Even amid the rubble, joy and dance survive. (Credit: Instagram account @gilbertch13)
The stage shook to the rhythm of the dancers' jumps. The drums vibrated in concert with the audience's applause. A joyous cry from the heart echoed through the Chouf valley.
"The dabkeh must go on!": The Jabalna association's gamble paid off. Spectators are all smiles, happy and carefree, basking in the joy brought by the dancers and festival organizers. "In 2015, we had the much-applauded idea of staging a dabkeh competition," Yolla Njeim, founder of the Jabalna association, which focuses on the environment and rural tourism, told L'Orient-Le Jour.
She began the festival in 2006. "The aim was to revitalize the village of Maaser al-Chouf, offer a place for cultural exchange and showcase local producers," she explained.
Local families offered fresh local produce grown in their mountains. Below the audience, a lady used her strong, nimble fingers to knead the dough that would be used to make a delicious manousheh with zaatar.
The essence of the festival has not been lost. It was only nine years after the first edition that the competition bringing together dancers from the four corners of the country was born. The aim was to bring people together, breaking down barriers between regions and religions. "Our troupe brings together all kinds of dancers, young and old, from the north and south [of Lebanon]," said Gilbert Cherfane, head of press and social networks for the "Rizkallah 3al Dabkeh" troupe. "Our aim is to combine tradition and modernity. That's why we have dancers of all ages. The ultimate goal is to win, of course, but above all to feast and have a good time!"
Numerous dance troupes took part in the National Dabkeh Day. (Rights reserved)
The origin of a lively unity
Middle Easterners have always known how to party. The origins of the dabkeh go back to Phoenician times and were, as they are today, a means of feasting. "Initially, it would have been a celebratory dance after the construction of a house, marking the end of the work," said dancer-choreographer Rabih Haddad.
The "Observatoire du Patrimoine d'Orient et de la Méditerranée" organizations agrees, proposing two origins for this dance.
The first assumes that it was a means of attracting the grace of the gods in order to obtain good harvests, as presented by Palestinian folklorists Abdellatif Barghouthi and Aouad Saoud al-Aouad.
The second theory suggests that this dance was a means of making site-work less arduous when compressing the roof of a barely-completed house. Either way, it evolved to "symbolize unity, solidarity and community strength," according to Rabih Haddad. As for the specifics of Lebanese dabkeh, he points out that today "it is traditionally danced at festivities such as weddings and national holidays."
"It is characterized by a line-up or circle of people holding hands or shoulders." The fast, energetic tempo typical of the region is punctuated by cadenced steps and foot strikes "representing the connection with the earth" and dictated by the raas (the group leader).
Finally, modern dabkeh, in the choreographic sense, was popularized by the Rahbani brothers in their theater. This gave rise to the troupes we know today, such as the famous Caracalla group.
The dabkeh comes from a rich history that makes us all the more appreciative of the National Dabkeh Day initiative.
At the end of the day, the winners of the competition were announced. They were the Barja Dance Group: A well-deserved victory, which further highlights the talent of the other participants. They will have the important task of representing this regional dance at the World Folklore Days Festival in Marrakech.
