Customer Reviews

Gothic Bellydance

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(14)
1 star:		(17)

 

 

I'm an old school goth, plus I bellydance, so it's unlikely that I'd hate any DVD that combined the two! If you buy this and put it on and expect something traditional then you are going to be disappointed. Don't buy it with that expectation. You're going to get a fusion of styles, non-traditional dance music in some cases, and the overall styling of the disc is totally gothic. Which one would naturally expect in a DVD showcasing raks gothique. I think one must approach the disc from that place in order to get it.

I enjoyed most of the performances. Only two made me say "ho hum, next!" or "oh dear god no." and hit the skip key. There were some pieces that were completely enthralling and I found it fascinating to see how the dancers meshed traditional bellydance moves with gothic music and styling. As with most dance DVDs that feature several dancers, there were highs and lows. Several of the dancers are obviously very experienced and have amazing technique and control while a few seem like they are perhaps newer dancers. Even so, overall, the quality of dance throughout was good. I walked away feeling inspired and challenged as a dancer after watching several of the pieces. Standouts for me were Neon, Ariellah and Asharah. I really enjoyed Tempest's outstanding veilwork. Lovely. I could have done without some of the overlays during dance pieces but I liked the words which flashed up on screen and I felt that the camerawork was well done.

Tempest and other gothic bellydancers have created something unique in the dance world and I'm pleased to see the vision realized with an actual DVD. I think this is a nice addition to my dance video collection and I've watched it several times since getting it in the mail. Brava!

Gothic and Bellydance are perhaps not the most obvious combination in the world but this DVD demonstrates that it can be a very intriguing and entertaining mixture. Although it is hardly purely gothic and the choreography has lots of influences way beyond traditional bellydance. The costumes and makeup were certainly stunning. Not all the music was to my taste (but I'm merely showing my age here) but it did suit the atmosphere and the performances.

The presentation of the DVD itself cetainly will provoke mixed reactions. From the main menu, I made the mistake of going straight into "Play" which produced the 85 minute series of dances with absolutely no information about who was dancing or what the dance was supposed to be about. For that, you need to go into "Visions" where you will find all you need to know about the performers. But, considering all the artsy overlays used during the dances, a quick caption before each one wouldn't have hurt.

At first, I thought the artsy approach to the visual style might detract from the actual dancing but the camerawork generally served the choreography rather than the other way around, with a minimum of abrupt cuts and the dancer almost always being framed in full figure. Even so, some of the imagery seemed excessive although it was probably included to reinforce the gothic theme. But flashing song lyrics on the screen was definitely unnecessary.

As for the performances themselves, as can be expected with such a mixed program, there were highs and lows. My favorite dancers were Ariellah, Ayshe, Tanna and Tempest. They seemed to capure the intended mood perfectly. But Jehan's performance seemed more like a Madonna video than bellydance and Neon kept reminding me of Sandahl Bergman in Conan the Barbarian (that's not necessarily a bad thing). Compared to the other dancers, the duets by Raven & Ya Meena were rather uninspiring and repetitive.

Overall, I found the performances quite intriguing while my wife seemed to love nearly every minute. It would be interesting to see these dancers in front of an audience where that interaction might produce a bit more sparkle and spontaneity. I know the emphasis on these performances is supposed to be gothic, but it would have been nice if the dancers could occasionally crack a smile just to indicate that they were really enjoying what they were doing.

Okay granted, I am a devote goth of nearly 20 years, so it's hard to imagine my not loving at least part of this dvd. It was so great to hear these musical selections paired with such intense costuming and choreography. With the exception of the two more music video-based selections, I whole-heartedly disagree with the reviewer who said this was over-the-top and cheesy. The majority of these pieces were wonderfully mysterious and dramatic in their presentation.

The formatting is awkward, in that you have to access the "Visions" menu in order to find out the name of the performer (and no track listing anywhere!), but I am very pleased that the camera work was seamless and natural. (Bad dance camerawork is a *big* pet peeve!) I can't disagree with the reviewer who said the overlays were a bit much, but I didn't find them too tiresome.

A few of the dancers struck me as exceptional, and several others just had exquisite artistry working with costumes and imagery. I admit, I had to pass over two of the tracks, but the remainder definitely made up for their failing. So most of the dancers aren't on par with the Superstars (Ariellah & Neon certainly were, though!)- I'm just so glad something like this was made.

First of all I was expecting more. I am a bellydance and I've been following many of the tribal fusion movement. I have seen gothic bellydance before and liked it, but it does not compare to what I saw on this DVD. Was not impressed. Maybe 3-4 performances I actually liked.

