Dance Attic London - Saturday 3rd April, 1999 - Review by Afra al Kahira

I have often admired Leila Haddad as a performer so I was particularly looking forward to this MOSAIC sponsored workshop and I was not disappointed. Leila is one of those rare performers who is also a gifted teacher and she was obviously only too happy to share her vision of Middle Eastern Dance with her students.

First of all Leila took us through an excellent and very thorough warm-up, then we moved on to an introduction to some step sequences, which were later included as part of a choreography. Right from the start Leila was keen to make sure that all the participants got a chance to a) see her clearly and b) have some personal attention. Leila expected very high standards from the participants, regardless of experience, but she went out of the way to inspire us all to try just that little bit harder. To a certain extent this reminded me of auditions I have participated in over the years, where even the warm-up is a kind of performance. Having said that I must stress that this atmosphere did not foster an air of competition, merely the feeling that every time we danced a movement it was, in a subtle way, a ‘performance’. As I looked around the room it certainly seemed to make some of my fellow students blossom.

One thing that certainly impressed me was Leila’s ability to develop the content of the workshop as the day progressed. In the run-up to a lunch break, (which happened despite protests from Leila who wanted us to work through the entire workshop without a break!) Leila spent a great of deal of time helping us to develop technique in different areas, enabling us to appreciate the difference between various movements when used for baladi or sharqi.

Later, as we began work on a small choreography, I felt we really were beginning to understand Leila’s concept of using space effectively when performing on a stage. As our dance continues to grow, performing in a theatrical environment is a very useful skill to develop.

Leila talked about how to use the space on stage in a visually exciting manner, and effectively demonstrated how to utilise space, movement and music to their best advantage. I wish we had had time to develop this a little bit further.

For the last segment of the afternoon Leila gave us the opportunity to demonstrate some of the skills we learned earlier in the day. Then we were asked to improvise to a piece of music, whilst Leila watched and asked questions. Some of the participants with less performance experience said they found this a little daunting, but Leila was careful to make everyone feel relaxed and gave ample encouragement to all. At this stage I was just an observer (my first workshop after an injury), but even so I picked up several useful teaching tips as I sat and watched the efforts of my fellow students.

From discussions with a few of the participants at the end of the workshop, I sensed that some were a little disappointed we didn’t learn a complete choreography. Part of the problem may be that we are so used to being taught an entire choreography at a workshop that when we are presented with content designed to stretch us more as performers, it can seem a little strange and daunting. I certainly felt the time and money I spent on this workshop was a good investment and would welcome similar workshops in the future.

I left with a feeling of anticipation at the opportunity to see Leila perform in the MOSAIC Oriental Matinee the following day. Click here for a review of the Oriental Matinee

Afra al Kahira