The “Gypsy” Phenomenon

Romani Diaspora

1485 Romani Diaspora

“As early modern Europe’s first Others, Romani peoples are the original “Orientals” in the imagination of the West, their real identity hidden by layers of prejudice, suspicion and exoticism.” (Adrian Marsh and Elin Strand) Diaspora has been acclaimed as a concept that facilitates the accommodation of hybridity, movement, permeability of borders and fluidity of identification.... However, it has been argued that, contrary to intentions, the concept has served to essentialise communities by attaching them to particular places of origin, and that the meaning of Diaspora has been stretched to an extent that it has lost its analytical power by largely equating Diaspora with migrant communities … Gypsies construct and re-invent the discourse about their origins in different socio-cultural contexts.

Gitane avec tambour basquebasque (œuvre de William Bouguereau - XIXe siècle)William BouguereauXIXe siècle

Romantic Images...

1880

1917

Gypsy Dance Theatre: Ancient Rhythms and Dance for the 21st Century

We are Gypsies for today's world, wandering in a maze of modernity. We are a myriad of cultures, wild and new, picking up what we need and defying the taboos that bind us. We are modern and primitive, urban and tribal, medusa and machine.

... virtually all the performers who label their dance “Gypsy” are non-Roma women. Eastern European (using a liberal definition of Eastern Europe and including Turkey) in particular have become the archetypical “Gypsy dance” and grabbed the imaginations of American performers. So what is “Gypsy dance” and why does it hold such appeal for American dancers who have had little to no contact with the real thing? (“Caitlyn”)