Masrax iyo Ciyaar: sitting down with Faadumo Shaxshaxleey
How Somali dance and theatre have developed through the eyes of Faadumo Shaxshaxleey.
By Ibrahim
Faadumo Maxammed Shaxshaxleey and Axmadey Cabdi Gaashaan
Faadumo Maxammed “Shaxshaxley” had her first foray into the world of Somali arts in the 80s, the heyday of Somali music or the beginning of its decline depending on who you ask. An actress and dancer she was part of Kooxda Folkloreka, Waaberi’s traditional dance group and Kooxdii Shuumeey, a Banaadiri theatre group also part of Waaberi. Shaxshaxleey has seen herself act in plays performed in Golaha Murtida Iyo Madadaalada [the national theatre in Mogadishu] to Universal TV commissioned TV series filmed in homes and public places. Her story fits into the wider narrative of modern Somali arts, a story of people fighting to preserve, develop and disseminate the culture.
Shaxshaxleey started off as a dancer, at fourteen she would rush out of school to watch performances and join in, it was here she was scouted and invited to an audition. Those who would pass this strict process would join Kooxda Folkloreka, the dance section of Hoballada Waaberi, the national troupe.
Becoming one of those chosen she began training at Lafoole, a university on the outskirts of Mogadishu, where she studied intensively.
“Every morning we would put on our tracksuits and shoes and start to exercise, after we were sweating and limber we would learn and practice dances. This was our daily routine”. She recounts.
It is rare to find an artist who hadn't been supported or taught by others in the Somali arts scene. Xudaydi was taught by Cabdillahi Qarshe and Cali Naaji by Cumar Shooli. Mentorship is an important part of growth, especially in the arts. Shaxshaxleey was supported by Aweys Khamiis, a maestro at the shareero, a lyre like instrument and Cali Ganay a drummer for Kooxdii Folkloreka who was very apt at traditional Somali drum playing.
Aweys Khamiis and his shareero
Kooxda Folkloreka educated the Somali populace about their culture by way of their performances. They exposed Somalis to dances they had never seen before. Recordings of their pieces acted as a form of preservation but they also had another important role; developing Somali dance culture.
This mainly came about in two ways, their performances of Somali dances were not just of them in their traditional context. The shift in the stage of these dances, from weddings and festivals etc to a form of entertainment that would be performed in theatre and tour around the world, coincided with them beginning to theatricize the dances and sometimes incorporate them into stories. Thus there was a change in context and movement.
The second way that Kooxda Folklore developed Somali dance culture was that they also created new dances, these came about naturally when drums were played and artists got inspired.
“This dance called Wiiro Wiiro was created by a man called Cali Maleexaan … and the dance called Soo Gur Soo Gur was brought to us by the Chinese, they brought the formation of the dance and how we would line up but the instruments and the other parts were added and created by the dancers who were also inspired by a traditional dance that originated with the farming communities” Shaxshaxley tells us.
Some members of Kooxda Folkloreka
Shaxshaxleey was also an actress. When the Somali dance troupe understood that they had the prowess to put on good productions, that were of the same quality as other leading theatre troupes they started to produce plays. They became known as Kooxdii Shuumeey.
“The first play I played a role in was 15kii Shuumeey, I was the supporting actress [aktarada labaad] and played a role [that embodied] traditional Somali values. There was not a play before that matched it and I don’t think there will ever be a play that will match it”
Axmadey Cabdi Gaashaan was the leader of the Kooxda Folkloreka and Kooxdii Shuumeey sections of Waaberi, 15kii Shuumeey was one of many of plays he wrote but it is the most remembered and loved one. Its original cast included Shaxshaxleey however when it was brought back a second time there were some changes in performers.
“Qofka Fanaanka dhabta ah, ma qarsoomi karo”
“A true artist cannot hide”
15kii Shuumeey was critical of certain Somali cultural habits and superstitions. One of the main things pushed was the idea that what is written for you is what you will receive. This is especially shown when the lead actor's [Shooble] wife [Shuumeey] could not get pregnant and so his mother forced them to separate. Later on when married to the girl Shaxshaxleey was playing, the daughter of his maternal aunt and also the girl his mother had originally wanted him to marry, he still couldn't have children. He divorced his cousin and tried to look for Shuumeey; however when he found her, she was married … and pregnant!
The story clearly touched people on a visceral level, it was toured two separate times and was even taken to Djibouti.
“People never got bored of it because it was a true story, we used to see all the people [in the audience] crying’ Shaxshaxleey says.
Shaxshaxleey would go on to act in many more plays, such as Warbixintii Jaceylka and Fal Xaasid iyo Faqiir Wax Helay, however when the war happened Somali arts went through a massive phase of stagnation.
“The country became destroyed and so did the arts, the artists are part of people so the same problems that face the people face the artists”
““Markii aan fanka galayee anigu, fanku wuxuu ahaa irid lagu soo galayoo iyo irid laga soo baxayoo”
“When I joined the arts, the arts had a entrance and an exit” ”
This quote has stuck with me ever since I heard it. What Shaxshaxleey is talking about here is that there was a type of structure in the Somali arts scene before the war, an etiquette, a way of doing things if you will. However that has all changed. Pirating music, stealing songs and upcoming singers doing covers without original artists and songwriters permission are just a few of the problems in the current music scene.
However all across the Somali diaspora and and the Somali inhabited lands, with rebuilding daily life the arts also begin to be rebuilt. Shaxshaxleey has acted in many short series and films in the UK, including Qooto Qooto, a staple for Somali parents, Soddoh and Sinji Quursi which tackles discrimination. This revival of Somali theatre mirrors the attitude artists had before, paying out of their own pocket for the benefit of the people. Little [if any] money was made in the arts before the war and the same is true today.
‘We are competing with the Turkish people’ Shaxshaxleey smiles as she explains how Somalis have become obsessed with ‘musalsals’ or TV series and films from different countries dubbed in Somali.
“We want to show Somalis that we have been acting before and we will continue to do so”
L to R : Faadumo Shaxshaxleey, Axmadey Cabdi Gaashaan, Marisa Carbone and Feynuus Sh Daahir
Although art is embedded in so many parts of daily Somali life, from theatre culture to the vivid painted storefronts all over Xamar, families tended to not be happy when their children became artists. “They could be a boy or a girl, a dancer or a singer. Somalis do not really value artists” Shaxshaxleey says. “However, the arts and sports are so important to society”
There needs to be a shift in these kinds of ideals if we want to see more development in the culture and better quality cultural work.
Shaxshaxleeys story is one of trying to disseminate, preserve and develop Somali culture. From joining theatre troupe that brought massive shifts to the Somali art scenes to keeping Somali theatre culture alive in the UK in whatever capacity she can.
‘We want the young people to understand that we had a country, that we are a visible people, that we will have longevity, that they were not born in the diaspora, that this country is not theirs, that we have travelled away from a country and, God willing, we will travel back’.
Interview took place on 25/1/2020
In the presence of Idel, Muna and Ibrahim
Interview has been adapted from Somali
