|
 One
day,
there
was
a
little
girl
who
had
to
go
to
school
like
her
brothers
and
all
the
kids
of
the
world.
She
hated
school
and,
eagerly
awaiting
schooling
years
to
end.
Afterwards,
she
unsuccessfully,
tried
to
escape
this
burden.
She
was
dreaming
of
dancing
and
nothing
else.
She
took
advantage
of
every
moment
and
hour
to
exercise
in
her
own
room
at
her
big
house
and
enjoy
oriental
dancing
in
front
of
the
mirror
which
became
her
companion
loyal
all
the
time
to
get
away
from
the
whirlpool
of
studying
to
dancing.
Oh!
I
forgot
to
mention
her
name.
She's
Angel
Ayoub
from
a
town
called
Hamat
in
North
Lebanon.
In
spite
of
that,
Angel
was
not
lazy
at
school
except
for
the
French
literature
class
which
she
preferred
eating
seeds,
potatoes
and
chocolate
or
competing
for
the
biggest
chewing
gum,
to
it
.
Pardon
me,
the
French
literature,...history,...geography
and
the
English
Language...only.
 Though
she
had
an
inclination
to
study
medicine,
Angel
unwillingly
entered
the
university
to
receive
a
degree
in
Social
Sciences
and
another
one
in
Beautification,
"because
it's
Faster,"
she
explained.
It
was
her
father's,
Nabil
Ayoub,
Condition
to
grant
her
the
key
to
freedom
only
after
she
had
finished
schooling
and
received
a
university
degree.
My
God!
at
last
the
distress
is
done
with
.
"Now
I
can
dance,
"Angel
couldn't
believe
herself.
She
began
preparing
for
her
start
in
the
artistic
world
a
month
before
she
graduated
and
chose
a
new
name,
Amani,
that
was
suitable
for
oriental
dancing,
and
which
meant
"Wishes"
in
English.
The
name
has
a
long
story
which
I
will
relate
to
you
in
the
following
lines.
At
one
of
her
relatives'
engagement
party
where
there
were
a
crowd
of
important
artists
and
journalists,
Angel
responded
to
a
friends'
request
and
performed
a
dance
which
was
met
with
admiration
(all
the
doing
of
the
mirror),
and
that
urged
one
of
the
distinguished
journalists,
Mr.
George
Ibrahim
Al
Khoury,
to
ask
her
for
a
second
dance
after
being
introduced
to
him
by
that
friend.
A
small
incident
that
has
changed
the
course
of
her
life
and
encouraged
her
to
enter
the
artistic
world.
Days
passed
away,
till
a
letter
was
published
in
the
most
important
artistic
magazine
with
the
title:
"An
Educated
Girl
Asks:
Should
I
Take
Oriental
Dancing
as
a
Profession
?
"
 The
letter
was
signed
by
the
name
Amani
and
sent
by
the
teen-ager
while
she
was
still
a
university
student,
asking
the
distinguished
journalist
his
opinion
about
that
matter
to
which
he
gave
his
famous
answer:
"There
is
no
such
thing
as
trite
dancing,
but
there
is
a
trite
dancer.
It's
the
person
himself
who
shapes
his
future,
and
not
the
other
way
around."
And
he
asked
her
to
use
"Amani"
as
her
name
when
she
starts
dancing
professionally.
In
spite
of
the
opposition
she
faced
from
some
people,
and
the
society
in
particular,
Angel
went
on
pursuing
to
fulfill
her
wishes
and
dreams
on
the
first
of
April,
1987
using
the
name
Amani.
The
1st.
of
April
?
Ha...Ha
!
It's
April
Fool's
Day
!
Is
this
teen-ager
playing
a
practical
joke
on
us
all
or
what
?!
Or
is
her
artistic
life
is
going
to
be
nothing
but
a
big
lie
in
this
world
?
In
1987,
the
war
was
still
going
on
in
Lebanon,
a
fact
that
hindered
Amani's
recognition
in
Lebanon,
Her
own
homeland.
But
this
didn't
stop
her
from
working
abroad
and
strengthening
her
artistic
foot
steps
in
every
establishment
she
worked
in
and
where
contracts
were
renewed
more
than
once.
