A tribute to dance--and a teacher

Claudia Figueroa

Angelika Nemeth wants to share the meaning of Middle Eastern dance with

the world.

And judging from the national acclaim Nemeth and her dancers have won for

their interpretive studies of the dance form in recent years, she’s off

to a good start.

Nemeth, who is on Orange Coast College’s dance faculty, oversees several

independent productions a year at the college.

Nemeth, however, says tonight’s show is different from her other

productions.

“Celebration of Middle Eastern Dance” is a tribute to the late master

teacher and award-winning choreographer Ibrahim Farrah, who died in 1998.

Farrah, who was born in Pennsylvania to Lebanese immigrants, is mostly

known for traveling around the nation to teach the meaning of Middle

Eastern dance and culture.

Nemeth, who serves as the show’s West Coast producer, studied with Farrah

in the 1970s and was one of his first pupils. Nemeth said she maintained

a long-distance friendship with him until his death.

“Meeting him was an epiphany for me,” said Nemeth, who studied many

Middle Eastern dance disciplines with Farrah during their 20-year

pupil/teacher relationship.

“Learning a deep understanding of Middle Eastern culture was what made

learning the dance style so interesting and fun,” she said.

Nemeth said Middle Eastern dance is still very much the inspirational

experience it was when she first began her studies.

Over the years, however, she discovered that not everybody viewed her

dance the way she wanted them to.

Nemeth said because of its sensuality and exotic body movements, Middle

Eastern dance has been misconstrued more than it has been accepted as an

art form, like ballet.

The dance style “got a dubious reputation and because of that it wasn’t

looked at as an art form, but more of just a dance of seduction,” she

said. “Audiences in the Western world didn’t take it seriously because it

was taken out of its cultural context, and people not familiar with the

dance form didn’t view the dance as being part of the music, they just

saw the passion and gestures that go with the dance.”

Farrah’s work attempted to change that, Nemeth said.

“His contribution to Middle Eastern dance was to raise the consciousness

and knowledge to both the people who were part of Middle Eastern culture

and knew very little about their heritage and to those who wanted to

broaden themselves,” she said.

Nemeth said her goal is to use the proceeds from her shows to archive

Farrah’s work in the dance library at New York’s Lincoln Center.

Nemeth said tonight’s performance will be a personal one, because all the

people involved in the show were very close to the late dance guru.

Joining Nemeth on stage will be Dahlena, Gahtiem, Carman Evans, Tina

O’Neil, Morwenna and Waslid Assaf, Raks el Anwar, Jajouka, Samara,

percussionist Hanna Mirhage and guest artist Ghazal.

Morwenna Assaf, who will perform with her husband, studied with Farrah in

New York for several years before moving to Oceanside and opening a dance

academy, where she’s teaching Farrah’s method.

“He was a choreographical genius because he mastered the movements and

knew the culture inside and out,” she said. “His movements were clean and

precise and never-ending. He was amazing.”

Nemeth said the production also is meant to be a portrait of all Middle

Eastern dance styles. The two-hour show will include a modern

interpretive performance by Nemeth to Persian music. The dancers will

treat the audience to a potpourri of traditional dances from Greece,

Lebanon and Turkey.

Nemeth said the program will feature elements of folkloric and cabaret

styles as well.

The Ibrahim Farrah Near East Dance Group from New York City will take a

break from its national tour to perform a special tribute to Farrah

during the program’s second half.

WHAT: Celebration of Middle Eastern Dance at 8 p.m. today

WHERE: Robert B. Moore Theatre, Orange Coast College, 2701 Fairview Road, Costa Mesa.

HOW MUCH: $24 in advance, $32 at the door

PHONE: (714) 432-5880