Jalilah Weekend Workshops & Show
This beautiful sunny spring weekend in Kelowna was a fabulous learning experience. I always try and get to Linda Kovach sponsored workshops, because she gets “the good ones” in, the shows are fun, and it’s only an hour away. This time I performed in Linda’s show, so it was even more fun. Jalilah did not disappoint. She has a love for the dance and a lot of experience with the culture that she shared with us. You don’t find that too often in dance workshops. I loved the sound of her voice, with that international accent, it was like music to my ears. The Saturday workshop focused on the Gawazee style of dance and it was very fun and we all enjoyed the big hip movements as well as the choreographies. Sunday featured the Stars of the Casino Opera and I was fascinated to discover more about that era, and the dancers who made such an influence and still carry over in today’s dance form.
Jalilah showed us videos from her private collection and she was bursting with knowledge and information. A lot of time was also spent on Om Kalsoum, her music and her importance in Middle East culture. A truly wonderful workshop with many things to take home and ponder. Jalilah was organized, pleasant and professional. Her choreography teaching was well done with an excellent system of pre-recorded music sections, so no time was ever spent fast forwarding and re-winding ad naseum. Whether we’re teaching or participating, that can be an annoyance.
My only one beef is that there were no take home choreography notes and people were hurriedly scribbling notes in class to try and remember the sequences. This complaint was remedied quickly by Jalilah’s prompt response to my email in which she sent me her own choreography notes. She also has a fabulous collection of CDs which she has produced that are well done and offer a nice variety of Egyptian style music with excellent production quality. I highly recommend them.
Lee and I performed a drum solo & zill number at the Saturday Night show which was well received. In fact, the whole show was vibrant, fun and enjoyable. Jalilah’s performances were the highlight with a Gawazee number and another folkloric centered piece. A joy to watch.
Congratulations to Linda Kovach who worked so hard to make it such an excellent night for all involved.
Saturday, May 28, 2005