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Kawakib Magazine May 25, 1971 Issue No. 1034 - price 50 milliem [Transcription and translation by Shining Peacekeeper, editing and proofread assistance by Mariam and Alaa. Images provided by @dance_archivist]
400 GinehIn the same year Suzy Khairy paid the musician Sayed Salama an amount of 400 gineh to create a piece of music for her to dance on and after its exhibition she was surprised to find a big name dancer using the same music even though it wasn’t hers. Suzy held her tongue. Once again Suzy danced with the shemaedan, then suddenly Nagwa appeared and said she was reinstating the shemaedan again and that she was dancing with a historical shemaedan but this wasn’t true and Suzy couldn’t hold her silence. She was the one who brought back the shemaedan and what she danced with was the shemaedan of Nazla el-Adl, better than those who dance with the shemaedan and it was the very one Nazla el-Adl bought from a famous old dancer. Suzy’s shemaedan weighs about 2.5 kilos and she paid a considerable sum for it to Nazla el-Adl to train her with it. Nazla says she bought the shemaedan from Zouba el Kloubatiyya, the old dancer who herself bought it from an old dancer. Suzy’s shemaedan is made from brass [or copper] with crystals and wax candles and has an expansive crown. Raqs HindiSuzy wasn’t just the first in shemaedan but also first to present Indian dance. 12 years ago when she was taking her first steps in art she presented an Indian dance wearing the Indian sari. After that she danced with the asa [cane/stick] and was so unique with it that those who danced with the asa would imitate her when they presented what passed as a tableau or show of raqset el-asa [stick dance]. And Suzy is nearly the only dancer who dances in a “closed” dance suit after everyone opened their suits. In doing so she depends on her art as a dancer and nothing more. As the number of dancers dramatically increased the suit has receded piece by piece until dancers appear to be doing “striptease”. This goes back to just one thing: not a single one of them can present the art of dance itself. Since she began dancing Suzy didn’t open the suit once.
Suzy Khairy is considered a model of raqs sharqi. She is a university graduate, cultured, multi-lingual and this affords her the appearance of respectability and opportunity to represent Egyptian artists abroad in an excellent manner. The latest news on Suzy is that she is currently preparing herself for a new dance titled “Alf Leyla w Leyla” [One Thousand and One Nights], she is considered one of the most innovative of the dancers, always showing new steps and new music. Published in Al Kawakib Magazine Nov 10, 1933; Translated by Shining Peacekeeper, *additional or clarifying notes in [brackets] When will our dance be a true art?
What makes the pieces of art harmonious with the music is that it is performed by supple bodies trained since childhood. It is forever something new, always something that fascinates people, and it is always a gauge of skill in movement precision, flexibility of the body, and artistic taste in music. As for our dancing, it has none of this. It is not a sport and it is not an art. Rather, the only connection to the melodies is the connection between shaking the buttocks and the tone, and you can find clearly from our dancers one who can not even walk to the tune of the music when entering to the stage. We have been seeing dance since ancient times and still today it is the same as it was, no influence, no evidence of progress or reformation. And our preference for dancers is still measured by the dancer’s natural beauty in her face or body, then by her skill in moving her waist, shaking her chest and bending and twisting in a spontaneous and anomalous way. In the entertainment hall [sala] for example, you can watch ten dancers appear on the stage hardly feeling any difference between one of them and the other, except in the shape of the face and difference of posture, and the costumes they wear. This dress is gold and this dress is silver and this dress is considered new–she chose a color other than these two which have become the well-established and and long-standing custom. And the tune of the music a dancer dances on is nearly the same as the tune played for another and each dancer follows the previous and you see nothing but echos and are immersed in its repetition.
There is another aspect of our dance that is also worth mentioning, although it would be more appropriate to make the reference brief. This is that our dance involves a lot of seduction and provocation and if anything, it is corrupt and a cause of departing from virtue. How long will our dance be like this? How long will we continue to see the same dances our fathers and grandfathers saw? And remain silent about it when it is devoid of everything called art, skill or music, because in its current condition it is nothing but a means of inciting vice and violating the sanctity of virtue. We believe that with our words we express the opinion of many who would like to find the spirit of renewal that extends to many of our affairs and arts extends in turn to dance, revolting against the old by innovating and reforming through introducing improvements sufficient enough to make it an art in which there is competition [*contending for artistic excellence*], not desires and temptations that one should disavow himself of and the consequences of which one should fear. On this occasion, remember that in recent days we have seen emerging dancers who appeared energetic and ready for renewal, if only they could find someone to take care of them and train them well. Perhaps they will find in our words an incentive for new work, so that they do not follow the path that others have taken. We have great hope for the likes of Houria, Nadia, Mary, and Fathia Sharif, and we believe that they will be a good nucleus for revolutionizing the old dance and creating a new type that is in line with the spirit of renewal and contradicts the obscenity and seduction in current dance. Published in "Al Aroussa w Al Fan Al Cinema" Magazine No. 547 Vol. XI. Date: August 28th, 1935 (Most likely written by magazine Editor El Sayed Hassan Gomaa?); Translation assistance by Mari Mohammed with edits by Shining Peacekeeper.  An Acting, Dancing and Singing Star
The thing Egyptian cinema needs most is the new faces which directors search for here and there in order to introduce to the audience shining stars who will appear on the screen and impress them with their charm and magnetism. The well-known director Ibrahim Lama managed to find our young star Nabaweya Mostafa, and his discovery was a very important event in the local cinema. Miss Nabaweya Mostafa is not only one of the few girls who possesses talents rarely found in other girls, but her talents combine three arts: acting, dancing, and singing, and the audience will see her in her roles in each of those arts. Even though Nabaweya had never appeared on the screen, in an interview of mine with her she said: “I fell in love with cinema a long time ago, and I always used to go to the movie theaters and watch the stars totally amazed. I also used to collect magazines in many languages, and I would passionately read the stars’ news and their biographies and admire their photos, which increased my obsession with the cinema to the point that I made a semi studio out of my own room and I would act there in front of the mirror, all the scenes that I would see here on the screen. However, I was looking for more than that; I was looking forward to seeing myself in a real, non-imaginary studio, and finally that dream has come true as you can see.” Nabaweya stopped talking for a second and looked like she woke up from a beautiful dream to see herself facing the truth and reality. She said while her eyes wandered the studio corners: “I thought that working in the cinema industry was easy and relaxed, but I found it very tiring and exhausting!! It’s a nerve-racking and physically taxing job, but despite that it’s a very fun job if you end up with a satisfying result.” While she talked, her tone of voice indicated her great self confidence. It wasn’t surprising anymore that she stood in front of the camera not nervous or stammering. It seems one of the special traits that Nabaweya has is her hard work and determination, she doesn’t show any frustration when the director Ibrahim Lama asks her to re-do a scene many times until the scene comes out as desired. So wouldn’t we, after all that, predict a great future for her? |
AuthorShining is a performer, instructor and researcher of Egyptian traditional dances, whose work reflects a strong emphasis of the cultural and historical influences on the medium of dance in and from Egypt. She is the founder of www.banatmazin.com, a website dedicated to the legacy of the famous "Banat Mazin", artistic family from Luxor. Categories
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