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Bellydance Superstars - 2005

Various dates in the South and South West Spring & Autumn 2005

For various reasons I have ended up seeing the current tour's show several times in the last few months. As a result I have seen some interesting changes in the development of the show as a whole. The show itself is slick, and the group choreographies are extremely well thought out and executed. In the Spring tour it became apparent to me that this was a tour with too many dates in a small country, that towards the end the dancers were very weary and probably homesick, and that apart from a new and far superior finale and in Exeter a great new opening, this was a show that lacked much of what we saw in London just a few months back.

Lacking? Well for starters there was no Ansuya, Dondi or Kaeshi and no attempt was made to replace those elements, although Jillina is now doing an oriental solo as part of the second half. As a consequence the show is missing the variety of styles that made the London show work so well. This is not to denigrate the talent of its' performers - the show wouldn't work if it wasn't comprised of a line-up of extremely able dancers. One of the things that appealed so much to me in London was the light and shade bought by Ansuya's passionate American Cabaret numbers, Dondi's Marilyn (whether you love or hate it), Kaeshi's beautiful candle dance and the Bellyqueen duet. Now we were seeing something much more homogenised, not bland but in some respects just missing that little bit 'extra'. That said, we were still 'wowed' by Petite Jamilla's whirling, exciting double veils, the felinesque tribal dancers, and the quality of all the performances. The Polynesian set is still there, although I think I must be the only person I know who actually likes it! I loved the new finale! I had read in various places about the addition of a Desert Rose who danced on stilts and thought ' OMG - PT Barnum is coming to town!' However, I am prepared to admit that I was wrong. The stilts only appeared in the finale and to great effect, adding an interesting and fun element to the first of the final songs. The decision to have everyone wear costumes on a theme of white and gold for the finale also worked well - giving the whole thing a nice cohesion. So on the whole we walked away from the Spring tour feeling that we were glad we went.

Moving on then to the Autumn Tour. This tour is more for those who haven't seen it before or are die-hard fans. Why? A new opening that is excellent and of course the great finale. However, except for the some changes to the line-up (no Michelle Campbell and Aubre, two new Desert Roses) and some minor changes to some of the numbers, this is pretty much what we saw on the Spring Tour just a few months ago! I can understand that going with a tried and tested format is no bad idea, but if you are going to do that it's no good touring the same country with what is in many respects the same show, 3 times in less than a year! Even the programmes are the same as the Spring ones. I am having trouble remembering the names of the two new dancers - which is a shame because they are good dancers and deserve recognition in the programme.

In defence of the show, I have to say that the one I saw in Exeter had one really big thing going for it - most of the dancers looked like they were having the time of their lives! There were big smiles for the audience and each other, and I have to say that it looked like they were having lots of fun. Lots of happy, smiley faces - this is what it should all be about! This was certainly reflected in their dancing too! To be honest the only exception to this appeared to be Amar Gamal. I was so very disappointed by her wings solo - she came on with a double set, and being the only dancer in the UK to use them I was very interested to see how she danced with them. In my opinion what I saw was a dancer being danced by her prop - not anything like enough actual dancing by her. I heard many people commenting during the interval that they felt she seemed very remote, which is sad because she is a truly excellent dancer.

I think it is fair to say that no matter how accomplished the presentation and execution is, it is now apparent that some of the choreographies are looking rather tired. The opening and closing numbers are an exception to this, plus it seems to me that those involved with the Habibi Dah/Narin Nareen number look like they'd quite happily dance it twice if they had to. It's a very catchy song, one that I love myself, so I can appreciate how much they enjoy dancing to it. Many of the dancers now have an air of self-assurance about them that was missing in previous shows, which is lovely to see. These dancers have traveled a long, and in many respects difficult road to arrive where they are now. Not only do they have a grueling tour schedule to fulfil, spending many hours on a bus hundreds and hundreds of miles from home, they are also carrying the burden of the belly dance community's opinions and expectations too. Not always an easy thing to do, but they have acquitted themselves well. All those who have taught workshops have come over as nice people who genuinely care about our art form and those who perform it. This is also true of their meetings with the audience after a show - gracious, friendly and not a sign of impatience when asked the same question for goodness how many times. I've even seen some of the tribal dancers giving demonstrations on particular movements to avid fans in the lobbies of several theatres - how many other dancers would be as generous as that? My hat (or hip-belt) goes off to each and every one of them.

When they finish their tour over here the Bellydance Superstars head off for an extended run in Monaco, during which time I understand they will be putting together a new show ready for their Spring tour of the US. I look forward to seeing this new show when they next return to the UK.

Afra al Kahira

For information about the Bellydance Superstars - www.bellydancesuperstars.com