written in order to preserve the dance.
Why did I choose to sponsor Faten for the certification? There are so many reasons and while space and time does not permit an in-depth explanation, here are three main reasons:
• Authentic work presented by a recognized world leader in Egyptian dance – Faten Salama is a native Egyptian. She has danced since the age of three; has been a principal dancer in the National Troupe of Egypt; performed for royalty, dignitaries, and audiences from around the world; is a beautiful artist, creating soulful dances that are touching, feminine and thoughtful and she is firmly committed to educating dancers and audiences alike on the beauty, respect and dignity of the dance. Just as importantly, Faten is a sweet woman with a positive, loving spirit that is committed to excellence. She is someone that I enjoy spending time with and consider a friend.
• Dancers need this type of first-class training and credentials – Yes, there are solid and respectable certification programs out there that have been developed by world-respected artists. In fact, my own extremely comprehensive apprenticeship program required for any faculty members who join my team offers a solid foundation and significant knowledge that benefits from my own near-two-decades experience in the dance. I do not question or discredit any of the programs, including mine, or take away from them. However, what these programs lack is the intricate knowledge and spirit of a native Egyptian who grew up in the culture, with the dance and approach that can only come from someone who is from Egypt and has the credentials and experience that Faten has. It’s like when I moved from New Mexico after 21 years of growing up there to New York and living there for seven years. No matter how much I love New York, I am not now and never will be a native New Yorker.
• This program raises our art form in the Western World – I have traveled to Egypt many times and have witnessed and experienced first-hand the difference between the way our artform is perceived in the West and the way it is perceived in the Middle East. Belly dance in the Middle East is what ballet is to the Western world. Great dancers are supported by a full orchestra with violins, kanouns, drums and more. Singers complete the show and it is a simply beautiful experience. People pay up to $100 per person for a ticket for a dinner and a show, dress up for the event and look at it as a prestigious evening out. It is the same approach that we in the West take with an evening to the ballet or Opera.
In America (as well as around the world), we need educated dancers who can collectively raise the standards and perceptions of our art form. Yes, as belly dancers and entertainers, we can certainly give a life-memory to a family who hires us for a 75th year birthday bash (and enjoy doing so) … but there is so much more to what we can and do offer … from fascinating stick work in with Saidi style stick dance to the fun-loving Hagallah routines to the glamorous Oriental dance, we need dancers out there performing high quality dances and educating our Western audiences about the culture and the history, the richness behind what we love.
So, to all the dancers joining me for this exciting weekend – Welcome to Chicago! Welcome to Faten Salama’s Al-Massraweya: The REAL Egyptian Certificate Program! I’m proud to be your host and delighted to present to you the one, the only, Faten!
Raksanna - photography by David Gore
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
This past weekend, I had the honor and privilege to teach an Oriental choreography and technique workshop as a featured instructor of “Floralia 2010,” held in Truth or Consequences, NM and sponsored by Selena. This event is a very special event for me because two years ago, it was the first time that my family experienced belly dance and had a chance to see me dance (after nearly twenty years of belly dancing!).
This year, the experience was just as wonderful and magical. Selena hosts the beautiful event on the first weekend of May to celebrate May Day. Nearly one-hundred dancers gathered over the weekend to take workshops, share their passion for dance on the stage and reconnect with friends, old and new alike.
Close to forty (40) dancers filled my workshop on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. I divided our time together into two sections – Oriental technique and patterns, in celebration of the release of my brand new DVD Advanced Technique and Playful Patterns ™ 1, and then original choreography to the introduction to Escape from Cairo.
During Oriental technique, I taught sixty-four counts of patterns and technique that can be incorporated into a dance routine. The complex and intricate patterns incorporated airy and earthy movements with rich texture blending both Oriental and folkloric moves and level changes to create depth and interest. The idea behind the patterns was to use the movements as part of a verse or a chorus when creating choreography.
After about 45 minutes of play (why call it work when it is so fun??), we had a 5 minute water break and then returned to learn the beginning of Escape to Cairo. This dance routine features veil work and Oriental technique during the first two rhythms and was created for a stage, as opposed to a restaurant or other close performance setting. We made it through about a minute of choreography in the last half of the workshop!
I was very proud of and inspired by the workshop participants. Teaching intensive workshops is a real treat for me because I have the opportunity to come together with dancers of all levels, from beginner through professional, and from many different locations. It’s my goal to give each student something just for her – a new move, a new pattern, a new belief in herself or even a different perspective. From the feedback I received, it is my sincere belief that my goal was accomplished.
Yes, my family was there for me again, when I performed that evening during the gala show. It made the little girl in me come out to be so excited that Mom and Daddy and my brother (one couldn’t make it) to see me dance. Thanks, family! I love you.
And a tremendous heart-felt thank you, Selena, for another wonderful and magical weekend in New Mexico. I look very forward to returning to Floralia and sharing in your beautiful event.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Why is it important to sponsor guest artists, such as my upcoming April Shimmies ™ featuring Amani Jabril of Atlanta? From my perspective, it is important for several reasons:
— Students who are not able to travel across the country (and world, in many cases) have the opportunity to learn new perspectives and techniques from credible sources they may not otherwise be able to.
— Workshops can often times include haflas or dance parties that give dancers the chance to perform and showcase what they’ve been working on.
— It’s great to build a network of fellow dancers who share a common goal and shared values!
These reasons, among others, are why I’m sponsoring Amani Jabril of Atlanta, GA for a workshop and show on Saturday, April 17. This event is going to be really spectacular. I’ve asked Amani to teach two workshops: one focused on Oriental Technique and Patterns that can be used by students to either train or to use in their own original choreographies and the second one focused on both technique and choreography for Khaleegy style. Khaleegy dance is from the Gulf area of the Middle East and Amani is going to teach both the Saudi and Iraqi style, as well as a fun dance routine.
Directly following the workshop, there will be a fun halfa (dance party) at Rito’s Mexican Restaurant at 3450 Montgomery Road in Aurora. The doors open at 8:00 pm and the show starts at 8:30 pm. I’m very excited that the show is featuring my new students as well as up and coming local talent, my two troupes (Alif Ba and Raksanna and the Desert Flames) and, of course, Amani and me.
Registration is taking place now for the workshops and tickets for the show are also on sales! Please visit the store to register or buy tickets!
