Customer Reviews

Secrets of the Stage Volume 2: A Performance Course for Belly Dancers by Michelle Joyce

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I was lucky to receive an advance copy of Secrets of the Stage II. As I loved Secrets of the Stage I, I was very excited to see what this next installment would bring. The DVD is segmentd into 5 sections, Michelle's introduction, Dancing in Different Venues, Tips & Audience Participation, Professionalism, and Ask the Audience. As a dancer who works often in restaurant venues, this DVD contained even more valuable information for me than the first one. It should be required viewing for dancers who are beginning to dance in restaurants, nightclubs, and "bellygrams".

The first section was on Dancing in Different Venues. First, Michelle Joyce listed her pre-gig mental checklist, what a dancer should think about when preparing to dance in a new place, including the space available, the audience's makeup, and the function of the show (art vs. entertainment, or both!). We learn for example that Persians like fast music, Americans have short attention spans, and Arabs as expected are able to listen to longer pieces of music. Michelle points out that finger cymbals are key to engaging the audience's attention in a restaurant performance, but you must balance your volume with the volume of the restaurant. Balancing, of course, is always a hit. Restaurant dancing, according to Michelle Joyce, is all about having big movements and big personality. I couldn't agree more.

Sandra's voiceover came next, shown over her performance in a stunning costume. She compares restaurant/party dancing to stage performances. She says that because the audience is not right in front of you on stage, you need to look inside more. I just wish I knew exactly how to do that. Louchia's segment added some more practical advice on stagecraft - using the space available, with different dimensions. She notes that you can't have eye contact, but in your mind, you must be having eye contact. And she said something that my teacher has always said - for the first minute, the audience is only taking in your looks and your costume. Louchia, a beautiful girl herself, was very focused on the importance of your appearance. She said it was important to have choreography for the stage, which I do not think is necessary, but the point of this DVD series is to learn what other dancers think - not to take it as gospel. It is good to know that both Bahaia and Zaheea are improvisational dancers, and they appear no less prepared for the stage.

The longest section of the DVD covered audience participation and tips, and the commentary was voiced over a series of video clips from live performance experiences, from restaurants to private parties. I myself learned to dance in restaurants by watching closely other dancers in restaurants, so to me, this is the perfect way to get the information across. The first concept we hear, and one that is repeated often, is that the restaurant/party dancer is not just a dancer. She is a hostess and cruise director. She helps the audience to loosen up. Michelle's attitudes toawrds performing mirror mine, but I had to learn mine through live performances. I wish I had had this video two years ago! We learn from Maria that it's okay to let a dancing audience member outshine you. In fact, it's a compliment if your dancing inspires everyone to get up to dance with you. Many dancers mentioned going around to tables, greeting patrons, and even making jokes. And Michelle answered a question that I've been wondering about - yes, it's okay to dance on tables and there is a method to not falling off!

Tipping was another big discussion. Some dancers take body tips and some don't. Zaheea has a unique method of taking tips in a pot, and discussed why she felt it was more effective and comfortable for her, and for her audience. Michelle, Maria, Summer Sahar, and Sandra all appeared to accept body tips, but discussed how they manage tipping to ensure "good behavior". Michelle offered several different techniques to make tipping fun and interactive. Just as important, the fact that tipping is just an extra was highlighted. You should not be overly concerned with the quantity of tips. You should not stoop to pick up the money on the floor. And if someone looks like a shady character, you do not have to accept a tip from them.

A number of professional dancers were asked - what is it about a dancer, when she comes on the stage and performs, that tells you that she is a professional? Most said it as her confidence, the way she takes and leaves the stage, and whether she is able to project herself through the room. I should note that I have used female pronouns here, but there are male dancers and in fact, DaVid was one of the featured dancers on the DVD who gave his opinion on professionalism. Now, the night before I watched this DVD, I had been out at a restaurant watching 4 new performers during the "open mike" segment. I noted then that you could tell a professional dancer by her entrance/exit. This DVD confirmed that thought. Because the common theme was the entrances and exits, the DVD then showed a number of entrances and exits from Cheeky Girls Productions "By Dancers for Dancers" for analysis. Overall, the entrance and exit must be clean and strong!

The DVD ended with audience feedback. This section was less valuable than I expected, mostly because it is probably difficult for the audience to articulate what they are really responding to. One American audience member confirmed what we learned on the beginning of the DVD about short attention spans - she said that the music needed to be shorter! But there was one thread that linked them all - audience members respond to dancers who put their heart and soul into their dance, responding to the music and communicating the music to the audience.

