|
|
|
Articles
 The Hipnotic Team hopes to be able to share some of their knowledge with you, particularly for those of you new to belly dance. As articles are written they will be shared here. But be patient with us please. If there IS anything in particular you'd like to know then feel free to Contact Us and ask.*ABOUT BELLY DANCE…..By Deborah Fox (aka Blackwillow)IntroductionBelly dance. What do those words mean to you? Do you get a specific visual image and the idea that they do something that’s a bit naughty? Have you seen dancers whilst on holiday as part of one of your tourist nights out, or as entertainment at your hotel? Or do you have a friend here in the UK who belly dances and who keeps trying to persuade you to come along to a “Hafla” or other kind of belly dance event but you’ve been unsure what to expect and so haven’t gone? If you can identify with any of the above, or it you have any other risqué idea about what belly dance is, I’ll pretty much guarantee that it’s all due to propaganda about belly dance that you’ve been subject to for as long as you’ve been alive….. Let’s try and explode a myth or two and examine the reality of belly dance in the UK so that you know what to expect when you come along to a Hipnotic night (or any other belly dance event for that matter).Most people equate belly dancers with women who are disreputable or willing to make themselves available to any man who desires/can afford them - whilst wearing very little clothing and possibly a face veil. This idea has long been fuelled by references, veiled or otherwise, contained within films, television shows (1) and novels and has entered our consciousness whether we know it or not. The references to the illicit/dangerous nature of belly dancers are constant and subtle. In the 1962 novel by Ray Bradbury, “Something Wicked This Way Comes”, (and subsequently the film version in 1983) two young boys’ sexual awakening is heralded among other things by their peeking through the opening of a tent where the ladies man of the town is being hypnotised by belly dancers, all moving in time. The fate of this ladies man is that he becomes catatonic and is dressed in women’s clothes and make-up to become the bearded lady in the mysterious carnival that has arrived just outside the town. (2) In the original film version of “The Flight of the Phoenix” (1965) one of the men stranded in the desert hallucinates that he sees the object of his desires, a belly dancer who promises much (by way of a sheer diaphanous costume complete with face veil and who punctuates her dancing with pelvic thrusts) and is his only reason for staying sane and alive. Which, by the way, he does not….. (3) Even The Simpson’s featured a story where Homer was caught on camera dancing with a scantily clad belly dancer and a scandal ensued with Bart selling pictures of his dad with the “Hoochie Coochie” dancer. (4) We are all gently but fairly constantly bombarded with the idea that belly dancing is a bit too exotic for the general public and should only be watched behind closed doors.The reality is that belly dance (to give it it’s most familiar name) has a long history, little of it written down or filmed until the early 20th Century, and the media/hyperbole machine that has always existed where-ever there is something to sell quickly cottoned on to the “exotic” nature of dancers from the Middle East. The image has stuck. Let’s not get too stuffy about this - there have been and are men and women who will use their dance knowledge, or a costume and a label, to sell whatever raunchy product it is they sell. Just like they’ll dress as a police officer, or fire fighter…. But for the most part, being at a Hafla or evening of Middle Eastern Dance is nothing like some of the saucy perceptions that people may have. It’s about real people getting dressed up, who have practised hard and who wish to share that with others.What drives us to find a belly dance class in the first place? I cannot speak for all belly dancers, only for myself. I watched more than one belly dancer whilst on holidays over the last 10 years and finally decided to find a class and try it for myself in 2002 here in the UK. I soon realised that it was much harder than it looked, and was immediately hooked. What a challenge! How on earth could I possibly emulate the easy grace of dancers I had seen in Egypt when everything felt both alien and natural? For the last seven years I have attended classes, workshops, events and performance opportunities as well as spending may, many hours on the Internet scouring websites for education and information. Origins of the DanceWhen people in Egypt (or Morocco or Tunisia or Dubai) celebrate the birth, birthday or marriage of off-spring, or if it’s a night off and sociability is flowing, they will eat, talk and dance. The sexes may be segregated, or be celebrating together. If there’s dancing then it will be particular to the region or country - women will have learned from their grandmothers, mothers, aunts, sisters. Men will have observed other men and emulate their movements. Everyone will celebrate in their own way, and that way will have been learned by watching those around them. This is the origin of belly dance - from Northern Africa (Morocco) all the way across to Northern Pakistan and reaching down into Greece on the way. It’s the dance that people do when they are celebrating. In the West we tend to have a disjointed response to music and dance, with few of us really feeling comfortable with the way our bodies respond to music, but doing it anyway, and internally loving the moment (as we all should). “Dad dancing” is a phrase that most of us can respond to and cringe to with an appropriate degree of humiliation or pride. But dancing is innate and a wonderful expression of how one is feeling in the moment and should never be disregarded.Belly dance (also known as Middle Eastern Dance, or Oriental Dance) operates in this field, as a dance one does when one is happy, inebriated, full of spirit or any other emotion that one feels compelled to express through movement of the body. AND it exists as an art form, such as Ballet, or Ballroom….or any other dance form that exists and that is used by the man and woman in the street as well as the professional who wishes to earn a living, or educate the masses. In Egypt it is common (and socially required) that any celebration be accompanied by dancers, singers