DANCING IN JAFFA

It must be “Dance Week” for me because this is my third column in a row on that very topic!

This time, I’m recommending the documentary Dancing In Jaffa to absolutely everyone, of all ages, especially those in the Middle East. It’s very entertaining, but more importantly, it’s educational, on so many levels. If the world put down their guns and laced-up their dance shoes, we’d all be a lot happier. (Duh. And that’s me saying that, it’s not the tagline for the film, though maybe it should be!)

Pierre Dulaine is a famous former professional ballroom dancer who travels all over, teaching his art to elementary school children around the world. He does this out of the goodness of his heart; I understand that he’s a judge on many of the international versions of Dancing with the Stars, so I’m pretty sure he could just relax and enjoy that cushy job, but instead he chooses to share his knowledge with children who would otherwise know nothing of partner-dancing.

Let me say that as a former young dancer myself, I’ve long known of its importance to the world. But this documentary, Dancing In Jaffa, made me realize it even that much more.

This film shows Mr. Dulaine teaching in a place where you can’t even imagine this could be done–Gaza. Sadly, even though I’m Jewish myself, I have always been confused about this particular area of the world. Of course I know that Israelis and Palestinians are always against each other, especially right there, but I just can’t seem to wrap my head around the conflict. Maybe that’s because I’ve never been able to understand people hating each other for their race or religion. Really, there are so many more reasons to dislike someone, of his or her own doing. Like being rude, or mean, or obnoxious! Or wearing too much perfume, or having bad hair or nails! (Wait—maybe those last three are just me.) Why choose something that they’re born into, and has nothing to do with them? And it shouldn’t be a problem to begin with!

But I do know that getting Jewish and Arab children to dance together is a pretty big deal. It’s hard enough to get any children to dance with each other, so what this man was able to accomplish is a Herculean effort.

Dance is so universal. I have a feeling that this film will remind everyone of his or her own elementary school dance experiences. I know it did that for me. It brought me right back to doing the schottische step in Brooklyn’s Dance Festival. (Don’t ask.) When the kids in the film were having such a hard time holding the hands of the opposite sex at first, I laughed thinking of my poor partner, Harris, whom I made wipe his sweaty palms on his pants before each rehearsal. (And during it, too!) That poor guy. (But I have a feeling I’d do the same thing to someone now; maybe that’s why I’m just a hip-hopper–so that no one ever has to touch me. While dancing, anyway.)

Speaking of touch, I loved that the kids totally perked-up when Pierre’s former partner, Yvonne Marceau, showed-up from New York to work with them for a bit. She’s a beautiful woman, and they all seemed to respond so well to a woman’s touch, (both literally and figuratively.)

And his style of teaching, to ease the couples into dance hold, is perfection. I couldn’t imagine what he was doing at first, because I’ve never seen anyone dance with their hands in the place he gently put them, but then when I saw the next step, I was awestruck. It’s so simple, yet so brilliant.

Dancing in Jaffa is as heartwarming as it is educational, though, and seems much shorter than its hour and 40 minutes. I could’ve easily watched another hour of it!

This documentary does not really need me, nor anyone else, to “review” it, in the traditional sense. It’s excellent, entertaining, and worthwhile, and that’s all you need to know.

But I do want to share a few bon mots from the post-screening Q-and-A. The speakers were executive producer Nigel Lythgoe, (yes, that Nigel, of all the Fox competition shows,) producer Diane Nabatoff, (who I believe was the driving force behind the film,) and Pierre Dulaine himself, to whom it was a privilege to listen. I especially love that he took it upon himself to call on audience members who had questions, without waiting for the moderator to do it; the moderator was just picking people in the front, but Pierre just went ahead and noticed every single person who had his or her hand up, no matter how far away. As someone who’s really frustrated with these not fabulous moderators, I was thrilled to see that move.

Diane told us that Pierre says, “If you change the children, you change the future.” That is correct, on oh so many levels. If dance can bring children of opposing backgrounds together, all of our hope is that they’ll grow up to broker some world peace. Or, at the very least, not act scary themselves.

Nigel pointed out that there are “two things that civilizations are known for–the arts and war.” Wouldn’t it be fabulous if in the not-so-distant future, ours could be known for just the arts? I don’t think it’ll be in our lifetime, but this documentary, and even moreso, Pierre Dulaine’s Dancing Classrooms program, should help us go in that direction.