Month: June 2013

Your Arabesque May Require a Helmet

You have not danced until you have danced side-by-side with your students in the middle of an Egyptian artists’ protest street performance on your birthday.

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I wrote about the sit-in at the Ministry of Culture building in my last blog post. It has now been 18 days of the occupation–mattresses on the floor–and performances continue every night outside the gates. I do not stay there overnight, but I come out to support in nearly every day. There have been both Muslim and Coptic Christian prayers, the stage is adorned with posters of legendary musicians and poets and actors, a collaborative mural temporarily titled “The Arts Are Stronger than the System,” and large banners reading “Art is Resistance” hang above the crowd.

Performances have included:

  • A deaf theatre pantomime troupe
  • Rap and hip hop groups
  • A rockstar marimba player
  • A duo between a renowned harpist and a flutist who is also the much-loved former chairperson of the Cairo Opera
  • A balancing act from the circus, thrilling high above the crowd
  • Various masterful and tear-jerking video works
  • Les Miserables sing-a-long and late-night cast performance
  • Student vocalists from the Opera academy
  • A youth musicians’ ensemble on the strings
  • Young, female spoken word artists
  • Sufi and other religious singers
  • Traditional, patriotic songs
  • A legendary communist poet
  • Shaabi Pop Stars
  • The revolutionary repertoire of Ramy Essam
  • Dancing marionettes
  • Stars of the Cairo Opera Ballet led by Hany Hassan performing excerpts from Zorba
  • A street theatre clowning troupe

All Egyptians. All beautiful. It is an incredible scene to see all different types of artist activists coming together. Artists of different disciplines who hadn’t crossed paths much before are now collaborating daily and sharing meals. It has been an honor to be there and to dance with them.

The police have been present every day, enjoying the shows and acting as a shield during the one initial attack of the MB weeks ago. The Ultras (hardcore soccer fans) have also agreed to be there every night to help with security: they’ve have done an excellent job protecting the crowd. These young guys might not be there for the arts and may disrupt performances by bursting into their own songs and chants, but there have been no major clashes or injuries.

Even with all this, the atmosphere is increasingly tense. Everyone is on edge as 30/6 approaches. Small fights have erupted onstage and in the crowd. At different times, controversial figures have come to the sit-in and been expelled with some uproar. June 30 will be the one year anniversary of Morsi’s presidency and the call for what might be the next revolution. 30/6 is spray painted throughout the city. A 30 June Coordination Committee has been assembled with representatives of over 25 liberal political parties and opposition movement groups. Some are calling for impeachment and military rule until a proper constitution and processes are put in place. Some are calling for early elections by collecting more petitions than the actual number of people who voted for Morsi: this is called the Tamarod (Rebellion) movement and they have collected more than 13 million petitions on the way towards their goal of 15m. El Baradei has called on Morsi to resign; if he did, the Shura Council would take over and organize elections within 90 days.

Morsi supporters, on the other hand, say he is doing a good job cleaning up corruption, blasphemy, Western-influence and haraam by replacing governors, ministers and other officials with Muslim Brothers (Ikhwan) and Islamists. The problem is these newly appointed men have little to no experience in the sectors they control; and at least one, the new Governor of Luxor, is a proven terrorist. Plus, many of their policies take steps backwards on women’s rights, education, Syria, tourism, freedom of the press, and the arts.

There are many differing opinions among the artists on the direction to take, whether to combine with different opposition movements or to stay on message, whether to reach out to Western media or to stop all foreigner involvement. There is also fear of how violent next week might get. A video has been spread of Muslim Brotherhood members training for attacks, using shirts to tangle-up victims and then striking. There is also talk that same Ikhwan men are playing into people’s fears, threatening any anti-Morsi protestors with large-scale attacks.

Some artist activists have left the sit-in to start preparing field hospitals for the 30th. Some artists have already declared they will be willing to go to the front lines.

Personally, I will do what I can to support my Egyptian artist friends these coming weeks, while also keeping safe and out of the way. This I promise.

