A Review of
Belly Dance Television (BD-TV), Volume 1
by Roxalot
Summary
Overall Rating: (on a scale of 1 to 5 stars)
Belly Dance Television brings the concept of a television news magazine to the belly dance world in the form of a DVD. It's the belly dance community's equivalent of a television morning talk show consisting of celebrity interviews, glimpses of events, and a bit of how-to information that can be put to use. |
|
What Shira.net Users Think
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
The above poll includes responses submitted since April 15, 2004.
Note: Shira has a policy against video producers asking their students, family, and friends to pad the votes, or campaigning for favorable votes through their web sites. Click here for detailed information about the policy.
Fact Sheet
Subject Matter |
Infotainment newsmagazine about belly dance |
Overall Rating |
|
Production Quality |
|
Content Value |
|
Total Video Length |
142:42 minutes |
Time Devoted to Information |
119:29 minutes (74%) |
Time Devoted to Instruction |
15:24 minutes (20%) |
Time Devoted to "Other" |
7:49 minutes (6%) |
List Price as of June 10, 2009* |
$19.99 |
Price Per Minute |
16 cents |
Price For "Other" |
77 cents |
* Pricing information was current as of the date indicated above, but may have changed since then. Please contact the video producer for the most current pricing information.
Description
The release of this video marked the debut of the DVD-based newsmagazine Belly
Dance Television. Its content and style are those of an "infotainment"
television show for belly dancers, with celebrity interviews,
a bit of "how-to", and a rundown on entertainment news.
In many ways, it's the Entertainment Tonight of the belly
dance community. The host of the "show" is Paulina,
who introduces the segments and conducts the interviews. This
review focuses on Volume 1. Roxalot has also released two follow-up volumes which are also reviewed on this web site.
The producers have created this structure for the series:
- Hip Tips (how-to, advice)
- Spotlight (celebrity interview with a well-known dancer)
- Rising Star (interview with lesser-known up-and-coming dancer)
- News & Events (mix of news and event glimpses)
- Feature Story (behind-the-scenes look at an event)
On Volume 1, there is a News & Events section covering
four events: Festival of Dancing Colors, Festival Fantasia, MECDA's
26th Anniversary Party, and IAMED's Sixth Awards of Belly Dance show.
Each of the 5-10 minute event profiles consists of brief (15-20
second) scenes from dance performances, close-ups of merchandise
on vendor tables, musicians playing, people chatting/shopping,
and other samples of what the event is like.
The Feature Story on this edition is a 26-minute behind-the
scenes look at the annual show An Evening of Experimental Middle
Eastern Dance. This includes interviews with Amara (the organizer),
views of rehearsals, clips from the actual show, and entertaining
footage of a few performers sneaking out for a cup of coffee
at intermission in full costume.
The Hip Tips 15-minute section provides useful advice from
Anaheed on how to care for costumes, including her secrets of
how to remove cigarette and perspiration odor. After showing
Paulina her techniques for folding costumes, Anaheed invites
Paulina to try it. Paulina makes some mistakes (representative
of the same mistakes viewers of the DVD would probably make),
and Anaheed helpfully corrects her. This reinforces the lesson
effectively.
The Rising Star segment features Urban Tribal, a tribal fusion
troupe from the San Diego area. In the interview portion, Heather
Stants (troupe director) discusses how the troupe's look evolved
into what it is today and what she sees for the future.
The Spotlight consists of an interview with Ansuya, and includes
charming archival video of her performing as a small child, as
well as scenes of her mother Jenaeni performing. Alexandra King
reminisces about being one of Ansuya's teachers. For me, the
most interesting part of the interview with Ansuya occurs when
she talks about what it was like to be part of the Lollapalooza
tour with the Bellydance Superstars in the summer of 2003. This
includes an interview with Jillina in which she discusses what
it was like to work with Ansuya on the tour. As the interviews
progress, the on-screen image alternates between shots of the
interviewees and images of Ansuya dancing.
As the host, Paulina is pleasant and articulate. Her perky
personality maintains a high energy level throughout.
Throughout the DVD, the focus of interviews tends to be on
"chatting", rather than probing beneath the surface.
For example, in the segment on the Festival of Dancing Colors,
organizer Dea Koepfle mentions that they use the money raised
by their event to provide scholarships to help dancers who can't
afford classes or costumes on their own. To me, this scholarship
program is the real "news" story here, and it would
have been interesting to see that angle explored in more depth.
It could have made the difference between a mildly interesting
sample of an event versus an informative look at a program that
promotes our dance form.
The video strives for balance in portraying the diverse collection
of dance styles in the belly dance community. Regardless of whether
someone prefers Egyptian, Tribal, American nightclub, comedy,
or experimental style, there is likely to be something appealing.
