Best advice ever.

In Dance, as in Life.
Listen to your Soul. The rest are potatoes. 
Choreographing "Set il Hosn" is kicking my powerful ... Driving me crazy, really! 
Like a vain, demanding woman in the prime of her beauty and youth, the music refuses to open its secret doors to me but, by God, these doors will be opened. I am more persistent and charming than any overly self-confident egyptian/arab man!:) Will NOT give up. 

Hope to see you all at SALAMAT MASR FESTIVAL 

and, specially, on my Workshop on the 8th July (from 12.30h till 2.30h)

For the sake of mental sanity.

For the sake of mental sanity, I MUST disconnect from the current political events in Egypt.

 It is too depressing to see the Revolution we all dreamt about being shamelessly stolen by both Military and Muslim Brotherhood. 

Some criticize me for speaking my mind of the subject under the pretext that "you are not egyptian, how come do you criticize our country?!". Xenophobe and stupid comment as I am more egyptian than many egyptians I know and I´ve won the right to be taken that way by honestly working and living in this country for six years where all I did was struggle for the dignifying of EGYPTIAN DANCE.

 I work here, dear compatriots, I pay my taxes as any egyptian (actually, as a foreigner I pay 4 times more taxes than egyptians!) and I contribute for the promotion and respect of Egyptian music and dance, something most egyptians do not do. 

Sure I criticize and go against the system that is now being kept by the elected president and the background dogs of the Army. Sure I cannot adapt myself to Ignorance, the so called "religious" extremism, prejudices, corruption, lies, exploitation, disrespect towards women, dancers, Human Beings in general. 

Criticizing does not mean NOT LOVING. Ignoring means NOT LOVING. And I DO LOVE EGYPT, although I deeply feel that the country I fell in love with is DYING at a scary pace. 

Busy as I am right now, it will be convenient to remain as much detached as possible from all the madness around me. Hoping things will turn around, as if by a truly RELIGIOUS, miracle. 

Winds of change *(???)...

It was about time. Very useful over here as long as "Inshah Allah" does NOT mean, in fact: 

"I have no intention of doing it but will put all responsability on God and, therefore, save my........ from further commitment."

Mirrors.

• 

  
  

  Comment found to a video about Improvisation:
  
  "silly? Tell that to Beethoven , Bach, Mozart, um basically any great composer. All great composition begins with improvisation. With spontaneity, with a moment of inspiration wich has nothing to do with being 'intellectually rigourous' If you are a musician then you will know what I mean, otherwise you need to do some more listening. ;)
  
  kundalini76 "
  
  Whoever this person is, he is an ARTIST.

Salamat Masr Festival WORKSHOP, this 8th July!

If you´re in Cairo this 8th July, you don´t wanna miss this one.

 I will be teaching my

 WORKSHOP at the SALAMAT MASR FESTIVAL (infos: www.salamat-masr.com) 

from 12.30h till 14.30h

"Set il Hosen" (composed for the iconic Nagwa Fouad) technique and choreography as well as lots of secrets and tips for the STAGE/LIFE. My classes/workshops are never ONLY about steps and combinations memorizing. They go beyond it as Dance itself.

Welcome, everyone! Let´s have an unforgettable time together.

Show off Versus Craft.

I am a strange creature. 

The more I know of human beings, the more I am aware of my strangeness. 

As an Artist, I was never prone to join parties and social events where glamorous photos are taken to give the impression that everybody behind the lens is a star. I a  CRAFT person.Meaning that I enjoy the process of CREATING ART and not much the showing off that usually goes with or without it. I share this kind of shyness with my dear teacher and friend Mahmoud. I will gladly close myself in a room choreographing a new piece or focusing on endless rehearsals with my orchestra. I will have a blast on stage or teaching a workshop/class but, most of the times, I will leave back to my inner world once the work is done. 

I will grab my man´s hand and fly away after a show, I will surrender to my shy nature (the one that very few know about) and gather with a close friend for a candle lighted dinner, I will catch my mum and go to a late session cinema (if I happen to be passing by Portugal). I will even spend a couple of hours watching Gene Kelly with Mahmoud (Reda) and listening to new songs he insists on showing me for upcoming choreographies. 

