Customer Reviews

Lifting the Veil of Time [VHS]

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

"Lifting the Veil of Time," is a tribute to the Art of Belly Dance. Donna Sayada has meticulously woven a stunning tapestry of dance. While accurately presenting the history of this ancient dance, she deftly avoids the trap of a dry, strictly academic documentary by framing the work with a beautifully written and presented narrative. The resultant story is as rich as any Arabian Nights Tale with its amusing cultural anecdotes, but remains loyal to the emotional and spiritual depths this dance IS to its true initiates. Miss Sayada carefully weaves the colorful, vibrant threads of antique postcards, paintings and images of the past with precision, contemporary performances by a multi-talented, experienced cast of dancers.

The video features nationally known artists such as Elizabeth Artemis Mourat, a dedicated academic researcher and faithful interpreter of Turkish Style Cabaret and Rom Dance. She is the fiery 21st Century Phoenix rising from ancient ashes, delighting American audiences across the nation with her fiery Turkish style dance grounded firmly in ancient traditions. Yasmin, a seasoned dancer who worked professionally in Egypt, treats us to her signature cane and Egyptian cabaret choreographies. Kawakib, Latifa, Adena and Amira Yasmin complete the tapestry with their classic Persian, Zil, Saudi and Sword and Spoon Dance interpretations. This video is not for those who favor the shallow, common, cookie cutter belly dance interpretations rampant on the market these days. However, "Lifting the Veil of Time" will be a top quality, addition to the library of all discerning oriental aficionados.

In "Lifting the Veil of Time," director Donna Sayada artfully presents the evolution of Middle Eastern Dance in the context of Middle Eastern cultures, allowing the dance, the dancers, and the music to speak eloquently, literally and figuratively framed by arresting images of dancers and other Middle Eastern women taken from antique postcards and paintings. The narrative provides meticulously researched historical details and gently explores the relationships between women, the dance, and their societies across the Middle East, from ancient Egypt and Greece to modern Turkey and Saudi Arabia.

The film fills a gap in Middle Eastern Dance films: it is neither an instructional nor a performance video, but there is much here that dancers can learn, and a number of world class performances by internationally recognized dancers are captured, in addition to its scholarly content. Artemis' intensely passionate Turkish Rom and Oriental style dances explode with life, offering a contrast to her more subtle ancient Egyptian and Greek dance that feature her beautiful veil work. Yasmin's playfully sensual Egyptian Nightclub style and Cane dances reveal yet another perspective of femininity expressed through her dance. Kawakib's zil solo and classical Persian dances give us yet more interpretations of the dance in their cultural contexts, as do Amira Yasmin's Turkish spoon dance, Adena's sword dance, Latifa's Saudi women's dance, and the drum solo collage featuring all the dancers.

This film belongs in every Oriental Dance lover's collection. Congratulations, Ms. Sayada, and thank you.

Absolutly wonderful historical-educational-enterteining video." Must have" video for any serius student of bellydance. Contains priceless and difficult-to-find information on folkloric styles of oriental dance. Lovely production quality.

A beautiful mosaic of MED. Superb sound and picture quality, excellent dancers, wonderful narrative by Donna Sayada.
Buy this video, and watch it again, and again, and again.....

I can't remember the last time I've seen such unbelievabley amateurish dancing... oh wait - last student halfa I had the misfortune to attend. I'll grant you the scholarship behind the video is good, but franky I was stunned by the lack of talent displayed. I've seen Artemis in person - she's a wonderful, vibrant, talented dancer... but not in this video. And she was the best of the dancers. The other dancers were not very inspiring. I saw very little life in their dancing or their facial expressions. Their dances may have been historically and technically accurate, but they lacked the spark and vibrancy that I expect to see in a Middle Eastern Dancer. Frankly, I've seen better drum solos performed by advanced students. Save your money... skip this video. I gave it one star because of the scholarship - it had NOTHING to do with the dancing.