Samia Gamal and Farid al Atrache (3)

A clip from the 1951 movie 'Taa la salem'.  Farid al Atrache plays Meshmesh a poor singer who works as a waiter in a nightclub while waiting for his chance at the big time.  Samia Gamal plays a famous bellydancer whose father owns the nightclub where Meshmesh works. While Meshmesh secretly loves Sokara he knows he has no chance, until he unexpectedly inherits a fortune.

Samia Gamal and Farid Al Atrache (2)

A second clip from the 1949 Egyptian movie 'Afrita Hanem'. In this musical comedy Farid al Atrache plays Asfour, a poor singer who finds a magic lamp inhabited by a genie played by Samia Gamal. Asfour wants the genie to help him win the heart of a money hungry woman he has his eye on....but the genie has other ideas.

Samia Gamal and Farid Al Atrache (1)

A clip from the 1949 Egyptian movie 'Afrita Hanem'.  In this musical comedy Farid al Atrache plays Asfour, a poor singer who finds a magic lamp inhabited by a genie played by Samia Gamal.  Asfour wants the genie to help him win the heart of a money hungry woman he has his eye on....but the genie has other ideas.

Soheir Zaki, pt 2

Soheir Zaki, pt 1

Egyptian bellydance legend Soheir Zaki.  Part 1 of a stage performance.

Lebanese bellydancer Amani: nightclub and tableau

Two clips: the first from Amani's nightclub show and the second is an Indian themed piece using music from one of her early CDs.

 

Lebanese bellydancer Howaida Hashem: Part 2 of 2

Lebanese bellydancer Howaida Hashem Pt 1 of 2

What you get when you buy bellydance dvds in Uzbekistan

I've finally started looking at the dvds I bought in Uzbekistan. Many of them have bellydancers in costume on the covers but when you buy in the souqs in this part of the world one rule applies - what you see usually isn't what you get :-)
Anyway, it turns out the dvds were great value, costing the equivalent of about $2 and most of them have 50-70 different MTV-style clips on them, Arabic, Persian, Armenian, a few Turkish and of course lots of Uzbeki. In most of the Uzbeki dvd clips there'll be a scene showing the background dancers wearing modern clothes, then further on they'll be in bellydance costumes doing a couple of moves, and then later on the same girls in traditional Uzbek costumes. This clip is a bit different as all the dance is 'bellydance-style' though not in costume. The song's called 'Leila' the singer's Amran (Armenian or Kurkish, anyone know?)


 

Nile musicians: Kom Ombo, Egypt

If you've done a Nile cruise you might recognise these musicians who play in the garden restaurant in Kom Ombo, Egypt.