Generally speaking, the production quality is excellent. The
only segments that have issues with lighting or sound are archival
video from the past, and in these cases I didn't mind the image
quality because it simply isn't possible to re-shoot scenes from
20 years ago. The archival scenes contain sufficiently interesting
content to justify their inclusion. I used headphones to watch
the DVD, and was impressed at the skillful use of stereo sound.
The editing is excellent. On performance clips, the camera
angles are well-chosen to let the viewer appreciate the dancing,
and the editing allows enough time to get a good look at the
dancer and the moves she is doing before moving on to the next
scene. During the interviews, while the interviewee is talking,
the on-screen image strikes just the right balance between "talking
head" shots and scenes that complement the topic of the
conversation such as performance clips.
The DVD contains an "Easter egg" (hidden feature):
11 minutes of outtakes from many of the segments. Although it's
not the first belly dance video I've seen to include outtakes,
it's my favorite. On other videos, I haven't found the outtakes
to be very funny, but many of these make me smile. If watching
the DVD on a computer, you can find the option on the main menu
by moving your mouse below the words "Volume 1" and
slightly to the left, toward Ansuya's face. Click on the starburst
that appears. Another way to find the outtakes is to use your
DVD player's navigation features to find Title 4, Chapter 1.
If using a DVD player on a television, use the "Chapter
Forward" button to jump from Ansuya's interview to the closing
credits to the outtakes.
Is It Right for You?
You Will Probably Enjoy This Video If
- You'd like a taste of assorted belly dance events in California.
- You'd like some suggestions on how to keep your costume looking
and smelling fresh.
- You'd enjoy seeing an interview with Ansuya that includes
archival clips from her childhood.
- You're interested in the San Diego troupe Urban Tribal and
would like to know more about them.
This Video Probably Isn't Right for You If
- You've never found celebrity interviews and gossip to be
particularly interesting.
- You're not interested in belly dance activities in other
cities.
- You're looking for videos of full-length performances rather
than clips.
- You don't like the typical chatty "morning shows" that are common in the U.S.
What I Liked, What I Didn't
What I Liked:
- The concept is unique compared to other videos for belly
dancers. I've never seen another like it.
- The information is very well organized. Each section has
a distinct beginning, middle, and end.
- Diverse dance styles are represented.
- The production quality is superb - excellent lighting, stereo
effect in the sound, perfect camera angles. These people know
how to present dance in a form that fellow dancers can enjoy
watching.
- The outtakes are entertaining and make me smile.
What I Didn't Like:
- There is less depth than I would prefer in much of the information
presented.
In Conclusion
I find this video to be an interesting first attempt at bringing the "talk show" infotainment format to the belly dance video market. It will be most interesting to people who have a lively interest in knowing what their fellow dancers in other places are doing, with its event profiles and personality interviews. It is also likely to be interesting to California dancers who are acquainted with many of the people or have attended the events. The segment on how to care for costumes offers useful tips, and is the only instructional segment.
Reviews of Other Videos By This Producer
If you'd like to read my
reviews of other videos produced by Roxalot, choose from the lists
below.
Disclosure
Offworld Entertainment sent me a complimentary copy of this video to review. My only contact with them has been dialogue with executive producer Ann Berna regarding the contents of the DVD and plans for future editions. I should also disclose that I have a background in journalism and therefore I assessed the content of interviews from that perspective. Someone who just wants to be entertained would probably have been more easily satisfied than me with the "chatting" (as opposed to probing for information) format.
To Buy It
Via Amazon Stores
Contact Information
Roxalot / BD-TV
16930 Marlin Place
Van Nuys, CA 91406
U.S.A.
Phone: (+1) (805) 377-0753
Web Site: www.bd-tv.com
E-Mail: anab@bd-tv.com
Copyright Notice
This entire web site is copyrighted. All rights reserved.
All articles, images, forms, scripts, directories, and product reviews on this web site are the property of Shira unless a different author/artist is identified. Material from this web site may not be posted on any other web site unless permission is first obtained from Shira.
Academic papers for school purposes may use information from this site only if the paper properly identifies the original article on Shira.net using appropriate citations (footnotes, end notes, etc.) and bibliography. Consult your instructor for instructions on how to do this.
If you wish to translate articles from Shira.net into a language other than English, Shira will be happy to post your translation here on Shira.net along with a note identifying you as the translator. This could include your photo and biography if you want it to. Contact Shira for more information. You may not post translations of Shira's articles on anybody else's web site, not even your own.
If you are a teacher, performer, or student of Middle Eastern dance, you may link directly to any page on this web site from either your blog or your own web site without first obtaining Shira's permission. Click here for link buttons and other information on how to link.
|