Product Description

Studio: Stratostream Release Date: 03/25/2008

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #47176 in DVD
• Brand: STRATOSTREAM
• Released on: 2008-03-25
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Color, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 125 minutes

Features

• MAGIC - FANTASY BELLYDANCE (DVD MOVIE)

Customer Reviews

Excellent DVD - 3 Choreographies that will Inspire
The "Magic" DVD of the Fantasy Bellydance series consists of three intermediate/advanced dance choreographies based on an esoteric, archetypal character or concept- an enchantress, a warrior princess, and a dark goddess. Each dancer gives her interpretation and inspiration behind each dance but also encourages the at-home-dancer to take the choreography and interpret it, to make it your own.

Each choreography segment is broken down into:
- a costumed performance
- the story behind the choreography
- Demonstration
- Complete step-by-Step breakdown of choreography (with repetitions and
cues).
(Note: You need to already have a foundation in bellydance. The choreography is broken down but not to extreme detail of each movement -ex: how to do a figure eight, hip square, etc.)

The instruction is straightforward and easy to understand. There is plenty of repetition also, so you can practice each combination as you learn each part of the complete dance. Isidora's section gives alot of great tips for the sword, from how to strengthen your movements to how to handle the sword. The "Warrior Princess" also includes some nice martial art movements, it gives the dance a powerful mood. I LOVED Autumn Ward's interpretation of the Enchantress. Her dance has a feminine, earthly quality that captivates. Autumn also does some fantastic zill-work. Unfortunately, she does not cover how to play the zill patterns along with the dance. Not a big deal, but it would have been helpful. Ariellah's "Kaili" is fantastic--she flows like a dark vapor.

Overall, I felt this is an excellent DVD---Great dancers, instruction, choreographies, music, and production quality. It definitely has inspired me to try something new. If you are looking for something outside the box of the typical bellydance choreography, this would be a fun DVD to try.

A little bit of everything....
Please read my reviews on the other 2 DVD's in this series.

Pro's: At 2 hours, a great value. I love the fact it teaches a bit of everything in the series--sword, isolations/tribal fusion, gothic, wings, hand veil, etc. The instruction is always clear from the instructors, the quality is very good. Also, while there are no choreographies I said, "I MUST learn that," there were several things from each one that I can use, which is great.

Con's: Only one, in the fact that the camerawork during the performance, such as Ariellah's, shows the rigging for the lights and backdrop...meant to be shown but my ADHD brain just refocuses on it.

Autumn Ward is the Enchantress. Her costume is like Gaia, with Mother Nature themes--a flesh colored underlayer with green leaves and a woven overlayer. Pretty work intensive! The choreography has a great rising up from the floor, but in the performance, as my son was watching it, he simply said, "Like a tree in an earthquake." May be the best summation (as opposed to a Nell-ish "tree in the wind"). I haved liked Autumn's work very much, and I understand this is fantasy bellydance, but there is some pretty serious shaking (not shimmying, but an arms/torso swaying) at some points. However, there is also a sudden punctuation of a pulling in of the abdomen, drawing up the knee, that is beautiful and poetic. I just can't get into the wild abandon movements. A good comparison would be Laura Rose on the Gothic BD II DVD, but a bit faster. Her expressions are very good as well, and like with all instructors, her teaching is clear. However if this is your first time seeing Autumn and you did not bond with the performance, check out her drum solo work.

Isidora Bushkovski is a great dancer, and here is the Warrior Princess. Granted, check out her Dueling Banjo's on You Tube, and you get a taste of her sense of humor. It is great to have a sword dance taught on DVD along with other things, and to watch her eyebrows and face during the dance adds a level of levity to it, which is not seen so much in fusion.
It is also good to see how she controls the sword when it starts to spin, and how her fingers never cover the blade bit.

Ariellah is Kali, destroyer and creator. I love her yoga DVD, and her performances are amazing on the other DVD's by WDNY. I did not get a sense of Kali from the music choice (Corvus Corax's Fili Neihardii), but the dance is visually interesting, the choreography has lots of usable parts, and Ariellah is a very good instructor, clear and concise. She's beautiful to watch on film as well as live.

Each dancer, by the way, gives the story behind the creation of the dance, which is a way to get a behind the scenes look at the creation of a dance as well as get inspired for ways to look at a song for your own choreography.

Great DVD series, and great DVD.

Strong, Powerful Dances in Vol. 3 of "Fantasy" Set

This is the final DVD of a set of 3, and each disc has 3 solos taught by 3 expert dancers. The DVDs have a variety of styles and are a treasure for intermediate-advanced students; they will get a lot out of the instruction, and definitely have something to inspire them to go forward in their studies. It's great that there is the option for just viewing the performances too, to see the level of artistry all 3 dancers have, within their very unique styles and techniques. The 3 dances are first demonstrated, and then broken down in sections, making it easy to learn the choreography, as well as the stylistic nuances required for each piece. The 3 pieces in this DVD require strength, agility and power, as well as a sword for "Warrior Princess"!

1: "Enchantress" is danced and taught by Autumn Ward, and in the performance she uses cymbals, so if you are adept at using them, this is your chance to learn a fascinating dance to go along with your cymbals, as it adds a lot to the choreography. This dance has powerful torso movements, almost reminding me of the afro-jazz I danced many years ago. Be prepared for a workout! And Autumn explains every movement with crisp and clear language so you won't miss a single step. Autumn is very versatile and is known for her "Cabaret Fusion Style." Music used is "Garden Play" by Earthbeat.

2: "Warrior Princess" is Isidora Bushkovski's fabulous sword dance, and her skill is amazing. Isidora calls the sword dance "Powerful...elegant...beautiful...fierce." It is all those things and looks a little dangerous too! I have never worked with a sword, and will probably just settle for watching this fabulous dance (Isidora gives a lot of tips on handling the sword safely). It is the most riveting piece on the DVD, and Isidora looks like a superb athlete as well as a graceful dancer in it. Isidora calls her style "Tejedora" (Weaver) because of the many dance traditions she incorporates in her work. Music used is "Circle" by Solace.

3: "Kali" with Ariellah. I'm a big Ariellah fan, and her "Kali" lives up to her reputation. Her minute and precise isolations give the impression of a current running through her arms and torso, combined with a liquid grace. Every student can learn a lot from Ariellah. From the Royal Academy of Dance in London to being a founding member of "Indigo," Ariellah is known worldwide for her artistry as a dancer and her teaching skills. Music used is "Filli Neidhardi" by Corvus Corax.
Total running time for this very well produced DVD is 150 minutes.