You've Got My Heart

Just in time for Valentine's Day, herewith the latest from Egyptian superstar Amr Diab. The subtitles go with "You Own My Heart," but literally the title - "Maak Alby" - is "My Heart is with You."

What is Aleppo?

Ah, this silly season, when the oddest things can suddenly set the blood aboil. This week's tipping point was the tiny little faux pas committed by someone who, for whatever reason, appears to believe he's qualified to lead this benighted country...

...*والآن رسالة من المعلن لدينا

A little Bondische derring-do, featuring a rather unusual protagonist.

* More or less "And now, a word from our sponsor.".. for all you non-Arabophiles out there.

And Now, A [Holiday] Word From Our Sponsor

Another year's rolled by, and Ramadan is once again upon us - late nights and overeating for all!

One Man Band

 The last time we checked in with musical prodigy Alaa Wardi, he was turning the semi-dross of Lorde's "Royals" into something rich and strange.

Meanwhile, in Morocco

This stunning image, Irving Penn's 1951 snap of model Lisa Fonssagrives at a palace in Morocco, appeared in this morning's throwaway free paper, in among the sports scores and banal headlines, and my whole day has been the better for it.

Splish Splash

As summer gives way to fall, it seems time to indulge in a little fantaisie orientale, don't you think?

Three Girls Three

As part of my ongoing efforts to share with you lucky Gentle Readers the treasures of Egyptian pop culture, herewith we find the ensemble once billed as the Supremes of the Nile. I don't know that I'd go that far, but they certainly had their moment.  And their hairdos.

Keep Breathing

It occurred to me that I've been remiss of late in my occasional mission to bring to a wider audience the splendors of Arab pop; the little gem above should take care of that for a while, with a new twist...

Goodnight, Lady

I'm in transit, but when the plane touched down in Tokyo and my phone whirred back to life, I was faced with a downpour of sorrow from Cairo, for Egyptian film lovers have lost "The Lady of the Arab Screen," the incomparable Faten Hamama.  This really is going to be a tough year for movie lovers, isn't it?

Happy Eid!

Sometimes things just fall in your lap, if only metaphorically.  Today, you see, is the start of Eid el-Fitr, the celebration that follows the end of Ramadan.  Among other things, that means that Mr. Muscato can wake up tomorrow morning and have breakfast at the beginning rather than the end of the day, and I can stop having to sneak around pretending to drink white or red grape juice (fooling no one).

'Tis the Season

We had a very traditional Fourth yesterday; the only catch is that the traditions themselves harked more from my husband's side of the family than mine.

A Different Kind of Buzz

Don't let the wild-eyed look fool you - what we have here is a gentle soul and a very catchy version of a tune that can seem a tad ubiquitous...

Tall, Dark...

...and winning.  Meet the remarkably well set-up Mr. Ayman Moussa, who among other achievements is none other than Mr. Lebanon 2013.

Come On-a Her House

Let's brighten the end of this gloomy week with a true ray of starry sunshine - the latest magnum opus in the magnificent career of that Levantine ultrastar, Miss Nancy Ajram.

73 is the New...

Because it's Ramadan, one of the biggest priorities in getting ourselves settled in our new little flat was making sure that we had access to Egyptian TV.

RIP, Princess and Queen

Now boast thee, death, in thy possession lies / A lass unparalleled..

Antony and Cleopatra, Act V, Scene 2

Mystic Nile (and Massive Pasties)

A nice little piece of Egyptomania today, from that liminal period after the First War when Gibson Girls were morphing ineluctably into flappers, just as the era of Theda Bara was giving way to headier brews courtesy of the likes of Clara Bow.  This Cleopatra wannabe would fit right in at one of Baz Luhrmann's Gatsby parties, don't you think?

Shameless Saturday Camp Explosion: EgyptProp

"It goes without saying that the Camp sensibility is disengaged, depoliticized - or at least apolitical."

Susan Sontag, "Notes on Camp"

Herewith a little slice of Socialist-Realist extravaganza, Nasser-style.  Filmed in the late '50s, at the height of Egypt's attempt to create a Pan-Arab union, this remarkable number is El Watan El Akbar (The Great Homeland).  It features not only the composer, Mohamed Abdel Wahab, as the apparently only moderately enthusiastic conductor, but a range of the Arabic world's greatest stars, including Abdelhalim Hafiz (the Frank Sinatra of the Nile) and - the first female vocalist - the remarkable Sabah, who is still very much among us at an age rumored to be anything from 89 to 101.  Together, they present a regional pantheon, backed up during their solos by Ethnic Dancers of Many Lands.

In Arabic, this kind of patriotic pageant is called an "operetta," something that, if you are new to the region, can lead to false expectations when attending a state occasion, given the light years that separate them from something like The Merry Widow.

As a whole, this piece reminds me somehow of the finale of There's No Business Like Show Business as reinterpreted by Madame Mao. It's a reminder, perhaps, that there is not as much distance between the anything-to-entertain sensibility of Busby Berkeley and the aesthetics, such as they are, of authoritarianism as would entirely please either side...

Laz Call

After yesterday's bout of Merm-mania and associated Theatre Queeniness, I thought perhaps a little beefcake chaser might be in order.  This toothsome gentleman, Lebanese lovely Rabih Laz, may be rather beefier even than our dear Mr. John Abraham, but I hope you'll agree he carries it well.  He first caught the public eye in a regional television program called Arab Gladiators, which I suppose now I'll have to go learn more about...