Dances with Yara – Dr. Mo Geddawi interview

I am thrilled to present this interview with Master Dr. Mo Geddawi, a revered co-founder of the Reda Troupe and one of the most influential figures & legends in Egyptian dance history. His artistry and choreography’s have left an indelible mark on the world stage, and his career is a testament to his exceptional contributions to the art form.

Dr. Geddawi’s brilliance as a teacher and artist has solidified his status as a legend in Egyptian dance. It is both an honor and a privilege to share his insights and wisdom with you. Although this interview was originally slated for publication in the summer of 2023, it has arrived at the perfect moment—during this sunlit month, bringing warmth and illumination to our journey as artists through the guidance of a true dance icon.

To my dear Ostaz Dr. Mo Geddawi: from the botton of my heart THANK YOU!!! ❤

¿What is Tarab?

Tarab is special Arabic music. It is generally not religious and can be more emotional and technically flamboyant at times. Tarab forms of music have the ability of uplifting the listener from his or her current state and take them somewhere else on an emotional journey, where the listener is led to feel overwhelmed by the joy , sadness, or just plain elation for the music that is being performed. Tarab dance means simply to dance on Tarab music. Doing so the dancer must feel the music and interpret it through movements and feelings to the audience. For those who want to understand Arabic music on a deeper
level, they must first understand the concept of Tarab.

What a foriegn dancer can`t never forget when dance Baladi?

Baladi dance is an expression of the music and people. It is a folk dance, a part of the ethics culture of Egypt and the sensual elements is definitely subdued. Young girls learn the movements by mimicking their elders. They may perform for their families and for guests usually for the fun of it.
Professional dancers perform Baladi in night clubs, on dtages and weddings. Their belly dance costume is a Thobe or the typical two pieces costume. The Baladi music is usually only accordion and Tablas
(Drums). Taqsim is integral part of the baladi music. The instrumentalist
does a question and answer with the drummer. This question and answer is called ME-Attaa, which means broken up bits of music and rhythm. The dance movements in Baladi are accentuated strong hip kicks according to the music and drum, hip shimmies, shoulder shake and belly flattering …etc. The communication with audience is very important to motivate them.

¿One of the Keys to become a great dancer?

Apart from the talent, which is a prerequisite to become a dancer, and love for the art of dance. What helps to make A great dancer?
1- The first thing is to learn both the dance movements and steps as well as the dance techniques and styles. 2- To continue learning to improve body`s physical condition and your dance abilities.
3- To live the dance . what does this mean? To dance as much as you can, to keep tuning your body. Your thinking is occupied by the dance and its music, costumes, etc. This means simply that the dance has high priority in your life. 4- The 4 th thing which is very important is to understand the dance. Unfortunately I have realized during my long experience that very few dancers do understand the dance. So we all work hard to learn the dance steps and movements, we all live the dance, but we do not try to understand it. What does it mean to understand the dance? It is first to learn the technique of the basic movements and steps, this includes the feet work, energy distribution and energy control, breathing technique and finally how to manipulate the basic steps and movements. When you do a step or movement you should
know its basic origin. To become a good dancer you will need to learn the steps and movements and to know how to correlate the different movements and steps with breathing and energy distributionmin the body during execution of the movements. You should understand the drama of the dance and tactics used to deliver a successful performance.

¿What you think a dancer need a to focus on to become a successful and respected dancer and present the oriental dance as a respected art?

Providing she is a good dancer, meaning she has acceptable quality of her dance abilities, good musicality and deliver a good choreography or improvisation, she avoids vulgar movements and have balanced communication with audiences. She should make sure she wears the right costume and right makeup. Last but not least she should maintain her individuality and personality. All the above impress the audience and consequently make them respect the oriental dance as an art.

¿Which dancers have influenced your teaching style and way of appreciating Oriental dance?

In the fifteen the first dancers, who influenced my appreciation of the oriental dance were the legendary Mm Tahira Carioca, Mm Samia Gamal and Mm Zenati Ulwi. I loved there classical style of the golden age, the clear graceful movements and strong personalities. Later I appreciated the Legendary Mm Sohair Zaki, specially her great interpretation of the music. Both Mm Tahia Carioca and Mm Sohair Zaki got the title Queen of the Oriental Dance.

¿Why you believe that attending competitions could benefit a dancer development?

Participating in dance competitions is beneficial to dancers in three ways: 

A- before the competition and process of preparation, choosing the music, listening to the music, starting improvisation, raw choreography, final choreography, choice of costume etc. during all these processes the dancer will gain a better understanding of dance, which will lead to the improvement of their dance abilities and quality. 

B- During the competition the dancer will gain the experience of performing on the stage under stress. She will learn to overcome fear and experience the positive stage fever instead. 

C- After competition the dancer will work to improve the mistakes she might have done, and make use of the experiences, which she gained also from observing performances of other competitors. 

Dancers might seek help or advise from experts including teachers, choreographers, Designers, musicians, make up, etc before the competition.

What makes a star, (a great) dancer

In addition to the above
1- To have artistry, meaning uniqueness and individuality, ability to communicate and high awareness of delivering a good performance including best makeup, costume, choice of your music lighting, etc.
2- To use intelligence, by building your image through good marketing campaign. Act professionally and be expensive. You can use a professional manager or agent. 3- And exposure to good choreographers, work with good
choreographers. A good choreographer can raise the quality of your dancing by making a choreography, which suits you and tailored to hide your weaknesses and emphasize your strengths.
Dr. Mo Geddawi.

Special thanks to the living legend Ostaz Dr. Mo Geddawi. ❤

I look forward to your coments, and don´t forget to share so that more dancers colleages have the oportunity to read this interview with the big star master Dr. Mo Geddawi.

Thank you ❤