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by Elizabeth Artemis Mourat

• THE ILLUSIVE VEIL-Sixteen years of research yielded this manuscript, which describes many aspects of the veil. Topics include: the veil as an item of clothing and as means of oppression, Islam and the veil, ancient people who veiled, ancient Christians who veiled, the veiling of men, the history of the bridal veil, the veiling of holy objects and those with divine wisdom, the veil in ritual and dance, veiling and spiritual transformation, veil dancing and the initiation rites of the cult of Dionysus, veil dancing in ancient Greece, the dance of the seven veils, the veil and oriental dance, veil dancing in North Africa and the Middle East and some basics on dancing with a veil. There are 300 illustrations, most of which are from my collection of antique pictures of women from North Africa and the Middle East (approximately 200 pages). Please note that this manuscript is being rewritten and will be released in a bound book form in 2008.
  
  
• THE ANCIENT DANCES OF EGYPT-This research describes the religious, festival, combat, harem and banquet dances, as well as dances of the common people and the wandering performance troupes. Descriptions of the costuming, instrumentation and the evolution of these dances are provided. (56 pages, 34 illustrations) $12
  
  
• ROM (GYPSY) DANCING-SEPARATING FACT FROM FICTION-This manuscript addresses the truth about Roma and their dances, the need to define terms, how to increase our awareness about Roma, the dangers of stereotyping, the racism that plagues Roma and what we can do to help, how to find good workshop instructors and a resource guide for those who want to learn about authentic Rom dance, history and culture. (original version was 36 pages with 18 illustrations). Please note that manuscript will be greatly expanded and will be released in 2005 in a bound book form. We regret that it is not available until 2008.
  
  
• THE ART OF TAKSEEM-Topics include: the nature of takseem and all slow dancing, the pros and cons of choreographing, how to make your dancing a living art form, how to talk to musicians and how to familiarize yourself with the music. Included are ten techniques for increasing your dance vocabulary, how to make your dance more visually appealing and what to do when you are performing and you "freeze up" and cannot think of the many steps that you know. $ 4

• GIGUE SHEETS-This packet contains everything you need to know to book a dancing job, 25 copies of the specially designed "Gigue Sheets" which have all the pertinent information at a glance and the "Forget Me Not Checklist" reminds you of everything you will need to pack for a successful dancing job. $8.50

• THE COPTS AND THEIR ORPHANS-a brief history of this ancient Egyptian Christian religion and the plight of their orphans today $ 2

• STANDARDIZING OUR WAGES-describes the need for solidarity within our dance community regarding demands for decent wages $ 2

• YOU DON'T HAVE TO KILL YOURSELF TO BE HEALTHY-a series of articles about wellness, health, exercise and fitness $12

• FLOOR PATTERNS-a series of articles about the floor patterns we can create in our dancing. $ 3.

• CRITICISM - THE CLOAKED COMPLIMENT-an article about the dynamics behind abusive behavior among dancers. $ 2

• TOP TWENTY CLUB CLICHÉS-a list of the typical 'lines' and clichés that club owners tell us and what they really mean. $ 2

• WARM-UP ROUTINE, ARM POSTURES AND ISOLATIONS $ 5

• ESMA, REIGNING QUEEN OF ROM MUSIC-an article about this world-famous Romni singer: her life, her philanthropic activities, her museum and her orphans. $ 5
• HOW TO WORK WITH A BAND - an article about how to talk to musicians, how to ask for the show you want, how to understand the music and how to improvise on stage. $8

• IN SEARCH OF TURKISH ROMA-an account of some of my field research in Turkey. $ 6

• THE ORIGINS OF BELLY DANCING-a perspective on the origins of oriental dance. $ 3

• PLEASE DON'T CALL US "GYPSIES"-an article about the term "Gypsy" and why many do not like it. $ 2.

• PLEASE CALL ME "ROM"-a moving article by Sani Rifati, a Rom political activist, who addresses racism and his people. $ 2

• WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? - an article that puts September 11 into perspective with regards to how it influences our lives as dancers. $ 5

• A COMPARISON AND CONTRAST BETWEEN TURKISH AND EGYPTIAN STYLE CABARET DANCE. $ 5

• CHOREOGRAPHY POEM AND IMPROVISTATIONAL SKILLS - an article that helps dancers to improvise on stage. $ 5

• HIP,PELVIC AND ABDOMINAL ARTICULATIONS, SHIMMIES, FREEZES AND FULL BODY UNDULATIONS - a thorough breakdown of these many types of dance movements. $ 5

• FINGER CYMBALS AND RHYTHMS - how to play finger cymbals. $ 3

• SWORD DANCING - a brief history and "how to" manual. $ 7

• WOODEN SPOONS - a brief instructional paper on "how to" play Turkish wooden spoons. $ 3

• THE DRUM SOLO - A brief description of how to perform a dynamic drum solo. $ 1

• TOUGH TEACHERS - TOUGH LIFE - a brief and smoldering account of the life of dancers in the Washington, DC area in the1970s and 1980s $ 4

• THE TURKISH ORIENTAL DANCE IN THE UNITED STATES - PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE - traces the lineage of Turkish oriental dance in Americac. $ 10

• TURKISH FOLK DANCE AND INSTRUMENTATION - this is a new book written by Artemis and Tayyar Akdeniz. It is not yet finished. We will let you know when it is done.