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After the war, Syrians in Jordan find joy and work in dance

#war #Syrians #Jordan #find #joy #work #dance

Singing happily to beating drums, Syrian refugees fleeing the brutal civil war are performing traditional “Arada” dances in neighboring Jordan to honor their home culture and earn extra income.

Their performances, with traditional robes and twirling swords, are becoming increasingly popular in Jordan to celebrate festivals such as weddings and parties.

“They add an atmosphere of joy to our celebration,” said Fahed Shehadeh, who hired the Bab al-Hara dance group in the capital Amman to celebrate his two sons’ graduation from university.

“I’m Jordanian but of Syrian origin and I brought the group because I admire their dance skills, music, clothes and songs,” said Shehadeh, 55, who celebrated with family, friends and neighbors.

Traditionally seen at weddings, the songs of popularity of Arada – rooted in Arabic for “performance” – have been modified to suit different celebrations.

A troupe usually consists of 10 to 20 dancers wearing loose-fitting black pants, white cotton shirts, embroidered waistcoats, white skull-caps, and a shawl wrapped around the waist.

– Whirling Swords –

Swords and decorative shields are carried, and the dance culminates with members spinning their blades in the air before engaging in ceremonial combat.

The leader of the force, Moutaz Boulad, 60, said Arada has grown in popularity in Amman, with daily events in the summer months and multiple engagements each week in the winter.

Boulad, who left Syria in 1988, says the shows have become an important means of making money for some of those fleeing the war that broke out in 2011.

“Some of the dancers weren’t good when they came to us, but they learned from my sons and I to improve their financial situation,” he said.

Syria’s war is estimated to have killed nearly half a million people and displaced millions; more than 6.6 million fled to neighboring countries of Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon.

Jordan is home to nearly 650,000 Syrians registered with the United Nations, but Amman estimates nearly 1.3 million Syrians have arrived since 2011.

The United Nations has said nearly 80 percent of Syrians in Jordan live below the national poverty line, living on $3 a day or less.

Boulad said his dancers come from a variety of professional backgrounds.

“Most dancers have other jobs besides the arada,” Boulad said. “Some are university students, accountants, restaurant workers, tailors and electricians – but that’s something that gives a lot of money to manage life.”

For dancers like Ahmed Abu Shadi, 43, who fled Syria in 2013 and works as a plumber, performing the Arada is helping to raise his three children.

“At the plumber’s, there are days when I work and days when I don’t have customers,” he said. “For Arada, they pay me 15 dinars ($20) every time I go to dance. Even though it’s a small amount, it helps me in my life.”

– “Identity, heritage” –

Another member, who worked in a medical laboratory and asked for his name to be kept secret, fled the Syrian city of Homs in 2018.

Dancing helps add about $300 each month to his regular $700 salary from the lab to support his family while they wait for the UN Refugee Agency to process applications.

“I have applied for asylum at UNHCR and I hope that we can start a new life abroad,” he said.

Despite displacement and financial challenges, dancing the Arada remains an important part of Ahmed Abu Shadi’s life.

“This dance is a very important part of our Syrian identity, heritage, culture and daily life – we must preserve it and teach it to our children and grandchildren,” he said.

“This art is in my blood, I love it, I can’t imagine my life without it.”

He dreams of one day dancing on home soil again.

“I will keep dancing wherever I go,” he said.

“But of course I prefer that one day the situation improves so that we can all go back to our country Syria.”

Social Tags:
#war #Syrians #Jordan #find #joy #work #dance

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