Customer Reviews

Instant Belly Dancer: A Crash Course in Bellydance, Vol.1 - Curves

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This DVD is perfect for its target audience. This is a wonderful video for a non-belly dancer who just wants to add some belly dance flavor to their dance floor moves. The DVD is professionally done and well laid out. I especially liked the diagram overlays. I wish the overlays were used more in other dance instructional videos. The video is almost worth having for those alone.
The only suggestion is that the special features section of the video should be watched first.
Please note *this is NOT a video for belly dancers or student of belly dance *. This video teaches moves differently than Neon teaches in her regular instruction. However, this video was not created for belly dancers; it was created specifically for people who are not interested in investing years to learn the dance. It is created for someone who wants to learn some basics to spice up their social dancing.
Summary: Perfect for people who want to add a belly dance look to dance floor moves..... which is exactly who she is marketing to.
People that are serious about the art of belly dancing should not judge this video harshly because she is not teaching "real" belly dance. She is teaching the lay-person the concepts of belly dance.
Hopefully having fun with her instructional DVD will spark an interest in belly dance that will lead you to taking classes and learning the full version of the dance.

The instruction on this video is top notch! The instructor, Neon, has chosen a set of bellydance movements that all have a foundation in circular movement. The order in which she teaches them builds one movement upon the last. It is much easier to learn the movements when they all have the same foundation instead of bouncing around from one type of movement to the next. This helps to cut down the learning curve and make your proficiency more `instant.' This also allows Neon to pack many, many more dance moves into her video. You will find a large amount of instruction and value for your money.

The production value is great! Neon is set against a black background which makes it very easy to see her movements. Neon's instruction is very clear. Although English is not Neon's first language, she's of Russian origin, she is extraordinarily articulate and elegant in her speech. She's one of the few instructors who does not require a voice over. One should have no problem understanding her clear and concise instruction.

One of the hallmarks of the two videos in her series (this one and the "Instant Belly Dancer: Hipwork Plus" video) are the geometric overlays used to help explain the movements. The computerized geometric overlays are placed directly on Neon's body during instruction to help the viewer better see the angle and direction of each movement. These same overlays are also used on a figure in the background as a constant reference point. It cannot be stressed how helpful these overlays are in bellydance instruction. These overlays are very useful to explain the difference between movements that may look similar to the beginner but are actually done with different muscles in the body and are foundations for more intricate moves later. What a fantastic idea! Bravo Neon!

Most of the instruction either shows Neon`s whole body, or body from the hips up so you can easily see how everything integrates. Close-ups are used to show specific areas of isolation but then return quickly to full length shots to complete the picture. Sometimes the close-ups are inset the full length shot so you can see more than one view simultaneously. One of the biggest faults of many bellydance videos is that they show close-ups when the viewer would need a full length shot and vice versa leaving the viewer very frustrated. This video seems to have the balance down correctly which is a very pleasant surprise.

I recommend going to the "Extras" section first and playing "start here," "elements of the method," and "it is a dance of mind" first before beginning the instruction. You will find it very helpful to review these sections both before and after the instruction section of the DVD. Watching them first will help you see what kinds of things to take note of during the instruction and viewing them again afterwards will help you be able to put the principles into practice. The "Start Here" section gives important tips for learning and dancing and introduces Neon's nemonic principle of instruction. "Elements of the method" explains four important principles -layering, change of levels, change of orientation, and travel - that apply to most dance steps and that help you vary the look of any dance movement and make it more interesting. "It is a dance of mind" gives examples of how the bellydance moves can be used in a nightclub setting and shows how the four elemets are integrated to create the whole. Watching this section will also get you excited about your upcoming instruction as you see the dance take over the dancer's whole bodies.

Neon is dressed in a bellydance top, `nightclub' pants, and heels. Her outfit makes it very easy to see the movement of her body while she is teaching. The outfit is a little closer to what you might wear yourself in a nightclub rather than if you were a performer. It is important to note that the style of bellydance she teaches here is what one could easily do while dancing in a nightclub. It's an easy, sensual, and feminine way to spice up your dancing when going out.

