In one week one can learn so much. I was in the B group which for me, provided the foundation work I required to take me forwards. I knew the 2 things I needed to work on were posture and relaxation when dancing. I like many other dancers I am sure, tense up when learning something new. With a whole week of new stuff to learn, it was a fantastic way of getting me to relax into movements unknown to me in such great detail.
With these 2 targets in mind my first days were concentrated on just getting aligned. It worked and by day 3, I felt like I was moving better and responding to music and instruction in a more intuitive fashion. One moment of real clarity came when I realised my feet had become incredibly responsive to changes of direction and weight. I was able to flow at speed and this new sense of freedom made me feel graceful and powerful at the same time. I can image what it’s like to have dance in ones live all the time. Where improvements stay with you and there is no back sliding into the tightness of muscles and the feeling that one needs to start again because warm feels like it did the year before.
Alessandro and Suraya’s teamwork on this week was awe inspiring. They really run a beautiful dance week. Each group in this year got to workshop with them on alternative days. They have these complimentary qualities which draw a great deal out of the dancer and everyone in B group came away with something very special.
Added highlights were morning discussions, centered on the nature and meaning of Ashra Baladi, the place of Folkloric dance in Egypt and how it is interpreted in Hilal dance. We had a fantastic video evening which featured the production Spirit of the Heart.
http://www.hilaldance.com/hdw_eng.php
The energy and ideas that this week gave me I am still mulling over now. So for the Autumn term I am planning a series of 3 workshops based on Folkloric Egyptian Dance. Exploring the range of music available for this rich source of movement will be great fun. More information to come.
