Biographies: Nagwa Fouad - Actor

Biographies

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An Egyptian actress and belly dancer, born to an Egyptian father and a Palestinian mother in Alexandria in 1939. Her mother died as an infant at the age of 7 months, so her stepmother took care of her. She started her artistic life by practicing dancing, then she turned to the cinema. She starred in many films, including: The Three Adventurers, Tomorrow Love Returns, Al-Sukaria, Dr. Manal Dances, Uncovering the Hidden and Hysteria. In addition to acting, she had several experiences in film production, most notably are the films Thousand Kisses and Edge of the Sword.


Nagwa Fouad is a famous Egyptian belly dancer. Her real name is ‘Awaatef Muhammad ‘Agamy, she was born in 1939 to an Egyptian father and a Palestinian mother. Nagwa performed at the Abdeen Casino where she met Ahmad Fouad Hassan (her future husband for 6 years), a producer of stage shows that later became a famous conductor. He convinced her to perform live at the most prestigious music and dance show in the 1960s called “Adwa al-Madeena i.e. City Lights” which had featured such superstars as Shadia, Abdul Haleem Haafez, Fayza Ahmad, and Sabaah. In 1976, the famous composer Mohammed Abdel Wahab wrote an entire musical piece exclusively for her belly dancing show titled “Aamar Arba'tashar i.e. Full moon” it was her transition from traditional oriental dance to a choreographed stage performances. Her stage performance to this special piece allowed her to change the way belly-dancing was presented on stage, transforming it from traditional oriental dance to more of a choreographed lavish spectacle adding more dramatic elements to it than ever before. Nagwa featured on many of the covers of the Ahmed Fouad Hassan LP's/CD's. Nagua took every career step well calculated: "Hassan was 17 years older than me, but I needed him. He nurtured my amateur's talents... He taught me the importance of studying and working on my talent if I wanted to be a big star. He trained me at the Nelly Mazloum Dance School and I joined the National Dance Troupe to study folklore with Russian teachers." Nagoua Fouad learned showmanship and eye-catching techniques, which were obvious in her performances of "Ayyoub al-Masry" and "Baheyya we Yasseen". Ahmad Fouaad Hassan wanted to have a baby from Nagwa, something she did not accept so this eventually led to her first divorce after six years of marriage. Nagwa established her own dance group yet it did not last long and later tried to retire dancing to become actor. She played on the stage and in the cinema and finally became cinema producer. She played a great role in the film “Hadd al-seif i.e. The edge of the sword”.