She
traveled
to
many
countries,
Arabian
and
Foreign,
Dubai,
Abu
Dabi,
Jordan,
Tunisia,
Italy,
France,
Syria,
Australia...
When
Amani
took
a
final
decision
to
enter
the
artistic
world,
she
telegraphed
Mr.George
Ibrahim
Al-Khoury,
under
the
name
Amani,
and
told
him
about
it
and
invited
him
to
a
dance
party
where
she
would
be
performing.
Thus
,he
accepted
the
invitation
and
then
wrote
an
article
titled
"Amani
Holds
Me
Responsible
for
Her
Oriental
Dancing",
and
which
he
concluded
with
one
wish:
"All
I
hope
for
Amani's
reputation
is
to
remain
as
white
as
the
snow
that
covers
her
beautiful
town,
Hamat."
During
this
time,
Amani
was
introduced,
through
the
famous
writer,
to
one
of
Lebanon
and
the
Arab
World's
singing
Stars,
the
maestro
Melhem
Barakat
who
admired
her
dancing
singled
her
out
as
the
only
dancer
in
all
his
recitals
inside
and
abroad
Lebanon.
Their
cooperation
continued
for
almost
two
years.
 Then,
Amani
started
working
alone
in
all
the
Arab
World.
In
year
1989,
she
started
to
work
on
her
own
style.
She
used
a
unique
character
in
music
and
rhythms
which
no
dancer
has
ever
danced
to.
And
since
Amani's
dancing
has
been
characterized,
and
carried
a
new
wave
in
oriental
dancing
(belly
dancing)
that
distinguished
Lebanon
from
Egypt
in
it's
expressive
new
style
which
Amani
used.
Moreover,
what
really
set
Amani
aside
from
other
dancers
is
the
fact
that
she
is
a
well
educated
person,
a
character
which
enhanced
her
radiant
personality
to
the
extent
that
a
press
interview
carries
as
much
joy
as
her
dancing,
a
fact
that
prompted
the
distinguished
journalist
to
ask
Amani
to
write
her
artistic
life
story
and
her
opinions
about
it.
Then,
he
asked
her
to
write
another
subject
discussing
philosophy
and
life.
In
addition,
Amani
searched
deeply
into
the
old
Arabian
history
books
for
the
roots
of
oriental
dance,
and
excelled
in
her
discussion
of
the
subject
in
press
interviews
and
TV
talks
that
people
and,
journalists
in
particular
adopted
her
views
about
dancing
and
its
history.
Amani
rejected
the
allegation
that
oriental
dance
is
Egyptian
and
presented
sufficient
proofs.
Amani
now
aims
at
purifying
oriental
dance
from
all
the
blemishes
that
distorted
its
beautiful
image
in
view
of
the
social
and
religious
ideas
and
beliefs
which
prevailed
in
the
old
times
where
oriental
dancing
lost
its
real
identity.
In
1993,
and
for
the
first
time
in
the
history
of
oriental
dancing,
Amani
represented
in
a
corporeal
form
two
historical
stories
through
beautiful
dancing
in
an
effort
to
introduce
culture
and
education
under
the
logo
of
oriental
dancing
.
And
since
every
kind
of
dance
has
its
own
history,
Amani
thought
that
it
was
appropriate
to
present
in
1993
a
show
under
the
title
"Stories"
which
aimed
at
narrating
the
history
of
the
dance
or
present
a
story
in
a
corporeal
form
through
a
dance.
The
show
was
a
success
and
that
motivated
Amani
to
present
a
second
version,
"Stories
II"
in
1994,
and
a
third
one,
"Stories
III",in
1995.
Thus,
Amani
became
on
eminent
personality
in
the
art
and
education
firmament.
Her
distinguished
title
became
the
Educated
Dancer
or
the
Angel
of
Dancing.
A
lot
was
written
about
her
which
can't
be
all
mentioned
here.
Many
poets
and
writers
spoke
with
admiration
of
her
dancing
and
innocent
feminine
beauty,
of
which
is
the
description
written
by
George
Jurdak,
the
writer
,poet
and
sarcastic
critic,
who
said:
"
A
gorgeous
feminine
fantasy
which
surrenders
to
musical
tunes
as
Jasmine
breath
to
the
breeze
of
air,
dancing
in
a
beautiful
dream
from
which
the
dreamer
is
afraid
to
wake
up
in
order
not
to
lose
sight
of
such
a
charm
that
might
melt
in
a
cloud
of
white
perfumed
fluttering
diaphanous
gown..."
