Bellydance! Slow Moves

A Video Review By Shira

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Summary


Overall Rating: StarStarStar (on a scale of 1 to 5 stars)

On this video, Atéa teaches a series of fluid moves suitable for slow, undulating music, then assembles them into simple choreography designed to help beginning dancers learn how to transition from one move to another and put together a simple dance.

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To purchase this video from Amazon:

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DVD Edition U.S.
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VHS Tape Edition U.S.
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Canada
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Bellydance for Beginners: VHS Tape Editions of Fast Moves and Slow Moves bundled together U.S.
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The Chart

Recommended Level Novice
Formats Available NTSC, PAL
Overall Rating StarStarStar
Production Quality StarStarStarStar
Content Value StarStarStar
Packaging StarStarStar
Total Video Length 43:12 minutes
Performance Time 12:54 minutes (30%)
Teaching Time 24:45 minutes (57%)
Amount Of "Other" 5:33 minutes (13%)
Choreography Yes
Cultural Information No
Music Education No
Health Issues No
Number Of Models 3
List Price $15.00
Cost Per Minute Of Teaching & Performing Time 40 cents
Cost For "Other" $1.95

Bellydancing Bellydance Bellydancers

Description

Atéa designed this instructional video to be a follow-on to her original one, Magical Motion. Although I liked Magical Motion very much, I didn't find Slow Moves to be as strong. Slow Moves is shorter in length, with a higher proportion of its time allocated to performances, and many of its moves overlap with those taught on Magical Motion. It contains less than half an hour of teaching, so it feels rather short, but since the price is low it's actually still a reasonable value for the money.

The video opens with two performances in full costume, one by Dahlia and one by Fahtiem. Each is based on the types of moves taught on the video, offering a preview of what lies ahead. Of the five performance segments on this video, Fahtiem's was probably my favorite because of her skillful abdominal moves.

The moves taught on this video are suitable for brand-new beginners. If you have never before tried belly dancing, or if you've just started taking classes, you'll find the moves on this video to be at about your level. The moves are grouped into these categories:

  • Rolling Hip Combinations
  • Rib Cage & Belly Combinations
  • Arm & Head Techniques

Throughout the instructional section, Atéa and her two assistants demonstrate each move while voiceover narration explains what to do. If you listen carefully to the narration, it is packed with valuable information about correct technique.

When she finishes teaching these moves, Atéa introduces simple choreography that uses them all. I don't find the choreography exciting enough to recommend that you perform it, but it provides a convenient structure for practicing the moves.

Following the choreography, the video presents three more solo performances in full costume, featuring Anaheed, Atlantis, and Atéa herself. In all three of these, the dancers did floor work as part of their performance, showing new ways to use the moves that were just taught. Of the three, Anaheed's performance was my favorite. Atlantis is clearly skilled at doing difficult moves, but I didn't care for her costume and artistic interpretation. Atéa dances with a sword and shows some interesting variations with it, but her undulations aren't as fluid as I prefer.

As a group, the five performances effectively demonstrate several ways that these basic building block moves can be applied for entirely different looks, and the different costumes offer a feast for the eyes. Although I liked some of the performances better than others, I found them all valuable from the perspective of providing an introductory tour to different forms that belly dancing can take.

The video closes with assorted dancers taking turns dancing for each other while the closing credits roll. These had the flavor of students partying with their classmates rather than professional performances.

You Will Probably Like This Video If

  • You'd enjoy an instructional video that emphasizes fluid, undulating movements.
  • You're looking for a video that could provide structure for home practice of such movements between classes.
  • You're an enthusiastic fan of either Atéa herself or one of her guest dancers (Dahlia, Fahtiem, Anaheed, Atlantis) and you would enjoy a video showing a 2-3 minute performance of undulating moves by one or more of these artists.
  • You would enjoy seeing some brief performances that incorporate sword balancing and floor work in addition to standing undulations.

You Probably Won't Care for This Video If

  • You're an intermediate or advanced dancer.
  • You prefer a video with more than 1/2 hour of teaching time.