Length:: 1:24 Mins

Overall this DVD has a lot of helpful hints and tips about performing in restaurants versus on stage. It was interesting to see and hear how American restaurant performers approach their jobs. The only criticism I have is that I feel the DVD dedicated too much on the tipping subject- nearly half of it. In Australia / western cultures, tipping is not really done, so most of that was irrelevant. It would have been nicer to view how performers deal with "at home" functions or more corporate functions- who knows, that could be on the next volume. I prefered volume 1 to this one.

In general, some of the ideas covered in Secrets of the Stage I have thought about, and it was good to hear professional dancers reiterate them. I also gleaned some new information, especially about alternatives to body tipping and professionalism. The best part overall is the use of restaurant performance footage with dancer commentary, especially when relating to performance venue, audience participation and tips. The section on what the audience thinks was interesting. I'd be curious to see more interviews, of more restaurant dance audiences. (secrets of the stage III??? I'd certainly buy it based on this one!!!)

Wow, what can I say about this dvd that the first reviewer did not? If you are a Belly Dancer who is thinking about entering the world of restaurant/private party performing, this is the dvd series to get. Packed with great information, from some of the best professional, multi award winning dancers in the US, about the do's and don'ts of what it means to be a Professional Dancer, this dvd will help you through it.

Michelle also has a Master's in Counseling, and draws on that knowledge to incorporate techniques to help dancers improve stage presence.

I am so glad that I was able to get an advance copy of this DVD because I can't believe I have survived so long without it!!!

This is more like an educational documentary than an instructional dance DVD, so if you are looking for a workout this is not for you. However, if you are looking for information about how to structure a show at a restaurant, how to get tips, what to think about on a stage, how to be more professional or how to enter and exit the stage; then is is for you.

It looks like I am writing the first review of this DVD so I will be more long winded than usual.

It is structured the same way as Secrets of the Stage - A Performance Course for Belly Dancers by Michelle Joyce (Vol 1), with the dancers narrating over their performances. This is totally effective and so interesting to know what they are thinking as they dance. And these aren't just any dancers, they are world class established teachers and performers. And, unlike Volume 1, there is a lot of never-before-seen footage that is not from the By Dancers For Dancers series. They too the cameras to restaurants all over to film the dancers at their regular jobs.

-------------SECTION 1 - DIFFERENT VENUES------------------
We see Louchia and Sandra dancing on big stages (stunning performances from the not-yet-released By Dancers For Dancers DVDs) as they talk about how to prepare for such a venue. Sandra talks about her struggle to get used to stages after years of restaurant gigs, while Louchia talks about use of space, makeup, and costuming. Then we switch gears and see Michelle dancing in restaurants. She talks a lot about how it is a job and how important it is to "suck it up" sometimes. The camera followed her to at least 5 different shows and it is interesting to see how she changes her dancing each place. One place she only has about 3 square feet to dance in. She even dances on a table and says a few words about how to do that also.

-------------SECTION 2: TIPS AND AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION------------------
This was the most useful section for me. We see Sandra, Zaheea, Michelle, Summer and Maria all in restaurants, clubs and private parties. These ladies are successful working professionals and I LOVED going out gigging with them for the night! It kind of reminds me of how we saw Jillina's night out in American Bellydancer, but this is way, way more in depth and personal.

Specific strategies are discussed and demonstrated for getting tips. Zaheea doesn't accept tips on her body and uses a tipping pot which sparks a very interesting debate about body tipping. The rest of the dancers do accept tips on their bodies and they talk about how to avoid potential problems, how to choose who gets up to dance with them, how to break the ice if the show is dragging, and all sorts of other cool little tidbits. The narration is really cool, but the footage is fantastic. I found myself having to rewind to hear the narration because I was so caught up in the footage. The camera work is very good and I don't think there is anywhere else to see such great shots of dancers interacting with the crowd. I was very struck by how energetic and fun they were with the audience. Real pros!

-------------SECTION 3: PROFESSIONALISM-------------------
Shoshanna, Bahaia and David all narrate over their stage shows. Each of them was asked what makes a professional dancer and their answers were very interesting. They talk about how to cover up mistakes, how to look polished and common mistakes they have noticed in other dancers. Then Michelle narrates a section about entering and exiting the stage in a professional way that has short clips from the (not yet released) By Dancers For Dancers shows that shows some of the best entrances and exits. It was neat to see just the entrances and just the exits together like that as she talks about different things (such as not running off stage in a panic when you are done!). Lastly, this section has interviews with audience members from the live show. They talk about what they think makes an excellent performance.

There wasn't a single part of this that wasn't valuable. There was so much information, I know I am going to watch it over and over and continue to get new stuff out of it every time. I feel like I could go out and do a restaurant show now.

The video quality is excellent, Michelle is an engaging presenter, the dancing is world class, and the information presented isn't available anywhere else. BRAVO!

