The British Council in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture and Information organized a group of traditional Hijazi folk dancers who paraded from Beit Nassif to Beit Al-Bont in Balad on Wednesday night. The event was part of the photography exhibition “My Father's House” highlighting the architecture of cultural heritage which has been on display at the Bait Al-Bont heritage center since Sept. 24. “This folk dance parade is part of the activities of the “My Father's House” heritage and cultural exhibition brought to the Kingdom by the British Council with the cooperation of the Saudi Commission of Tourism and Antiquities, the National Museum in Riyadh and the Jeddah Municipality,” said Amani Fairak, the assistant director of creative projects, British Council Jeddah . There are several folk dance groups in the western region that specialize in traditional Saudi dances and represent the Kingdom on the national and international level. The group which performed in Balad is called “Saudi Arabia Thahifee” and is composed of 12 folk dancers. Khalid A. Jamali, the group leader, is a member of the folk arts and heritage committee and is the supervisor and trainer of the folk arts team. He has almost 25-years experience in teaching and dance choreography and has been chosen by the Ministry of Culture and Information to train dance groups on the national level. “Other groups perform at weddings and other occasions, but our dance group represents Saudi Arabia at official events. We travel and represent Saudi heritage and culture with Hijazi folk dances worldwide. We have been to Belgium, Morocco, Spain, Holland, and Argentina and soon we will represent Saudi Arabia with our folk dance in Egypt,” said Jamali. “There are several Hijazi dances in the western region from Madina to Qunfuda. About ten of them are especially well-known, such as “Mijas Al-Hijazi”, “Musmar”, “Al- Khabity”, “Al-A?zoo”, “Al-Majror”, “Al-Simsimya”, “Al-Harbiya”, Maysera Shabia, etc. But perhaps the most famous are Al-Bahri, Musmar, and Al-Aa'jan,” he said. “We have chosen the Al-Aa'jan folk dance for this special parade in Balad,” he said. “This folk dance is especially related to the western region of the Kingdom and is usually performed in Yanbu. It is a well-known traditional dance that is performed for the groom one day before his wedding. It is usually performed right after Asr prayer and finishes after sunset just before the Maghreb prayer,” he explained “The performance of this folk dance group was excellent. The way they entered Balad and danced all the way from Bait Al Nasif to Bait Al-Bont; they did excellent job,” said a correspondent of a TV channel who was enjoying the performance. “As many people do not know about the Bait Al-Bont heritage center, the idea of performing this dance was a great way to let people know about the photography exhibition that is being held there,” he said. Abdul Rageeb Bari, who has a gold shop in Balad, said that it was a great Hijazi dance and that the dancers performed it very well.“I really enjoyed it. I have not seen anything like this for a very long time,” he said. “These dances are a part of our heritage and the ministry should organize such events every year in Balad on National Day and on other special occasions,” he added.
