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Dancing the Silk Road
from The World and I
July 1, 2002
by Stephen Henkin
COPYRIGHT 2002 News World Communications, Inc.
Long ago and far away, the women along the Silk Road, from China to the Mediterranean, created colorful, evocative dance forms. Thanks to an inspired troupe in Washington, D.C., we can experience them today.
They dance in sumptuous costumes and fantastic headdresses to the effervescent sounds of bells, cymbals, and drums. Some wear the mysterious burka, with tiny eye slits that leave everything to the imagination. Others are flamboyant, with bellies exposed, leaving very little to the imagination. These are the talented and culturally astute dancers of the Silk Road Dance ...
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Review of Laurel Victoria Gray's Persian/Azeri Concert Work HAFT PAYKAR
Haft Paykar: ''Seven Beauties''
by the Silk Road Dance Company
by Christel Stevens
The Silk Road Dance Company of metropolitan Washington, DC has been presenting increasingly ambitious programs of dances from Central Asia since 1995. In their tenth anniversary year, they have reached a pinnacle of grace, grandeur, style and technical merit in the ballet Haft Paykar: The Seven Beauties which premiered on Saturday, April 2, 2005 at the Publick Playhouse in Cheverly, Maryland as the cornerstone of the Third Annual World Dance Showcase “Dancing in Islamic Lands”, presented by the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission.
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Review of Laurel Victoria Gray'sAncient Egyptian Dance Concert Work --EGYPTA: MYTH, MAGIC, AND MYSTERY
EGYPTA,
a Revivification of Ancient Sacred Dance
performed by
The Silk Road Dance Company
Kennedy Center Millennium Stage,
Washington D.C.
report by Pen Katali, M.L.S.
Egypta impressed me as a stunning artistic success, splendid beyond belief. The work can touch your innermost heart and exalt your soul. It is composed of fifteen episodes, alternating ensemble pieces with solos, telling the story of women and the Divine Feminine as the heart of ancient Egyptian civilization.
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REVIEW: Remembering the Legends
by Janet Jubran M.A.
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Presents Silk Road Dance Company
(from the Gilded Serpent: see full article with photos at link below)
With an overflow crowd in attendance, ''Remembering the Legends'' opened with haunting, evocative music and mysterious fog that hearkened back to the dawn of time.
If ever we needed a bridge of understanding between East and West, this concert beautifully met that challenge. ''Remembering the Legends'' deserves recognition for presenting the ethnic diversity of the East, its wide variety of cultures, and its ancient heritage. Through compelling music, breath-taking costuming, and memorable choreography, Laurel Victoria Gray and her Silk Road Dance Company have opened a door to an world that has long remained mysterious to the West. Her careful research and effort to preserve authenticity have ensured that audiences will gain a true understanding of this region's culture.
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Silk Road Dance Company Featured in Dancer Magazine Article on Washington, DC
''Washington DC -- Dance Blossoms''
July 2008 issue of DANCER MAGAZINE
Lisa M.Browder's interviewed Laurel Victoria Gray for this article on dance diversity and the increasing awareness of World Dance in Washington DC. The piece included a lovely color photo of Silk Road Dance Company.
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Welcoming Spring, Persian Style
04/01/09
Welcoming Spring, Persian Style
By Esther Agbaje, Special Correspondent, America.gov
(Excerpt)
The biggest draw of the day was the Persian dance performance by the Silk Road Dance Company and a Philadelphia area children's dance group from Mainline Performance Arts.
The Silk Road Dance Company performed several dances some from Iran, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Bukhara as well as some of Zoroastrian influence. The dances each had traditional costumes and an accompanying story.
Laurel Victoria Gray, artistic director of the Silk Road Dance Company, learned many dances from central Asia from the renowned Uzbekistan dance legend, Qizlarhon Dustmuhamedova.
Gray first met Dustmuhamedova in 1979 during the Cold War, when only cultural visits were allowed. Gray was the first American woman to learn Uzbek dances from Dustmuhamedova. Lessons and exchanges continued through Dustmuhamedova's subsequent tours to the United States and through Gray's visits to Uzbekistan and other central Asian countries.
Since then, Gray has developed dance troupes that specialize in genres of dance from this region of the world.
The Silk Road Dance Company has danced at the museum event every year, and for 2009 it performed new dances in new costumes. Each of the three shows for the 2009 festival was sold out.
The Zoroastrian dance titled 'Good Thoughts, Good Words, Good Deeds' symbolized the spiritual preparation for rebirth and renewal of spring.
Dances sy
...More
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Welcoming Spring, Persian Style
Philadelphia museum celebrates Nowruz with family-centered activities
This article by Esther Agbaje appears on america.gov and describes the annual Persian New Year event at the Philadelphia Museum of art.
It includes a description of the sold-out performances by Silk Road Dance Company.
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