Countdown to Under a Desert Moon

March 27, 2009 10:38 AM

When the Suez Canal was built in the mid-1800s, a profitable trade route connecting the Mediterranean to the Red Sea was not the only thing produced out of Port Said. A distinct style of dance imitating the acts of fishing, boat rowing, and playing games emerged from the communities of workers who built the canal. This style of dance, known as Port Said, eventually spread throughout other parts of Egypt and became popular among folkloric dance troupes. The students in Raqs Caravan Folklore are currently preparing a playful Port Said piece to take to the Greenberg Theatre for Under a Desert Moon.

Port Said is characterized by jumping, footwork similar to the Charleston, and pantomimes that mimic the daily activities of the workers who built the Suez Canal. The music is composed from drums, woodwinds, cymbals and strings and is usually cheery. Because the women in Port Said worked on the canal alongside the men, both women and men can perform a Port Said piece together.

Each Tuesday, the Sahara Dance downtown studio fills with laughter as the students in RCF learn new Port Said choreography. My favorite part of the piece so far is the “boat formation” in which we dance in clusters and row our arms as if we’re steering a boat. I also adore the fishing sequence in which we pretend to cast nets into the sea. This week, Elysa will come to class bearing sets of spoons for each of us to dance with and clang together as if they were cymbals.

Cissie, a member of RCF, said that her favorites parts of our choreography include “Rowing in the boats. The music really moves, and we really move. To me, the move itself fits into the music in an exciting way. Probably, though, in the end, I think my favorite part will be the SPOONS! I’m really looking forward to clicking, tapping, and clacking in unison, especially since the audience will be completely surprised and, I hope, entertained.” An evening of practicing Port Said with my fellow stage mates in RCF is usually enough to put me in good spirits, even after the most stressful day at work. However, the footwork is still very challenging for me and because the music goes so fast (for me at least!) I often confuse which foot I should be tapping, kicking or pointing. I often have to remind myself not to get too frustrated if I don’t get a particular movement right away. I’ve found that if I loosen up and have fun rather that concentrate too deeply on which foot to be moving at the right time, the steps come more naturally.

“Jumping, jumping, jumping,” said Cissie, when asked to describe what she finds most challenging about our choreography. “I’m so accustomed to dancing gracefully—on the ground—in bare feet, and this dance is so very other from the belly dancing I’ve been doing for so many years. But while we’re jumping and hopping and skipping, we still have to be light and graceful. So, very different.”

However, like many students in RCF, Cissie says that what she most looks forward to about performing our Port Said piece is, “Wowing the audience with a completely unexpected and utterly different style of Middle Eastern dance and doing it well as a group.”

“I’m excited about performing the wide (and wild) variety of steps that can make up a Port Said dance,” she says. “I expect the audience might be wondering the heck this all is, while at the same time really liking what they see.”

—Lauren

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