The dancers I believe lack a lot of technical ability in their dance and need to practice more or change teachers. There was a lot of poor posture, bad arms, bad technique and unimpressive choreography. A lot of these dances would have been stronger had they just interpreted the music better. Instead what I am left in my mind is what the heck was that girl thinking, instead of a dance with decent skills. There wasn't much bellydancing in this video. Also there was a lot of bad acting during some of these dances. It came off more goofy and I wanted to laugh. Goth is not something you act, its something you feel. I think many of these girls were orginally cabaret dancers and and making the switch over to tribal fusion and I don't think its a good fit for them. I know Neon is not trbal dancer and in my opinion it shows. I also thought there was a lack of feminity and smooth flow in moves, some where really jerky and I think it just boils down to bad technique. I noticed a bunch of the bios said they followed the Suhaila Shalimpour format or studied from someone who did and I clearly don't see it. Suhaila is a phenomenal dancer that pushes technique.

Enough with that. One word of caution if you are watching this with a child or young person, please do not watch the jehan part. There is a lot of lesbianism, dominatrix, and I really didn't need to see her thong pulled up over her pants. That part was almost adult video store. And the singing is horrible and there was no dancing besides a few seconds, but you forget about that when you see the rest of it and the bad acting. I'm sorry as a performer that was just absolute rubbish and almost insulting to the rest of us bellydancers who work so hard to promote bellydancing as something for women in a nonsexual manner.

As for the prodution of the video, I found some of the performances a little too dark, you really miss out on some of the dancers moves. And I agree with a few of the previous reviews it looks like they worked more on the editing of the video with the visual effects then on the dances. and the switching of the backgrounds was a little much and detracts from the dancer

Overall I would have given this video no stars but there was some performances that I actually like so i will give credit to some of the dancers. If you are curious then buy this video. If you are questioning purchasing I would advise against it. Spend your money else on something more worthwhile.

Well, I have a 50/50 review of this DVD. I really liked about half of the dances and the other half left me thinking WTF?? I was really taken aback with the whole girl on girl bondage routine and the black 80's prom dress with stripper heels routine. I am a huge fan of gothic bellydance (and even perform it myself) but I felt like I had to double check and make sure the TV didn't accidently switch to HBO's Real Sex show.There are the obviously amazingly talented dancers on there and those are the more "known/popular" dancers and make the DVD worth watching but some of the other dancers seemed like they were studio hafla quality dancers. And some just seemed like an excuse to make a short music video and was used to fill in space. I love the idea and love the fact that gothic bellydance is becoming more mainstream, but we dont have to "porn" ourselves out to be considered gothic.

So many confrontational reviews, so many clashing views of what is bellydance and what is Goth...

This DVD is worthy of owning. It is one of the best bellydance performance videos I've seen, with a good lineup and over 20 numbers, all presented with respect and with passion for our dance.

I am a bellydancer with old school roots and training. Was I as quick to judge what is and what isn't bellydance as some reviewers here, I would have said that 'only traditional and Amercian Cabaret bellydance is bellydance.The tribal techno fusion so popular nowadays is hip hop, not bellydance.' But however hard it may be to accept the change, the truth is, popping- locking techno urban bellydance (the style made popular by Rachel Brice and performed on the "Gothic Bellydance" DVD by Ariellah) **is** also bellydance! It's just not the bellydance we knew in the seventies, eighties and nineties.

I get students who believe that "Tribal" bellydance is THE TRADITIONAL bellydance. Their previous teachers failed to tell them that "Tribal" is an American invention. And I also get students who believe that techno-urban bellydance is the real bellydance, because they started their dance education with Tribal fusion bellydance instructors. Time marches on, bellydance changes. "Pure bellydance" does not exist and never existed, it's different in every country and in every generation.

GOTH as I know it, is Victorian, Romantic, old world. It's mystery and maybe horror, but old-fashioned horror (vampyre or fallen angel, NOT anime or robotic alien). Therefore the dancers on the Gothic Bellydance DVD who held to more traditional bellydance styling, Tempest, Tanna and Jeniviva, looked more "Goth" to me. The performances in the DVD that I think convey the Gothic spirit best are all American Cabaret. Veil and wings numbers by Tempest, both performances by Jeniviva, both performances by Tanna, and the dance entitled "Delete All" by Neon (minus the music video included in it).

I enjoyed the techno-urban numbers by Ariellah and Neon (her second dance). However, to me they represent the industrial trend more than the "Gothic.' But even these numbers are using the vocabulary of bellydance throughout, no matter how many pops, locks and breakdance accents the dancers layer over it. Both are excellent dancers.

