Long suppressed for its association with decadence and homosexuality, male belly dancing is once again making a move at respectability in Egypt, Bloomberg reports.
Men used to be more reputable than their dancing female colleagues, but the taboo over homosexuality resulted in occasional crackdowns by political and religious authorities. Now male belly dancers have returned to some nightclubs in Cairo (accompanied by prostitution and hashish smoking).
"I just like to dance,'' says Farid Mesbaah, a father of seven who dances in loose black trousers, a waist scart and T-shirt. "It's very sensual. I've been doing it since I was little.''
Tito Seif, a well-known dancer, performs only in the non-revealing galabiyah, a loose caftan.
"I don't believe that a male belly dancer should imitate a woman,'' says Seif, 35. "We should not forget we are men and dance in a manly way.'' (Watch him dance.)
He'll be doing his manly moves elsewhere, however. He's planning to leave Egypt to dance abroad, saying the current crop of male dancers "is giving us a bad reputation."
Posted by Michael Winter at 08:02 PM/ET, | Permalink
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