PRAISE FROM OUR PARTICIPANTS
Wendy, many thanks for an inspirational festival.
My movement vocabulary has been enriched, I have discovered new
forms of expression and I feel well and truly grounded. I feel very
fortunate to have met you in person. Thank you so much
- Kirsty Johnson
For me this was the best Sirocco yet – I couldn’t
have passed up the opportunity of such a wonderful festival
virtually on my doorstep!
I
can’t believe how much I learnt. The weekend has really made me
think about my potential and how I express myself in my dancing.
I
loved the friendliness and focus on the true spirit of dancing and
how it relates to us now.
Some of our past dance and music workshops
Dance fusion
American Tribal Style (ATS) ●Baladi-Tango ● Flamenco-Arabe ● Rumba with veil ● Cuban-Egyptian
● Hip-Hop ● Wushu ● Dancing with veils and fans
Traditional
Egyptian ● Persian & North African dance, ● Raqs Sharqi (Hilal School) ● Italian Pizzica ● Sufi trance dance
● Music appreciation ● Rhythm recognition ● finger cymbal technique
Theatre skills
Improvisation and theatre games ● Creating a role ● Mime & symbolism ● Confidence and self expression in dance
● Gesture & meaning
* SOME DANCE DEFINITIONS
RAQS SHARQI
(literally 'dance of the East') has, over the past 25 years,
become a catch-all term used by dancers to refer to Middle
Eastern women’s dance, with a strong emphasis on Egyptian
technique. The Raqs Sharqi Society (UK) is dedicated to teaching
the Suraya Hilal method, which is based on an eclectic dance
language drawn strongly (but not exclusively) from the rich
vocabulary of Egyptian dance. At Sirocco we always have a strand
of workshops given by teachers who trained in the Hilal method,
and who may have gone on to develop their own innovations in it.
EGYPTIAN
DANCE
Some commonly taught styles of
Egyptian dance are
Baladi
the urban blues of Egyptian dance, often improvised to a taqsim on a single dominant instrument such as accordion or
saxophone.
Classical
a somewhat confusing name, in that this style does not belong to
a particular period of Egyptian history; instead it is a hybrid
which has assimilated outside influences from both East and
West, woven into a strong Egyptian framework.
Ghawazee sometimes known as gypsy dance; traditional
style passed down through the tribe or family, who are hired to
entertain at festive occasions within the community.
Sa’idi
earthy folk style of the Egyptian south (rather confusingly
known as Upper Egypt)
PERSIAN DANCE
has a rich tradition that has absorbed aspects of movement and
music from Iran’s surrounding countries; these range from the
expressive face and hands of India to the group dances of the
Gulf. It has, in addition, retained its elegant courtly
traditions.
NORTH AFRICAN DANCE
Many traditional dances of Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria involve
group energy. Some are celebratory or ritual dances , others
mime a work activity, and some are based on developing energy
through strong repetitive movement.
TRANCE DANCE
is found in many cultures, and varies enormously from country to
country. A feature of this type of ritual dance is that it is
not practised for the benefit of spectators, but for the body to
release emotion and energy. In this way, trance dancing is
particularly therapeutic and can have a strong spiritual
element. It may awaken profound emotions and produce an altered
state in those who practise it. Its goal is release and
reconciliation. Some trance dances are based on strong,
repetitive rhythms, whilst others are accompanied also by
melody.
AMERICAN TRIBAL STYLE (ATS)
Developed in San Francisco in
the 1970s by Carolena Nericcio, ATS is based on the power of the
group and on improvisation within a learned framework. It draws
freely on dance movement from different cultures, with a
noticeably Middle Eastern use of upper torso and hips. It offers
great creative freedom and has given rise to many fusion
offshoots.
DANCE FUSION Not to be
confused with ATS Fusion (see above); dance fusion offers a
chance to be creative whilst utilising dance languages we have
already mastered. Developed by individual performers, fusion
forms may involve elements of all kinds of dance.
