Serpent of the Nile: Women and Dance in the Arab World - Softcover

Buonaventura, Wendy

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1566567912 ISBN 13: 9781566567916

Publisher: Interlink Books, 2009

Synopsis

Newly updated and reissued in an appealing new format, this classic book is a lavishly illustrated celebration of female dancers of the Arab world and their impact on the West.

"I think it is the most eloquent of female dances, with is haunting lyricism, its fire, its endlessly shifting kaleidoscope of sensual movement." With these words, Wendy Buonaventura explains her own fascination with Arabic dance and gives the reader a thorough understanding of the origins, history and development of this ancient art, which has survived in the face of commercialism, religious disapproval, and changing times.

About this title

About the Author:

Wendy Buonaventura is an Anglo-Italian dancer and writer. Her first book on Oriental dance was published in London in 1983.Serpent of the Nile was chosen as The Observer Book of the Year. She has also written and presented programmes for the BBC World Service. She has pioneered the development of Arabic dance as a theatre art in the West and her work has been featured at festivals throughout Europe and in the United States.

Review:

'A delight to browse through and just as interesting to read...sumptuously illustrated.' Time Out 'A lively and lavishly illustrated excursion into the history of the solo woman's dance.' --The New York Times Book Review

"An articulate book that speaks with many voices of the glory as well as the shadows surrounding the oriental dance of yesteryear and today.
Buonaventura's amalgamation of materials-textual and visual-evoke a work by someone whose respect for the subject is both tasteful and thoughtful...Arabesque salutes the authoress..." --Arabesque Magazine

"Serpent of the Nile features a perceptive discussion of the history of female solo dancing in the Middle East and its effect on dancers and artists throughout the world. The ninety full-color and fifty black-and-white sumptuous illustrations communicate the color and sensuality, poetry and passion, sophistication and subtlety of her subject." --Dance Magazine

About this edition

• Publisher: Interlink Books
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 1566567912
• ISBN 13: 9781566567916
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 224