I love the CRAFT, you see. The DANCE itself and all its inner corners, worlds, coffee shops by the Nile. If behind a camera, it will also be for a purpose, probably an opening of my soul that I know will be captured through a machine and a person who is curious enough to go beyond the appearances. 

I wish I was more outgoing, cool, hanging with the crowds. For sure that would be an efficient self-promoting tool, as it is for most dancers I know. But it wouldn´t be me, after all, and I would never stop feeling that time was wasted when I could be using it to love a man of my own, to dine with a true friend, to hold my mum´s hand, to laugh with my father , to read, to learn, to CREATE.

Glamour is, as far as I see it, the WORK itself and the discoveries that come with it. Maybe in another life I will get busy with the other side of my profession (so overrated these days). Talent is more interesting than convenient social connections. Work, sweat, tears and flights are much more important than taking the right photo with the right person at the right time.

Yes, some say I m in the wrong profession. I think I m just in the wrong environment. The profession fits me as I was born with it under my skin. The whole false stardom around is what feels strange to me. Always was, always will be (perhaps!).

Why Do They Hate Us? - By Mona Eltahawy | Foreign Policy

I know I will receive offenses, irrational critics and threats due to this post but here we go.
I didn´t gather so many dear enemies for no reason.


 Being a WOMAN, a DANCER and an INTELLIGENT person, all at the same time (who also happens not to be a COWARD who keeps her TRUE opinions for herself for fear of the consequences of daring self-expression) still is a DANGEROUS and scary combination for a lot of people. 
Despite the consequences,  I MUST share this article written by a BRAVE egyptian woman called 
Mona Eltahawy. What can I do if I insist on appreciating HUMAN BEINGS instead of machine/brainwashed sheeps?! 

Follow the link:

Why Do They Hate Us? - By Mona Eltahawy | Foreign Policy

Post - "almost" Revolution weirdos.

This frustrated "almost" Egyptian Revolution has brought some interesting characters to life. It is not only the current Muslim Brotherhood President (Morsy) and his wife (whose image of veiled/good egyptian mother/wife/devout is being used as a very powerful and sneaky political marketing tool). Not even the old dogs from Mubarak and the whole Military system that is ACTUALLY ruling the country as if Egyptian Revolution didn´t happen (indeed, it DID NOT). 

There are a few AWAKENED minds in Egypt but a LOT more weirdos too. With the religious extremism rising to POWER, the "hidden" mental retards who considered Islam the only salvation for Egypt also spread like mushrooms. Dangerous, poisonous, smelly mushrooms who point the finger at women who do not veil or hide at home and totally REJECT THE INTELLIGENT QUESTIONING OF FACTS that is a huge and essential part of DEMOCRACY. 

Egypt was not ready for Democracy, that is true. To CONSCIOUSLY vote, you need an education and a civilian awareness that the major part of egyptian population does not possess. An whole mentality still rooted in the MASTER-SERVANT basis is still ON, turning most egyptians into easy preys for smart thieves of the past and smart new thieves.

It shocks me the most when FREEDOM of EXPRESSION - probably one the few things GAINED because of this Revolution attempt - is also being counteracted by common, old and young egyptians who are not ready to let go of their prejudices and frozen brains in order to GROW from Medieval times into Modernity. 

Everybody is claiming for an ISLAMIC Egypt as if this country could be defined by a single religion. First of all, Egypt was not always Islamic. This religion was brought by the Arabs, dear compatriots. STUDY the HISTORY of your own country and you will see that Egypt is BIGGER than any power system, may it be Muslim, Christian, Hindu, Jew or whatever. 

Secondly, what about the EGYPTIANS who are NOT Muslims?! Are they less egyptian than muslims? How will they feel once they see this country shaped according to the islamic "shariaa", a group of rules and legislation they don´t recognize as theirs. What about the DEMOCRACY itself, the VALUE this Revolution attempt stood for? DEMOCRACY means Power of the People. Not Muslim people. Just PEOPLE. What it´s happening to Egypt is a fast ride to THEOCRACY (THEO= God , CRACIA= Power), NOT a Democracy.

