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Midway Plaisance

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The Midway Plaisance , known locally as the Midway , is a public park on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois . It is one mile long by 220 yards wide and extends along 59th and 60th streets, joining Washington Park at its west end and Jackson Park at its east end. It divides the Hyde Park community area to the north from the Woodlawn community area to the south. Near Lake Michigan , the Midway is about 6 miles (10 km) south of the downtown " Loop ". The University of Chicago was founded just north of the park, and university buildings now front the Midway to the south, as well.

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51-557: Intended as part of the Chicago boulevard system , the park came to prominence when the Midway was laid-out to host popular amusements at the World's Columbian Exposition in 1893, which hosted the world's first Ferris Wheel, later lending its name, " midway ", to areas at county and state fairs and amusement parks with sideshows . The park is also featured as one of the main settings in

102-429: A "ribbon of parks and pleasure drives encircling the city." The landscaped boulevards connecting the parks were themselves conceived as places of leisure activity, parks "spun out". While intended as a "unified park and boulevard system", it was to be developed by separate park commissions on the north, west and south sides of the city. A 2011 review describes its vision and realization: This ambitious 26-mile system

153-553: A complex of parks and boulevards that would include Washington Park to the west, Jackson Park to the east on the lakeshore, and the Midway Plaisance as a system of paths and waterways connecting the two (see Encyclopedia of Chicago Map ). The firm of Olmsted, Vaux, and Co., famous for creating New York City's Central Park , was hired to design the urban oasis. Part of their plan was that the Midway would function as "a magnificent chain of lakes", allowing boaters to travel from

204-627: A great influence on the development of the Egyptian style and became famous, like Samia Gamal and Taheyya Kariokka , both of whom helped attract eyes to the Egyptian style worldwide. Professional belly dance in Cairo has not been exclusive to native Egyptians, although the country prohibited foreign-born dancers from obtaining licenses for solo work for much of 2004 out of concern that potentially inauthentic performances would dilute its culture. (Other genres of performing arts were not affected.) The ban

255-465: A major city in the United States." Incorporated as a city in 1837, Chicago and its developers, confronted questions concerning the provision urban parks and their relation to the city fabric. In 1849, John S. Wright, a real-estate investor, proposed an expansive system of parks connected by drives. The system was authorized by Illinois state legislation in 1869. The original plans foresaw

306-599: A mile north of the midway. The Midway, Lorado Taft's Boulevard of Broken Dreams, O'Connor, Jerome, Chicago Tribune, October 25, 1965. Chicago boulevard system The historic Chicago park and boulevard system is a ring of parks connected by wide, planted-median boulevards that winds through the north, west, and south sides of the City of Chicago . Neighborhoods along this historic stretch include Logan Square, Humboldt Park, Garfield Park, Lawndale, Little Village, McKinley Park, Brighton Park, Gage Park, Englewood, Back of

357-412: A name. It was a description. The Midway Plaisance began as a vision in the 1850s of Paul Cornell , a land developer, to turn an undeveloped stretch of infertile land south of Chicago into an urban lakeside retreat for middle- and upper-class residents seeking to escape city life. The area was a lakefront marsh ecosystem . In 1869, Cornell and his South Park Commission were granted the right to set up

408-578: A strong influence on the Turkish style. Belly dance today is a dance used by various artists among which are Rihanna , Beyoncé , Fergie , however the greatest representative of this dance is the Colombian singer Shakira , who led this dance to position it as her trademark, with her songs Whenever Wherever and Ojos Así , however thanks to the song Hips Don't Lie , her hip dance skills became known worldwide. Also, thanks to Whenever Wherever in 2001,

459-485: A variant with a rope entangling it in her body and dancing to the rhythm of Whenever Wherever. Shakira is the only artist in the music industry who has used belly dance on several occasions in her artistic career. She inspired Beyoncé to explore this type of dance in her Beautiful Liar collaboration where she also acted as choreographer. At the Super Bowl LIV Halftime Show event she returned to

