Amar Gamal and Kaeshi Chai
I have only done this once so bear with me. I picked this up at Border's the other day, yes I know it's cheaper online but nothing beats instant gratification when you have a new DVD in your hands with no waiting.
This is a two disk set. The workout comes on one disk and the second disk is a music CD you can practice to. It's dancy middle-eastern type music that has a really good beat. I think #3 is the best.
The workout disc is broken downn into many sections. There is Introduction, Warm-up, Foundation Moves, the BQ Boogie and Cooldown. There is also an improvisation section, 2 performances, some interviews and a trailer for Bellydance Superstars.
The workout starts with a thorough warm-up, stretching all muscle groups. Then it moves onto Foundation Moves where they will teach you about 15 different bellydance moves. Amar and Kaeshi take turns instucting the different moves starting out with a slow breakdown sometimes showing a side-view so you get the proper positioning. They also teach small combinations through the moves. Some of the moves are shoulder shimmies, hip shimmies, hip lifts and drops, chest lifts and undualtions with your arms and body. Some of these moves make up the BQ Boogie which is done next.
In the Boogie section, each move is run through slowly and then brought up to tempo as you learn them. There are four different combinations that make up the Boogie. Then once you learn the whole routine with directional changes they "take it to the dance floor". The set changes to a nightclub set and Amar and Kaeshi have two friends dancing with them and then other backgroung dancers doing their own thing to give it a "club feel". You run through it a few times and then it's time for the cooldown.
The cooldown again has a very thorough stretch for all muscles. From warm-up to cool-down it runs about 40 min with the Boogie section being about 10 min.
I had a lot of fun doing this video. I have all of Rania's DVD's and really enjoy them but I liked this one better. You will see some of the same moves but Amar and Kaeshi give better instruction. The music is a lot of fun and if you are a club-goer you will learn some great new moves to try out.
I worked up a small sweat, if you are an intensity junkie this is not for you. I love to dance though and will be doing this one on a regular basis. Well worth paying full price for.
Instructor comments:
Both women give excellent instruction and form pointers. You can tell they have been dancing for a while and enjoy it. I hope they make more videos.
kathy12
03/08/04