Again and again I affirm: I have nothing against Muslim or any other religions. I see HUMAN BEINGS, not religions that divide us though meaningless labels. I am against USING RELIGION TO DOMINATE, BRAIN WASH, EXPLOIT, HURT, ELIMINATE PEOPLE AND THEIR SPIRIT THAT WAS BORN FREE TO FEEL, THINK, DECIDE FOR ITSELF. 

Instead of FREE MINDS that can NOW (???) think for themselves, I see the common egyptian claiming for  new MASTERS to make them servants. Prisoners asking their jailer to lock them up once more in the name of a Religion. As a person with a brain that is working (until now, that is!), I CANNOT agree with this.

This world is fascinating and, so very often, scary. 

Will Egypt WAKE UP on time or are we headed for Dark Ages, worse and more painful than the previous ones?! 

EGYPT AND ITS PEOPLE DESERVE BETTER THAN THIS.

Final message I am leaving for the masses (to be applied at my home, work, inner circle, Life):

A Work of Love.

No doubt.  We write to taste life twice but what a taste that is! Apart from my work in Dance, the writing of my BOOK has been the most strenuous, passionate, exhausting experience of my Life. I honestly gained a MAJOR admiration for professional writers who do this CONTINUOUSLY!  

Pleasure and pain, lots of doubts that quarrel inside your head/heart with in an endless limbo of enigmas that will remain unanswered. Pressure, patience - LOTS of it - and FOCUS. Deep commitment (it´s not easy to pursue this endeavor while traveling for work and doing all the million other things I have to do within my profession of Dancer). 

Persistence on the same subject, digging deeper and deeper without losing interest in it (damn, I am a Gemini girl, after all...I like VARIETY!!!). 

Then the self-imposed solitude. Oh, yes...it is sweet because you choose it but it is still a cave of wonders where you hide yourself in silence, apart from the outside world that becomes a minor part of your universe. No extra energy for common relationships, wasted words, empty trips, superficial people. It seems I am gathering all my energy and voice for a single purpose: to WRITE my own BOOK. 

Feeling like an hermit, I move on, despite the exhaustion and the BIG question: what will readers feel about this book? Remember I am the only person who read it, until now. The moment I ll deliver it to my first reader will be, I can imagine, a strange door opening up on my already wrecked nervous system. All insecurities and excitement will burn, burn, burn and leave me in expectant desperation&joy.

I am not a writer, after all. But I am surely doing it from my heart and THAT, I guess!, may mean something. 

State of BEING, presently speaking: INDA BUBBLE. 

Summer Addictions.

*Evian water;

* "Cappuccino" flavored with caramel and ginger;

*Salads with olive oil;

*Flip-flops or "sheb sheb" (in egyptian);

*Loose indian trousers that are fresh and make me look like a huge bag of potatoes bringing "some kind of protection" on the sexual harassment subject. 

*Steam room where I sing Billie Holiday songs, then a cold shower, both after training at the gym;

*Campus magazine, the only egyptian magazine I truly enjoy reading. Intelligence with sense of humor, depth and variety of themes (not the typical "how to conquer him in five days") and a COURAGEOUS approach to the current political situation in Egypt. 

*Current reading addiction: Anna Karenina, a world classic written by Tolstoy. Is it in the writing style, the characters, the theme, the structure of the novel, the, the, the?! I don´t know. All I know is this fat, delicious book got me addicted to it as monkeys are addicted to bananas.

***Common place : DANCE. Yeah, sure. Teaching, choreographing, performing. All of it and then some more...trying to go beyond myself or the stuff I could do yesterday. Competing with myself is a hell of a ride!

Yes, they do.

They take us all for fools, dear Brigitte Bardot. You´re not the only one who feels like that. It was announced that Egypt has a Muslim Brotherhood president (kindly supported by the so "democratic" United States and Israel, two very dear friends - the backstabbing kind, though - of this country). They announced it and I believed it because this is the direction most common egyptians are taking. 
The thing is the OLD MILITARY dogs are in power, although they pretend to have been defeated with dignity and fair game. The OLD "bashas" who exploited people are STILL there, the businessmen who owed favours to Mubarak and his family&friends are STILL there. You ripped off the head of the monster but its billion arms are alive, probably more than ever.


