"Core Connections: Cairo Belly Dance in the Revolution's Aftermath investigates local, intra-Middle Eastern, and global circulations of belly dance centered within Cairo, Egypt, in the tumultuous aftermath of the Jan. 25th, 2011 revolution. This multi-sited ethnography takes audiences on a taxi ride that viscerally moves through contemporary city-circuitries of dance venues and stories from the Nile cruising tourist boats and decadent five-star hotels to smoky late-night discos and Pyramid Street cabarets. While mapping the multiple maneuverings of Cairene dancers and non-dancers alike, this book centralizes Cairene dancers embodied political insight while fleshing out nuanced portraits of their lives and stories amidst ongoing political precarity. In addition to interweaving Dance and Middle Eastern Gender Studies, this book innovatively 'does' and writes ethnography. This book's ethnographic approach embodies the dance itself via attending to the dual meanings of moving; centralizing mobility and movement as sites of power and knowledge, but also in researching and writing in ways that move emotionally, stirring up poignant affect that leads to physical reaction, change, and connection. In other words, this ethnography aims to center the same aesthetics and values of Cairo belly dancing, to 'move' with greater feeling to cultivate richer core connections within ourselves, between one another, and within our city-spaces. In doing so, this book stakes a claim for listening to the subtleties of otherwise marginalized bodily interaction, exchange, and wisdom as rippling with potential for stepping into more revolutionary realities and relationships. Core Connections: Cairo Belly Dance in the Revolution's Aftermath investigates local, intra-Middle Eastern, and global circulations of belly dance centered within Cairo, Egypt. This ethnography takes audiences on a taxi ride that viscerally moves through contemporary dance venues from the Nile cruising tourist boats and decadent five-star hotels to smoky late-night discos and Pyramid Street cabarets"--
Core Connections: Cairo Belly Dance in the Revolution's Aftermath explores the intricate networks of belly dance in Cairo, Egypt following the turbulent aftermath of the January 25, 2011 revolution. This comprehensive ethnography takes readers on a captivating journey through the city's diverse dance landscapes spanning from Nile cruising tourist boats and decadent five-star hotels to smoky late-night discos and Pyramid Street cabarets. While mapping the multiple maneuverings of Cairene dancers and viewers alike, author Christine Sahin centralizes the dancers' embodied political insight while fleshing out nuanced portraits of their lives and stories amidst ongoing political precarity. Bridging the realms of Dance and Middle Eastern Gender Studies, this groundbreaking book not only analyses but embodies ethnography.
This book's ethnographic approach mirrors the core of Cairo belly dance itself via attending to dual meanings of moving; centralizing mobility and movement as sites of power and knowledge, but also in researching and writing in ways that stir up poignant emotions that lead to physical reactions, change, and connection. In essence, the book captures the same aesthetics and values of Cairo belly dancing: to 'move' with greater feeling and to cultivate richer core connections within ourselves, between one another, and within our city-spaces. In doing so, it advocates for a heightened awareness of the intricate nuances present in otherwise marginalized bodily interaction and exchange, recognizing their potential to inspire into more revolutionary realities and relationships.
Core Connections: Cairo Belly Dance in the Revolution's Aftermath explores the intricate networks of belly dance in Cairo, Egypt following the turbulent aftermath of the January 25, 2011 revolution. This comprehensive ethnography takes readers on a captivating journey through the city's diverse dance landscapes spanning from Nile cruising tourist boats and decadent five-star hotels to smoky late-night discos and Pyramid Street cabarets.
