Khaled's Egyptian Moonlight Tour - review

Sue Lloyd has sent this review of Khaled's show at the Coliseum, Aberdare, on Saturday 1 July...

"It was a hot and sultry night in Aberdare when the Egyptian Moonlight tour buses rolled into town. Those of us in the South Wales bellydance fraternity who had tickets were in for a real treat. Despite low numbers, Khaled was determined to bring his tour to Wales.

"And what a line up: Nour from Egypt, Sandra from Paris, Aida Noor from Egypt and the wonderful Tito, King of the sticks. Acting as compere for the evening, very dapper in his suits, was Yasser from Persia. And Khaled, naturally.

"How to put a pin between these performers? How to chose a favourite?

"Tito was most definitely amazing and entertaining along with being very skilful with not 1, 2 or 3 but 4 sticks! He was wonderful and everyone in the audience fell in love with him, I think. But what a showman…what a charmer. Those of you who were there I will just say one word - tassel!!!! That tassel of his had me mesmerised and when he stroked it……!!

"One of my friends, sitting in the front row, getting the full impact of his presence, turned to me and said … "Can I get pregnant from here??" such was his charm and masculine sexuality!!! And how clever he was to include the "bottom twitching" in such a sweet and beguiling manner without being offensive or over the mark in any way.

"The female dancers were stunningly graceful and yet skilful and you sat entranced by their every move. So different to the staged and polished performances by the Bellydance Superstars, here were AUTHENTIC dancers, who danced from their hearts and souls, who drew you in to the beauty of the dance.

"How beautiful was Nour? She really loves dancing - you can see it in her face. Sandra is a tiny person, but on stage was such a presence and she was accompanied by 4 gorgeous girls from her troupe in France, very lovely too. Aida’s reputation goes before her but she is such a good friend of Khaled's that she gave of her time to come over and support him in this, his first organised tour. Rarely do we have the chance to witness one of bellydance’s greatest modern icons. They all worked so hard, and wore really amazing costumes.

"Last but not least, Yasser treated us to a few brilliant Arabic songs. Anyone who has a limited knowledge of Arabic singing would have realised how much energy, skill, and emotion goes into the complicated songs so beloved in the Middle East. It was such a thrill so witness it first hand rather than listening to a CD.

"Khaled worked so hard, was responsible for some of the choreographies, in fact we were absolutely delighted when Sandra and her ladies performed the Meleya Lef which Khaled taught us in Tonteg not so long ago!

"All in all, a fantastic night and those of you who thought that maybe £20 was too much to pay for a piece of Egyptian magic, you were wrong and you missed an incredible, exciting and illuminating night. I think all the dancers went home with good feelings, and maybe some new moves to add to their repertoire.

"The only thing I can criticise was the lack of merchandising. I really think Khaled could have sold stuff, especially Yasser’s music, and that there was no opportunity for anyone to meet the dancers after the show (apart from myself and 2 other besotted individuals who found the backstage door!!!)"

Thanks to Sue for the review - feel free to add your comments via the button below or email reviews of other shows to andy @ arabesq.co.uk