Serpentine: Bellydance with Rachel Brice (TWO-DVD SET): Complete belly dancing instructional program, Belly dancing classes with yoga, How-to in Rachel's tribal style belly dance, including full choreographies

I would like to say first that the yoga on this 2 DVD set alone is worth it. Brice includes 3 different yoga sessions. First there is a regular yoga practice for belly dance, then she has one specifically to help you with back-bends and then she includes a cool down yoga practice so after you are done exercising you can stretch and cool off. The finishing yoga practice is included on both DVDs so whichever DVD you have been using to practice you don't have to switch disks to go to the cool-down section. Following the yoga included has really improved my sleep a lot. I'm one of those people that normally takes a while to fall to sleep every night and I sometimes suffer from insomnia. But, after a few days of yoga I started noticing that I would fall asleep at night instantly and even if I woke back up in the middle of the night I would still go back to sleep quickly. I think the deep controlled breathing that is taught has been mostly to blame because I find it easier to clear my head at night before going to sleep and just relax and let go of stress and everything that's on my mind. So I haven't had any more sleep problems since I've been doing this yoga nearly every day. Although Brice teaches the tribal fusion style of belly dance anyone wishing to learn any type of belly dancing can benefit from this DVD. This is the first real formal training I've had in belly dance (besides training in floor work). I sat down just to watch Rachel Brice do the drills and isolations a few times and now that I understand what she is doing better I can follow along with her. I like to warm up with her isolation drills and then I move on to dance by myself remembering what I have learned. Knowing the correct posture and the different ways to isolate muscles groups allows me to create my own dance and movements and do my own thing. I don't really follow her choreography but it gives me an idea of how to start doing my own footwork and has helped me feel comfortable in dancing. Of course, I don't dance for anyone else but I love to do it as a work out at home and knowing proper technique helps me get the best results from belly dancing. In the first section of the first DVD she quickly goes through your 10-step dance posture and in every section where she does the drills she makes sure to remind you to stand in 10-point dance posture and she makes sure to exaggerate the way you are supposed to stand that way you will get it (like taking her hands and showing you to lift the ribcage and make sure your lower belly is lifted, etc...) I'm not a huge fan of the tribal style. I feel that most of the dancers are a little too overdressed and the set a little too gothic for my taste. But, I love the smooth movements that this style creates. Especially for those dancers who love dancing to music such as Solace knowing how to create smooth movements can help you dance to any style of music. And, of course, what Brice teaches here in this DVD can help you even if you want to dance to traditional style belly dance music or some Egyptian style drums such as Hossam Ramzy as well. Rachel also has a small section where explains the technique to do a beautiful and safe backbend. I found that listening to her explain the technique also helped me do backbends such as the snake movements in floorwork. My backbends look MUCH better now. Now, this DVD can work well for beginners as well as more experienced dancers but it is not your one stop place to learn all there is to know about belly dance. For more serious dancers who wish to be well rounded in all areas you will need more instruction than what this DVD alone can offer you. For instance, Brice does not explain floor work technique (although you do see her go to the floor and do a back bend in the choreography section) and she doesn't go over techniques such as belly flutters. You know, there are just some popular belly dance techniques that she doesn't go over. But, you can take the basics of what she is telling you and add onto it. For instance, she normally has you stand with you feet together hip distance apart- as is standard- for belly dance but you can still take those basic isolations and extend them to say, taking one foot forward and isolating that side of your body doing the lifts and drops. When belly dancing you shouldn't spread your feet out further than hip width apart or you won't be able to work the intended muscles properly and also it doesn't look good if your feet are too far apart (she doesn't say this, but just thought I would throw that in there but she does emphasize that feet should only be hip distance apart in part of her 10-point dance posture). Brice teaches both upper and lower body isolations in her isolation drills section. Also, watching her shimmy drill section I have been able to learn how to follow along with both the primary and secondary beats of the drum. So, say on faster songs I can shimmy and then lift my chest or do rib-cage slides with the slower/in between beat of the music. I find myself belly dancing all over the living room and I get a good work out. Then when I'm done and have brought my heart rate back to normal I use Brice's finishing yoga practice and stretch all of the muscles used.

