Belly Dance Basics: A Complete Lesson with Choreography for Beginners
Amazon.com
The sensuality, grace and femininity of belly dance make it unlike any other dance form in the world. The movements are entirely natural and gentle, so no wonder women of all ages and body types are becoming belly dance enthusiasts. You can hardly find a city in America that is without a vibrant belly dance community who will swear by the physical and spiritual benefits of this dance. Belly Dance Basics is designed for newcomers to this dance as well as those with some pra… More >>
Belly Dance Basics: A Complete Lesson with Choreography for Beginners
I have taken Belly Dance classes, which have been much more engaging, fun, and well-done than this DVD. The woman in this video seems to know what she is doing and is pleasant, she’s just fine, but the moves and boring, lengthy repetition were quite disappointing. I was so excited to use this video, but I decided to pay for another class at the YMCA and won’t be using this DVD.
The very worst thing, that I find quite deceptive, is that a great deal of the footage on this DVD and the one titled “Perfect Hips Belly Dance Workout” are exactly the same – they are the same footage. I feel ripped off with this.
Rating: 2 / 5
This is really great for the beginning bellydancer. I recieved this as a gift and had a lot of fun with it. Michelle Joyce has a great playfullness in her dance and performance…. I am now slowly collecting her entire collection.
Rating: 5 / 5
The instructor is clear and the descriptions are excellent. The choreography was fun and the performances at the end were cool. Overall, excellent value for the money and a well done product.
Rating: 5 / 5
I really got my money’s worth with this one. This DVD is packed with easy to follow instruction. Michelle makes learning belly dance fun. By the end of this DVD, I really felt confident enough to perform in front of my family (although my kids laughed their heads off). Great for beginners like me.
Rating: 5 / 5
I’m currently in the process of taking private bellydancing lessons twice a week from a certified instructor. These lessons are one on one and an hour long. I also attend a weekly public class taught by the same instructor. I have completed approximately 10 sessions so far. I have come a long way, but I still have a long way to go and still consider myself a beginner. Unlike the title of this video, I wouldn’t necessarily consider it a complete lesson for beginners.
Granted, I am a bit lacking in coordination, but I felt Michelle moved much too fast during the breakdown of the move, which is very important to master if you want the combination to work out. It was especially frustrating watching the drop kick combination hip bump. She runs through that move fairly slowly to explain it but in order to really see and understand what she’s doing, you’d have to put it on slow motion, and can she PLEASE tie up her pants for that one? I do like how after she shows a combination, she does several run-throughs, but they’re so fast, they’re not helpful unless you were able to master the move which is rather challenging considering how little time she spends on the breakdown.
Another frustration I have is that she is wearing pants, which makes is nearly impossible to see what her knees are doing. Ankle length pants on bellydance instructors ought to be outlawed, dang it! Occasionally, she will raise the bottom of her pants above her knees to show you, but that’s rare. She does explain what her knees are doing, but if you are more of a visual learner, it’s kind of hard to perceive. I also find it annoying when the video camera zooms in just on her stomach. Fortunately it’s rare and they don’t linger there too long, but just seeing her stomach does not help.
On the up side, Michelle is friendly and not at all irritating to watch, I just personally feel that the breakdown of the move could be done a bit slower. In a few other reviews, some mentioned that a lot of these moves are the same moves on her “Perfect Hips” video. However maybe that’s the ticket, at least for me. I’m considering purchasing “Perfect Hips” to see each move broken down and explained at a much slower pace, so it will be easier to master. Then once I feel comfortable with those moves, I imagine the choreography in this video would be much easier to follow. It’s a very fun video, but I highly recommend that beginners consider a more instructional video first before attempting this one or perhaps buying them together. Overall I am happy with my purchase, cause I believe I will be able to use it fairly soon, I guess I’m just one of those un-coordinated people who need a lot more detailed of a breakdown to finally master a move.
Rating: 4 / 5