Style of dance:
Samia was one of the pioneers of Oriental dance. She fused elements of ballet and Latin dance with her own Egyptian Baladi to create a new, innovative form of dance.
Scroll to the bottom of the page to see Samia dance!
Famous moves:
“Wiggly” arms; before Oriental dance most dancers used arms for framing. The arms would move to a position and stop there for a bit, until moving to the next position.
Samia’s arms dance as much as the rest of her, making intriguing new shapes more reminiscent of Ginger Rogers than any folkloric Egyptian dancer.
What is also apparent from Samia’s dancing is how much floor she covers. Traditional Baladi is rooted to the spot and danced very tightly in a small space. Samia takes influences from the west and makes use of the new big stages in nightclubs and begins to travel, making use of the whole floor space available.
Biography:
Samia Gamal was born in 1924 in the small Egyptian town of Wana. Sources conflict as to when she moved to Cairo; either a few months after her birth, or much later in the 1940s. What is certain is that in Cairo she met Badia Masabni (aka Badeia Masabny) who is often hailed as the founder of modern Oriental Dance.
Samia’s first appearance in the nightclubs in Cairo was at the famous club “Casino Badia” where many of the stars of the day performed. After much training in Ballet, Jazz, Tap and Contemporary Modern Dance as well as developing her Egyptian Baladi style, Samia Gamal joined the chorus line of Badia’s troupe, eventually rising to soloist where she incorporated techniques from ballet and Latin styles into her routines.
It was during this time that Samia became close friends with Tahiya Carioca, who was also a soloist in the troupe. She also met and fell in love with the Lebanese musician Farid Al Atrash.
Samia Gamal with Farid Al Atrash - http://fgruyer.club.fr/images/samia-gamal-3.jpg
Samia and Farid starred in many films together and had a love affair that was passionate on screen and off. The affair ended when Farid told her that he could never marry her as his family would not allow him to marry a dancer. Samia was devastated.
Later an American man proposed to her and offered to take her to the US. But it was only one year before she asked for a divorce and returned to Egypt. She then married Roshdy Abaza, an Egyptian film star.
Samia continued to dance into her 70s, when she retired. She lived alone, but continued her friendship with Tahiya Carioca until her death in 1994.
See Samia dance:
In this clip Samia dances her way through the opening credits of a film starring both her and Tahia Carioca. Lots of wiggly arms in this clip!
