Modern Belly Dance From Lebanon (Sunset Princess) - Emad Sayyah

Advantages: Good to go over moves if you already know them
Disadvantages: No so good if you have never done it before

...Introduction ---------------- I am currently learning the 'art' of belly dancing, I have been attending classes at my old junior school since last September. As classes are only once a week and not on at all over the summer holidays I have bought a couple of dvds with which I can practice at home. This dvd is suitable for those that are just starting to learn belly dancing, those who have been doing it for a little longer may find some of the moves a bit basic. After learning for a year, I find this dvd covers things we've gone over and over in class already so to me I want a dvd that's a bit more advanced. I use this dvd to practise moves I already know. The DVD ------------ The dvd starts off with a short introduction to belly dancing focusing mainly on it's history. You will learn that belly dancing is not a sleazy dance like... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: It twirls
Disadvantages: Short lived attraction

.... ~~Price and Availability~~ Retails at about the £17 mark, and available from toy shops. Now that the 12 Dancing Princesses frenzy has abated, it can be picked up for a lot cheaper than this. ~~Made by~~ Mattel... those well known Barbie makers ~~What I thought~~ Firstly, as with all Barbies, it was difficult to unpack- their hair always seems to tangle in all that wire! Then, unlike the normal Barbies, this one needed mum to insert the batteries before it could be played with. Little Miss found the doll fairly impressive for a short length of time, but after a while the novelty of the skirt lighting up and the very slow twirl did wear thin. Genevieve is now relegated to being a "normal" Barbie and is played with like the others. in fact, I do believe she is less important in our household because she can't even go in the bath... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Cute! Nicely packaged - would make a great wee gift!!
Disadvantages: The zills (finger cymbals) included are really not up to much!!

...This is a really fun little thing! It's a very small lidded box, containing an even smaller book demonstrating some of the more basic bellydancing moves, an adhesive navel decoration, and 2 pairs of zills (finger cymbals).<p> This would be a nice gift for anyone interested in trying belly-dance, or with a small amount of experience. It's not really suitable for more advanced dancers as it's a bit basic. It's doubtful that anyone could learn the dance from a few fairly basic drawings in a book, but it would be a good aid for those already taking classes. It contains a small section of costuming/make-up and some limited on-line resource links.<p> The zils are really pretty awful and are not up to professional dance standards (they sound awful!) but are ideal for practising at home.<p> This is a nice wee thing to have... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful