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Goddess Emerging Bellydance Studio
Friday, April 6 Monthly Goddess Gathering Bellydance by Candlelight Then guided meditation Coffee/tea & chocolate cake $20 Registration Required
Nurturing ‘Girl’s Night Out’
Strictly Drums Specialty Class Sunday, Feb. 16 1:00 – 2:30 pm $25
Love drums....let your body play! Shimmies, vibrations, blocks and locks, layering....learn how to bring the drums into your body, become 'one' with them!
Goddess Emerging Studio 562 Maple Ave., Burlington 905-333-1370
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Features 10 Quick Glance April
Take a quick look into all of the wonderful Belly dance and music events happening in April! 8 Editorial Passion and Dance 9 RAKSFEST!
Learn about Ontario’s Original Middle Eastern Dance and Music Festival 18 Unwind with Evolution
A chat with Armineh Keshishian about Evolution Dance Theatre of Toronto and how they’re embracing the world. 26 Jordanian Journey
Follow “Jordan to Jordan!” 36 Ontario Events Photo Album
The Calendar 11 April 25 September 14 May 32 October 16 June 33 November 23 July 35 December 24 August
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Learn about Evolution Dance Theatre on Page 18 -6-|Page
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HIP DROPS FOUNDED ON JANUARY 1, 2014 BY Hiba Al-Kinani PUBLISHER AND EDITOR IN CHIEF Hiba Al-Kinani CREATIVE CONTRIBUTORS Armineh Keshishian Angelica Jordan PUBLISHED BY Babylon Oriental
AD SALES AND DATES Submissions by the 25th of every month INQUIRIES AND SUBMISSIONS babylondanceandfitness@gmail.com OUR MAILING ADDRESS 66 Arrow Road #D, Guelph, ON, N1K1T4 WE LOVE HEARING FROM YOU! (226) 500-2094
Passion and Dance Spring has sprung, and so has a myriad of fabulous dance and music events! Our community really strives to grow, learn and to be educated about our amazing Middle Eastern Arts. The winter was full and exciting and the spring is promising to be even more fulfilling. While I’m not one pointedly dredge up controversy, I just wanted to touch base on an article that made it’s rounds on many social media sites during March. This article spoke of right holders to the dance form, cultural appropriation and disrespect. While I believe that the author’s opinion had stemmed from dancers taking Oriental dance and making it their own without proper training and education, and perhaps perpetuating Orientalist stereotypes, I think that we always must remember that dance does not belong to any one person or culture. Those who appreciate and love the dance deserve it just as much as the people who were simply “born” with the right. Dance belongs to anyone who gives it their passion, and this shows in our Ontario dance scene in particular. My student’s inspire me, my colleagues inspire me, and even more, the amount of events that dancers have been putting their time and energy into inspires me.
VISIT US ON THE WEB
With that said, let’s show the world how much we love Middle Issuu.com/babylonoriental Eastern Dance, and attend as many great events this April and throughout the spring as possible. In the meantime, take a Babylonltd.org moment to learn about Evolution Dance Theatre’s incredible journey on page 18, roam through the streets and valley’s of ©BABYLON LTD. FREE ONLINE MAGAZINE. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Jordan with Angelica Jordan on page 26, and spend some time learning about Ontario’s original Middle Eastern Dance and Music Festival, RaksFest, on page 9. COVER: Evolution Dance Theatre PHOTOGRAPHER: Iden Ford, Peter Lear, David Shah Other Photos: Getty Images
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Until next time! Hugs and Shimmies, Hiba
Ontario’s Original Middle Eastern Dance and Music Festival
Back in 2004, when there were only a handful of dance studios, a few professional dancers, and the dream to study with the dance greats that lived far
topics, they worked together seamlessly to create hours upon hours of cumulative experience rather than the couple of movements or choreographies here and there that most other seminars offer. While the opportunity for serious study encompassed most of the over 40 hours of events over three or four days, there was still the fun and relaxing side of the festival that showcased student and professional shows, parties, delicious food and some serious bonding between the guest instructors and the attendees.
and wide, workshops, seminars and the like were the only way for serious dance enthusiasts to really delve into topics of Middle Eastern Dance and Music Arts, that were inaccessible. It was this desire to learn more, experience more, and to be more as an artist that allowed for the birth of Ontario’s first Middle Eastern Dance and Music Festival: Raksfest!
The idea behind this festival was to create a comprehensive experience for attendees, so that they felt nourished in their bodies, as well as their minds, and while every workshop contained different
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Raksfest has grown exponentially over the years, and 2014 promises to be the biggest and most exciting festival as of yet! With over 30 hours of workshop topics, two fantastic shows, delicious custom and luxury foods and accommodation, this year’s festival is sure to delight, inspire and educate all dance enthusiasts from Canada and the United States. I can’t wait to be a part of it, and hope that you’ll be there too!
For more details about Raksfest, please visit www.babylonltd.org/raksfest Contact: raksfest@gmail.com or call 226.500.2094
Quick Glance April 5th
Dance to Live Music Part 1 Dance to Live Music of Om Kalthoum
6th 10-
Arabesque Dance Company Presents
13th
SAWAH
13th
Intro to Veil And Ballet for Belly Dance
2527th Ontario's Original Middle Eastern Dance and -1-|Page Music Festival: RAKSFEST!
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5 Master Dance to Live Music P1
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11 Arabesque Presents Sawah
12 Arabesque Presents Sawah
Intro To Veil, Ballet for Belly Dance Sawah
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2 Cabaret 101 Arabesque Spring Gala Kathak for Tribal Belly Dancers 9 10 EDT Follow Your Present Heart s Follow Your Heart
Social Impact Lecture Goddess Emerging Gala
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8 EDT Present s Follow Your Heart
11 Follow Your Heart Dancenette
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6 7 YASI Clinic YASI Clinic Al Khaima Workshop
8 Dancenette YASI Clinic
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Mohamed Shahin Returns to Toronto Master Pro Course
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27 Egyptian Dance Academy Gala
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With Evolution Dance Theatre of Toronto 1. Armineh Keshishian, you are the Producer, choreographer, and Artistic Director of Evolution Dance Theatre. Can you please tell us a little bit about who you are and your journey into Middle Eastern Dances? I love to create, speak my truth and make an effect. I believe in experienci ng life fully and enjoy the pleasures of life. When we have a balance in the physical and spiritual realms, we become more aware of the interconnectedness of all beings. I am very curious about human behaviour and the effect that culture and society has upon us. I am of Armenian heritage and was born in 18 | P a g e
Iran. I love Arabic music and dance. When I was very young I always danced in my school’s annual programs, which was more cultural and folklore. However, I was quite drawn to Arabic dance and music and of course, in Iran, belly dance was not a part of public performan ces. My passion for this dance form was increasing more and more. At some point, I decided to delve into belly dance and started taking classes. Although dance, in general, is quite liberating, I believe that belly dance is one of the most empowering dance forms. By embracing this form, we become freer because we can be playful, we can be sensuous or powerful. It depends on what we
would like to project. Of course, as belly dance is not really allowed to be performed in public, it took me quite a while to be able to feel comfortable internally in order to dance. I thought that no one, not
even society could dictate to me what I could or could not do. I am glad I followed my heart. It was during the process of dancing that I became more creative and started writing stories. As I was writing and creating, I felt that I would really like to share the stories through choreography and acting. In 2005, I started the process and in 2006 we produced our first show called “Evolution… of the Human Kind”. It had different dance genres and we received positive responses from the public. 2. What inspired you to create Evolution Dance Theatre, and 19 | P a g e
what sets you apart from other similar dance companies? I am very passionate about bringing the arts, multiculturalism, women’s empowerment and elements of the human condition on stage. Evolution Dance Theatre is a not-for-profit company that develops, promotes and performs original Middle Easterninspired multimedia and multidisciplinary spectacles to both entertain and provide dialogue on social, spiritual and humanistic themes. The company is committed to producing unique, one-of-a-kind performances which are visceral, visually captivating and have broad universal appeal. The combination of original Middle Eastern stories, interesting choreographies, different dance
genres, new composed music, digital design with an emphasis on the connectedness of human beings while embracing diversity, has been some of the reasons that has sets us apart from other companies. Our Core Values are Unity, Universality and Integrity.