The
writer
George
I.Al-Khoury
wrote
after
he
saw
her
dancing
at
a
night
club:
"A
dancer
from
the
orient
who
became,
within
few
years,
one
of
the
proficient
dancers...I
was
infatuated
by
your
dancing
style...
a
tender,
flexible
dancing
body
that
deals
with
music
as
if
it's
a
musical
instrument,
meets
with
dancing
as
if
it's
a
dancing
composition,
and
feels
with
sensation
as
it's
a
bulk
of
sensation...
all
with
a
gorgeous
beauty,
an
intoxicated
body,
coquetry
and
provocation
and
hands
which
flexibly
and
skillfully
move,
and
a
gazelle's
walk...
I,
who
one
day
participated
actively
in
your
coming
to
the
world
of
art,
am
very
happy
of
the
accomplishment
you've
done...and
for
the
brilliant
future
awaiting
for
you..."
Afterwards,
she
presented
her
show
"Stories"
I
"in
1993
of
which
Al-Khoury
wrote:"
You,
the
youngest
of
the
dancers,
and
the
eldest
in
ranking,
dancing
and
art.
You
came
from
the
beauty
of
Hamat
to
become
an
oriental
dancer
who
elevates
dancing
to
the
level
of
her
hometown
,education
and
high
moral
standards...I
am
very
happy
with
the
achievement
you've
made
with
your
show
"Stories
I"...
congratulations."
It's
worth
noting
that
Mr.George
I.Al-Khoury
has
bestowed
his
favors
on
a
large
number
of
artists,
and
he
was
a
coeval
of
many
of
the
art's
giants
such
as
Abdul
Wahhab
and
Om
Kalthom
in
the
Arabian
Orient.
But
he
always
takes
pride
of
being
the
one
who
attracted
Amani
to
the
artistic
world
to
be
one
of
its
eminent
personalities,
he
even
once
said:
"How
many
dancers
dance
to
the
tunes
of
music...and
how
many
dancers
does
music
dance
to
their
tunes
?!
Only
one,
Amani."
The
latest
title
he
bestowed
on
Amani
was
"The
carnival
of
dancing"
because
she
excelled
in
all
styles
of
dance
such
as
Jazz,
Indian
and
the
theatrical,
in
addition
to
all
types
of
oriental
dancing,
thus,
becoming
the
most
popular
dancer
and
news
of
her
reaching
the
two
Americas.
HABIBI,
a
U.S
magazine
published
an
article
about
her
written
by
Noria
Tahan
(Summer
95,vol.14,n#3):"Internationally
known,
she
is
one
of
the
top
dance
stars
of
LEBANON...She
is
admired
and
respected
by
the
Arab
community
world
wide...I
was
greeted
at
the
door
by
a
petite,
warm
and
friendly
young
lady...There
is
nothing
plastic
or
fake
about
Amani
Also
she
wrote:
Lebanon
in
Dance
...But
first
and
foremost
there
is
Amani,
enthroned
for
above,
a
technician
on
the
level
of
Mona
Saiid
with
the
grace
and
presence
of
Samia
Jamal,
and
for
several
years,
though
still
twenties,
the
acknowledged
superstar
of
Lebanese
Dance"
(Edwine
Nearing
in
Habibi
Magazine
U.S.A)
.
From
America
to
Europe,
Amani
visited
Germany,
in
1995,
where
she
presented
a
dance
show.
She
also
established
master
class,
workshop
which
attracted
dancers
from
all
Europe,
Spain,
Italy,
Greece,
Belgium,
Holland
and
England...to
learn
her
new
style
in
oriental
dancing.
The
experience
made
Amani
happy
and
filled
her
with
enthusiasm
for
the
idea
of
workshops,
because
this
is
what
she
thought
of
as
her
real
mission
to
spread
new
ways
of
oriental
dancing,
especially
when
a
number
of
European
oriental
dancers
called
her
and
expressed
their
wishes
to
learn
oriental
dancing
with
her.
