I just received this video in the mail and have done the workout once. I
had four years of ballet and pointe as a child and about a year more as
an adult (about two years ago) and am eight weeks postpartum. That being
said, I love this workout. Out of all the ballet workouts I have done
(including The Method, The Ballet Workouts one and two, Balletcize one
and two, Muscle ballet and Balletbootcamp) I rank this one the best
(followed closely by Balletbootcamp.
The tape consists of 17 sections, with each section including one or two
exercises each. It progresses through a warm up (with some easy dance
moves), then through stretches, ab work and traditional ballet moves.
Peter Martins, a leader of the New York City Ballet Company does the
instruction via a very calm, soothing voiceover. I had no trouble
following his instruction. On screen were various combinations of four
dancers from the company doing the moves: two men and two women. They
were dressed in black shorts and (for the women of course) crop tops.
The set was empty with shadowy lighting.
I think what makes this video standout for me was the music quality.
Ballet (indeed any dance) is mainly interpreting music through movement.
The music selected for this workout was of the best quality I have heard
and Martins voiceover with it somehow put me in a calm mood and helped
me concentrate on my form. (By contrast, other ballet tapes had music
that sounded much more canned somehow).
I get the feeling that this is a tape I can grow with. (Again by
contrast, Balletcize was a ripoff because the "Advanced" tape was the
same as the beginner tape but without the preliminary instruction) and
Ballet Workout I and II often seemed to assume the viewer had more
flexibility and enough regular ballet training that s(he) could do the
choreographed sections at full speed right off the bat. In New York City
Ballet Workout, I can concentrate on increasing my flexibility and not
be frustrated that I can't lift my leg as high as the professional
dancers and still work on it.
The workout is 51 minutes long and is followed by a very interesting
segment on the dancers' lives. I love the fact that one is a mother of
two (Yay! There's hope for me!).
Sorry, but the introduction by Sarah Jessica Parker did nothing for me.
I don't watch her show and am not very familiar with her. She seems
overly made up here, especially compared to the dancers. I see no point
in having her there.
My only other (slight) gripe is there is a segment of back exercises
which are done face down on the floor. I hate doing these with any tape
because I can never see that I am doing what they are doing on the
screen. A little more voiceover direction would have helped.
At any rate, if you are seeking a ballet workout tape, I strongly
suggest this one and/or balletbootcamp.
Laura Brestovansky
4/15/01
I'm someone who timidly tiptoed on the shores of dance classes in NYC. I
took a fair amount of ethnic (African, Afro-cuban, Afro-Brazillian,
haitian). I also took some beginner jazz (Broadway Dance - Frank Hatchett),
I made a couple of forays into very beginner ballet floor-barre technique,
but the intimidation factor (skinny people who'd been on pointe since the
age of 6) was just too much of for me.
So this production is just paradise for me! A well produced, accessible,
serious ballet barre/floor technique class that I can do in my attic. I'm
ballerina bound!
When I say well produced I'm not kidding. The classical music is gorgeous
and the sets are spare and elegant. It's imbued with the atmosphere of a
dancers life in NYC. There is a "mysterious voice over" which is Peter
Marins - the troupe's choreographer.
Their are four dancers. Two are principle dancers in NYC Ballet. The other
two are younger corp dancers. There's a nice ethnic diversity (so NYC) and
of course, they're all ridiculously beautiful.
"But what about the workout?" you ask.
The program focuses on posture, alignment and core strength. There are a
series of warm up stretches and limbering movements, followed by floor work
which includes some abdominal strengthening and some slow push ups. The
standing work allows the student to obtain the goal of performing basic
ballet movements with grace and ease. There is an enormous emphasis on
torso placement and alignment.
I can tell you that the morning after I feel the muscles in my hips and
thighs and I feel, generally, long and lean.
This is an extremely rewarding, enjoyable program. Its what I've always
wanted from a yoga tape and never quite got. I makes me feel stretched,
poised, tall, limber and strong. To do these movements correctly involves a
tremendous amount of core strength, flexibility and stamina, but the road
to that blessed state is accessible to most people.
This tape is far more ambitious that earlier, respectable efforts such as
Balletcise.
NYC Ballet Workout is available in VHS and DVD formats. I in no way regret
shelling out the money for this DVD. FYI, Collage only carries the VHS
version. The DVD must be ordered directly from the NYCBallet.org website.
The DVD allows a choice of classical or contemporary music (!) and has
interviews with the instructors, and "day in the life" segments as program
options. I've only heard the classical music and its wonderful.
Jane C.
4/29/01
I've been doing Middle Eastern Dance since 1994 and am always looking for ways to improve my dancing, and I thought ballet would help with some of my posture issues. I just finished up an 8 week "Very Beginning Ballet for Adults" class and while I'm not interested in signing up for another class, I did really enjoy some of the barre work, so when this video started getting such good reviews, I decided I would try it.
While I enjoyed this workout, I have to disagree a little bit with previous reviewers. One said she had no problem following the instruction and one said there was enormous emphasis on torso placement and alignment. I didn't feel this way, in fact I felt there was a huge lack of instruction and form pointers, so much so that someone with no ballet background whatsoever would probably be discouraged. (Previous reviewers had both taken ballet.) My piddly little 8 week course (of which I missed 2 sessions, but which had a *great* instructor) really made a difference. I didn't remember all of the terms, but as soon as the dancers began demonstrating them, I knew what I was doing. But if I hadn't had that course I think I would have been really frustrated. There are very few close-ups of the dancer's feet or legs so it's hard to know *exactly* what they're doing with their feet and ankles unless you already have an understanding of ballet form. Of course, anyone who was really serious about ballet would probably take live classes, but were those not available, I don't think this video would be a good place to start. I think a 10 minute basic instructional part at the beginning of this would have been most helpful, either that, or more instruction and form pointers in the voice-over. (It sounds like the DVD has more instruction--I bought the VHS version)
Also, I wasn't wild about the fact that it was brken up into 17 short segments. It just made it seem longer somehow.
Those comments aside, it was beautifully produced, with very nice music. I agree with a previous reviewer that the intro from Sarah Jessica Parker was useless fluff (and I like her and watch her show!) I didn't finish watching the dancer interviews (really, you could include all of that on the tape and not an instructional section?? Tsk, tsk.) but probably will at some point (I'm just so nosy!)
Renee Drellishak
6/3/01