Disclaimer - I am not really into workout videos, however I know that structured practice is useful in any endeavor, and videos are can be a very useful tool when it comes to workouts, etc. Out of the half dozen or so belly dance videos I've seen, the only one I really have liked is Aziza's Ultimate video because it's pretty intense and Aziza's personality makes the video fun. I previewed Rachel's new video set yesterday and before the "How to use this video" section (which I watched first) was over, I knew this was an excellent purchase. The video is broken down in to sections and subsections (as others have mentioned) of technique discussions, yoga warm up and cool down, shimmy drills, hip work, upper body work, leg strengthening (which would be challenging to almost any athlete) and routines. The video is structured in such a way that you could do just one or two sections and get a complete "work out." Or you could take an entire afternoon and go through the entire video set. The DVD is set up specifically in this way and in the "How to use this video" section, Rachel reviews suggested practice schedules for those with other things to do in life, and those with more time to focus on dance. Each section is detailed and thorough. The thing I ADORE about these sections is nothing is rushed. Other dance videos I have worked with seem to rush through things - you can tell that the artist is cramming as much as she can into one hour. In this video set, there is no rush... Rachel takes her time, in REAL TIME, to go through everything at a pace that is realistic. For example in the yoga section, when she says "take a few breaths here," she is actually taking several slow yoga breaths!! I haven't even gotten that kind of realistic pace in an actual yoga class!! There are sections that are great for anyone, and sections (shimmy drills especially) that will be a real challenge to even advanced dancers (which I am not.) Speaking of realistic, I also love how Rachel's presence in the video is very "real," especially in the mini-courses section. I was able to take her choreography workshop a couple months ago, and was tickled pink that she used the very same moves, techniques, etc. from the workshop (albeit much more abbreviated in the workshop since she had so much material to cover) in this video, and her speaking style in the workshop is the same as in the video. Her personality comes out well in the mini-courses section, and during the shimmy drills section and a few other points in the video you can see her personality peek out with smiles and thumbs up... all while maintaining a very professional and relaxed demeanor. I also like how she has reminders to check posture regularly - she actually adjusts her own, and it's nice to see that even Rachel Brice has to double-check herself. In short, I would declare this the best $25 I have spent on belly dance.

I have a whole library of bellydance dvds and this is by far one of the best. Rachel's instructions are very clear, the camera is focused on where it should be, and the pace is fast enough so that you are not bored but slow enough that you don't feel like you're doing "speed yoga" or are trying to learn a choreography in 4 minutes or less. As others have mentioned, the choreographies are probably not going to work well for someone who hasn't ever taken a lesson. If you are totally new to bellydance I would still recommend buying this set, just because disk 1 will prepare your body to dance well and you'll gain flexibility you never knew you had. Still, for a total beginner (or someone whose only instruction has come from videos) I would recommend taking a good class to learn proper technique, posture, and basic dance terms before doing disk 2. A good instructor will be able to watch what you are doing, keep you from injuring yourself, and I really do think that disk 2 will be very frustrating for someone who has never taken a class. And HOORAY for the backbending instruction! I have not found many instructors in my area who want to teach laybacks and such, and this is a very informative section that I will be watching over and over again. Like one other reviewer I'm not really fond of the music chosen for the 1st choreography. This is not necessarily a bad thing. Any dancer who hopes to someday be part of a dance troupe will probably have to do a dance that they don't like or dance to a song they don't care for, so just because I don't really like the music doesn't mean that I will not bother to learn it. Sometimes learning to dance to a song has caused me to learn to like it just because it becomes familiar and I'm having FUN! The only problem I had with the yoga/exercise portions of this video are that the instructions flip-flop. At the beginning, when she is facing you, the voiceover will say something like "move your right arm...." and she moves her left so she is mirroring you. Further on into the workout the voicover will say to move your right arm/leg ands she actually uses her right arm/leg and therefore you will have to either do the opposite of what she is saying if you want to mirror her movements, or actually go the way she says which will NOT mirror her movements. I think they could have done a LOT better with the voiceover as far as that goes. It is confusing to most people to hear "move left" and see someone move to their right, especially when the instruction starts out so well. Other than that this is a great dvd.