3. Evolution encompasses an international cast of dancers, actors and more. What made you decide to create such a multidisciplinary company? For me, using all of my senses adds to my experiences of life. When a production is multidisciplinar y, it adds to the dimension of the show. A combination of digital designs, stunning costumes, beautiful music, interesting choreography and the story line makes the experience for the audience quite intense. I always say “feast for the eyes and the soul�. 4. While Evolution Dance theatre is still fairly new as a professional company, it has become known for it’s in depth look into the cultures and social issues of the Middle East. What has been your mandate as a choreographer, and has it 20 | P a g e
changed or evolved over the years? I believe that culture is important. Although we do come from different cultures and backgrounds, as human beings we do share a basic human condition. I like to focus on commonalities as opposed to our differences. As we look into way of life in the West that we feel is quite different than that of the East, we discover that we are all connected as one human race. I feel that art in a multidisciplinary format is a very gentle but yet powerful way to bring in messages and showcase the social and cultural issues. By encouraging freedom of expression, we can take steps as a collective to address certain traditions or customs perhaps that may need change.
We have seen that the public is quite ready and eager to acknowledge that change is necessary. As a result, as we produce more shows we bring in more in depth issues on stage while maintaining a spectacle.
With its spectacular costumes, special effects and stunning dance ranging from traditional belly dance to hip hop and jazz, “Follow Your
5. Where does your dance company usually perform, and please let us know about any upcoming performances. Our company only performs in theatres as ‘Middle Eastern Spectacle’. Our next show called “Follow Your Heart” is a multidisciplinary and multimedia production. It is a love story of taboo and tradition. It is a courageous and inspiring tale of a modern Middle Eastern woman, Almaza, who is in love with a traditional man.
Heart” is a must-see experience that demonstrates the power of dance and storytelling to entertain, educate and inspire. The intent is that the story takes the audience on a wondrous journey into the human spirit and transports them to a different world. A world that is so mysterious to so many, I might add. The show is on May 8-11, 2014 in Fleck’s Dance Theatre in Harbourfront in Toronto. 6. What and whom are your inspirations in Dance and/or Theatre? I like elaborate productions. Opera or Cirque du Soleil comes to mind.
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7. What are some of the challenges and or obstacles that you have faced during your career? As we are creating something unique and new, there are certainly some challenges that we have
encountered. As much as we have a lot of interest from the artists to participate in this type of production we find that ‘casting’ belly dancers is a bit of a challenge. There are a couple of issues. One is that, generally speaking, belly dancers are not trained in other dance forms, although more and more dancers are getting trained for this purpose. In addition, acting may be difficult for them. The other issue is that often belly dancers are used to performing solo, therefore having strong dancers in a group in a harmonious way does not always work.
8. Do you have any exciting stories or experiences that you can share with us?
I feel quite blessed with life experiences. I look at life every day with new eyes and new perspective. I thrive on excitement so normally I am quite excited about a lot of things. Right now I am trilled for our show “Follow Your Heart”. We have a global cast and the artists are very passionate and easy to work with. Everyone enjoys the creative process and works hard to make the show a truly amazing spectacle. Hope to see you all there!
Armineh Keshishian is the founder and Artistic Director of Evolution Dance Theatre in Toronto.