510-521: Is a Middle Eastern dance that originated in Egypt , which features movements of the hips and torso. A Western-coined exonym , it is also referred to as Middle Eastern dance or Arabic dance . It has evolved to take many different forms depending on the country and region, both in costume and dance style; with the styles and costumes of Egypt being the most recognized worldwide due to Egyptian cinema . Belly dancing in its various forms and styles

561-508: Is believed to have had a long history in the Middle East . Several Greek and Roman sources including Juvenal and Martial describe dancers from Asia Minor and Spain using undulating movements, playing castanets , and sinking to the floor with "quivering thighs", descriptions that are certainly suggestive of the movements that are today associated with belly dance. Later, particularly in the 18th and 19th centuries, European travellers in

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612-498: Is both the French spelling of and a quaint obsolete spelling for "pleasance", itself an obscure word in this context meaning "a pleasure ground laid out with shady walks, trees and shrubs, statuary, and ornamental water". In the western area, Olmsted, (the park designer) labeled a section “Upper Plaisance.” In the eastern area, he had a “Lagoon Plaisance.” Connecting the two was a “Midway Plaisance.” In other words, Midway Plaisance wasn’t

663-464: Is locally significant because, for the first time in Chicago, urban growth was thoughtfully planned and executed on a city-wide scale. The park and boulevard system not only provided a structure for orderly real estate development, it also provided an amenity that elevated the sophistication of the city by enriching both its visible character and its quality of life. The South Park Commission's part of

714-590: Is modern classical (known as "al-jadid"). In the 1870s, Shafiqa al-Qibtiyya was the most famous bellydancer in all of Egypt's theatres and casinos, she was admired by the nation and widely celebrated. The modern Egyptian belly dance style and the modern belly dance costumes of the 19th century were featured by the Awalim . For example, many of the dancers in Badia's Casinos went on to appear in Egyptian films and had

765-515: Is noted for its controlled, precise movements. Although belly dance is traditionally seen as a feminine art, the number of male belly dancers has increased in recent years. Belly dance is referred to in Turkey as Oryantal Dans, or simply 'Oryantal' literally meaning orient . Many professional dancers and musicians in Turkey continue to be of Romani heritage, and the Roma people of Turkey have had

816-725: Is popular across the globe where it is taught by a multitude of schools of dance. "Belly dance" is a translation of the French term danse du ventre . The name first appeared in 1864 in a review of the Orientalist painting The Dance of the Almeh by Jean-Léon Gérôme . The first known use of the term "belly dance" in English is found in Charles James Wills, In the land of the lion and sun: or, Modern Persia (1883). Raqs sharqi ('Eastern Dance' or 'Dance of

867-507: Is universally recognized. The following attempt at categorization reflects the most common naming conventions: In addition to these torso movements, dancers in many styles will use level changes, traveling steps, turns, and spins. The arms are used to frame and accentuate movements of the hips, for dramatic gestures, and to create beautiful lines and shapes with the body. Other movements may be used as occasional accents, such as low kicks and arabesques, backbends, and head tosses. Belly dancing

918-521: The Awalim (primarily musicians and poets), Ghawazi . The Maazin sisters may have been the last authentic performers of Ghawazi dance in Egypt, with Khayreyya Maazin still teaching and performing as of 2020. Belly dancing is part of Egyptian culture, and is part of Arabic culture as a whole. Throughout the Middle East and the Arab diaspora , belly dancing is closely associated with Arabic music that

969-671: The University of Chicago , which expanded in 1926 to be located on either side of it. Today the Midway sits between the original main campus to the north and the professional graduate schools the University of Chicago Law School , the Harris School of Public Policy , the Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice , and the Graham School of Continuing Liberal and Professional Studies , as well as,

1020-522: The University of Chicago Press to the south. Later designers and artists, including Lorado Taft , and Eero Saarinen added or sought to add their vision to the Midway. A statue of the father of modern taxonomy , Carl Linnaeus , and an equestrian statue by sculptor Albin Polasek of the Knight of Blanik, a legendary Czech savior who emerges from Blaník mountain in his nation's hour of need, grace

