Raks al-Dounya

The Newsletter of the Classical Middle Eastern Dance Studio

August-September 2003 issue:

New Classes Starting!

Health guru Andrew Weil, M.D., recommends our dance. He writes, “Belly dancing has now emerged as one of the hot new exercise trends according to the American Council on Exercise. . . . Belly dancing can be soft on the joints and at the same time be highly energetic and work muscles that most people don't use with regular workouts. It's a great opportunity for people to learn about the music and traditions of unfamiliar countries and cultures. It can also give your body a beautiful shape . . .”

Thinking of trying Middle Eastern dance? You're welcome to come try a class. Or perhaps you'd rather sign up for beginners' lessons or even a free workshop for the community. Some students take this dance just for the exercise, or just for fun. But some later discover that they very much want to share this ancient form of expression. Our classes help fulfill all these goals. These are our classes for new beginners:

Our studio is at 212 N. Market, Suite 314, in historic Landmark Square in Wichita. This beautiful old building has a lobby of checkerboard Italian marble, a wrought iron and marble stairway, and brass chandeliers. It also has modern elevators and air conditioning! You can park in the lot immediately north of the building. Click here for a map.

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Would you like to see us dance?

We're now appearing at the Café Istanbul . . .

Turkish restaurants around the world are known for their savory kabobs, their Turkish coffee . . . and their belly dancers. Come join us for dinner at the Café Istanbul. Meet owners Charlotte and Yule and their daughter Summer, and make sure to drink some sublime Turkish tea with your baklava. It's a cozy place with red tablecloths and a friendly atmosphere. Maybe you'll hear live music – doumbek, riq, and mandolin or saz! We perform once each month, with seating at 6 for the 6:30 show, and at 8 for the 8:30 show. See you next on Sat., August 23! Café Istanbul is at 120 N. West St. Call 944-7330 for reservations. This place books up.

  • Sat., Aug. 23. Shows at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m.

. . . and at Abram's Cafe.

Continuing a long relationship with Abram's Cafe owners Nadia and Latif, Safira has begun a regular performance night with her students at the Cafe. You can see us on the first Friday of each month at Abram's from 7:00 p.m. until 8:30 p.m. You can expect good Egyptian food and a noisy, rowdy good time as the audience often helps with its own entertainment. You'll hear many types of music, and enjoy a wonderful variety of dances in this intimate, family cafe. As the evening progresses, customers with experience in Middle Eastern dance or drumming occasionally join us for some spontaneous creative expression. Abrams is at 6249 E. 21st St. North. Call 688-1551 for reservations.

  • Friday, Sept. 5. Show at 7:00 p.m.
  • Friday, Oct. 3. Show at 7:00 p.m.

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Dance from Egypt's Silver Screen

This June, Maleeha (Marie Sage) visited Wichita to teach choreography and technique as well as private coaching for students who wanted to take their dances to a higher level of expression. Maleeha was awarded an MFA in Dance from the University of Iowa, and is director of the Kahraman Near East Dance Ensemble. She has received awards and grants from the University of Iowa Dance Department, the Iowa Arts Council, and the Iowa Humanities Board. She's also a really fun teacher, and makes it easy to learn choreography. When she visits again in the spring of 2004, all dance students in the Wichita metro area are welcome to join us. Even beginners!

This year, she brought our advanced students Al Hinna, from Simon Shaheen's arrangement of a famous song by Mohammed Abdel Wahab. The style is the graceful, flowing Orientale from Egypt's old black and white movie era.

We'll be performing Al Hinna at our 2004 Concert at Newman University on January 24 of next year. Make plans now for Theatre Night 2004! Have a pre-theatre dinner at local Middle Eastern restaurants, and a night of dance and theatre.

  • Saturday January 24, 7:00 p.m.
  • DeMattias Performance Hall, Newman University
  • 3100 McCormick Ave., Wichita, KS

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Use breathing to become more expressive

Sahra Kent, who performed for four years in Cairo, tells us that a dancer should practice breathing and moving to the music of the nay, the Arab flute. Maleeha also works with breath in order to enhance the emotions that our bodies try to express. At the studio, Mara Whitaker, our ballet teacher, is showing us how to gain better control of the body and expression through the use of breath. This technique has been used in ballet for centuries. We practice moving through breath at the barre, and also when we turn or jump. It helps us not only to look more alive, more magical, but also helps us to balance and stretch.

Mara and Safira are choreographing an Orientalist ballet dance for our 2004 concert. The music is the haunting theme waltz from--a Turkish soap opera! Mara is a principal dancer with Metropolitan Ballet of Wichita. She has a hip wrap and a fabulous backbend--and we're all looking forward to seeing her interpretation of Orientale. Come visit us in ballet class and see if it's for you! Ballet is at 5:45 on Wednesdays.

If we have enough interest, we'll open a second class for brand new beginners who have never had ballet. Not only is ballet great exercise, it also makes you a poised and proficient dancer. If you just want exercise, or if you're ambitious to become a top tier, very fine belly dancer, this is the way.

  • Ballet for beginners: 5:45 Wednesdays
  • Ballet for brand new beginners: let us know your schedule!

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Come to New York with us next summer!

This July, Safira, Tahira and Scheherezade took a week-long intensive dance workshop with Elena Lentini in New York City. There, they studied an Andalusian dance with veil and fan, a tango using a Spanish hat, a Turkish interpretive dance, an Arabic dance with finger cymbals and veil, and primitive dance movement. It was a great honor to be able to study with Elena. Safira hopes to take even more of her students next summer!

Elena's website says, “Elena brings to dance a unique lyrical focus, a quality of mystery, and a commitment to the integrity of every movement as she sculpts fluid designs with her body.” She has performed in Jordan, Iraq, Syria, Greece, the United Arab Emirates, and Bahrain, in her native New York, and in numerous cities around the world. As a teacher, Elena gives students the freedom (as well as the technique) to create art from movement, with the opportunity for the dancer to reveal not just dance steps, but her soul. Elena's work as a teacher and performer is innovative, breathtaking, lyrical.

During the workshop, Safira, Tahira and Scheherezade also participated in an informal concert at Fazil's Rehearsal Studio, a venerable old building dedicated to dance and echoing with the footsteps of Jimmy Cagney and Twyla Tharp.

Want to go to New York next summer? We'd love to have you! Elena teaches at the advanced level, so you'll want to start taking a dance class twice a week in order to be ready. Take two Middle Eastern classes from Safira, or enroll in a ballet class—or a beginning modern class at WSU.

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Upcoming: Pop dervish dance, tribal costumes

For our 2004 concert, we're putting together a “best of everything” dance—dervish turns, primitive movement, Tunisian trance music turned to pop. There will be elements of Tunisia, Babylon, India, Egypt, and the wandering life. In the spirit of it all, our costume designer, Jared Rodgers, has created a choli top with shisha mirrors and a Ruth St. Denis-style spinning skirt. The design will incorporate some of the costuming used by St. Denis and the early ethnic dancers--the ones who trained young Martha Graham in the 1910s and 20s. There will also be a nod to contemporary California and the tribal-style costuming that is wildly popular on the West Coast. Dancers, everyone is welcome to participate in this dance! Even new beginners. See you in class!

Our studio is located in historic Landmark Square at 212 N. Market in Wichita, Suite 314. This beautiful old building has a lobby of checkerboard Italian marble, a wrought iron and marble stairway, and brass chandeliers. It also has modern elevators and air conditioning!


We hope you've enjoyed this note. We welcome your comments and suggestions for future newsletters.

Thank you for reading our newsletter. The best of luck in your pursuit and enjoyment of dance in all its forms,

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