Happy International Day of Myths and Legends, everyone!
In case you didn't know - and I didn’t either until the idea of Myth of the Month rubric as part of The Feral Dancer blog was proposed - it is celebrated annually on October 11th. This inaugural post was inspired by ongoing debate and attempt at “damage control” that a lot of us in the belly dance sphere engage in.
Lo and behold, the heavy weight of the belly dance world: “There is no sexual undertone in indigenous Egyptian belly dance!”.
Well, if you're still arguing this point - lemme ungracefully pluck you off your unicorn and bring you back to the planet Earth.
When it comes to professional performances, historical evidence suggests that there were sexual undertones and innuendos in all kinds of Egyptian arts way before “those pesky foreign dancers came to Cairo and ruined a venerable profession”. And don’t get me started on “being a belly dancer used to be a respectable trade until the infiltration of… (insert whatever it is you love to hate: foreign dancers, former strippers, gymnasts or whoever else you blame for the moral fall of belly dance)”. That’s a topic for another day - a day when synergistic effects of caffeine, nicotine, midnight air and kitty purrs give me an inexhaustible supply of patience.
Back to sex in indigenous Egyptian arts…
Foreseeing my Editor’s reaction, I’m obligated to say this… Buckle your seatbelt, Dorothy, ‘cause we’re up for another long one!
And speaking of long…
Ever heard of Ali Kaka? Allow me to introduce you to the character most known in rural areas and among lower classes! The man, the clown, the legend wearer of a special belt that has a massive penis hanging off of it. See for yourself. Please note these are digitally enhanced and coloured stereographs, here’s another one from the same time, same place and it appears to be unaltered. Also note the two ghawazi dancers! You can see them riding Ali like a horse and dancing with what I might call tahtibs due to my unfamiliairity with the subject at hand. Pun intended. This type of entertainment is by no means aimed at foreign visitors and tourists. This is a genuinely sha’abi way of having fun.
Sooo… we have penises (at least one on public display), we have belly dancers, we have an audience… All in one place at the same time! Is it too much to extrapolate that sexual jokes, banter and gesturing were normal parts of performances such as this?
How ‘bout some raunchy pop music? Gramophone pop music that is! Known as taqtuqa, this early 20th century recording is performed by the famous alma Bahiya al-Mahalawiya. The name of this well-known wedding song is “Ya nakhlaten fil-’alali” (Two tall palm trees). In the interest of brevity, I will spare you the full translation but this quote from Frédéric Lagrange sums it up quite clearly:
“An erotic gradation follows a vertical order, detailing the bride’s body from her hair to her most intimate parts, euphemistically referred to as ‘howwa’... Sung by women in front of other women, in the haramlik, this song presents the bride’s body as a merchandise offered to male desire, but a precious merchandise only women know the value of. The bride learns from the alma how to obtain the most in exchange for the man’s pleasure, since he is ready to accept any condition.” (Lagrange F. 2009. Women in the Singing Business, Women in Songs. History Compass)
Raunchy enough for ya? This is what the art of awalem in appropriate context appears to have been: a little sex education, a little life wisdom, lots and lots of fun. Keep in mind, the later versions of the “Ya nakhlaten fil-’alali” song were “sanitized” and are known to this day.
More sex ed coming up! This is probably the part of my rant that will leave some of you in awe and wonder (like, what the hell have you been doing with your dance life all of this time?..) since we’re about to embark on a journey that spans centuries yet feels relevant to any epoch. I am quoting a non-primary source here, Heather D. Ward - researcher, book author and dance teacher. However, the primary sources she uses in her work, published in the first half of the 19th century, are in public domain now and are available in digital format on the interwebs. Being able to read French is helpful but not necessary since Google Lens does a pretty decent job translating to English (you can bet your ruby slippers I checked!).
“When two a’lmeh dance together, one of the two represents the lover, and they play
some silent scenes where taste and delicacy are not to be sought: the greatest skill
consists in finding the most licentious attitudes and gestures.” (Jomard, M. 1822. Description Abrégée de la Ville et de la Citadelle du Kaire. In Description de l'Égypte. État Moderne, Tome 2, Partie 2. Paris: l'Imprimerie Royale.)
“…two a‘lmeh went down into the courtyard, where they performed the most
lascivious dances, one of them imitating the man, the other the woman; and they
rendered, by movements too expressive in the eyes of a European, the attacks of
the lover, the resistance and the fall of the young girl; but the Orientals take great
pleasure in these faithful representations, and the young of both sexes freely
attend.” ( Du Bois-Aymé, M. and Jollois, M. 1826. Voyage dans l’Intérieur du Delta. In Description de l'Égypte. Tome Quinzième. Etat Moderne. Paris: l'Imprimerie Panckoucke.)
Now, before you get your pitchforks out and march forward shouting “Orientalists' fantasy!”, allow me to illustrate. (A word of caution: turn down the volume of your device as the sound quality might leave your ears bleeding)
What you see is contextually appropriate and, more or less, expected by the audience. Note the elements of reenactment of what's to come once this party is over and the two newlyweds are off to make new humans! The song “Elli Shatr Enhaa Tgannen” performed in the video by Umm Samah and her younger colleague, is a known wedding song, pretty much a manual for the freshly married couple, full of double meanings and sexual innuendos. Umm Samah performs this act with a dancer on occasion.
Convinced yet? Either way, here’s a performance to behold! Not only does fannana (ghaziya) Fatma Bayoumi offer hands-on experience for the bride, she balances 3 (three!!!) chairs in her teeth! You’re welcome.
Let me say it again, this is a professional traditional Egyptian entertainer performing for mixed age, mixed gender Egyptian audiences. This is what she says into the microphone:
“Bridegroom…
Bride…
Take your time…
The time has not come yet…
Either way…
Take it slowly…
Calmly…
I mean you, bridegroom!”
In conclusion, the level of sexiness from zero to infinity of any belly dance performance depends on many factors, two of the major ones being context and the artist’s personal preference. The examples given in this post are more likely to be encountered in the context of lower social class weddings and other celebrations outside of major urban centers. Let’s face it, your chances of seeing a dancer hump a chair in Zamalek is pretty slim. But denying that sex had and still does have a place in indigenous arts is silencing all those local artists that perform what might be unsettling to some sensitive eyes and ears. If you continue to sanitize belly dance, you promulgate stigmatization of professional entertainers in Egypt. Instead, accept that what we call belly dance can be many things, and stop dismissing something historically accurate just because “I don’t like it!”.
As a last word to commemorate the first ever publication of Myth of the Month, I’d like to share something very important with you. The importance of such sources cannot be overstated in any attempt at constructive dialog within the belly dance sphere.
This is a German documentary film that came out in 1991, called “Nazla el Adel | Die Königin der Mohammed-Ali-Strasse | Queen of Muhammed Ali Street” .
Thanks to Shining Peacekeeper, we have the opportunity to watch this 1 hour long movie and see one of the very well known awalem Nazla el Adel, famous for her raqs shamadan performances, among other things. This is a relic of a bygone era since the awalem culture doesn't seem to exist anymore. I strongly encourage you to watch this documentary before it gets taken down for any reason.
If you didn't find my post convincing, or would like to continue the discussion, get in touch: askauntiehelen@gmail.com
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