1071-549: The Chicago boulevards. The Chicago Park Boulevard System Historic District , which encompasses most of the Boulevard System, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2018. The approved listing, stretches approximately 26 miles, including 8 parks, 19 boulevards, and 6 squares, as well as adjacent properties that preserve structures built from the 19th century to the 1940s. Part of

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1122-619: The Islamic sex segregation , but female slaves were trained to entertain male guests in singing and other art forms, such as the qiyan slave artists, who became common during the era of slavery in the Umayyad Caliphate . During the era of slavery in Egypt , female slaves were trained in singing and dancing and given as gifts between men. In the Ottoman Empire , belly dance was performed by women and later, by boys, in

1173-568: The Middle East such as Edward Lane and Flaubert wrote extensively of the dancers they saw there, including the Awalim and Ghawazi of Egypt. In his book, Andrew Hammond notes that practitioners of the art form agree that belly dance is lodged especially in Egyptian culture, he states: "the Greek historian Herodotus related the remarkable ability of Egyptians to create for themselves spontaneous fun, singing, clapping, and dancing in boats on

1224-628: The Middle East. Although there were dancers of this type at the 1876 Centennial in Philadelphia, it was not until the 1893 Chicago World's Fair that it gained national attention. The term "belly dancing" is often credited to Sol Bloom , the Fair's entertainment director, but he referred to the dance as danse du ventre , the name used by the French in Algeria. In his memoirs, Bloom states, "when

1275-454: The Midway is landscaped with a fosse , lawn covered depression, where the canal would have been, although in the winter parts of the grounds are turned over for ice skating . The Midway Plaisance has a variety of different elements for visitors to explore, including lakes, trails, bridges, and fields. Today, the park hosts many different programs, including: concerts, ice skating lessons, movie nights, and many other events. The word "plaisance"

1326-431: The Midway. It has remained essentially a green area, a public resource subject to much speculation, and various periodic plans of redevelopment. The sunken panels, home now to soccer players and ice skating and sports facility, the cross-street "bridges", and the east–west lines of trees, pay homage to Olmsted's vision. In 1999, a new master plan for the Midway Plaisance done by OLIN , a landscape architecture firm,

1377-855: The National Register district are several parks which are individually listed historic places: Garfield Park (listed in 1993), Humboldt Park (1992), Jackson Park and the Midway Plaisance (1972), Sherman Park (1990), and Washington Park (2004). Belly dance Features Types Types Features Clothing Genres Art music Folk Prose Islamic Poetry Genres Forms Arabic prosody National literatures of Arab States Concepts Texts Fictional Arab people South Arabian deities Belly dance ( Arabic : رقص شرقي , romanized :  Raqs sharqi , lit.   'oriental dance')

1428-636: The Nile during numerous religious festivals. It's from somewhere in this great, ancient tradition of gaiety that the belly dance emerged." The courtly pleasures of the Umayyad , Abbasid and Fatimid caliphs included belly dancing, soirée and singing. Belly dancers and singers were sent from all parts of the vast empire to entertain. During this era of slavery in the Muslim world , these artists were often slaves. No free Muslim woman could perform in public due to

1479-599: The Orient') is a broad category of professional forms of the dance, including forms of belly dance popularly known today, such as Raqs Baladi, Sa'idi, Ghawazee, and Awalim. The informal, social form of the dance is known as Raqs Baladi ('Dance of the Country' or 'Folk Dance') in Egyptian Arabic and is considered an indigenous dance. Belly dance is primarily a torso-driven dance, with an emphasis on articulations of

1530-593: The Yards, and Bronzeville. It reaches as far west as Garfield Park and turns south east to Douglass Park. In the south, it reaches Washington Park and Jackson Park, including the Midway Plaisance, used for the 1893 World's Fair . Constructed from the 1870s through 1942, in 2018 approximately 26 miles of the system was listed on the National Register of Historic Places . Nominated to the register as both nationally and locally significant, its national significance includes being, "the first comprehensive system of greenways for