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JULY SUN
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2 3 4 Adv-Pro Adv-Pro Adv-Pro Summer Summer Summer Intensive Intensive Intensive
SAT Adv-Pro Summer Intensive Dance to Live Music P2
Adv-Pro 7 8 Summer Pro Pro Intensive Course Course Layering with Melody
9 Pro Course
10 Pro Course
11 12 Pro Pro Course Course
13 Pro Course
16 Pro Course
17 Pro Course
18 Pro Course
19 Luna of Cairo in Toronto, Workshops and Show
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14 15 Pro Pro Course Course
20 Luna of Cairo in Toronto, Workshops and Show
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AUGUST SUN
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9 Arabesque Immersion Khaleegy with Hiba at EDA 15 16
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11 12 Layali Layali Masriya Masriya Festival Festival
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FRI
2014
“Jordan”
“Jordan Goes to Jordan!” By Angelica Jordan
“Jordan?!?” Where is that? And why are you going there?” were the words I heard almost every time I mentioned I would be traveling to the country, Jordan. Initially, I was supposed to go to Egypt as my first place prize for winning the “Queen of the Nile” competition, but with the revolution, decline in tourism, etc. the “Nile Group Festival” had been cancelled and I wasn't sure it would be safe to roam the streets of Cairo on my own. I was heartbroken (for many reasons, of course) and had been completely set on returning to the Middle East. I spent hours daydreaming while staring at maps, imagining the possibilities of all the new lands I could visit, all the new music I could hear, all the new food I could taste, all the new everything! My eyes kept fixating on the word - 26 - | P a g e
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Google maps page. My last name is Jordan so I thought it would be really cool to go there (“Jordan goes to Jordan” was my big line), and I also felt like I had barely heard about this country. My curiosity was piqued and I decided to do a bit of research on this teeny-tiny land, which shares borders with Israel, the Palestinian Territories, Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. I discovered it is considered to be one of the safest of 22 Arab countries and since my previous trip was cancelled because of political reasons, the word “safe” was really important to me. Once the imaginary safety net I was seeking had been found, the true beauty of Jordan began to unfold: Floating in the Dead Sea, sleeping in the Wadi Rum Desert, snorkeling in the Red Sea, visiting the Ancient City of Petra, the hospitality of the Bedouins, the Roman Ruins of Jerash. This was it! Angelica Jordan is going to Jordan! 10 hours later, our flight from Montreal arrives in the capital city, Amman, where we were greeted by my Jordanian friend, Rana. She spent 8 years living in Canada and returned to Jordan 1 week before my husband, Derek, and I arrived. Within
minutes of entering her home, full plates of falafel, hummus, labneh1, cucumber, tomato, pita bread, squeaky boiled cheese, and tea were spread out before us by her wonderful mother. This became fairly typical of our moments together; sitting in the kitchen enjoying freshly made home-cooked meals followed by hours of chatting. We spoke about Jordan, Arabic language, religion, music, dance, politics, and more! We got such an interesting insider's perspective and got to visit some of the best spice, cheese, nut and dessert Souqs2 of Amman. Ohhh Knafeh3, I will never forget you, you are the best dessert I have ever had! And the music? Because it is considered a peaceful nation, many Arabs from bordering countries have sought refuge in Jordan during times of upheaval, so much so that Jordanians are actually outnumbered in their own country. Inshallah4 this does not cause turmoil in the future for them. However, the audio result of this multiculturalism is an eclectic array of Middle Eastern music constantly blaring in the streets. From Classical music (predominantly Oum
Kalthoum5, of course), Iraqi music, Khaliji6 (many Saudis vacation in Jordan), Egyptian Shabi7, various types of Dabke8, and all the newest modern singers. I was in music heaven! Another huge highlight in Amman was when the call to prayer sounded while visiting the Citadel (ruins from over 7000 years ago). When I was in the United Arab Emirates in 2012, my experience with hearing the call always came from one or two speakers above me. In this case we were on top of a hill and the call was resonating from dozens of speakers below us, creating hauntingly beautiful echoes. I was completely silenced and in awe. If you ever go to Jordan, please make sure to experience this moment. Next stop was a day trip to float in the Dead Sea on Valentine's Day (pronounced “Habby Falentine” in Urdon/Jordan). The Dead Sea is the lowest point on Earth at 420 meters below sea level. It is called the Dead