I imagine the anger of families who lost their sons and daughters during and after the Revolution, the struggle for survival of so many families who depend on tourism to survive (the post-Revolution period has represented an economical crisis in the country, specially for those who are directly connected with tourism and foreign  investments). The frustration of those who BELIEVED they could smash a CORRUPTED gang that is built from decades and decades (it existed before Mubarak) of  big power house exploitation, theft, dictatorship. 

Since the last king of Egypt was put down, this country became a MILITARY ruled country. Three presidential generations of military men who shaped this country into the mad hole it is today. They - and everybody who depends on them to keep their fortunes flowing - would not allow a TRUE EGYPTIAN REVOLUTION to FLOURISH. Back to utopia, back to  reality. Cold, bitter, unfair. They say this is the world and there´s nothing to do about it. 


I wonder if they´re right...

Where did I see THIS?!

 A faithful portrait of the "ARTS *(???) business" in Egypt. In the cinema and dance circuit, for sure.
How many times did I meet one of these "bashas"?! How many times did I hear the phrase "I will make you famous" *(if...you open your legs in my direction, of course).
Damn, this is so TRUE and HILARIOUS.


P.S.
This video can also be applied to the way Egyptian Revolution is shamelessly stolen by the old military dogs *(the ones who are STILL ruling this country) and the Muslim Brotherhood puppets. "El horreya" ("the freedom") fight is lost. The "Bravehearts" who fought for the dream of a DEMOCRATIC, FREE, FAIR country are dead and stepped upon by the arrogant assholes (excuse my french yet again) who are laughing at their sacrifice. 

Major explosion&meltdown!

I´ve said it to the surprise of many: opposite to common belief in Egypt, I was NEVER disrespected while working as a dancer. Sure I was disrespected, harassed, hurt by the whole system that surrounds it but, ON STAGE (where my ACTUAL WORK happens) I never heard any sleazy comment or was treated in disrespecting ways which proves that physical exposure is NOT the reason why you´re harassed. 

It is OUTSIDE the STAGE, when I am not even dancing or dressed as a dancer, that the REAL DISRESPECT happens and you know what?! It is in the streets, supermarkets, taxis, you name it...when I am dressed like a camping tent in order to avoid problems. 

It ´s becoming a sad, depressing cliché but I have to point it out again: Sexual harassment is getting worse and worse in Cairo. It was already bad, as any woman who dares to walk these streets may tell you but NOW - for many reasons too wide for this post -

 it´s becoming alarming, fatal to mental sanity of both men and women.

I usually ignore - or pretend to ignore - the sexual comments I receive (to the dozens at one time) every single time I dare to go to the street. After trying all the possible tactics - and none had worked - I chose to pass by whatever came my way as if it didn´t exist. I tried boxing matches with men (NOT a JOKE) in which there was a REAL PHYSICAL fight between me and then (placidly watched by police men who also harass me to add shame to injury), I tried shaming them into CONSCIOUSNESS (NOT WORKING AT ALL Consciousness is an extinct species in Egypt), I even tried offending them, calling them all the most outrages names in the egyptian dictionary (which, curiously, a lot of freaks love and take as a sexual interest of my part ?!!!).  Nothing has worked. So it is just normal that I become a BOMB (tick-tack-tick included) ready to explode when nobody - including me - expects. 

It happen yesterday afternoon, while grabbing my cup of coffee for boost of an evening where I still had to teach and write for hours. Once I left the coffeeshop, I noticed a man followed me and immediately started to produce sleazy sounds (similar to pigs, which I guess it is very sexy!:( ) and launching at me some sexual comments I heard a million times before. I had no intention to answer him as I have more important things to do with my energy and voice but...BUT...when nobody saw it coming, I exploded:

I yelled at him to a point of losing my voice. I LOST MY VOICE. From the nervous breakdown, from the anger accumulated, from the rage of continuously being treated like a cow. I asked him what the hell was going on with him, WHY, WHY, WHY??? Not a single offense came out of my mouth but something else altogether more powerful. Some people gathered with their usual "maalesh" ("sorry...let it be...") and the guy started to deny having said or done whatever caused my breakdown. He even swore by God with a "poor me" expression on his dirty face ("Walahi, walahi!").

-"Walahi"?! How can you swear by your God, you animal, when you KNOW you are lying?! - I continued yelling at him, while people passed by staring at me as if I WAS THE CRIMINAL.