One note, I almost didn't buy either of these videos when I saw the covers, which would have been a shame because they turned out to be so fantastic. Neon wears a lot of makeup and is in the category my husband would call `too much!" She would rival some of the locally famous drag queens in my home town! Although all performers wear lots of makeup while performing, don't let the unnecessarily giant quantity this beautiful woman wears be a detraction for you. It is apparently very normal for some Russian women to wear this much makeup, I'm told, and if this is the only thing `wrong' with the videos, as far as I can tell, then you have a fantastic set on your hands!

Neon recently sent me a wack of dance DVDs, and the first one I watched was Instant Belly Dancer: A Crash Course in Bellydance, Vol.1 - Curves. I have to admit, I was a bit put off by the title. Instant bellydancer? Ha! I get prospective students who expect to be professional dancers by the end of a six-week course, and that's just not going to happen. I mean, would you expect to be a professional athlete after nine hours of training? I hope not!

In any case, the DVD will not be churning out thousands of professional dancers, but it will be giving plenty of people a much better understanding of core movements than will many other videos. The best thing about the instruction in this particular video is its use of simple computer graphics demarcating circular movements.

I've often used similar shapes to explain movements in my own classes, but with gestures drawn by my hand rather than with overlaid images. This video makes me wish I could have similar special effects for my classes! The graphics make it obvious where the pelvis/head/ribcage ought to be at any given time.

Another good thing about the video is the way Neon explains posture and movement. In many tapes, certain safety elements are glossed over (e.g. the importance of not hyperextending your joints), but Neon makes note of these points which are particularly crucial to novices.

Although I disagree with Neon on certain nuances within the dance, I chalk that up to a difference of style. She is a kooky woman, but in a very charismatic sort of way. I found myself laughing at her earnest facial expressions and turns of phrase, but not in a negative way. She looks like a really fun chick. Heh...

I'd like to stress that this video is not aimed at students wishing to learn classical Middle Eastern dance. Instead, it is geared more toward club dancers. Some of the movements (like the bouncing hip circle with hip thrusts) look rather raunchy, and I can't imagine doing them on stage in bedlah. Similarly, I wouldn't teach them in my classes. However, I'm sure these movements are well-suited to the local nightclub/discotheque where a bit of raunch is all the style.

Although this doesn't look like a huge-budget feature, it does have excellent production values. The sound is good. It's easy to see what Neon is doing at any given time due to the high contrast between her and the black background. Although she has a strong Russian accent, she is easy to understand, and her phrasing is articulate and concise.

As far as I can tell, this is the strongest of Neon's videos. If you're planning on getting any (and this is an excellent bargain), this is a good place to start.

After taking a bellydance class by Kaeshi (who does the "Bellyqueen: Bellydance Jam" dvd), I thought I'd get this as a supplement for in-between the weekly classes. I'm glad I did. I also got her second dvd Hipwork Plus, which is just as good.

This dvd will hold your hand while you learn each of the authentic bellydance movements. She then shows how to put each of the different moves together and how it all works fluidly and gracefully.

However--this *is* "instant"..........you can easily practice all the different moves w/o the dvd and just do them while watching tv or something. But, as w/most dance forms, your "achievement" comes from practice practice practice. Not from playing a tape or dvd.

Yes, there's the graphics besides Neon to help show what's going on w/each move (as described by the other reviewers here), but even w/o the graphics (which I mostly ignored anyway), Neon is excellent in explicitly describing each move. She's a lovely teacher who is easy to follow--perfect for beginners who've *never* done bellydancing, or those who may have learned *incorrectly* at first!

Oh my goodness. This girl is a princess! Ive never seen anyone who has such grace about them, in the way they move, or even if they just stand still. I am new to bellydancing and so far this is the best resource I have. Its like a dictionary, you can try a lot of moves, at one glance you see the whole system (half the system actually since there is another DVD coming, I understand) Explanations are very detailed. I had no clue there is so much to all these moves. There is no way I will dance for real by Friday night, but I see why they call it instant. Because it gives you this instant picture of the whole, and you can pick and choose whatever you want to learn. There are many menus and there is a little individual icon for every move, as I said, its like a dictionary, really great. There is a little movie "Its a dance of mind", it says "when I first saw a belly dancer I knew...I , too, would dance". I felt that way too!