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A thick creamy yogurt typical in Middle Eastern Countries. 2 Marketplace 3 A thin, warm cheesecake, with syrup 4 Meaning “God Willing”
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5
The most beloved Egyptian Singer. Meaning “From the Persian Gulf” 7 The People’s Dance from Egypt 8 The term for an Arabic Line Dance. 6
Sea because the content of the water is so salty that no living creature can survive in its waters. For some magical reason the salt forcefully makes your body float in the water without any effort on your behalf. I don't know how to swim nor float, so this was such a highlight to be able to surrender in open water for the first time in my entire life. Later that evening we got to see a Russian belly dancer, Julia Ivanova, perform while we had supper and shisha9. She danced 2 thirtyminute sets onstage to a variety of music that I was not familiar with, with the exception of a couple songs. This surprised me because I pretty much only listen to Arabic music and it got me questioning the role of the belly dancer performing for Arab audiences outside of the Middle East and/or North Africa. For Arabs who have left their country there is certainly a feeling of nostalgia that comes with hearing music from the land they left behind. Perhaps dancers performing outside of the ME are caught up with catering to this nostalgia for certain Arab audiences and are not moving ahead with current music trends because it 9
A water pipe
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is less necessary. Or perhaps not. In any case it was really interesting and refreshing to see a completely different show than what I am used to seeing in Montreal. I especially loved how much Khaliji and Lebanese styling she integrated into her sets, and this is surely because there are many Lebanese and Saudis who vacation in Jordan. I very much appreciated that she acknowledged these different audiences and their cultures. From the Dead Sea we took a local bus to Aqaba, which is where the Red Sea is located. February is “winter” in Jordan and the weather was a little too cold (15 degrees Celsius) for us to brave the idea of snorkeling. We instead opted for the Glass Boat tour. These boats have glass panels installed into the bottom of the boat so the underwater coral, old shipwrecks and unfortunate pollution can be seen from above. I was hesitant to pay for the private tour but was convinced the moment I heard our boat chauffeur blasting the song “El Eih” by Wael Jassar from his speakers. The views of coral reef paired with some of my favorite classical songs, “Siret el Hob”, “Akdeb Alek”, “Hawa Ya Hawa”, etc. and all versions I had not heard before... I had the time of my life on that boat! My biggest regret of this trip was not asking if I could buy his
USB stick at the end of that boat ride. Our itinerary for this trip was *entirely* based on how I would spend my last day in my twenties and first day in my thirties. I didn't know if celebrating the big 3-0 would be an emotional roller coaster so I figured I might as well make it really cool. We took a 45 minute taxi ride from Aqaba to Wadi Rum where we would spend my last day as a twentysomething-yearold in the nothingness of the desert. Having learned my lesson from the boat ride, when I realized how much I loved the crazy Shabi music our taxi driver was playing, I kindly inquired if I could purchase his CD. This definitely made him laugh but he was entertained by my request and happy to make a few extra bucks. I purchased his 2 CDs for 4JD (Jordanian Dinar), which is the equivalent of $7. I was ecstatic when I got home and discovered I had actually purchased MP3 CDs and found 198 songs on them! Guess I'll have a lot of music inspiration for the next couple of years! Ok back to Wadi Rum... our adventure began with a 1 hour camel ride in the desert. Initially, I wanted to spend the - 29 - | P a g e
full day riding a camel but realized that there were too many sites to see and we would miss too much traveling this way. So we spent the day on the back of a Bedouin Toyota pickup truck (oh the irony!) to visit some of the most beautiful places I have seen in my life. We hiked up rocky mountains to see desert water springs, ran up huge sand dunes, walked across very high and scary natural bridges, walked through narrow canyon paths, saw inscriptions made in the rocks by Bedouins from over 2000 years ago, and yelled at the top of our lungs to hear our echo reverberating across the desert walls. After an intense day we sat in the sand to watch the sun set and witnessed the night sky turn into a canvas of stars that no words could ever accurately describe. As if the day could not get any better, the evening was spent sitting in the dark around a fire with 9 other tourists and a few Bedouin men who played the Oud10, Darbuka11, and sang traditional songs of love and life all night long. Although I thought it was hilarious when they threw in a few modern 10
The Arabic Lute A goblet shaped drum, also known as a Doumbek 11
