Joana Saahirah´s World Blog
A Collection of Articles, Videos, and Freebies on Egyptian Dance, Self-Discovery & Empowerment
An Intimate Portrait of Mahmoud Reda
We´re on the highway, between Cairo and Alexandria, and Abdel Wahab is playing on the radio.
There´s light - a light you only find in Egypt, attached to a scent of past and hope - peaking through my window in the backseat of the car. A soul-comforting light; one of the reasons why I lived and worked in Egypt for almost a decade of my life; a return home.
There's me, Mahmoud Reda, and his wife, in the car.
I´m singing along, using my best Arabic, with Abdel Wahab.
The song ...
Where my Heroine´s Journey started
What I Learned from Egyptian Women
After many years of career and life in Egypt, and in other countries of the Middle East & North Africa, here´s something I have to admit:
I A-D-O-R-E Egyptian Women and I´ve learned a great deal from them.
Want me to lift the veil, just a bit, and share the goodies with you?
Your wish is my command.
In this Blog Audio Post, I´m sharing a few of the most precious lessons I´ve learned from Egyptian and Arab Women I met.
Grab a cup of tea. Relax. Listen and enjoy (audio post above⬆️⬆...
Om Kolthoum can change your life (I´ll show you how)
Om Kolthoum can change your life.
I know this is an ambitious claim but, I assure you, we can fulfill it.
As usual, I write/dance/teach from experience. The theory isn´t enough - it never was. I have to live to tell.
And I´ve been living it - this long-time love affair with the music of Om Kolthoum and its side effects.
Most Oriental dancers, from every level, associate the music of Om Kolthoum to a distant, out of reach, sophisticated world but my story with her music tells me otherwise.
...Let it burn (Full Moon in Scorpio Celebration)
View from our laundry room
From where I stand, with my pc and a cup of sour, black coffee in hands, there´s a horizon of nature blooming. Luxurious, unapologetic. On your face.
Spring´s here. Everything sings. The sun is finally coming back, reminding us of our identity, the personal star that wants to shine its peculiar light; offering that extra boost of energy that´ll invite us, as it does every year, to CREATE.
Create, and forever recreate, ourselves.
Create our lives.
Create ...
The Lesson from Mahmoud Reda that changed my Life
- Beauty can be found in the ugliest places
You´ll not hear me using the expression “Master” or “Master Teacher” frequently. I rarely use that title, one of deep respect and admiration, the kind of recognition that cannot be bought or marketing-made.
For me, a Master Teacher isn´t only someone who has a deep and wide dominion over their craft. In the case of Mahmoud Reda, that´s Egyptian Dance (Oriental & Folklore).
A Master Teacher is someone who transcends their craft becomin...
Celebrate YOURSELF, your DANCE, your LIFE
I know the preparation for the NEW YEAR usually focuses on our DREAMS and, hopefully, in the STEPS we have to take in order to materialize them. That´s all good. Though not enough.
Experience has taught me there are too many plans for the future and too little APPRECIATION for the path already walked. We´ve all been the recipient of opportunities, blessings, lessons, hardships and victories; we´ve all been given the sweet and the sour. But few of us look back to
GIVE THANKS.
Today, I look ...
What the last decade - of DANCE & LIFE - taught me
Looking back has never been "my thing" unless I do it as a student. A student of life.
We may live, or survive, without gathering our bearings; we may also grow older without growing up - ever. I choose to gather my bearings and to grow up. Annualy, weekly, I´d say daily.
As we enter 2020, I stop, breathe, and look back in search of answers, guidelines, lessons learned, jewels I can take with me on my upcoming Life Chapter.
We´re starting a new decade, one I believe will be a huge turn for ...
What happens - in your dance & in your life - when your heart is closed?
Egyptian Dance has become a competition, an endless marathon, a game of divas, lobbies, and marketing-made stars. I´m not complaining, just stating. Knowing where we are helps us define where we want to go.
Within this trend, there´s no space for EMOTION, SOUL, PRESENCE, LIFE.
The Egyptian Dance scene has become an extension of the world we´re currently living in, one that´s obsessed with EFFICIENCY, PRODUCTIVITY, GOAL ACHIEVEMENT, MACHINE-LIKE SPEED & PERFECTIONISM, TIME MANAGEMENT and a...
Precious Lessons I learned from Mahmoud Reda, the Father of Egyptian Folklore
My path, in life as in dance, hasn´t always been easy but it has been rich, filled with evolution, joy, accomplishments, pleasure, and blessings.
One of the biggest gifts I received was Mahmoud Reda´s friendship, teachings, and support.
Mahmoud Reda
If you love Egyptian Dance and you don´t know Mahmoud Reda and/or The Reda Troupe, you have to change it. Educate yourself, starting HERE and HERE.
When I moved to Egypt and launched my first shows with an entire - handpi...
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