Chapter 43: Veil Dance

Palace entertainments are supposed to be artistic rather than crude titillation, although there is often a fine line between the two. A veil dance is traditionally reserved for smaller and more private gatherings, particularly if the dancer is expected to end up naked. Nobody is surprised that Şah Sultan has already decreed that the gathering tonight is too public for the dancers to be expected to shed all their clothes. Not that a few veils can be regarded as more than minimal covering. Very few dancers will feel comfortable performing a veil dance before such a large audience. I suspect Kadir has had a hand in selecting this dance rather than one of the more appropriate alternatives.

The dancers look nervous as they wait to begin, but I suspect each dancer will lose any inhibitions once under way. It is likely the dancers will become emotionally charged at the prospect of winning the purple handkerchief. As the dance progresses the audience and dancers may become lost in a frenzy, and each dancer encouraged to do whatever is necessary to win.

I still feel worried about Anna’s decision to dance tonight. Only a few weeks ago she was hesitant about undressing in the harem baths. Tonight she will be displaying her body in front of many strangers, most of them male. While she isn’t being required to shed all her clothes, a few veils offer no protection for a woman’s modesty once her body begins to sweat.

The look of anticipation on the three brothers’ faces is almost comical. Their eyes are locked onto where the dancers wait for the signal to begin. A herd of elephants could stampede through the room and they probably wouldn’t notice.

I study the six dancers in turn. Each of them is clothed in nothing more than three or four veils tied strategically around her body. The size and colour of the veils, and the extent to which their bodies are covered, differs from dancer to dancer. Gülriz has chosen four very long veils wrapped several times around her body. Collectively they hide most of her face, torso and upper legs. Only her arms and lower legs are uncovered. It’s the most modest of the six dancers’ costumes, but it will also be the hardest to dance in successfully. If one of the veils slips, then she could quickly become entangled in metres of the gauzy cloth.

Melek has chosen a three veil outfit which leaves her head and midriff bare. It’s an unimaginative, but safe option for a veil dance. If Melek intends to win the purple handkerchief, then her dancing rather than her costume must capture Ahmed’s approval. Her choice of costume, however, suggests that she isn’t really interested in winning tonight.

Emete has opted for three longer veils, which are draped around her in a more alluring way. She has shown some originality in the way the costume is fastened and I hope for her sake that it holds together. Perhaps she intends for the costume to be removed at some point, but it would be unfortunate if it fell apart in the opening moments. I can tell that she is going to try and win someone’s favour tonight, but somehow I don’t think that person is Ahmed.

I move my attention to Aysun, Nuray and Anna. None of them have had any experience in performing a veil dance, so they will have had to rely on Afife and her helpers to assist them in preparing their outfits. Fortunately they seem to have received sound advice and each costume is tantalizingly different. Aysun wears a daring four veil outfit. She lacks Gülriz’s dancing experience, so Aysun has wisely chosen shorter veils. It leaves more of her body exposed, but reduces the risk of unfortunate accidents with the costume.

Nuray has opted for a more modest three long veil costume, which places her at a disadvantage if she hopes to win the purple handkerchief. I understand the reason for her choice, but this isn’t the sort of competition which is won without taking risks.

Anna’s choice of costume is in the daring category. Her costume alone would cause any man’s temperature to rise. I’m not certain why she is trying so hard, since I doubt that she really wants to win the purple handkerchief. From where I’m sat it looks as though her costume is made up of a single long veil, but it will most likely consist of two or three identical smaller veils. The way it is draped over her body is unusual and alluring. I hope she realises that once her body starts to perspire during her dancing, then her gauzy costume will cling to her and leave nothing for the audience’s imagination. Perhaps that is her intention, although I hardly recognise her as the Anna von Erdödy I escorted here to Edirne.

The music starts and the hum of conversation immediately stops. You can practically feel the anticipation of the audience. The dancing lasts for nearly ten minutes, with each performer given the chance to dance close to Ahmed and his brothers. Each dancer gives her best performance. Even Melek is wise enough to know that Şah Sultan will have her punished if she puts on a lacklustre show. As I anticipated, Emete’s costume suddenly disintegrates while she is dancing close to the sultanzades. She quickly recovers her veils and wraps them around her as though it was an accident, although I suspect otherwise. It’s a clever move which is certainly appreciated by the brothers. Şah Sultan is less impressed, and I suspect Emete may feel the sultana’s wrath tomorrow.

While Ahmed is the guest of honour, and it is he who will be awarding the purple handkerchief, I can tell that not all of the women are dancing for his eyes alone. Gülriz and Emete have their eyes on Ramazan, while Melek looks at Kadir more often than not. Anna simply seems lost in the heady rhythm of the music, leaving Aysun and Nuray to compete for Ahmed’s attention.

The dance ends to rapturous applause from the audience. The dancers are told to line up facing Ahmed, and Emete is given a couple of moments to rearrange her costume. The time has arrived for Ahmed to make his decision. He walks along the line of dancers and thanks each one of them for their performance. Finally he returns to Aysun and tucks the purple handkerchief between her breasts. She grasps the handkerchief quickly in case it should fall to the floor. It’s only a myth that allowing the handkerchief to drop to the floor is regarded as a rejection of the prize, but Aysun obviously doesn’t believe in taking chances.