Combin-ography - Bridging the gap between choreography and improvisation - belly dance
by Michelle Joyce
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: BahaiaDirector: Michelle Joyce
DVD: Region Code 0
Audio: English (Unknown)
Format: NTSC
Running Time: 110 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2009-09-30
Audience Rating: Unrated
Studio: Cheeky Girls Productions
Movie Reviews of Combin-ography - Bridging the gap between choreography and improvisation - belly dance
Movie Review: exceeded my expectations - a must-have
Summary: 5 Stars
This DVD was so much more than I expected. For some reason, I really thought it would be about combinations that you could use while improvising or choreographing, or about building your own combinations. It was about so much more, almost every aspect of performance. The DVD would be great for any level of dancer, and should definitely be part of any performer's library.
The tips & tricks section was great, with Bahaia sharing her top tips for dance creation. She shared some concepts that were new for me, as well as some that I consider very important. I actually wanted to take notes. Also, Bahaia seems very comfortable on screen, and has a great speaking voice.
Bahaia covers some of the same ground as Improvisation Toolkit I. As in Nadira Jamal's Improvisation Toolkit Volume 1: Movement Recall, Bahaia recommends making a list of your repertoire and categorizing those moves. She also talks about how to take your signature step (or any step really), and adding dynamics to it to vary it - doing it stationary, to different directions, changing the timing, level changes, and layering. These sections are great for improving one's improvisational skills.
Bahaia put a big emphasis on walks, those filler steps that can be presented between movements. Beyond explaining their purpose, she taught three types of walks, including the arabesque. Her explanation of foot placement on the arabesque was incredibly useful. Her arabesque is grounded and will prevent knee injury or loss of balance.
This DVD also covered many other topics, such as planning for transitions, understanding weight changes, and structuring your dance for maximum impact and interest. Most of the topics had an exercise, where the viewer was encouraged to try out the concept, often using her own imagination.
I enjoyed the segment on Repetition and Sequence, which talked about how to identify patterns in the music and reflect them in dance. However, the exercises didn't necessary match with the patterns. For example, one exercise was done with a drum solo. The 8 8 4 4 2 2 2 2 was not matched by the drum riffs in that drum solo. In the next exercise, the AABA pattern was shown in movement, but did not reflect an AABA pattern in the music. I was minorly disappointed in this because I was looking forward to seeing it applied to the music as well as the movement, since that is how it was taught in the lecture portion.
Finally the DVD actually did present some combinations. My favorite was the first travelling combination. Bahaia uses it in the performance, so you can see how it would be used for a real show. It does indeed have the BIG effect even though it is quite easy to do. I don't typically take notes on combinations, but I took notes on that one and tried it out to some of my music - though it worked perfectly with Daret Al Ayam. Each combination illustrated a concept, such as unexpected directional change, body lines, transitions, or expanding across the stage.
I really enjoyed the performance presented at the end. It demonstrated the principles that she taught, and it was a good exercise to review those principles in your head as you observed Bahaia.
Bahaia has quickly become one of my favorite dancers, both as an instructor and a performer.
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