I started taking a belly dance class and wasn't getting it, so I went to Shira's website and she spoke well of the DVD and i bought it. Two hours after dancing with Neon in the privacy of my home I had the gist of it. I have already told my husband that I want the second tape for Christmas. Neon is an excellent teacher and the geometrics showing how deep the curves need to be helped me understand the "inner mechanics" that we often can't see with our flowing costumery.

As an avid collector of bellydance videos and DVDs (+/- 250!), I'm very happy with this new addition to my collection. Specifically:
- it packs a lot of information in a short time and is professionally made.
- it gave me new moves to try out,
- gave me ideas about how I can give my dance some new energy and impulse,
- new ideas of bringing structure to my lessons and explaining moves to my dance students,
- perhaps most importantly, it made me realise that I was becoming a bit "stuck" in my old moves/dancs style.
I gave the DVD 4 stars and not 5 because I would have liked a practise section of steps & combinations in a slower tempo, but thats just me being a bit "nitpicky" (or feeling my age!). I'm definitely buying the "angles" DVD when it becomes available.

This is an excellently produced DVD which makes use of digital techniques together with the elegant Neon herself to teach a wide variety of belly-dancing movements. Taking belly dancing out of what can be a rather traditional and old fashioned community and thrusting it into 21st century techno culture is an inspired strategy. Anyone who enjoys dancing at parties (not just raves and clubs) will learn something beneficial from this DVD, and quickly too! I look forward to seeing more from Neon in this series and, dare I say, my husband would like to know if there's likely to be one for men too!

This DVD is possibly one of the best made Belly dancing DVDs that I have seen so far. After reading the credits I realized that the dancer is also the filmmaker. Highly innovative in her approach, she has broken down the tough to discern gyrations into simple motion graphics. A definite plus if you are a beginner. though not that important if you are a pro. The instructor is gorgeous and seems like a fun chick.

If you are a beginner who really insists on dancing retro, there are plenty of the traditional fare going around. Get this DVD if you want if you want to dazzle your friends on the dance floor with the shortest learning curve. Yes the moves are very sexy. Possibly a little too sexy for the traditional styles. I like it like that.

You will never look at belly dancing the same way if you have never before attempted to do it. The pros, like instructor Neon, make it look easy. Isn't that the way it is with everything? Mark Roth in bowling, Tiger Woods in golf, your kid & your computer... those who are really good make their craft look so easy that armchair observers often don't give credit where credit is due.

I honestly had no interest in belly dancing prior to being sent a copy to review. I was instantly captivated by the professional instruction. I put down the remote, cleared a path in front of my television and attempted to wiggle my belly fat, tuck my butt and firmly plant my feet at the same time I was trying to not fall flat on my face. Belly-dancing is a freakin' work-out! Even though I ended up panting by the end of the lesson, I was concentrating so much on getting the moves right, I was thinking less of it being an "exercise" as just something fun to learn.

Once I had gone through one lesson after another, I was truly humbled, but I didn't feel as though my attempts were wild grasps at futility... rather a challenge to continue working on my moves and make my awkward movements match the graceful movements of the apt instructor. I now realize how much work and dedication goes into belly dancing performances.

Neon makes the artform approachable to those of either gender, any ability and just about any physique. There are graphic overlays of the human form shown adjacent to Neon as she goes over new moves. She carefully articulates each movement and what muscles you should be focusing on and what beats to listen to. Even for someone as uncoordinated as I am, I was able to follow along. The great thing about this DVD instruction is that there is no pressure like there would be in a belly dancing class. No one is looking at you pulling your underwear out of your nether regions, and no one is rolling their eyes when you hit "pause" and run to the kitchen for a drink of water.

No pressure instruction at your own pace. Neon, even with her pronounced Russian accent, is easy to understand. And despite an over-abundance of theatrical eye makeup, she seems like the kind of person you'd like to get to know in person. She comes across as down-to-earth, friendly and approachable. So many dance instruction and exercise videos have these cookie-cutter perfect ripped body-builders who are so peppy, you want to vomit. Not so with this Crash Course in Bellydance.

Even if you're just mildly interested in the artform, or if you just want a fun way to burn some calories without the mindless shlepping on a treadmill, this DVD is the way to go!