They interpret the Oriental Magic; which all Orientalists were searching for..
For Lebanese dancer Nadim Cherfan – now founder and choreographer of the dance troupe Mayyas, who have just appeared on Britain’s Got Talent (BGT): The Champions – his journey began 21 years ago at the age of nine.
“(Back then) I knew exactly what I wanted to be,” he tells Arab News. “Unfortunately, in the Middle East at that time the dancing scene was shy, and not many dance schools existed.
“I couldn’t get the proper training at a young age, though I was fully aware of my talent and spent hours daily in front of my mirror in my room figuring out body movements imitating what I watched on TV.”
But perseverance pays off. Relatively unknown a year ago, Cherfan, now 30, is making his mark in the industry, while also creating the opportunities for Lebanon’s next generation of dancers that he didn’t have.
Mayyas is an all-female group that became Lebanon’s very first champions of Arab’s Got Talent (AGT). Crowned winners in April of this year, it’s hard to believe that the act was only created around nine months ago, prior to AGT’s season six premiere in February.
“(I was 14 when) I started taking classes with professionals in Lebanon and attending workshops in the US, the UK and India,” Cherfan says. “And I fell more and more in love with dancing and I am still falling deeper daily.”
He was 20 when he began to teach others; his first class having only three girls.
“I continued to do so, and have raised a large number of students that have grown with me. Today, 200 students are currently taking classes with me.”
From those 200, Mayyas was born.
“Mayyas was created for Arab’s Got Talent once I made the decision of (applying for) season six,” Cherfan continues. “The crew consists of 50 professional dancers.”
Mayyas captured fans right away after their debut performance on AGT, one of whom was judge and Lebanese singing superstar Najwa Karam who awarded them fast entry to the grand finale with the ‘golden buzzer’.
“You can tell just how much work they put into it,” she said at the time. “I pressed the golden buzzer, because I genuinely, genuinely believe they deserve it.”
Fast forward to the finale, and they were crowned champions by the Middle Eastern voting public.
While the wins were a great moment for Cherfan and the crew, he also admits feeling extremely anxious.
Calling them challenges instead of highlights, he explains: “The golden buzzer and standing ovation; the beautiful comments of the judges, and winning the title itself are challenges, because they are stress and responsibility – in those moments (all I am thinking is) ‘What’s next? How can I do better?’
“But becoming the first Lebanese to win AGT makes me so happy and proud.”
https://www.arabnews.com/node/1555686/lifestyle
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