As this 30/6 despair, ferocity and volatility come rolling over Egypt, I am looking for generally positive actions and ideas from artists and liberals. These could be individual, collective, regional or national. Even international. Please post them in the comments section below. Let’s share a little inspiration. We all could use it.

Here’s a few from me:

  • The Artists on the set of the Bassem Youssef show next Friday (Anyone have a contact?)
  • Keeping up with the nightly performances through June 30 in order to demonstrate the unstoppable joy, community and progress the arts create
  • Writing the ambassadors in Egypt and asking them to support the Artists and liberals under threat by Morsi, his new appointees, and the Ikhwan
  • A massive dance flash mob for all ages and abilities
  • An international blog-a-thon on the 29th in support

How to Make An Attack on the Arts, Egyptian style

Step 1. Declare that some art forms are Haraam, sinful and forbidden by God.

Step 2. Have the Shura Council debate if ballet should be banned because it is “the art of the nudes.”

Step 3. Hire a new Minister of Culture who proceeds to fire most of the cultural leaders and staff within 2-3 weeks, replacing them with many members of the Muslim Brotherhood who have little to absolutely no experience in arts and culture. (I would love to ask them to produce a single ticket stub from a dance performance or contemporary exhibition).

 

A few days ago, I got a call from a close friend to go to the Ministry of Culture building to bring a change of clothes and a little food. When I got there, I found the place to be guarded and chain-locked. My friends were inside. This was a sit-in. Turns out that the guards were artists. A friend came out to speak on my behalf, as a dancer and fellow artist. Even though I was a foreigner, I was allowed in.

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My main question was how they all had gotten inside in the first place. How did they come to occupy this massive building, sleeping in the conference rooms, using the desks and computers, making music and temporary murals in the halls? The answer is that the entire staff of the Ministry of Culture who had been fired invited them in, as back-up. Peaceful protest by artists in solidarity.

My friend looked at me with a tear in his eye (could have been from lack of sleep), and he said, “I am not doing this for me, not for now, but for my nieces and nephew. This is for the artists of the next generation. For my nation.”

Inside and outside the gates, Egyptian artists have been gathering.

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Outside the gates, two women have a discussion about the role of arts and culture, and find out they agree.

Every evening this week, they have put up a stage and had concerts, poetry readings, child singers, legends and celebrities speaking. It started with an open mic with children singers, music from Aswan, classic instrumentalists, music from the revolution, and patriotic sing-a-longs. There was even a street performance of Zorba by stars of the Cairo Opera Ballet, who are on strike.

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Cairo Opera Ballet in the street.

There was also chanting.

“Is Ballet Haraam?”  “No!”

“Is Poetry Haraam?”  “No!”

“Is Photography Haraam?”  “No!”

Please note that a large percentage of the artists and protesters are Muslim, liberal and anti-Morsi. Also, most of the activity takes place outside the gates with all property maintained and protected. I have seen very little to no damage.

The leaders of the campaign are seniors in the field, established artists and icons, many in their 60s and 70s. Young and old working together. Official, closed meetings are a constant between the different cultural leaders and artist unions.

The evening performances are increasingly more organized, but there are many security issues. There was an attempt by myself and groups of Egyptian dance artists to coordinate a flash mob, but that idea had to be called-off, for now. Stay tuned for the next try. We are exhausted and the threats are both ideological and physical. Yesterday, while I was away taking the FSOT and teaching ballet to children, members of the Muslim Brotherhood attacked the Ministry area and police were needed to keep the peace. In meetings with the organizers, I have discovered the artist activists’ hesitation in having any foreigner involvement, the fears of arrests, and the critical need to monitor press. Many of the student artists (my students from the Fulbright experience) are in the mix, in the crowds. I worry not only for the future of the arts, but for their safety.

Erin B. Mee and the petition of the international theatre community say it best:

“We call on Egyptian Ministry of Culture’s Alaa Abdel-Aziz to protect rather than condemn the contributions artists have made to a diverse, cosmopolitan, multi-ethnic, and multi-religious society, and to refrain from defining “Egyptian culture” in the narrowest terms.”

Please wish us well. We will do you proud.