I lost it. BOG TIME. Completely. 

This is NOT the Egypt I fell in love with. It is NOT.

Mourning, death and rebirth...

My new "summer look" for Cairo, according to the current fashion. Hands and part of my arms are still showing - as well as the so devilishly seductive eyes of a woman- but let s not rush things too much, shall we? One thing at a time. 

• 

  From the quietness of my Cairo home window I sit still, surrounded by my angels (Sweety and Kenzy) and some birds that stare at me from outside. Working on my book after an early morning lovely class taught to a talented dancer. Not that I am in the mood for writing my book now but, suddenly, it became more URGENT and ESSENTIAL than EVER to write it, finish it *(as if any book is ever finished) ... and publish it. Desperately, I try to rescue what' s left of "MY EGYPT", that country where people were open minded and OPEN HEARTED, CIVILIZED, lovers of CELEBRATION and DIFFERENCES, MUSIC, DANCE and all kinds of BEAUTY in LIFE. Something of MAGICAL in this country has died but, damn it if I accept this death. I WILL NOT. I WILL NOT. I WILL NOT. The responsability to go AGAINST the TIDES is higer than ever: My ow book, my shows, my workshops, my LIFE...all must reflect that EGYPTIAN SOUL that is also the most precious pearl of my own soul. May darkness&ignorance come from all sides and corners, I am READY for the Good Battle! 

And a NOTE from my hero, Mahatma Ghandi: 

Salamat Masr Festival in Cairo. Welcome, world!

Join the Wonder team of SALAMAT MASR FESTIVAL!

It will be unforgettable...............

Here´s the update of my upcoming WORKSHOP, exclusively at SALAMAT MASR, as well as my show with my men (orchestra). A time to SHARE the Magic of the true ORIENTAL DANCE.

Welcome, everyone!!!*

UPDATE on my WORKSHOP´s DATE: I will be teaching Sunday, the 8th July from 12.30h till 2.30h 

After me will come Mona el Saied (what an honor to be followed by this* AMAZING icon of Oriental Dance) and guess where I will be at that time?! Can´t wait to teach and can´t wait to study with some of the most interesting people in this Art.

The Dancing profession: Not for lazy bones...

I´ve danced and been into sports all my life. Coming from a peasant family who worked hard in the fields from sunrise to sunset, having a competition athlete as a father and being raised by a hyperactive mother who, until now, cannot see anyone sitting still without asking this person "what´s wrong with you?" it is just normal to get my body moving constantly.

But, suddenly, an extra appreciation for DANCERS - myself included :) - revisited me unannounced. As a PROFESSIONAL DANCER who LIVES exclusively from her/his work, you cannot offer yourself the luxury of laziness. Lazy bones and dancing don´t go together as the demands are permanent and multi-faceted.

As a PROFESSIONAL DANCER you have to be an ATHLETE who keeps his/her instrument/body always fit, healthy and ready for ACTION, an ARTIST who keeps learning and improving skills, ability to CREATE new and surprising material, an ACTOR who uses his/her own feelings and internal life as fuel for the dance, an ARCHITECT which projects shapes and buildings on the floor, stage, space, an IMAGINATION freak who is constantly searching for INSPIRATION everywhere, an astute and self confident business person who knows how to promote herself and share her/his work with others in a globalized world where quantity doesn´t always mean QUALITY.

Your self confidence must be fed on a daily basis, your ability to deal with criticism - fair and unfair- must be on duty and your skin must be sensitive but thick. Your heart must be opened and vulnerable but your mind has to be STRONG as a 700 year old irish oak tree in order to receive the blows any successful person receives throughout his/her career. 

Not for sissies, that´s for sure.

Your WHOLE BEING is used in DANCE. All that you are is your instrument. No part of yourself is spared and no time can be used to sit on your ass and rest past achievements. It is an endless line of workouts, training, study, search that could make  any Hercules drop dead within a month or two. 

Uff...I get exhausted only by thinking about it.

What keeps us MOVING in all directions is, it seems to me, the PASSION for DANCE. You REALLY need to love it with all your might, otherwise you´re out of the game in no time.

Meanwhile in Egypt...

Creative solutions for the sizzling egyptian Summer heat...

And general, common place nonsense and pure craziness. 