and musicians, and there are a series of complex social ettiquettes surrounding the hiring of such entertainers. (5) Without a dancer the festivities are not complete.Belly dance in the UKBelly dance in the UK is an all consuming hobby for many of us, an obsession for some. We love it. I do wonder what woman could not love it really - an opportunity to be consumed by a brief moment and your need to be able to understand and execute something to the best of your ability.If you attend a class you soon realise that a lot of the moves essential in belly dance are both easy and difficult all at once. Once you start to think about the moves and what your body is doing you’re likely to lose the plot. If you can relax you’ll have fun and develop your own style. There’s so much to learn from any of the teachers who are available in the country and it’s a great way to focus and exercise in a non-gym environment (and it can only be helped by any other form of exercise; swimming, gym work, running, Pilates…..) For the huge majority of those who attend classes, there is a real desire to become better and more confident dancers as well as enjoying every opportunity they get to perform, whether that be in their homes in front of a mirror, for their class-mates or for paying members of the public.Here's another realityIt’s the most important dance moment of your life. You’ve practiced hard, researched your music and its meaning, watched countless other dancers on the Internet, listened to your music until everyone in your street is SICK OF IT, made/bought the best costume you can, practiced some more, not been able to hear anything in your head other than your chosen piece of music and worried about it more than you should. You arrive at your destination, have to get changed in a public toilet where there’s a suspiciously wet floor and people coming in and out, and then forget your well practiced routine about half-way through. Some people clap at the end. It might be lots of people but your head only allows you to hear about three of them……And on top of this I personally strive to enjoy myself, educate along the way (oh, there’s so much more I could tell you…) do the best I can as a dancer and have some fun. Fun. Let’s not forget the fun. I love the chance to put on more make-up than should be allowed, wear the most ostentatious jewellery, put on a costume that makes someone in the audience take a little breath of admiration…. I love the fact that women and men (let’s not disregard the men who dance in the most breathtaking manner (6)) can be of all shapes and sizes. That beginners can and will dance alongside professionals and that both camps will suffer nerves and anxiety before their performances, as well as the overwhelming sense of wanting to do it AGAIN. And I love the fact that there are so many of you out there just waiting to discover belly dance as your chosen source of exercise, new friends and fun.Something in the news caught my eye this week (last week of December 2009). A Tory MP hopeful, Norsheen Bhatti, earns a sizeable amount as a belly dancer appearing at functions such as parties or restaurants who hire dancers to entertain their clientele. From the Daily Mail, “It’s hard to imagine her wearing next to nothing, gyrating in front of a crowd” said a “source”. Another or possibly the same source said, "How can any politician be taken seriously when voters know they are making money by dancing at parties for the public?"(7)Hmm. I’ve not met the woman in question but I think she probably has dealt with more than she’s been given credit for. Would anyone object if she was a ball-room dancer? A ballet dancer? She will certainly be well equipped to deal with members of the public and if it’s a problem for others that she dances as a way to make a living, then they are just perpetuating the myths (unwittingly) that already surround this dance.In ConclusionBelly dance is not a dance done by women for men in order to gain their attention, no more or less than any other dance in situations where that is the requirement. Practitioners of belly dance in the UK wish to share their passion and entertain those they perform for. Belly dance is fun, all encompassing and really quite a challenge. It has and will always be used by some to seduce, but really and truly the best thing about belly dance is that it is NOT all about seduction. It's about enjoying yourself, wearing a fabulous costume, doing something that's challenging and very occasionally you can feel a bit like a sexy goddess.Time for a plug. At Hipnotic events you can expect the following;A chance to have a go at a fun class with your friends where you will learn some basic moves. You can join in with either the Beginners Middle Eastern Dance (MED) class, OR the Improvised Tribal Class (a whole other topic, go here for more on Tribal Belly Dance), and if you want to take it further you’ll be able to pick up information about belly dance teachers in the area,Have a dance with your friends to belly dance music,Watch student and professional dancers in our showcases,Join in with our closing dance,Have a great night out with your friends or work colleagues that will leave you wanting to come back and experience it some more!Details of the next Hipnotic event can be found here.We look forward to meeting you and infecting you with the belly dance bug!Further ReadingFor those of you that want to find out more, here are some links to belly dance sites that may be of interest;www.turkishbellydancer.com Use the links you’ll find at the bottom of the pagewww.gildedserpent.comwww.joyofbellydancing.comwww.alisha-ali.com Take a look at the PDF documents under Danse Du Ventre, Part I and Part IIhttp://timea.rice.edu/index.htmlwww.artira.comReferences(1) http://www.shira.net/onscreen.htm#OtherLists A list of TV programs and films that contain belly dancers.(2) http://raybradbury.com/books(3) www.imdb.com/(4) www.snpp.com/episodes Transcript of the episode.(5) http://www.raqs.co.nz/articles/trade_like_any_other.html You’d do well to read this book, A Trade Like Any Other, Female Singers and Dancers in Egypt, if you want to understand the dichotomy that is posed by the professions of singing and dancing in the culture.(6) A selection of male dancerswww.youtube.com/ Tarik Sultanwww.youtube.com/ www.youtube.com/ Titowww.youtube.com/ Khaled Mahmoudwww.youtube.com/ Ozgen(7) The Daily Mail, December 30th, 2009 | |
|
|