Bellydancing Bellydance Bellydancers

What I Liked, What I Didn't

What I Liked

  • I appreciate the decision to use performances by several different people instead of featuring the same person doing all the performance segments. This illustrates the diversity that is possible in this dance.
  • The lighting and sound are excellent.
  • It's useful to have two assistants helping Atéa demonstrate the moves, to show how each move looks on different people.
  • I found Atéa's approach to introducing the choreography to be useful. First, the screen shows text listing the moves in order, with number of repetitions. It can be paused to allow time for copying it down if desired. Then it shows the actual choreography being performed, with text titles on the screen telling you what to do for each move.
  • The performances are about 2-3 minutes each in length, which seems just about right. It's long enough to convey the variety of ways these moves can be used, without dragging on.
  • Generally speaking, the narrative provides useful explanations of how to do each move and offers important hints on technique such as, "don't lock the knees".

What I Didn't Like

  • The quality of the performances is irregular. Most are reasonably good, but I was disappointed by a couple.
  • Atéa's own dancing is not as fluid as I would have preferred for a video focused on undulations.
  • Throughout the video, in both performances and instruction, there are too many camera close-ups on people's faces instead of showing me the dance itself.
  • I don't particularly like the arm movements that Atéa teaches on this video. The arm waves remind me of the 1960's dance called "The Monkey", which had flailing arms.

Bellydancing Bellydance Bellydancers

Movements Included

  • Hip Undulations: 8 moves (hip slide, hip circle, advanced hip circle, hip twist figure 8, up & down figure 8, reverse up & down figure 8, up & down figure 8 with level changes, bicycle hips)
  • Traveling Steps: 1 move (step-close-step walk)
  • Rib Cage Undulations: 3 moves (rib cage slide, rib cage circle, clock circle)
  • Body Undulations: 2 moves (undulation, belly roll, )
  • Arms: 4 moves (arm wave forward, arm wave to side, arm ripple, temple pose)
  • Head: 2 moves (head slide, head circle)

Bellydancing Bellydance Bellydancers

Reviews of Other Videos by this Artist/Instructor

If you'd like to read my reviews of other videos by Atéa, choose from the list below:

Bellydancing Bellydance Bellydancers

In Conclusion

If you already own Atéa's first video, Bellydance! Magical Motion, then instead of buying Bellydance! Slow Moves as your second video, I'd recommend trying a beginning-level video offered by a different instructor. Atéa explains things well, but the moves taught on Slow Moves overlap substantially with Magical Motion, so you'd probably gain more value from hearing how someone else explains the same moves than you would from hearing Atéa explain it again.

If you don't already own Magical Motion, having worked instead with someone else's beginning-level instruction, then Slow Moves! could offer you a different perspective on these moves. Its performances by five different dancers show you a variety of ways to use these moves. The narration explains the moves well, and although the video is short the price is low enough to offer good value for the amount of money spent.

Bellydancing Bellydance Bellydancers

Disclosures

I have spoken on the telephone and exchanged e-mail with Atéa, but we have never met in person. We became acquainted when I posted on my web site some negative feedback I had heard from another person about her videos, and she contacted me to request an opportunity to let her tell me her side. Impressed with the professional manner in which she made her request, I agreed. She sent me a copy of her three videos for me to watch and evaluate for myself, and upon doing so I discovered that I liked this one very much. The other person's opinion lost all credibility with me, and any future opinions I may hear from that person will be suspect.

My current relationship with Atéa is that I see her as a professional colleague whom I respect very much because of what she has accomplished in making high-quality belly dance instructional videos readily available to the mass market.

Bellydancing Bellydance Bellydancers

Contacting The Producer & Ordering The Video

To purchase this video from Amazon:

Item

Amazon.com in U.S.

Amazon.ca in Canada

Amazon.co.uk in United Kingdom

DVD Edition U.S.
NTSC
Region 1
Not offered Not offered
VHS Tape Edition U.S.
NTSC
Canada
NTSC
Not offered
Bellydance for Beginners: VHS Tape Editions of Fast Moves and Slow Moves bundled together U.S.
NTSC
Canada
NTSC
Not offered

Or, contact Atéa as follows:

Magical Motion™ Enterprises
12228 Venice Blvd., Suite 402-W
Los Angeles, CA 90066

Phone (+1) (310) 301-0045
Fax (+1) (310) 301-4064
Email: atea@verizon.net
Web Site: www.bellydancingvideo.com

Bellydancing Bellydance Bellydancers

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