The guard's drab uniform is lit up against a replica of the Al Aqsa Dome in the background. He smiles briefly as young men and women flit into the Palestinian consulate in Dubai, walking separately, entering the small white room and gathering into groups.
Like a school courtyard, there is some horsing around, laughter, blushes and teasing. The mood is comfortable and one young woman's thick Palestinian accent jokingly insults the young owner of an ancient tape recorder. He is defending his prize "duty-free" possession from three separate hands jabbing at the buttons, trying to get music. "Dust all over," she laughs, tracing a line over the speaker.
The 14 young men and women come to attention, some reluctantly, when a serious man in a tie finally raises his voice to be heard over the singing next door. Different dance moves are discussed and warm-up exercises are gigglingly, if strenuously, practised by the youth, in front of a picture of Yasser Arafat and a sign that reads: "Freedom to all prisoners."
They separate into groups again, the young women fixing their hair underneath black scarves, which contrasts with their sneakers and jeans. The serious man jabs at the tape recorder and starts organising the first prova. He called out the name of the dabke dance Talet Khaleleh! Yallah!
Traditional style
These are not the same bashful, swaggering adolescents joking seconds ago as the dabke a traditional Mediterranean style of dance - begins. In organised rows, five young men hold hands and begin swiftly executing medium-sized jumps and steps. The beat grows louder, their feet begin thumping before the men assume a sedentary position, right and left feet swinging before they assume a kneeling position.
Behind them, the young women step into action, as if holding large jugs upon their heads, turning side to side, smiling, swishing and swaying, heads upright and feet stepping in time to the music. They join the men, holding hands. Feet and legs fly in and out while backs remain resolutely upright.
They fan out again, dancing, facing each other confidently and then withdrawing. The boys and girls at different ends meet in the middle before rejoining their own again in a line.
Two younger men are standing aside throughout the courting dance, shuffling their feet in deep concentration, trying to work out the moves.
The trainer is only modestly impressed. "Remember, this is just to remind you of the moves after the break! Some of you are good but technically you need more work."
The next song cannot be heard on the ancient cassette, a problem soon resolved with a young man and a woman singing the folkloric rhymes. A drum player from next door provides the beats. The rhymes skim through centuries across Palestine, although the words are resolutely defiant, about the historical cities of Haifa, Jerusalem and Yaffa.
Khalid Habbach, from the Education Attache Office at the Palestinian Consulate, is sitting with the singing group in another room. They have gone out for a break and the Syrian-raised Palestinian refugee from Tiberius is seizing the moment to light a cigarette and chat. His lean face breaks into a smile while discussing the Zahrat Al Mada'in Palestinian Dabke Troupe.
"I'm so proud of these kids. They've got school, jobs and they come here voluntarily, with zeal, to learn about their folkloric traditions."
The dabke troupe was established in 1996 by Palestinian Consul General Salim Abu Saoud, known in the community as a lover and supporter of the arts.
"I think we are the only consulate to have a special section devoted to music," Habbach says.
The members have changed over the years, some have married, moved away, found jobs, but Habbach says they all have something in common.
"They come here to fight the cultural war waged against us. Dancing the dabke becomes a challenge to Zionism. Art is mixed with resistance, to express, with one's body, love of the homeland, love of resistance," Habbach says, discussing the different ways Zionism has tried to eliminate Palestine and Palestinians, including through the appropriation and destruction of cultural products.
The lyrics, too, have been changed from the traditional topics of weddings and harvesting. They now speak of a desire to return to one's homeland, to emerge victorious.
Habbach, a musician, does not want to see art so limited. One reason the music section was established by the Consul General, he says, is to show "another picture of Palestine: we love to sing and dance and enjoy music. Music and the arts gives a deeper, human picture of Palestinians."
Habbach says the dabke dance is found all over the Mediterranean, with regional variations. In its essence, it is a dance performed principally with the feet moving in synchronised steps. Usually, dancers hold hands, moving mostly in a circular motion, although different dances have varying levels of complexity.
Lead dancer
The role of the rawis the lead dancer is paramount. The rawis can command a beat (stepping to four, six or eight steps for instance), speed up or slow down movement, add new steps and, most importantly, break out, improvising a singular, spontaneous dance based on the rhythms and movements of the music and the dancers. The beauty of dabke, danced at weddings and celebrations, Habbach says, is that "it's a state of mind, a way of expressing joy through the body."
Each of historical Palestine's different regions has different kinds of dabke, "but the most difficult and for men only is the sha'rawiyyeh, which relies on the strength of the men and the rawis."
The dabke troupe is not so removed from Palestine. "Two of our students went to Gaza for a holiday, and have been prevented from leaving." Even so, artistic collaboration with the multitude of similar troupes in the West Bank and Gaza Strip has not happened. "It's impossible under the present circumstances the Occupation to organise what we'd like to organise."
If the group's style is Palestinian, some of its members are not. "Belonging is different from nationality. We have two Syrian singers, we've had Egyptians and Tunisians in the past," Habbach says. "We welcome anybody who wants to learn how to sing, dance or play a musical instrument."
The troupe has received accolades, and regularly holds performances in the UAE. In the past, it is also performed abroad to well-received audiences.
In the next room, another dabke has broken out. The serious trainer is assessing how much "you've all forgotten over the break" while a young man and woman from the singing group stand straight and tall, making feet dance to beguiling lyrics.
The dabke troupe's next performance will at the Cultural Castle in Sharjah, Abu Dhabi and Al Ain to remember the beginning of the Intifada in October. In Dubai, they will perform at the international village.
To learn to dance dabke, sing folkloric songs or play an instrument with the group, contact Khalid Habbach at 04-397-2020. Also contact him for information on their next performances.
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