Keeping folklore the alive

Mohammed remembers performing his first ayyala dance when he was about 12 years old. It was at his brother’s wedding, in Oman, and back then it was done with real guns. Throwing the heavy riffle high up in the air and catching it every time while moving and pirouetting swiftly among all those strong, impressive dancers — his father, his uncles and his cousins — gave him a feeling of pride and of belonging. All these years later, the feeling stayed with him, and so did the dancing. Mohammed is now a member of one of Abu Dhabi’s ayyala folk groups, performing mostly in public celebrations and festivals. He doesn’t do it for the cash, though, he does it for that feeling of belonging, of showing off a glimpse of who he is.

Like so many other traditions of the Arabian desert, ayyala is now endangered of being forgotten by the young generation in favour of more contemporary forms of dance and entertainment.

“That is why we are trying so hard to preserve such traditions and that is why we have applied to include ayyala on UNESCO’s list for safeguarding intangible heritage,” said Dr Nasser Ali Al Hemairi, director of the Intangible Heritage Department at the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH).

Performed ever since men learnt how to hold swords and fight each other with poetry, ayyala is the art of dancing, poetry chanting and drum playing, all at the same time. It is a dramatic act during which men face each other standing usually in two rows, each holding a light bamboo stick and each other’s arms. Most often there are 10 men in each row, although occasionally it has been seen performed by up to 50 men, whom sometimes may be split into four lines forming a square. About five or six other individual dancers (Al hawama or Al jawwala), who move around in a circular fashion while throwing their weapons up in the air and catching them while dancing, as well as the drummers are in the middle of the square or between the two rows.

No matter what variation it is being performed, it always acts the same: a battle scene, in which the bamboo sticks signify the swords and the two lines of men moving forward and backwards alternatively imply victory and defeat. Throughout the performance they chant poetry usually describing the battle, and sway their heads, bodies and the bamboo sticks rhythmically.

“There are, of course, rules, so the whole show is being controlled and led by Al abu, the father, who guides the dancers and sets the rhythm and pace,” explained Dr Ismail El Fihail, senior intangible heritage expert at the ADACH.

“Al abu is usually the oldest member of the group, thus having the most experience, and he is usually chosen by all the other dancers for his skills.”

Sometimes, Al na’ashat may also join the ayyala men.

“They are teenage girls wearing traditional colourful dresses, who toss their long hair in large circles, symbolising they have faith in the chivalry of their fellow men and trust their protection,” added El Fihail.

For an untrained eye, all ayyala may look and sound the same, but there are as many variations out there as there are Arab tribes. The fine differences are to be seen in the poems used (traditionally composed by the best poets of the tribe), the speed of the dance beat, the head movements and even the voice tones.

Just like with the Bedouin women’s jewellery, every tribe designed its own ayyala. In the old, pre-oil days, the show was usually a spontaneous one, performed during grand celebrations such as weddings and Eid. However, the wind of change blowing tower blocks onto the bare desert and dispersing small communities within expanding modern cities, transformed such traditions from family and community fun into professional, well organised groups with the sole mission of preserving the UAE’s folkloric treasures.

“They are called jam’eyah, which means troupe,” said El Fihail.

“Currently, there are 32 such performing arts troupes in the country, six of which are particularly famous for the ayyala dance.”

A jam’eyah has between 50 to 60 members, regularly meeting for practice and often performing in public at festivals, private celebrations and even official state visits. They are private enterprises, but they do receive substantial financial and logistic support from the government. Recently, this support amounted to Dh one million given to each tribal jam’eyah and the cash is expected to increase in the future.

There are also plans to increase the popularity of ayyala with an impressive five annual festivals, during which troupes from different parts of the Emirates will compete. There are already ayyala classes in schools and clubs for children and teenagers, which help a great deal to pass on the passion — and the steps.

silvia@khaleejtimes.com