Production Quality
The production quality was great. Sound was clear, the video was good, the DVD menu was attractive and easy to use. The case is a thin, cardboard like case which saves on space and weight. Because the video uses clips from various performance situations including private gigs some have slightly more of a "home video" feel, but the quality is still very good and I hardly noticed. The dancers speaker were loud enough and their voice was very clear. The background sound from the video being shown was turned down enough to allow the speaker to be heard while still being able to hear the music being danced to so that the viewer could follow along with the dance while listening to the speaker. Some of the dance scenes are from staged shows on By Dancers For Dancers and included the full dance scene, so you get to see some clips from those performance DVDs. I also really liked seeing video of the dancers performing at gigs. I felt like this was a really great inside look at how a professional dancer behaves at a gig. There were some at restaurants and some at private functions including birthday parties, weddings and corporate events.

Topics Overview
The topics covered in the videos were many which can be found on various websites, so I think a lot of dancers will be quick to write this series off because they can read about it online for free. However, I thoroughly enjoyed the discussions even though I have read countless articles on the topics covered. I still felt like I learned something and was left with lots to think about. For me, seeing the dancer in the situation being discussed and hearing her insider tips were really thought provoking. I heard some things I feel like I needed to hear on how to be professional. The show isn't always about the dancer or about fulfilling her needs to feel talented, beautiful and appreciated. Being a pro is hard work and if you want to be successful you have to think of your audience first and you cannot assume everyone is out to insult and disrespect you as an artist, they just want to have some fun and that's your job. Although this was always something I knew about in the back of my head, watching these videos really instilled this in me.

TIPS AND AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION Section
This is a heavily discussed topic, so you may think you already know everything there is to know about it. However, the discussion is so good I would suggest it to anyone. You get the perspective from 5 different dancers and you get to watch them accepting tips and handling different situations as they talk about them. There is a big difference when it comes to reading about tipping and audience participation and SEEING it in action. The first four dancers discuss body tipping, the 5th is Zaheea who discusses her method of using a tip pot. I liked seeing both views and the video was respectful about leaving it up to the viewer to decide which method is best for them. This section also shows a lot of getting audience members up to dance and the dancers each handle it so well there is a lot to watch and learn from.

RESTAURANT VS STAGE DANCING Section
The restaurant section felt very strong. It discussed dealing with different seating situations, space constraints, music choices, etc. and I felt there was a lot of information here to digest. The stage section felt weaker to me. Although there were some comparisons to restaurant dancing and how to adjust to stage dancing, I felt like there wasn't much discussion on stage dynamics. However, I still felt like this section was really good.

PROFESSIONALISM Section
This section also felt a little weaker. The dancers seemed to have a hard time describing their thoughts. Some said things like perfect hair, makeup, costume. Others said how she handles certain situations. But overall I didn't feel like I was getting much information here.

ASK THE AUDIENCE Section
I felt like this part wasn't really necessary because I didn't get a feeling many of the people interviewed gave very good answers. They seemed to go off on their own tangents about the show they had just watched and didn't give much helpful opinions that could be applied to professional performing.

Overall, although there were some weak sections, I still felt like I learned a lot from volume 2 and it's a very good video for any professional or aspiring dancer. It certainly gave me a lot to think about and I feel like it had a good impact on me and will improve my professionalism.

I got all three of these for Christmas , and while they all were good, this was the best. To me, restaurant dancing, or a more intimate setting ( parties, etc) is the heartbeat of bellydance. It is such an organic dance, that a close setting is where it shines ( in my opinion).
This DVD has a ton of information, is well organized, covers about everything you can think of ( including the proper way to stand if you are dancing on a table!), and is like all of her DVD's ...smart. Smartly produced, smartly put together, all ego's left out. Worth it!

This DVD was also really helpful, like Volume 1...different bellydancers talk about accepting tips, and few different ways on how to accept them.
Talks about audience participation, as well as asking some audience members what they think makes an excellent performance.
They talked about the differences of dancing in a restaurant, and on the stage...like tips on what to watch out for while dancing in a restaurant, as well as things to ask before you dance in a restaurant...things I might not have even thought about until I would get to the restaurant!
Would definitely recommend for anyone that is wanting to perform, or performs!

Invaluable advice for budding professional bellydancers! Michelle has done an excellent job of selecting, organizing, and presenting this information. These are the kind of tips that takes professional bellydancers years to learn (the hard way). There is a nice cross-section of dancers and performances. From stage performances to restaurant and party performances, each dancer gives specific advice gleaned along her (or his) path. Michelle does an excellent job of guiding the viewer through each section as well as sharing advice of her own. This could easily be a $50 DVD. Excellent production quality, informative, diverse and such a great value!