And I yell out loud, laughing like I mean it: WELCOME TO EGYPT!

♥♥♥

• 

  
  

  

  
  

  

  "I do not try to dance better than anyone else. 

  I only try to dance better than myself."

  
  

  Mikhail Baryshnikov ♥Via: Leslie Zehr

Heading off Cairo...

For a few days, no traffic, no stress, no Cairo.

Although I´ll be working, the fact that I´ll be able to jump into the sea and feel the salt on my skin is BLISS. Portuguese, sea girl over here. Starving for the sea in Cairo is my middle name. Can´t wait to arrive.

Sun, here I come!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ghanesh....

• May all of your obstacles be removed and may you receive many blessings for your new beginnings!

  
  

  

  
  

  Via: Leslie Zehr

Salamat Masr WORKSHOP on the 8th July, Cairo!

Glad to announce that my upcoming 

WORKSHOP/MASTER CLASS at

   SALAMAT MASR FESTIVAL (CAIRO) will be held on the 8th JULY 

from 12.30h till 14.30h 

I will be teaching technique & choreography of the iconic "SET IL HOSEN" composed for Nagwa Fouad. The BEST musical entrance on stage I´ve ever come across. Lots of vocabulary, moods, challenges, emotions, surprises! 

I ´ll also be giving tips for the STAGE, PRESENCE, COMUNICATION with audiences, intelligent use of the stage, HOW TO CAUSE AN IMPACT ON THE PUBLIC and connect with it from the heart (directly to their hearts). 

More infos about this WORKSHOP and my SHOW at the site:

www.salamat-masr.com 

On the road again...choreographing challenges.

"The greater the artist, the greater the doubt." Oh, really?!

So I must be some kind of wonderful because all I have is DOUBTS, specially when choreographing a NEW PIECE for my upcoming 

WORKSHOP at SALAMAT MASR FESTIVAL, here in Cairo.

The Workshop is on the 9th July from 12.30h till 14.30h and it is breaking my head, heart and soul into a thousand pieces. Choreographing to TEACH is a very special challenge for me, specially when I am my own worst critic and I always expect something EXCITING from myself. No other critics can be as harsh as I am with myself. 

I ll be teaching an iconic music of the Egyptian Oriental Dance repertoire, you see..."SET IL HOSN" was composed by a genius for Nagwa Fouad, one of the names that made HISTORY in this dance´s path.

Building a choreography that is both artistically and pedagogically interesting AND something of my own taste is not an easy task. 

I knock on Inspiration´s door and she refuses to open itself until the "right" mood and moment arrive. Until then, I am a nerve rack, I search for movements in the wind, people´s walk in the Cairo streets, animals and plants. I search, search, search and very rarely feel satisfied with the solutions found. A mix of pleasure and torture, as everything else in Art (I guess)...

Sometimes, I get like this (see image bellow:)

 And I always relate to my own image on the mirror, while choreographing, like this (see image bellow):

Hope all the fuss is worth it. It usually is!

Dearest enemies...

Life is full of ironies, indeed. 
Although I am not the kind of person to harm others or take revenge from the terrible things some of them have done to me, I seem to gather a lovely - almost silent though  - group of enemies who seem to hate me from their guts for no apparent reason. But, looking closely, the reasons come -surprisingly - to light and all I can do is smile and accept that Life is ironic, often unfair and human beings are too complex to understand. Compassion for other´s fragility - as well as mine - also help. 


Talking with a friend on the phone, she reminded me to be cautious about my next 
BIG SHOW at "SALAMAT MASR FESTIVAL". 
"Lots of people trying to screw you, you know that...be careful!" - She advised me with full conviction.
Yes, I know it but I tend to forget it. No matter how many times I received knives on my back, I tend to forget all about it. It s a question of human instinct and survival. If I remember all the times others harmed me for the sake of their pure evilness, I would be a hermit living in a cave, totally astray from this mad world. 
 You presume that, if you´re a good person who doesn´t kill a fly you may not have enemies but that´s not quite so.


Here´s some of the main reasons why I seem to gather a delightful group of (coward) enemies:


1. I don´t swallow frogs. Meaning that I am a sweet heart but I don´t take offenses or rude behavior from anyone. May that be a king, god or whoever. You disrespect me, you see another side of me (my street girl side that is more useful than "kleenex" on a Cairo Summer day). People often mistake kindness with weakness. BIG MISTAKE!




