EVENING IN CAIRO
TONI BARK AND FRIENDS
So it’s more than coincidence that in one week there were two performances featuring Middle Eastern dance in more theatrical venues: belly dancers are looking for receptive sponsors who will treat them like professional dancers–artists, not artistes. Ruth St. Denis went through the same tribulations trying to take Indian dance out of the disreputable “dance halls” and onto the concert stage.
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Toni Bark, a newcomer to the Chicago Middle Eastern dance community, turned her show, “Toni Bark and Friends,” at the Blue Rider Theatre into a giant party: she hosted by dancing in the featured items, then invited everyone to join in at the end. In both cases the spirit of oppressive sexism and exploitation was lifted, though Bark’s presentation owed more than Nazaree’s to Afro-Caribbean dance, which has had more acceptance on the concert stage thanks to Katherine Dunham.
In Africa and El Noba the elaborate costumes were works of art in themselves, with layers and layers of beadwork, tassels, and sequins so that they were almost sculptural in quality. They emphasized even the most minuscule movements–because the eye is trained to pay attention to such abundant costuming detail, it is also led to notice all the muscle isolations, no matter how small.
Bark wore the same costume in the dimly lit lengthy Middle Eastern dance that followed, but unpinned the top so that it became a veil. Here Bark lay prone on the floor and Prince stood regally off to the side; but the element of male dominance was clearly self-conscious. Suddenly Bark was the traditional harem girl, dancing sensuously to arouse a man, transparent, mysterious veils flying. She drew Prince into the dance with her, their shadows on the wall adding an extra dimension to the dance’s moody look.