How to Dance With Kids With Cancer

*Seven bits of advice accumulated after a few years of work on two continents.

1. Dance with the kid, not the cancer.
Smile and look them in the eyes, not in the tumors. Some will look sick, some won’t. Doesn’t matter. Play with the kid as you would any other child that age. Don’t patronize or fake a smile. Bring your boogie. Bring your own joy.
57357 Children's Cancer Hospital Egypt - Photo by Mohamed Radwan

57357 Children’s Cancer Hospital Egypt – Photo by Mohamed Radwan

2. Dance with their physical abilities, not their limitations.
Most patients have some sort of physical challenge they are needing to overcome due to their treatments (nausea, loss of balance and coordination, pain in one leg, inability to hop or run, on crutches or in wheelchairs, favoring one side, etc.). Their challenges come and go. Start with their abilities. Introduce movements that can be modified and made fun for all participants. But also push them a bit to go beyond what you or they think their bodies can do.
Forget cancer, we be dancing. - Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago

Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago

3. Leave out your own fears of death.
Terminality (I think I just made up that word) is a part of life. Realize you will lose patients and those who survive may have life-long side effects from their treatments. Choose your words wisely and don’t assume you know how they feel. Keep religion out of it as that is the role of other adults in their lives. Help these children “live until they die” as my wise friend once said. And if a child’s lifetime is short and comes to an end, continue to say his or her name. Stay in touch with the family. Also realize that when a dancer stops attending your workshops, it could be a very good thing. Remission. You can work towards a performance but be very flexible because circumstances can change in an instant.
57357 Children's Cancer Hospital Egypt - Photo by Mohamed Radwan

57357 Children’s Cancer Hospital Egypt – Photo by Mohamed Radwan

4. Get the whole family on the dance floor.
Parents, nurses, siblings, volunteers, doctors, therapists, staff, visitors… the whole hospital family. Have a few chairs available if some patients or adults may need to sit down; but even if seated, every one in the room participates. That’s the rule, given with a smile.
Photo by Mohamed Radwan

Photo by Mohamed Radwan

5. Keep them developing.
Focus on (re)developing balance, coordination, upper/lower and brain/body connection, dexterity in ankles and wrists, cross-lateral movement, core strength, stamina and stretch/stillness. Use activities for a range of ages. Remember that the cancer is the beast within, so facilitate movements that bring these kids back in love with their body after surgeries, radiation, chemotherapy, and other treatments. Learn from dance therapists, physical/occupational therapists, and Brain Dance. But none of these areas are enough for what you will be doing. You will need a broader, more joyful palate of activities to dance with the group.

6. Keep them healthy.

Breathe. Often.

Don’t smoke anywhere near the hospital or workshop venue. Wash your hands before and after the session (don’t forget thumbs and fingertips). If you feel like you have a bug of any kind, wear a face mask. Model healthy eating and self confidence. Limit physical contact between dancers. Check the room for any slippery spots, sharp edges or other dangers.

Donna Quirke Hornik and I - Performing Arts Limited, Chicago, IL

Donna Quirke Hornik and I at Performing Arts Limited studio in Chicago, IL. 2009.

7. Follow their lead.
Ask questions and listen to the answers. Keep the session calm and organized so that, together, you can follow the curiosity or burst into laughs. These kids know have to have fun. Learn from them. You will be the better for it.

Do They Dance in Dagestan?

Baku, Azerbaijan is between Dagestan and Iran on the Caspian Sea. This is the South Caucasus. The landscape is dotted with oil rigs. It is a newly rich place. Since 1991, Azerbaijan has been an independent republic. The name of the country derives from “The Land of Fire” in Persian. Eternal flames (natural gas burning) emerge from the rock. Pipelines connect Azerbaijan to Turkey, the world.

And it shows up in the art.

