Rania Khallaf has been caught up in the message and magic of dance choreographed by women The Egyptian International Modern Dance Festival is in its second week and is getting more exciting as it gets underway. Three consecutive dance shows, all distinguished in their own way, were choreographed -- and mostly danced -- by women and proved that women from both East and West have managed to cross the gender limit, or let us say the red line, more effectively than ever before. Last week the Natasha Carlitz Dance Ensemble presented a breathtaking show. A choreographer and dancer, Carlitz imbued the stage with a spirit of enthusiasm, romance and joy. The ensemble of eight dancers, all women, resonated with a sense of ecstasy and challenge. Established in San Francisco in 2005, the Carlitz ensemble specialises in modern dance choreography addressing themes ranging from abstract mathematical concepts and verbal games to physical puzzles posed by unusual spaces. The programme presented at the Goumhuria Theatre last week, however, was a repertory of works choreographed by Carlitz over the last decade, and retained a hint of neo-classicism. The dances included Tempus Fugit, a celebration of life danced to the beautiful Beethoven Violin concerto in D and a set of three haunting solos set to arias by Carl Orff; and Time Running Out, an altogether gloomier work in which dancers are driven to the edge of endurance in a rebellion against the inevitably predetermined and limited nature of time. The second half of the programme was rather brighter. The costumes were vibrant and the performers danced with energy and that belied their light steps, especially in the one dance with a sportive theme. Heba Fayed, an Egyptian artiste who joined the company two years ago, is the only non-American member of the ensemble. The audience applauded warmly at the end of the performance when the beaming Fayed sat on stage along with the other dancers and told the story of her unique experience with the ensemble. Fayed worked with Walid Aouni's contemporary dance company for seven years, and was the lead dancer in such performances as Moving Sands and Scheherazade. She won a scholarship to study modern dance in Europe, and later flew to the United States to join the Natasha Carlitz Dance Ensemble. Asked by Al-Ahram Weekly if choreography for an all- female ensemble placed some constraints on the themes presented by the ensemble, Carlitz replied that this did not put any restrictions on her as a choreographer. This was largely because she had already dealt with so many issues. "I am strong and have some physically strong members here who can play the role of a male dancer and carry other female dancers," Carlitz told the Weekly. "I insist that all my members are female because, first of all, yes, I am a feminist, and second because I want to give female dancers an equal chance to prove their talents. In this field female dancers outnumber their male counterparts." The second great show was Sally Ahmed's " This might have seemed like a dream ". The performance is based on Jean Genet's play The Maids. From the very first moment the cheerful and childish spirit of the choreographer was instantly apparent. Ahmed, who danced the role of one of the two maids, is a staff member at the High Institute of Ballet and the first ballerina to dance in several of the modern ballets choreographed by Aouni. This is her first experience as a choreographer. The storyline centers on the life of two young housemaids who long to live and love like other young women. In their struggle to achieve their dream they fall into conflict with their mistress, who treats them badly. Their conflict is heightened to the extent that the maids feel obliged to kill her. Although it is in effect a tragedy, Ahmed deals with it in a lighthearted and even humorous fashion. Her choreography of cheerful dances and her choice of vividly-colored costumes help convey a message of sympathy towards people who find themselves marginalized in society. Dance proved to be a good way for the maids to overcome their frustration and express their dream of a better life. The only shortcoming for me was that the 45-minute performance was packed with far too many dance routines ranging from jazz to tango. For me, too, the ending rather let the show down. It took the form of a short documentary featuring the lives of marginalized people in general those who sleep on the streets and in shanty towns, and was accompanied by a satirical Arabic pop song. The message was a bit too direct and was utterly unsuitable in the framework of a dance festival. I Am Not Done Yet was the title of the next dance, which was choreographed by Mirette Michel and was presented at the Opera House's Open Air Theatre last week. This was more of an experimental play than a modern dance performance. Ten minutes before the start of the show the dancers appeared to the audience as a group of young male and female dancers seated as motionless as statues on two adjacent sofas. The performance dealt with the obvious problems that young people face in this fast-changing society, and reflected the conflicting values of modern life. "I hate myself, I hate my friends, and I hate this country... I hate wandering about on Qasr Al-Nil Bridge,..." one of the male dancers says. Actually there was more talk and movement than dancing. However, the performance did dare to discuss sexual desire and such issues in a male-female relationship in an obvious manner not usually seen on the Egyptian stage. The female dancers adopted risqué, acrobatic-like movements to reflect the tense nature of sexual relations between young people today. A young man tries to allure his lover, but whenever he kisses her she repeatedly says "No!", leaving him in total frustration. In another scene, by contrast, we watch her gaily jumping on his arms and shoulders in a sensual frolic. The opposite thing happens with another couple, and where a young woman on the plumpish side tries to attract her partner, but he rejects her cold kisses her lifeless attempts to seduce him. A male dancer delivered some humorous short lines: "I just wanna you to enjoy the present moment, because it is all what we got!" Equally, I wished there were less talk in the 45- minute performance so that the audience would have better enjoyed the spectacle.