While Neon's style is vacillating between American Cabaret and techno urban bellydance, Asharah's style is somewhere between American Cabaret and American Tribal bellydance. She performs a beautiful drum solo, I'd say it's American Cabaret, although she is wearing a Tribal outfit. There is nothing Gothic about this particular number, but it's very well done. Her slow dance ("Exiled") includes AmCab floorwork and American Tribal upper body moves.

The duo "Martia Possession" do a form of Tribal bellydance with a gypsy flavor, not the urban techno Tribal. I love both performances. Both duet choreographies are very clean and well executed. "Martia Possession" dancers wear Goth makeup. Their spirit is Goth even though they don't evoke any typical Gothic images.

Performances by Ayshe are bellydance and modern dance fusion. Ayshe is a master of dancing with the Wings of Isis. Her first dance (with the wings) has elements of ritual and "pharaonic" dance.

Despite the storm of protest caused by the inclusion of music videos in this DVD, I really liked them. The music videos are "Goddessence" by Jehan, "Lovers of Teruel" (Blanca), and music video clips from "Delete All" . The music videos are very well produced! If you expect this DVD to contain "routines" to study, the music videos will disappoint you, but if you expect to be entertained, you will appreciate them.

A few moments from the DVD blend dance, acting and visual effects so well, that over time they may become icons of Gothic Bellydance, surviving the WHAT IS GOTH and WHAT IS BELLYDANCE debates.

I was interested in the DVD because I'm a bellydancer. My main style is "Egyptian cabaret" but I have an appreciation and interest in ALL types of bellydancing. I enjoyed this DVD. The imagery, costumes, and the dancing were, to me, interesting and different. I was feeling the whole "welcome to our dark realm" vibe. I would have given it five stars except for that S&M piece. Believe me, I am no prude. However, as a bellydancer, I am constantly working on educating the public that this dance is a respectful art form, appropriate as family style entertainment. Respectful bellydancers can perform their art at summer festivals and parades, not dark smokey rooms with a stage with a pole in the middle of it. Shame on whoever thought the S&M piece was a great idea! Other than that, I really, really liked it. Too bad I couldn't give it five stars.

It took ages for my copy of Gothic Bellydance to reach me, and by the time it did, I was quite consumed with curiosity because it was so thoroughly discussed everywhere. I ripped it open and slid it into my player. And...

I'm afraid I quite love it!

The Gothic community and the bellydance community both seem to have a lot to say about it because it doesn't seem to fit in purely enough into either of their realms. But I'm not sure it's meant for them in the first place. As a bellydance-novice and an unlikely-Goth, I find it quite a visual treat. The DVD has a whole compilation of rich performances--though all of them aren't born equal, even to the untrained eye. I quickly developed my favourites and unfavorites. All the same there's a lot to look at and a considerable amount of content for relatively little money. There's an incredible snaky sort of dance and another amazing dagger dance. If there are a few performances that don't quite cut it, the rest are skilful and powerful enough to make up for it. I watch the DVD often (mostly spellbound) and find there's a lot of things I'd love to try out and bring into my own dancing. I even think that dancers could learn something from it, if only to let go a little and experiment and explore.

Not for everyone? Now there's an angle that's been discussed thoroughly. Actually, not many things are for everyone. If you're a Goth (whatever that really is), you'll likely think this isn't quite Gothic. If you're a long-time bellydance performer, you'll wonder where all the "real" bellydance went. But if, like me, you're just exploring dance, it's both fantastic and fantastical.

Also discussed to death is the inclusion of a music video like performance with more domination scenes in it than dancing. There, I don't blame anyone for wondering. Without making any judgements on this domination business and whether it qualifies as something dance-worthy, I can certainly say it doesn't seem to fit here. It's what my mother would call "a bit much", if I were to show it to her, which I will not make the mistake of doing. In fact, I agree with other dancers when they say it had better not be handed over to teens.

These performances are sort of theatrical and use a lot of visual effects--not the usual stage variety. They're not your average pretty-pretty either. It's weird, but wonderful--and I don't regret buying it.

I could not wait to get this dvd. I am a big fan of Jehan's. She is an amazing dancer and singer. So when I saw this coming out,I put in my order and waited. I even held a get together for a few friends to watch it. When we watched it, there were alot of different views on each artist. But the point of this dvd is to be able to see creative dancers. If you get tired of seeing the same old thing, then this is for you. Although, it was a different performance from Jehan. I always admire her for pushing the envelope on her artistic freedom. I love all kinds of Belly dance, but it is great to see something different. So open your mind and ENJOY!! this is a great dvd...

Good try but this entire video is less bellydance and more like open stage at a local goth club. I expected quite a bit more. It's not an instructional video, not a bellydance video, just one dancer at a time performing very slow and uninteresting routines.