Customer Reviews

You Can Bellydance! Absolute Beginner Belly Dance

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It's a good video with very clear instruction. She teaches each step, then combines it with the next step.2 -3 steps make a combination. I like it that you are learning the steps and the dance routine at once. I get bored easily, so that really helped me stay motivated . First dance is easy, you can do it even if you've never tried bellydancing before. First dance is 7 combinations. The second dance is a drum solo and it's 12 combinations. It's more challenging for me even though I've taken bellydance classes before. I love both routines, they are not simplistic like a lot of beginner bellydance stuff, they are beginner level but they look sophisticated.

This is a really fun DVD and Neon is a great teacher. Only I think it is not for an absolute beginner, some previous experience would help before you get to work with this one. If I had not done Amira's Bellydance 101 before, I would have being a little frustrated with this. Other than that it is a nice DVD to have.

Excellent dvd to teach bellydance moves that add up to 2 separate dances. Reviews before mine are accurate, so I won't repeat them, but note that Seir from Texas probably meant to give this 5 stars instead of one. I have at least 25 of dance-exercise dvd's and videos. Neon is THE best instructor (except for Bonnie Franklin for tap dance). Neon is technical, clear, and includes helpful extras like the name of each step as it is executed. Each dance is divided into 3 parts: step-by-step instruction, learn & practice, and practice (dance is repeated over and over with no talking). Check out her other videos, "Instant Belly Dancer" adds graphic symbols to each move to show 3-dimensional movement - excellent learning aid for us visual learners! PLUS in her Body Shaping series there is a certified strength and conditioning specialist who tells you what to avoid and what to focus on - extremely helpful! I also like that she is the only performer and the camera stays on her. I find it distracting to watch others who do not execute the moves as well or artistic camera moves when I am trying to learn the best techniques. Neon is a fabulous dancer AND instructor. Highly recommended!

This is a pretty good dvd. Best for advanced beginners, I'd say. That's when I used it. There were some new moves in with some old favorites.

I found this to be a valuable collection for my dance library. The first segment teaches what many instructors fail to teach- orientation and smooth transitions early, this video will guide you easily. Transitions from left to right are created by teaching the pivoting of the foot almost magically, creating smooth and graceful dancing, no more boring dancer, learn to dance for all your audience, not just those facing you! The cross step with use of the arms over the head and framing the head,taxsim which is much overlooked, hip pushes, beautiful traveling hip circles,undulations.The second segment teaches a funtastical drum solo,easy to learn. It is easy to add to this choreography and make it more challenging.There is so much in this video, learn to flow gracefully or bump to the beat of the drum, let beautiful Neon guide you into a spellbinding journey of this mystical dance. Overall, I totally enjoyed the quality of this video and the only improvements I would make would be the backdrop or setting which needed color. Learning from a video is easier in my opinion if the instructor faces a mirror or works at an angle and the student follows along. Overall those are minor compared to all that is offered.

Being fairly new to bellydance I was greatly helped by this DVD. Neon demonstrates basic moves and strings them together into two very nice dances. Nothing too flashy here: just good info. Why didn't I give it five stars? Not being formally trained in bellydance, I had a hard time watching Neon's knees to see which leg was bent and which was straight. She's wearing flare-leg pants and heels which makes it a bit difficult to determine the exact bending-straightening action so necessery to the moves. I eventually figured it out and enjoy Neon's style tremendously!

Menu options:
Dance 1 - very easy, slow music style, slow movements
Step-by-step (instruction only) Learn & practice (instruction & practicing routine as you learn) & Practice (routine only 12+ times)
Dance 2 - drum solo, more energy, more interesting, faster beat
step-by-step (instruction only) Learn & practice (instruction & practicing routine as you learn) & Practice (routine only 12+ times)
Performance - Neon showing her skill
Music - text on what music you hear so you can buy it if enjoy it

Neon is a beautiful dancer.... she's more fluid then most, she almost moves like she is a snake & awesome head balance ability as well.
With that, I found her older dance instruction dvds very cold with no backgrounds & no music. I also found it advanced compared to Jillina, Neena & Veena, Dolphina, Rania, Jenna, Suhaila, Rachel Brice, etc. etc. Yes, I have a large collection.
With this one, I was hoping she'd have more instruction & still have you try the new move several times like a workout before moving on. No, this is more like learning a dance routine & she barely spends time on any move before moving on.
The cold stark white background is boring & the lack of music during instruction is killer. Now I know why her old ones had graphics of how to move, she tells you a few things, but nowhere near enough for beginners. She shows you 1/4 speed 2x about & then 3x in normal speed as she counts out loud 1-8 like dancers learn. The pace is slow & easy, you would burn more calories walking probably.
I tried playing a belly dance cd I got with my "art of drum solo" belly dance dvd to help with the monotony, but it still didn't help.
If you want to learn with more repetition, try the belly dance twins best, Rania (though she's REALLY stiff), Suhaila (though she's a bit too challenging for most beginners in terms of athleticism) or the "ultimate bellydance fitness" which shows you in 1/2 speed & then normal speed which is how I learn best.
This is best for beginners who want to learn an easy routine & who have an idea how to do the basic moves.

You can see a preview of her style on youtube under "you can belly dance" & "Dance Today Bellydance" (which looks 100x more lively/fun then this one) or her name for many clips of her.

This is the DVD I pop in to watch and practice over and over again. It's simple for a beginner like myself to follow the steps. I bought this along with Neon's - Instant Bellydancer: a crash course in belly dancing, and am very pleased with both. The best part is the practice sessions which are on continuous play. You can have extended workout sessions, or just watch and listen to the music and the dance.

I had no experience with bellydance before I purchased this DVD. However, while it is a neat concept (the dance is broken down, the pieces practiced, and then put together,) this product is not realistic for a true beginner.

1) The light skinned instructor wears white clothing against a white background. Her moves, while slow to be instructional, did not stand out enough for me to copy them effectively.

2) The instructor wears long, baggy pants, so it isn't possible to see how her leg is positioned. I can see the tips of her toes, but I can't even tell if she is wearing heels or if she is just flexing her foot.

3) The dances are pretty boring. Not that I expected to do much the first time, but I actually got this video for exercise and muscle toning and the dances are so boring and minimal that my heart rate doesn't even go up.

True beginners shouldn't purchase this video. If you have no instruction on belly dancing you won't understand how to make the moves correctly and safely that are demonstrated, because she doesn't give much in the way of instruction. Belly dancing has movements unlike popular American dances, so requires more detailed explanation. It provides a slow choreography of two dances, but only useful if you know how to make the moves. Imitating Neon will not be enough to learn.

In addition, the production values seem rather low and unprofessional. Whose idea was it to put a blonde in a white costume in a sterile white environment? There are no mirrors to see her body movements from different angles. And, while it might seem petty, why didn't she put her hair back out of the way? It is a distraction for both her and the student. It would have been more professional to be prepared to teach.

Much better choices for the true beginner are Belly Dance: Basics and Beyond with Jenna, who is ready to teach and gives good explanations. Also, Belly Dance Core Fitness with Ayshe, while it has lower production values and a grainier video, contains the most detailed explanations of various isolations.