Only 38 days until DanceWeekend 25th Anniversary Edition!
Today’s featured company is the Egyptian Dance Company! Catch their performance on Friday January 19 at 7:50pm!
Read on to find out more about them:
- Can you tell us a little bit about your company/collective/school?
Often described as the Broadway of Belly Dance, the Egyptian Dance Company and Musicians is a multidisciplinary dance company founded by Nada El Masriya in 2005.
The Company’s Vision is to explore Egyptian and Middle Eastern dance’s naturally entertaining and positive outlook, yet entice a deeper awareness of the international world through creating an increasing transparency of political and social issues.
The company consists of 7 musicians, and 12 male and female dance artists trained in many Egyptian and Middle Eastern dance styles.
Due to the Company’s popularity and artistry, they are regularly featured in productions and performances both in Toronto, nationally and internationally. Dance Ontario, Luminato, The International Council for Traditional Music and World Belly Dance Convention to name a few.
Attracting intelligent and curious audiences into the world of dance, the Egyptian Dance Company has proudly presented four full length productions, and are currently working on their fifth.
Artistic Director Nada El Masriya is an international performer and instructor of Egyptian and Middle Eastern Dance trained in the world renowned Reda Troupe, and has received awards and recognition from some of the greatest living Belly Dancers.”Nada El Masriya is the Ambassador of Egyptian Dance in Canada.” – Fifi Abdou
- What will you be showing at DanceWeekend?
It will be an outlook on Egyptian Dance culture from the past to the present. We will be presenting four dance pieces. They will showcase Egyptian dance culture stirring together the old and traditional with the new and modern. The pieces will focus on the grace and classy signature of the art form relating it to Ancient Egyptian, then 1940, then classical, then gradually to modern time.
- Can you talk about your creative process? What inspires you?
My creative process changes from time to time. Sometimes it is a change in the Egyptian society, politically or socially, that inspires me. Sometimes it is an inspiring piece of music that reflects times of change. As an artist, inspiration is active from every direction and each project falls together from more than one inspiring moment.
- Do you have any other up-coming performances/events you would like to share?
We will be presenting international Egyptian Stars with the Egyptian Dance Academy at the Masriyatt Show in October 2018.
- What does performing at the 25th Annual DanceWeekend mean to you?
This is our fifth performance at DanceWeekend, and it is fantastic to be part of an artistic weekend with many different genres of dance and many different dance companies and independent artists.
DanceWeekend gives the people of Toronto an open door into the world of international dance culture. It is a great opportunity to present our artistic vision and share our culture. The multiculturalism of DanceWeekend is a mark of the true Canadian spirit within all dance forms and cultures.
- What is one surprising/interesting fact about your company/collective/school?
Even though I am Egyptian, have a minor in the history of Egyptian dance and culture, and spent 5 years of training with the well known Reda Troupe of Egypt, all of us at The Egyptian Dance Company spend lots of time on historical accuracy and training.
Photo by: Iden Ford