Rachel Brice's style is one that I try to emulate - slow, slinky, and serpentine. I'm so glad that she released a DVD set that teaches her own personal style so well. This DVD comes with a lot of yoga, as usual for Rachel Brice. If you're not interested in yoga at all, this dvd is not for you. It includes a 33-minute yoga work out, a yoga work out for backbends (yes, backbends!), and some finishing yoga work-outs. I've been trying to improve my posture, flexibility, and stamina in belly-dance, and doing the yoga work-outs before my belly-dance practice has been proving to be very useful for me. I pop in one of these DVDs every day to do one of the yoga work outs, then I do a few of the drills or work on one of the choreography sections, then I do a finishing yoga work out. It takes a lot of time if you're not used to practicing at least an hour every day, but it's been so worth it. Even though I've been dancing for a few years I still had difficulty keeping up with a few parts. In some parts it's very easy to follow Rachel Brice and she explains things very well, then every now and then she'll pop out with one of her crazy Rachel Brice moves with not enough explanation, and you're not sure how to keep up. But overall it was very easy to follow and well explained - still working on that shimmy drill, though! I'm also very grateful she included yoga for backbends as well as explanations and safety information (go to the mini-class section before you try the backbends, and do the yoga!) I know some people just want to try and emulate Rachel Brice's crazy wonderful backbends, but it does take a LOT of practice. The yoga and explanations has helped me improve my backbend, though. I also appreciate the occasional small moments of humor Rachel Brice includes in the DVD. Her last dvds seemed a little more serious, which I don't mind, but the random bits of humor are appreciated. Overall, my favorite DVD ever! I use these dvds every day for my practice and have gotten a lot of good work out from them. I would recommend these dvds only if you're very serious about combining yoga with your belly-dance work out, and if you're interested in Rachel Brice's signature style.

This is my first introduction to Rachel Brice; heard of her, never saw her teach or dance, etc. However, I must say I think I picked a good one. I'm very impressed with the structure of the DVD; I love her pacing, although I got a bit bored with the yoga portion. The drills are fab, and though I've been dancing for decades, if you tend to be both lazy and impatient like me, forced drills are a good thing. It's good to get back to basics and focus. I also love the fact that you can access online, the weekly sample schedules she suggests on disc 1, to help you stay focused and pack all that material into a purposeful, weekly practice; after all, practice makes perfect...results. You can also find TONS more info on her website RachelBrice.com. I suggest you check it out if you want to find out more about her style of dance DATURA, various techniques, teachers who also teach her style globally, and just all things Rachel Brice - it's very cool. Lastly, I must agree with many of the reviewers on two points; the first choreography music is just plain koo-koo. Not my taste all; learn the steps, use your own music. Second, this is not a DVD for rank beginners; possibly not even advanced beginners. You need a firm background in the mechanics of belly dance to get any real benefit out of it; definitely more than the average beginner might have. For dancers on that level, I wholeheartedly recommend most DVDs by "The Belly Twins", Neena and Veena Badasha. They have a great many that contain good instruction and great pacing; plus they're so darn cute to watch. That doesn't mean that Serpentine is wasted money. Just think of it as something to work towards...

