Ziya Azazi – Dervish

Ziya Azazi
DERVISH

choreography, dancer Ziya Azazi
music Azab di Uwe Felchle
music Dervish in progress Mercan Dede
lights design Lutz Deppe

“Dervish” is composed of two performances, the first of which is “Azab,” and the second “Dervish in Progress.”
Ziya Azazi has been influenced by Sufism, an existential philosophy, while shaping his own individuality and dance. There lies mysticism in the core of Sufism, which explores the reason for creation of man and the universe he lives in. According to this philosophy, which studies the causality of existence, man is an entity that needs to mature and be enlightened. “Dervish,” at heart, harbors the journey of this entity. There are 4 doors in Sufism: the Law, the Path, Realization, and Discernment. The door of the Law is the first and the lowest step of the journey. At the door of the Path, the thought of becoming a pure entity ripens by practice and repetition. The door of Realization is the rank where one reaches the reality without any means and conveys knowledge onto others. “Azab” depicts the effort of man going through these 3 doors. While expressing this, the artist often exploits whirling in horizontal plane. The search he puts on stage is both philosophical and artistic. The journey ends by knowing and recognizing the self at the door of Discernment. “Dervish in Progress” meets us at this last door. Completeness and joy can be viewed in every move of the artist. The clarity of his body on stage is coalesced by the unpredictable movements of his skirt. The grace of his whirl reflects where his mind is at in this journey. Ziya Azazi, who passes through the doors of the Law, the Path, and Realization in “Azab,” opens the door to Discernment in “Dervish in Progress.”

“Dervish in Progress” is the second part of the performance by Ziya Azazi.
Ziya Azazi awaits us with his skirts at the threshold of the last door of Sufism, Discernment, and reflects his joy of knowing, recognizing, and even going beyond himself onto the audience. The skirts he uses in his performance are an indispensable element of his dance. The skirts change forms constantly all throughout the performance. His skirts are not only his costumes but are also a part of him, his partner, his cape, and the cover he hides behind. The repetitive whirls increase both the physical awareness and the meditative enlightenment.