Also,
Lebanese
ladies
and
house
wives
asked
Amani
for
special
lessons,
and
there
is
nothing
astonishing
about
that
because
she
is
quite
popular
among
women,
a
fact
which
is
due
to
Amani's
spontaneouity
and
distinguished
dancing.
In
fact,
she
has
admirers
within
high-class
societies,
and
even
politicians
who
attend
her
shows
and
choose
her
for
their
formal
and
private
occasions.
She
became
Lebanon's
ambassador
to
the
world,
and
was
chosen
to
stage
a
performance
in
the
most
important
beauty
event
in
Lebanon
after
the
war,
Miss
Lebanon
'95;
and
she
was
also
chosen
by
the
cultural
society
to
celebrate
the
International
Theater
Day
in
recognition
of
one
of
the
most
prominent
play
writers
in
the
orient.
One
of
the
journalists
wrote
describing
her
in
that
party:
"Amani
dances
as
a
whole,
and
the
dancer
who
denotes
culture
in
this
Arabian
Lebanese
art
which
interlocks
with
distant
times...Amani
realizes
that
every
occasion
has
its
particular
dance...I
saw
her
dancing
or
singing
or,
rather,
flying
in
one
of
the
most
graceful
of
her
performances...she
was
an
original
expressive
power
capable
of
displaying
the
beauty
of
each
more
and
each
stillness.
While
Performing,
she
was
the
daughter
of
a
noble,
graceful
and
creative
theater,
the
daughter
of
the
real
art.
She
danced
with
the
demanded
revelation
that
dance
which
deepened
my
conviction
in
Amani's
affiliation
with
the
artistic
culture.
An
affiliation
that
makes
her
an
explorer
in
search
of
treasures...And
I
think
that
a
long
time
will
pass
before
another
educated
dancer
comes
along
to
practice
dancing
as
an
act
of
love,
such
as
Amani."
There
was
nothing
surprising.
Amani
was
the
first
dancer
who
dared
in
February
1996,
to
move
oriental
dancing
from
nightclubs
to
the
theater.
She
had
such
a
courage
and
strength
to
put
together
a
two
hours
show
and
stand
on
stage
all
by
herself
to
present
dances
from
the
orient
without
the
audience
getting
bored.
The
teen-ager
who
became
now
a
successful
woman
was
the
first
one
to
present,
in
1993,a
video
clip
of
a
dance
in
the
orient.
A
video
clip
that
depends
on
a
dancer,
and
not
a
singer
as
it
is
usually
the
case.
Amani
danced
to
a
special
tune
titled
"Look..Look..Amani"
.
Then,
another
video
clip
followed
in
1994,
and
a
third
in
1995
when
she
photographed
the
Indian
dance,
Katak,
the
rhythms
and
composition
was
made
specialy
for
her,
it
was
not
difficult
for
Amani
to
perform
such
a
dance
for
the
comprehensive
cultural
and
historical
research
that
she
did
for
years
on
the
subject
of
oriental
dancing.
 Moreover,
it's
worth
noting
that
Amani
have
three
cassettes
and
a
CD
in
the
international
markets.
A
fourth
cassette
is
on
its
way
to
be
marketed.
Last,
but
not
least,
and
for
many
years
now,
Amani
has
been
demanding,
all
alone
and
without
any
support
from
her
colleagues,
to
allow
dancers
to
join
the
Professional
Artists
Syndicate.
If
her
efforts
are
paid
off,
then
she
will
be
imprinting
the
dancing
history
as
since.
And
why
not?!
it
is
her
slogan
in
Life
:culture,
creation,
stories,
isn't
it?
When
Amani
represented
Lebanon
in
an
annual
festival
for
oriental
dancing,
held
in
Germany,
she
addressed
the
audience
with
the
following
words:
...
I
come
to
you
from
my
small
country,
Lebanon,
to
tell
you
and
to
prove
that
art,
and
especially
dancing,
hasn't
faced
a
setback
or
died
during
the
17
years
of
civil
war
and
destruction.
On
the
contrary,
it
was
renewed
and
improved...Hoping
you'll
visit
our
country
which
we
are
rebuilding
today..."
So,
well
the
world
open
his
doors
to
the
Lebanese
artistic
dancing
by
way
of
his
Ambassador
to
the
stars...the
way
of
Amani?!
