Amal Choucri Catta finds historical characters spring to life Julia Domna by Enana Dance Theatre, Syria. Main Hall, Cairo Opera House, 27 and 28 February, and 1 March, 8pm; Sayed Darwish Theatre, Alexandria, 3 and 4 March, 8pm The curtain rose to violent percussion and instrumental fortissimo. Thunder rolled and lightning flashed across Cairo Opera's darkened main stage: the Gods were on the Mountain of the East and they were preparing to do battle, as is the wont of such divinities. Gradually the sombre shadows lifted on the early stages of the battle. Baal, rider of the clouds and god of lightning and thunder, is revolting against his father, Il, who prefers Yam Nahar, god of the rivers and the seas. Marduk the Wise and Tiamat the Vengeful, Ishtar "goddess of the morn and of the eve," and Shamash, god of the sun, sing songs of praise. According to a Sumerian tablet -- now in Oxford -- ten mythological kings ruled for a total of 456,000 years. As the antediluvian gods and kings were evoking their glorious past on the Main Stage the background changed from dark blue to dark green. The narrator pranced around them, revealing their tales and disclosing their secrets to the attentive audience. Finally the divinities decide to return to their heavenly abode, leaving the earth to mankind. Thunder and lightning accompany their departure as, with the end of Scene I, human history started. Yara Eid, the delightful narrator, is an extraordinary dancer. Unfortunately she was required to return repeatedly to the stage to continue her verbal commentary on the action, begging the question as to whether this kind of story-telling was absolutely necessary. Did it not rather detract from the performance? The relevant historical details could easily have been included in the programme, distributed free of charge to the audience who would then have been free to give their full attention to the choreography, sound effects, costumes, superb lighting and brilliant performances of the dancers. Having rushed down the ladder of mythology the narrator then turned to history and to Julia Domna, heroine of the show presented by the Syrian Enana Dance Theatre for three nights at Cairo's Main Hall, and for two at Alexandria's Sayed Darwish Theatre. Founded in 1990, the company appeared a few years ago on the Opera's Small Hall during the month of Ramadan. They present Syrian and Arab folklore in a contemporary manner, merging reality with fiction. Their folkloric-inspired dances embrace the aesthetic of modern ballet, synthesizing the traditional and the avant garde, while the music remains oriental, though performed on traditional Western instruments and nodding in the direction of symphonic music. The company is named after the Syrian goddess of love, fertility, culture, art and the moon, and their repertoire includes shows based on historical events, particularly the shows Sons of the Sun and Zenobia, Queen of the East. Julia Domna was the wife of the Septimus Severus, born in 146 in Lepcis Magna, Tripolitania, and proclaimed Roman Emperor in 193. He instigated a massive building programme, constructing or else repairing frontier defences, and established three new legions which were instrumental in his pursuit of military victories, particularly in the Empire's eastern territories. He reoccupied large areas of Mesopotamia, and shortly before his death even campaigned in Scotland, leading his troops in an attempt to quell the troublesome Picts. It was while he was campaigning in what is present day Syria that he met the beautiful Julia Domna, the cultivated daughter of a high-priest from Emesa, today the town of Homs. She agreed to marry Severus, and was instrumental in introducing a number of leading Eastern intellectuals to the Roman court. Following her husband's death when campaigning in Britannia, his widow returned to her home town, where she continued her activities as a patroness of the arts. Not that Domna's family connection with Rome was entirely severed, nor indeed that of the town in which she had returned to live. Julia Maesa, Domna's sister, through endless machinations, eventually managed to have her grandson made emperor. The company's showing in this particular outing on the Opera House's Main Stage was of the highest professional standard. The choreography was on the whole impressive, though it did descend into caricature with its depiction of the German tribes threatening the Empire who, however ferocious their reputation, most surely did not move like cartoon apes. Choreographer Jihad Mifleh was perhaps most successful in the movements d'ensemble, though the speed of the soloists was generally remarkable. This was a colourful show, and Mohamed Habash's score was never less than apt. The weakest sections, sadly, occurred when folklore took over without advancing the plot. That said, it should not detract from the important role Enana Dance Theatre is playing not only in introducing non-Arab audiences to traditional forms, but in updating those traditions and mixing them with the vocabulary of dance theatre.