1581-573: The area for amusements at a county or state fair , circus , or amusement park . The Midway Plaisance led visitors from the Midway Plaisance to the Women's Building and then to the White City. Following the Exposition, the Midway Plaisance was returned to a park setting, under the renewed plans of Frederick Law Olmsted . Over the ensuing decades, the Midway gradually came to be encompassed by

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1632-502: The belly dance fever began popularizing it in a large part of Latin America and later taking it to the United States. Over time in her presentations Shakira added this dance mixing it with Latin dances, like Salsa and Afro-Colombian, and she also she expressed that she began to dance these movements since she was little thanks to her Lebanese grandmother. Nowadays the belly dance is a characteristic dance of this singer which presented

1683-574: The belly dance with rope during the transition from Ojos así thus to Whenever Wherever . Belly dance was popularized in the West during the Romantic movement of the 18th and 19th centuries, when Orientalist artists depicted romanticized images of harem life in the Ottoman Empire . Belly dancing has become popular outside the Arab world , and American, European, and Japanese women who have become professional belly dancers dance all over Europe and

1734-435: The book The Devil in the White City written by Erik Larson. Landscaped with long vistas and avenues of trees at the start of the 20th century, the Midway in part followed the vision of its designer Frederick Law Olmsted , one of the creators of New York City 's Central Park , but without his proposed feature of a Venetian canal down the Midway's center linking the lagoon systems of Jackson and Washington parks. Instead,

1785-448: The boulevards. The Logan Square area boulevards pass through residential areas and are lined with homes in a variety of architectural styles. Four hundred buildings are designated "primary" and 118 are "secondary" contributing buildings in the district. Some of the most common designs are sandstone Romanesque houses, gray stone Victorian houses, and brick buildings with Tudor Revival and Prairie School styles. Also included in

1836-493: The dance, and dancers were sometimes arrested and fined. The dance was nicknamed the " hoochie coochie ", or the shimmy and shake. A short film, "Fatima's Dance", was widely distributed in the Nickelodeon theaters. It drew criticism for its "immodest" dancing, and was eventually censored. Belly dance drew men in droves to burlesque theaters, and to carnival and circus lots. Thomas Edison made several films of dancers in

1887-446: The dancers were uncorseted and gyrated their hips was shocking to Victorian sensibilities. There were no soloists, but it is claimed that a dancer nicknamed Little Egypt stole the show. Some claim the dancer was Farida Mazar Spyropoulos , but this fact is disputed. The popularity of these dancers subsequently spawned dozens of imitators, many of whom claimed to be from the original troupe. Victorian society continued to be affronted by

1938-518: The hips. Unlike many Western dance forms, the focus of the dance is on isolations of the torso muscles, rather than on movements of the limbs through space. Although some of these isolations appear similar to the isolations used in jazz ballet, they are sometimes driven differently and have a different feeling or emphasis. In common with most folk dances, there is no universal naming scheme for belly dance movements. Many dancers and dance schools have developed their own naming schemes, but none of these

1989-696: The ponds in Washington Park through the lagoons in Jackson Park and into Lake Michigan. The South Park Commission office, where all the detailed plans were stored, was burned in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. The expense of rebuilding the city eliminated the funds to cover expenditures that the plans would have entailed, and the South Park area remained largely in its natural swampy state. The World's Columbian Exposition of 1893

2040-482: The public learned that the literal translation was "belly dance", they delightedly concluded that it must be salacious and immoral ... I had a gold mine." Authentic dancers from several Middle Eastern and North African countries performed at the Fair, including Syria, Turkey and Algeria—but it was the dancers in the Egyptian Theater of The Street in the Cairo exhibit who gained the most notoriety. The fact that

2091-527: The sultan's palace. Belly dance in Egypt has two distinct social contexts: as a folk or social dance. As a social dance, belly dance (also called Raqs Baladi or Raqs Shaabi in this context) is performed at celebrations and social gatherings by ordinary people (male and female, young and old), in their ordinary clothes. In more conservative or traditional societies, these events may be gender segregated, with separate parties where men and women dance separately. Historically, professional dance performers were

