Tapestry Belly Dance NC

COLLECTIONS JOURNEY ALONG THE NILE VOLUME 2 PROGRAM

Amara Al Amir & The World Artists’ Dance Theatre

Artistic Director, Producer: Amara Al Amir

Featuring Performances and Choreographies Of:

Amara Al Amir, Ramzi El Edlibi, Gazella,

Paulena, Tegrid, Tamara, Yasmeen.

ALBY ASHEKA (My heart Is Fond Of Her)...Amara Al Amir

A modern hit balady (song) in Egypt.”Everytime I ask for her, her family refuses.  What can I do?  She is my love to the fullest.”   (A common theme in arabic songs).  Amara ears a Balady gown that is the traditional costume worn while dancing alongside a singer in cabaret shows in nightclubs.

HESS BESS...Amara Al Amir

A silly song that means absoultely nothing but is a good party song.

NAQWA...Yasmeen.  Choregraphy...Yasmeen, Gamila

An elegant dance styled after Naqwa Fouad.  Yasmeen is wearing a traditional Balady gown worn during the Balady portion of the cabaret show in Eyppt nightclubs today.

AYOA YA AM...Amara,&  Dahshoury. 

Classical dance with a singer is common in nightclubs of Egypt. The singer sings of how her beauty is like the moon and how much is she worth to have her.

AH YAH ENIYA (Oh My Eyes) (Candalabra)...Amara Al Amir

Classic candalabra choreographed to Mahmoud Reda’s Candalabra music.  “ My eyes say hello to you. You forgot our friendship.  I cannot sleep. You are my spirit.  I can’t live without you”.

DRUM SOLO…Amara Al Amir, Dahshoury, Tegrid, Gamila

SCHERAZADE (Moorish Princess)...Gazella.  Choreography...Gazella, Costume...Gamila

The Arabs’ occupation of Spain reflected in  the dance styles of that period.  This Rimsky Korsakov (1888) classical  music became a common theme piece for several Arabian Nights’ ballets.   This version was  recorded by Lebanese musicians.

ZAR (Exorcism)...Gazella.  Choreography...Gazella, Amara

The Zar is used to exorcise evil spirits.  This tradition was originally brought to the stage by Mahmoud Reda.

ZABULLA ...Ramzi El Edlibi.  Choregraphy...Ramzi

Based on the 1920’s and 30’s when people of the Middle East began to modernize their attitudes and change their outfits from the village styles worn in the bazaars and country side to that of Western Wear.  In the first song, the peddler calls out to sell  his fruit.  In the second song, girls teasingly sing out about the cute boy in the striped galabaya.

BEDOUIN HAGALLA (Dancer)...Amara Al Amir

The Hagall means bird.  When flying across the Sinai, this bird does a funny walk on the hot sand (the basis for the articulated 1,2,3 hip work).  The song tells of two who love and miss each other.  Historically the Hagalla dancer leads the wedding party entertainment in remote regions of Arabic countries.  This costume is authentically Bedouin from Jordan.  

TATIB (Men’s Stick Dance)...Ramzi El Edlibi.  Choregraphy...Ramzi

The stickdance of the Saidi (Upper Egypt) is based on an old self-defense art.  The Tatib (a heavy long staff) was used in war, in addition to proving a young man’s manhood during mock fights.  Often the strongest man dominated his city and is called the Me-Aliem (the boss).

 GHAWAZEE (Gypsy)...Tamara.  Choregraphy & Costume...Tamara

The Ghawazee dancer (as depicted in 18th century paintings) dances to musicians who use a one string instrument (rababa) and a drum (tabla).  Although the movements seem repetitive, they consist of a variety of intricate hip and stomach movements rhythmically matched to the Saidi music.

BAHIA  (Danse Orientale)…Tegrid.  Choregraphy...Tegrid

The authentic belly dance as seen in five star hotel nightlclubs in the large cities of Egypt.

ISIS (Pharonic Goddess w/Wings)...Gazella.  Choregraphy...Gazella

Isis was a goddess depicted on the temples of Upper Egypt.  In this dance Isis is empowered with wings to help the dead journey to their final resting-place.

DANCE OF LEBANON (Sword Dance)...Ramzi El Edlibi.  Choregraphy...Ramzi

A powerful rendition of the sword dance.

PRINCESS OF CAIRO...Amara Al Amir.   Choreography Ramzi El Edlibi

Music... Hammouda Ali 

Styled after the Harem women of Arabia who dance for each other to release their frustrations.

CABERET HAGALLA....Paulena.  Choregraphy...Amara

The traditional Hagalla Dance brought to the Cabaret Nightclubs.  This costume is perfect for Hagalla ,Cane, and Candalabra Dances.

FAKAROUNI ..Amara. 

Written for Om Koulson, the most famous singer of Egypt, Amara’s classical interpretation choreographed for the stage is set to Omar Khorshid’s musicical adaptation.

TRAY DANCE...Ramzi El Edlibi.  Choregraphy...Amara

A tongue in cheek interpretation styled after Zorba The Greek.

AL MESCHAL (The Light)...Amara Al Amir.   Choreography...Nadia Hamdi. 

A Tribute To Tahia Carioca & Samia Gamal.  Tahia and Samia, were famous dancers of the 40’ and the 50’s and were  influenced by the styles of the west. They brought glamour to Belly Dance through the movies.  The intricate hip movements are based on the Belly Dance styles learned by Nadia Hamdi from three generations of matriarchal women as it was taught on Mohamed Ali Street in Cairo.  The other less articulated movements are more reflective of Samia and Tahia’s westernized and jazzy dance styles of the movies.

SIT EL HOSN...(A Woman Of Beauty And Class)...Amara Al Amir

The Chamadon Dance (Candalabra) is a traditional dance used to lead the bride and groom into the light of their love at their wedding party.

*All these Dances were filmed live under a diverse group of circumstances.  This body of work reflects a selection of twenty years of work, during which the fine digital videography was not available to us.  I have decided that the work is too valuable not to archive in this video series and hope that you value the time and effort it took to produce these dances. 

WORLD ARTISTS PRODUCTIONS

www.amaraalamir.com