Introduction to Bellynesian

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Nothing Original here
I gave this DVD a chance because I was hoping for a good introduction to Polynesian dance for people who already bellydance. For some reason, that's what I got out of the description. Well, that's not what it is at all. It's a list of very basic bellydance moves, with a few of what I assume to be basic Polynesian dance moves tacked on at the end (Although they look just like bellydance moves like hip circles and figure 8s.) (???) There is no real TEACHING of these moves -- they're really just demonstrated. So I kept having to ask myself, "what's the difference between this and a figure 8" or "what's the diff between this and a pelvic circle? It looks slightly different, but what is it?" Is there a difference between the Polynesian step she teaches and a plain old generic hip circle? I still don't know. Is the accent different? Does it use different muscles? Don't know! That's never covered. All the moves "taught" on this dvd are common to any beginner level bellydance dvd, including the one the BDSS produced! If you have that DVD, you don't need this one. I also expected there to be a section about common Polynesian rhythms or something about the drumming and music. (We know how important the rhythm is to bellydance, so I assumed the same might be true of Polynesian.) I still don't know because nothing like that was mentioned. The dvd ends with a series of "combinations." I think this is probably the lamest part. It was like she threw out a deck of cards with moves written on them and just grabbed a handful from the deck. There seemed to be no rhyme or reason to the way they were put together, and there was no discussion about the movements fitting the music/drum beats. Of the Bellydance Superstars dvd instructors, Sonia is my least favorite. You can't create a beginner level DVD and just expect to throw out terms like "glutes" and expect people to know WHICH part of the glute to use, or even how to do so! I spent months trying to figure out how to use my "glutes" for hip work -- without a live instructor poking you, it's hard to know which muscles to use. This could have been a REALLY good dvd, but they didn't go to the effort to make it so. Too bad.

Not what I had hoped for
I really had high hopes for this dvd but, sadly, it did not live up to my expectations. This instruction on this dvd is presented the "follow my hips" format and there are very few descriptions given of how to do the dance moves. Also, since there are no "drills" included you have to keep rewinding the dvd to learn the moves. The viewer is also not told which moves were bellydance moves, which were Polynesian and which ones were "bellynesian". So, unless you are a bellydancer such as myself or an experienced Polynesian dancer, you will never know which move from which dance style you are learning. It's a shame that this crucial information was left out. Sonia is a lovely to look at but seems detached and uninvolved in the dance and I found it hard to relate to her as an instructor or become emotionally involved in her performances. And speaking of the performances; this dvd lists two dance performances but, in reality, it seems to be the same dance performed in two different settings. How disappointing. The producers certainly could have included a couple of authentic Polynesian dances (done by Polynesians!) so we could see the difference between true Polynesian dance and this new "bellynesian" fusion thing. The best thing about this dvd was the bonus cd of lovely Polynesian music that came with it so at least I got something for the rather hefty price I paid.

Bellynesian
Nice dvd to add to your collection. There's nothing really new, but it's a nice reminder that all dance forms have common moves, and moves that can be used in other formats. Polynesian dancing has moves that can easily translate into belly dance to add dimension and variety. Great footage of the islands and some beautiful scenery!