2. I am MYSELF and I recognize no authority but my own consciousness. I treat everybody with respect and expect the same treatment. When that doesn´t happen, the smoothest reaction I can handle is to give my back to that person and forget she/he exist.




3. I didn´t open my legs (excuse my french) to a LOT of powerful men that surround the Oriental Dance business in Cairo. They hoped, tried different approaches and tactics they were sure would work on the prey  (me!) and got nothing but a kick in their butts in the end of the haunting trial. This has created a LOT of animosity regarding to my person.
As a DANCER in Cairo, you´re still supposed to sell your body in exchange for certain opportunities. As I insist on choosing the men I LIKE and, eventually, LOVE I enter a rare, dangerous realm of MARGINALITY that goes totally against this system. My bare existence and the fact that I will never bend my honor values pisses a lot of people off. Sorry, folks! The prostitute gene is not running in my veins. Very sorry for the inconvenience. 




4. Dancers who could not be successful in their work hate me to their guts and make up incredible lies about me as in a way to compensate for their failure. Being successful without having a man on my back is a slap on the face of MANY, MANY people. Both men and women.




5. Indistinct people who wish they would have my own path and victories (without the sacrifices, hard work and struggle, of course) and are too weak to build their own path. Being a mirror of some people´s frustrations brings me an whole new bunch of enemies who hate me without a specific reason. Just hate me.:((


Now...this is how I see it: 


1. I plan on giving my enemies a lot more reasons to dislike me. More success, achievements, LOVE and PASSION for my WORK and my LIFE. JOY and DIGNITY, above all.


2. I plan on being the HAPPIEST chick on earth so that you bite your nails and rip off a big deal of your own hair. I suggest you rip off your own pubic hair. I heard it s painful so you´ll not feel "the other pain" so deeply.


3. In my mind, this is how I see you all, dear enemies (check photo on the right):


(Wah, ah, ah, ah, wah ah aha aha aha aha....gutural, devilish laughter of mine):))

Welcome all...

1. THE GUEST HOUSE, 

   

   by Rumi
   
   "This being human is a guest house.
   Every morning a new arrival.
   ...
   A joy, a depression, a meanness,
   some momentary awareness comes
   as an unexpected visitor.
   
   Welcome and entertain them all!
   Even if they're a crowd of sorrows,
   who violently sweep your house
   empty of its furniture,
   still, treat each guest honorably.
   He may be clearing you out
   for some new delight.
   
   The dark thought, the shame, the malice,
   meet them at the door laughing,
   and invite them in.
   
   Be grateful for whoever comes,
   because each has been sent
   as a guide from beyond."

Choreography dedicated to all my students around the WORLD!

One of my own choreographies *(for teaching), dedicated to ALL the students that studied with me until today and who keep being a precious and essencial part of my Journey.
There would be no journey at all without you.
Specially dedicated to Ireland *(cause a promise is a PROMISE).

It is known I very rarely post my own choreographies as I see them as working&training material that is supposed to be taught directly from me to the students but, sometimes, I get special requests and this is one of them. My dear Mahmoud Reda filmed it in his studio, downtown Cairo.

With much appreciation for all the sponsors, students, audiences that cherish my work and, by doing that, give me strenght and faith to keep growing as an ARTIST, a TEACHER and a CHOREOGRAPHER.

This one is DEDICATED to all of you. My Love is always in each one of the steps we shared, share or will share.
Thanks for shinning in my Life.:)))

Salamat Masr Festival is NEXT!

 It is with immense PASSION that I am preparing my next WORKSHOP (as well as a new show with my orchestra)  at the
 SALAMAT FESTIVAL of CAIRO, this July!




Can´t wait to meet so many wonderful dancers from all around the world, meeting for a single purpose: going deeper into this MAGICAL Art that unites us all: Oriental Dance.


The Festival will take place in Cairo from the 5th till the 12th July and all infos can be found at: 
www.salamat-masr.com 


Until then, feel welcome to enjoy private lessons with me here in Cairo. Bookings can be made through email:
dancemagica@gmail.com


See you all very soon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!