To be able to dance freely, with no choreography, is far from easy. My dance mentor, Ibrahim Farrah, used to say that first the dancer must discipline her body with many difficult choreographies before she can open up her dancing to freely express her soul. What does this mean? It means that you must train your body so well with technique that your body will get out of the way when it is time to improvise a dance and allow your emotions to shine. This route works. My own dancing and many of the dancers trained by Ibrahim Farrah can attest to that. However, it takes years of dedication and hard work. It is the thorough yet long road. In the short term, dancers are out there trying to perform in grams, clubs and charity events, and they need to be able to dance improvisationally right now! So here are some tips that I believe will help you to improve your improv shows.
You must admit, a choreographed show is so well-planned that every detail, every pose, every nuance of the music can be utilized. Its potential perfection cannot be matched by an unchoreographed performance. If you are dancing improv to recorded music, then you should at least take the time to become very familiar with that music beforehand. Knowing your music will help tremendously.
If you are performing to live music and feel that you have little control over what is being played (let alone how), try to listen a lot to the most commonly used songs in the clubs, especially the ones that are renowned as dance music. Know how to ask for that music by name.
Very important is to know when to enter. Sounds simple, but too many dancers just don’t know when to step onto the stage. Most Egyptian music sets a mood in the beginning and does not expect the dancer to enter the stage until sometime later. It will look a lot more professional if you know when that is. Some pieces indicate the entrance with a quick Malfuf rhythm. Or you might ask the musicians or your teacher.
Know when and how to END your set! If dancing to live music, listen for the band to announce your name. That is the biggest clue that they are playing the finale’ and you should spin and bow. Take a nice, smooth, unhurried bow. Also, acknowledge the band (even if they were terrible!). Then, pick up your veil in a flourish and exit the stage gracefully. Don’t hang around any longer! No one wants to see you standing there, sweating! If dancing to recorded music, oftentimes we end as the end of the music ends. Again, take a nice bow and collect your veil. Be careful which way you bend over. You don’t want to moon anyone! You might want to add a very short piece of music to accompany your exit. But even without exit music, don’t hang around. Leave the performance area with a regal walk. Remember, as long as you are on the stage, people are watching you.
As you dance, make your movements large. Too often, we think we are dancing full out, but in actuality we are not. When you are dancing improv, there are a lot of thoughts running through your head while you are performing, and they will literally affect your dancing by shrinking the movements. So make a conscious effort to move bigger.
Take your time with your movements. Don’t ever rush. Sometimes try to move to what feels like half-time. The beauty of the Egyptian dancer is that she always looks relaxed. Her relaxed joy is then conveyed to the audience.
Make patterns on the dance floor. Reverse. Repeat. Remember theme and variation. Follow the melody. Too many dancers don’t pay attention to the melody and, therefore, do not look like they are connecting with the music. Of course, this assumes that you already know how to follow the rhythm. If you can’t follow the rhythm, then quite frankly, you should not be performing in the first place.
If you use a cane, sword, cymbals or shamedan (candelabra), use it throughout one entire song, if possible. Don’t discard the item too soon or too quickly. Look like you enjoy dancing with it and you know what you are doing. Make it a complete dance.
Veil work is wonderful, especially for an opening. Tour the stage at least once when you enter to greet your audience. When I don’t know how much dance space I will have, I bring two veils with me. One is silk (my favorite and always my first preference). The other is not silk. If there is too little space to dance, a silk veil might float into someone’s face or food. In that case, use the heavier veil. It will move closer to your body. Always be conscious of where the veil goes, so you don’t accidentally knock into anything or anyone.
Probably one of the best tips applies to all your shows, improvised or not. Please, habibi, do your best to not only look at the audience, but purposely choose to make eye contact with the women and not the men! Particularly look over the heads of the men that are sitting directly in front of you. Otherwise, it is far too intimate.
A few don’ts to follow: Don’t wipe off your sweat on stage. Pretend it doesn’t exist.
Don’t perform your entire drum solo with your back to the audience while you stare at the drummer. The drummer should be watching you and your hips. It will not help you to watch his hands. Besides, keeping your back to the audience for too long is uninteresting, even if you think you are showing off your best assets.
Try not to fidget in your costume. Do your best to take care of costume problems by drawing as little attention to them as possible.
I hope you can apply these suggestions to your next improv show. Of course, the best way to be a great dancer is to get out there and dance. The more experience you have, the more you will grow as a performer and artist. Bear in mind the advice of the late, great Ibrahim Farrah: "Get you body out of the way and let your spirit soar!"
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©2000 Jasmin Jahal