"The Caspian Sea in the Evening" oli on canvas 1959, Sattar Bahlulzade

“The Caspian Sea in the Evening” oli on canvas 1959, Sattar Bahlulzade

Baku is odd. Culturally Schizophrenic. Azerbaijan is a secular state and ensures religious freedom but has been predominantly Christian, Zoroastrian, and is now 95% Muslim. I could see the border with Iran from the air. Azerbaijan consists of the second largest Shi’a percentage after Iran but is far less culturally conservative. Imagine Turkey plus Iran plus Doha plus post-Soviet. You can almost taste the anti-Armenianism in the air. But children laugh freely. Baku, the capital, is launching a tourism push.

One street feels like Paris or Barcelona: Dior, upscale ice cream, and Apple Stores. In the tourist part of town, facades have been pasted on to the Soviet-era constructivist buildings with various European styles.

One street is from the 14th Century but is juxtaposed by the ultra-sharp contemporary architectural projects. Several other sites, though polished and impressive, seem contrived.

Azerbaijanis roam through the longest boulevard in the world, in view of the largest flying flag in the world. The authoritarian hand of government holds the population is tight. A land of strictly enforced rules, from crossing the street to reusing a fork for the next course. Hotel and the government need copies of your passport and boarding pass stubs. You walk where they say you can walk. You leave when they say you leave. When, without warning, they put a beautiful long-stemmed rose in your hand, you must place this rose at the feet of the statue of the republic’s beloved hero president, Heydar Aliyev.

The state-run machine also hit me personally. The Government of Azerbaijan denied the U.S. Embassy’s request on my behalf to visit the children’s hospital and facilitate a dance workshop for the oncology ward. I was so deeply disappointed. Yet there was nothing I could do without taking massive risks. I eventually found out why my request was denied. The Minister of Health (centralized figure that makes those decisions and approves) is away and no one is allowed to make decisions on his behalf.

In any case, the Government of Azerbaijan did provide our World Forum on Intercultural Dialogue delegation with a charter flight, all amenities, as well as multiple experiences to see dance while here this week. We were treated to…

A jovial flash mob by young dancers at the Heydar Aliyev Center.

A jovial flash mob by young dancers at the Heydar Aliyev Center

which my international colleagues thoroughly enjoyed but quickly dismissed as a bit of fun.

 

An evening of traditional dances (including 20 costume changes) as background to our dinner.

An evening of traditional dances (including 20 costume changes)

which my international colleagues appreciated but mostly missed because it was background entertainment during dinner.

 

A limited run remount of a 1969 modern ballet production, site-specific on a mountain. UNESCO World Heritage Site.

“Shadows of Gobustan” a limited run remount of a 1969 modern ballet production, site-specific on a mountain. UNESCO World Heritage Site.

which my international colleagues found disappointing for a State Ballet Company. Even though the dancers have high technical and performance capacities in Russian-method ballet (amazing feet), the choreography was in a grounded, early-modern style. My opinion: well produced, visually striking, but dated and safe.

“Ballet is one of many arts around the world that measure a country’s civilization.” Abdel Ghafour

In Egypt, the national ballet company is also Russian-trained and funded by the government in a Muslim-majority country. Now democratic. But Egypt tends to stick to standard production of classic story ballets. Plus, the number of skilled female dancers is declining as the society becomes more conservative and influenced by Gulf culture. Lastly, in Egypt, they have declared a strike to stand against corruption and the Botherhoodization of the sector. Can’t see this happening in Azerbaijan.

 

And a performance by renowned Japanese Butoh performer Ko Murobushi at the

A performance by renowned Butoh performer Ko Murobushi at the Baku Ateshgah “Fire Temple.”

which was far less safe. It was received by both standing applause and snickers. An inaccessible and foreign art form like Butoh for a varied, international audience may require a pre-show introduction.

 

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And a festival in the park loaded with children dancing, painting, and singing.

which took me away from the politics and lack of rights, to a place where dance can be at the heart of a community. With a happiness that could not be faked. All students here get an education in both national and Western art forms.

Now I do not yet know if and how people dance in neighboring Dagestan/Chechnya, but I know that in Azerbaijan, life for those whose pockets aren’t directly connected to the oil is made more full with dance and Islam.

Unfortunately, a foreigner such as I am not allowed to bring dance to children with cancer.

 

View my full photo album here.

 

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