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2142-580: The system had previously been designated, in 1985, as the Logan Square Boulevards Historic District , a linear historic district in the Logan Square community area of North Side, Chicago. It encompasses 2.5 miles (4.0 km) of the city's boulevard system and includes sections of Logan Boulevard, Kedzie Avenue , and Humboldt Boulevard. It also includes two parks, Logan Square and Palmer Square , which connect

2193-655: The system was designed by William Le Baron Jenney . Extending from Logan Square, his 1871 plan linked Humboldt, Garfield and Douglas Parks. The north-side park commission, known as the Lincoln Park Commission, failed in its plan to develop Diversey Parkway as a pleasure drive connection to the other park commissions' boulevard system. Legal action against the Lincoln Park Commission prevented progress until widening Diversey Avenue to near Logan Boulevard became impractical. In 1934,

2244-502: The system was designed by Olmsted, Vaux & Co. The firm's principals, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux , designed park and boulevard systems for Boston (its Emerald Necklace ), Buffalo, and other cities. This part includes the Midway Plaisance and other areas used in the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893. The south side system included boulevards to Washington Park and Sherman Park. The West Chicago Commission's section of

2295-730: The various park commissions were consolidated into the Chicago Park District . Almost all of the park and boulevard system's construction was completed by 1942. In 1959, the boulevard parts of the system were transferred from the Chicago Park District to the City of Chicago department in charge of streets -- the Park District retaining only the parks. An international architectural-concept competition, Network Reset, awarded prizes in 2011 for "rethinking"

2346-592: The western edge of Jackson Park on Stony Island Avenue , was turned over to the theatrical entrepreneur Sol Bloom , a protégé of Chicago mayor Carter Harrison, Sr. It became a grand mix of fakes, hokum , and the genuinely educational and introduced the "hootchy-cootchy" version of the belly dance in the "Street in Cairo" amusement; it was the most popular, with 2.25 million admissions. George Washington Gale Ferris Jr. 's original Ferris Wheel carried over 1.5 million passengers. The Midway's money-making concessions and sideshows made over $ 4 million in 1893 dollars, and it

2397-403: Was created in response to the belief that it would not only help create healthful, accessible and livable neighborhoods, but would also spur residential real estate development in what was then the outskirts of the city. As anticipated, the park and boulevard system attracted real estate development and in the process created one of the city’s most recognizable and lasting urban features. The system

2448-520: Was held in the underdeveloped parts of the South Park. The worldwide celebration of Columbus ' transfer of "the torch of civilization to the New World" in 1492 was one of the most successful and influential of world's fairs . It covered over 600 acres (2.4 km) and attracted exhibitors and visitors from all over the world. For the Exposition, the mile-long Midway Plaisance, running from the eastern edge of Washington Park on Cottage Grove Avenue to

2499-511: Was lifted in September 2004, but a culture of exclusivity and selectivity remained. The few non-native Egyptians permitted to perform in an authentic way invigorated the dance circuit and helped spread global awareness of the art form. American-born Layla Taj is one example of a non-native Egyptian belly dancer who has performed extensively in Cairo and the Sinai resorts. Egyptian belly dance

2550-489: Was the more memorable portion of the Exposition for many visitors. The Midway also featured more scholarly exhibits which were overseen by Frederic Ward Putnam , head of Harvard University ’s Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology , and ethnologist Otis Tufton Mason of the Smithsonian Institution . In the years after the Exposition closed, " midway " came to be used in the United States to signify

2601-605: Was unveiled by the University of Chicago and the Chicago Park District . The proximity of the Midway to the university gave the school's early football teams, the Maroons, a second nickname, " Monsters of the Midway ", a name later applied to the Chicago Bears when the University of Chicago dropped its football program. The program has since been reinstated, and the Maroons play at Stagg Field on 55th street, half

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