Latest
news
:
-
1996
:
Amani
was
chosen
by
the
Brazilian
Belly
dancers,
and
her
only
from
among
all
the
middle
eastern
dancers,
to
give
master
class
work
shops
in
Brasil.
She
presented
the
workshop
for
120
professional
students.
-
1997
:
She
performed
in
tours
to
USA
and
Canada
(
Atlantic
city,
Miami,
Ohio,
Los
Angeles,
Middle
Eastern
dance
festival
(
Orange
County),
Oklahoma
....)
-
1998
:
She
was
elected
as
the
first
Belly
Dancer
to
present
an
oriental
belly
dance
show
in
MONTE
CARLO
(
Salle
des
Etoiles).
-
Amani
is
preparing
now
for
new
video
clips.
The
first
as
ritual
oriental
belly
dance
and
the
second
presenting
NEFERTITI's
death
(
Ancient
Egyptian
Dance).
1998:
Amani
presented
2
video
clips.
The
first
as
ritual
oriental
belly
dance
and
the
second
presenting
NEFERTITI’s
death
(Ancient
Egyptian
Dance).
1999:
It
was
a
remarkable
turning
point
in
Amani’s
art
life
as
well
the
history
of
oriental
dancing.
Amani’s
moved
from
nightclub
to
theatre
performances
permanently,
whereby
she
presented
the
most
significant
oriental
and
international
show,
Amani
around
the
World
accompanied
by
a
huge
group
of
dancers
and
musicians,
definitely
proving
that
oriental
dancing
is
an
independent
art.
Amani
presented
several
kinds
of
oriental
dancing:
historical
oriental
dancing,
classical,
expressive,
and
renewing
oriental
dancing,
public
Egyptian
dancing,
Lebanese
dabke,
and
Moroccan,
Iranian,
and
Armenian
dance…
As
for
her
attempts
to
push
for
the
membership
of
dancers
in
the
Syndicate
of
professional
artists
in
Lebanon,
it
only
lead
to
her
sole
and
exceptional
membership
among
all
dancers
because
she
is
exceptional…
2000:
Amani
continued
to
present
her
show,
Amani
around
the
World
till
mid
2000,
during
which
she
released
a
new
cassette
and
CD
entitled
Dawaran,
in
addition
to
a
new
video
clip
entitled
“Tabloulha”.
Amani
confidently
moved
from
theatrical
performances
to
the
world
of
acting
which
amazed
critics
and
the
team
of
the
television
series
Elissar.
After
that,
Amani
flew
to
Cairo
upon
an
invitation
from
the
organizers
of
the
Oriental
Dance
Festival
to
perform
on
the
closing
night
and
give
lessons
to
professional
dancers,
Master
Class
Workshop
in
Cairo.
2001:
Amani’s
energy
has
no
limits.
She
proceeded
with
the
preparations
for
her
new
show
“The
Days
&
Nights
of
Amani”,
with
the
opening
during
the
month
of
May
of
the
same
year,
which
prevented
Amani
from
responding
to
the
second
invitation
to
the
Second
Oriental
Dance
Festival
in
Cairo.
Because
of
the
conflicting
schedules,
the
foreign
dancers
had
to
travel
to
Lebanon
to
attend
Amani’s
Master
Class
Workshop.
Amani
recorded
a
new
victory
in
the
year
2001.
After
her
success
in
presenting
her
oriental
dance
performances
on
the
greatest
theaters
in
Lebanon
in
the
year
1999,
she
moved
to
the
cultural
theater
towards
the
end
of
2001,
giving
a
new
label
to
oriental
dance
which
became
part
of
Arab
Culture
with
her
performances
at
Madina
Theater.
She
participated
in
Miss
Europe
Pageant
2001
2002:
Amani
presented
her
show
“Love
Nights”
at
Regency
Palace
Theatre.
She
participated
in
the
Francophone
Festival:
Francophonie
2002,
which
was
held
under
the
patronage
of
the
Ministry
of
Culture.
2003:
In
another
acting
attempt,
Amani
presented
the
biography
of
Badi’aa
Massabni
in
Beirut
before
reaching
fame
and
marrying
Najib
Mahfouz
in
Egypt. |
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&
