FESTIVAL DANCERS
HALA DANCE ENSEMBLE
NATIONAL/ETHNIC IDENTITY: Egyptian
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR: Hala Fauzi
First Appearance in SF EDF: 2004
Website: www.haladance.com
Middle Eastern Dance has been called by many names over the years
as the rest of the world has tried to make sense of this intriguing,
earthy and sensual form that focuses on the hips and belly, and has
been done by peoples across the Arab world for centuries. These names
have included, Raqs al Sharki, Oriental Dance, Danse
du Ventre, and finally the more commonly known name, simply,
Belly Dance.
Although there are many different kinds of Middle Eastern "Belly" Dance,
from rustic villages to urban nightclubs, many believe the roots
of the form go back to the matriarchal fertility rituals of ancient
Egypt and North Africa. Company director, Hala Fauzi, grew up in
her native Egypt surrounded by these dances at family gatherings
where everyone from children to grandparents would get up to dance.
She later studied with some of the great Egyptian and American teachers
of the day and in 1999 formed her company to preserve the more traditional
and folk aspects of the dance art.
2004 PERFORMANCE
 TITLE OF PIECE: NILE CRUISE-AN EGYPTIAN DANCE
JOURNEY
CHOREOGRAPHY: Hala Fauzi
DANCERS: Brisa Zamudio, Diane Qwan, Gabriela Arais,
Hala Fauzi, Isami Kaneko, Leticia Altieri, and Sonia Milgotin
Set along the Nile, this suite of Egyptian dances, directed by Hala
Fauzi, incorporates two distinct styles of Egyptian dance. The first
represents a village cane dance from the countryside of Southern Egypt,
where canes were used for herding, shaking fruits from high trees,
walking on the rough
terrain and for self-defense. The women dance to a folk style song,
which
expresses the excitement upon a lovers return. The second piece plays
with
the moods and dynamics of a modern Egyptian pop song that proclaims
the love
of the singer’s life.
The costume worn by the dancers is a traditional Arab dress, the galabeyya.
This much fancier version is intricately made out of black lace with
hundreds of pieces of light tiny silver or gold metal folded over the
netting.
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