Dabke songs... don't think any of the other tourists would have noticed that! There were moments when the Bedouin men got up to dance and I was utterly captivated by their groove and earthiness. I was in music and dance HEAVEN! It was a Habby Birzday for me! My first day as a thirty-somethingyear-old began by waking up in a Bedouin tent in the middle of the desert, looking back at the most surreal and profound experience I had on this trip, and for a long time, for that matter. The feeling of surrendering yourself completely to a tribe of nomadic people you have never seen or spoken to before, and surrendering yourself completely to the elements of nature which can be so harsh in the desert climate; blistering heat in the daytime, and freezing temperatures at night, it is an indescribable freedom. There are moments in life you will never forget. This is one of them. The plan for my Dirty Thirty celebration was to visit the Ancient City of Petra by night. Petra is a desert city that had been lost for - 30 - | P a g e
centuries and was unknown to the Western world until 1812. It is considered to be one of the Wonders of the World and has existed for thousands of years. Three times a week, it is possible to visit the site at night, where visitors must walk through the Siq to the Treasury lit by 1500 candles, the stars, and the moonlight. After a 30 minute walk through huge curvilinear formations that we could barely see, which closed off and opened up to the night sky above us, we reached the famous Treasury, also lit by hundreds of candles. It was such a beautiful site and an amazing experience to walk through this area without really knowing what we were seeing because it was so dark. Melodies from the rababah12 and nay13 filled the air as the Bedouins shared their music with us. I felt completely changed by this experience. Something about hearing these instruments in their original raw state and environment made me feel such a profound connection with the music I have been listening to for years that I hadn't felt before. It was a good day. Being 30 is not so bad after all. Our following and final days were 12
A string instrument that uses a bow. Sometimes called a spike fiddle. 13 A reed flute made with cane.
spent roaming around Petra in the daylight. It was such an incredible contrast to what we had experienced at night. The Siq formations were breathtaking and I could not believe how intricate all of the buildings were. In fact, I prefer to call them sculptures because they were actually carved out of huge rocks and not really built. It was a fantastic site and sight and I definitely could have spent months there. Our final
destination was returning to the capital, Amman, where we spent our last moments shopping for gifts for our family in El Balad (downtown), smoking more shisha, and spending more time with my friend Rana. We took a day trip to visit the Ancient Roman City, Jerash, which was spectacularly beautiful and is one of the most preserved and important Roman Ruins outside of Rome. Our time in Jordan went by too fast and it was really difficult for me to leave. Now that I am home and can look back at each moment, I know what I will remember most about this entire trip is how astoundingly kind the people in Jordan are and how astoundingly beautiful this country is. 90% of the time, people were completely confused by our desire to travel to this country. People were - 31 - | P a g e
either afraid of the idea of us being in the Middle East all together (thank you media for portraying all 22 Arab countries as nothing but dangerous), or they hadn't really heard of Jordan (except maybe Micheal Jordan). My experience was filled with the beauty of art, music, and culture throughout. Jordan is a land filled with magnificent sites and some of the kindest people I have met in my 10 years of traveling. I am very happy and proud to say that Jordan is a wonderful country that I hope I will have the chance to return to someday, inshallah.
Angelica Jordan info@angelicadance.com Angelica is a multi-award-wining professional dancer based in Montreal, Canada. She has performed thousands of shows, including a 90-show contract in the United Arab Emirates with the folkloric company Sanaa Dance. She is excited to be performing in Arabesque's next production SAWAH in Toronto, Canada. For more information visit www.angelicadance.com
OCTOBER SUN
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SAT 1 Belly Dance Blossoms Festival
2 Belly Dance Blossoms Festival
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Al Khaima at Arabesque Academy - 36 - | P a g e
Egyptian Dance Company’s El Torath El Masry
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Egyptian Dance Company’s El Torath El Masry
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Ontario MEDance Calendar Submit your events, articles, photos and stories by the 25th of every month! Ask us how you can be added to the Dancer’s Directory! Contact Us for Ad Rates and Submissions babylondanceandfitness@gmail.com Thank you for reading! - 39 - | P a g e