I feel like there is a lot more yoga than I expected, however I think that could be a good things since yoga should help with flexibility which plays a major part in belly dance. Edit: When I finally started this video I did about 15 minutes of the yoga and lost patience. The moves are very repetitious and I've never been much for yoga anyway. I had hoped to gain something from that part, but apparently I will not be. Also, just for the dvd intro yoga it takes 36 minutes of the 2 hours. The last yoga is 25 minutes. That means for drills and techniques you only get an hour of the video. And both videos have the yoga. In other words your 4 hours turns into only 2. It seems that the technique sessions may be somewhat short, but there are some point of interest that I haven't seen in other dvd's. Specifically how to do backbends safely and yoga to stretch correctly for it. The shimmy exercise is this is much more extensive than I'e seen in the others I have bought, however they are not necessarily for beginners. I have danced off and on for about 10 years and I may struggle with this some since I have never done much traveling or footwork with shimmies. But where others complain I see that as a great thing. I want to grow and do more, that's why I bought this. It is just over 14 minutes, but there's quite a lot of movement to it. The leg portion I don't see as for strengthening but you certainly see the drilling. Lots of movement and making you more comfortable with what to do with your feet and legs. It's 20 minutes long. Again, longer than most I have seen. Edit: I have actually done this part and I feel like the first strengthening part is pure junk. I jog 3 days a week so this does zero for me. The movements part is good, but I'm not used to doing actual choreography and she moves along quite a bit faster than I can catch on, especially toward the end of it. She says so much that you don't really understand and then she tosses other stuff in. I still like the section it's just going to take some work for me to get it down. After that first sequence she does kind of a squat with a shimmy that easily tires me out. Isolation drills is 31 minutes long. Again for beginners this is beyond what they can do. Patterns for how to move are fairly easy and yet graceful and pretty. I feel like I will really enjoy this and get a good shoulder and ab workout from it. Edit: After actually doing this I feel like this work out for arms is just as good as her arms video so if you get this one don't bother buying the other one. The workouts are not the same, but they get worked alike. The thrown in foot patterns kind of throw me off for right now. I've done 25 of the 31 minutes and there aren't enough drills. What is there is good, but you do each move for about 3 min. tops and then move on to something else. She moves on too quickly. All in all it was worth the $18 I paid for it. I also have her Arms and Posture dvd that wears me out in 5 minutes. Which led me to buy this one as well. She is very technical without being boring about it. She informs you of what you need to know and she generally shows you a lot, whether you are at that skill level or not. For beginners, many complain of it being too hard. I feel like a beginner can push through it. You have to understand that even though you can't go as quick or as good as her, if you continue to do it, eventually you will be. I would say this is an intermediate or possibly advanced intermediate. There are very few instructions and you have to be used to that. I have actual intermediate videos that have much more instruction than this and much simpler moves.

I am 61 years old and needed to move and lose weight for health reasons. I joined a dance for fitness/low impact aerobic class. Meh--it was all right but not exciting. Then I tried yoga. Didn't find my zen place. Then I tried cabaret style bellydancing. I loved it--the instructor was amazing and made classes fun as well as a good workout. I incorporated bellydance into my lifestyle, lost weight, got into shape, and am hooked on bellydancing. One of the other instructors begged me to try tribal. I was in love with the control and movements--if I could just get my body to do that. She suggested I look at anything by Rachel Brice. I saw Rachel's recommended list on Amazon and bought two of her DVD's--this one and Bellydance Arms and Posture. Since I have sciatica, the movements keep me moving and off a lot of pain killers. The yoga workouts with the dancing are step by step and easy to follow. Rachel's voice-over constantly reminds viewers that if they cannot perform a movement, it's all right. Do what you can. I like that approach since I am not in the shape she is in and some days, I can barely move. Do I look like Rachel when I dance with her? Absolutely not!! But I can pretend :) This DVD has inspired me to come up with an elderly/wheelchair version of bellydance as a community education class. I could also teach this in a nursing home setting. I highly recommend this DVD to anyone who not only loves tribal, but needs/wants to move and get fit. While I may never dance like Rachel, I am able to do a lot of the movements and keep in shape. BTW--the instructor and 30-somethings in the class are in awe of my flexibility. That tells me something :)

I really love this video. It has more content than I expected. It gives a lot of background work for building the muscles, the strength and the fluidity towards belly dancing. It includes targeted yoga exercises. She breaks down the movements and builds your stamina. This is a unique take on belly dance training from a very beautiful and talented dance instructor. This is a serious dance course on dvd. It is like formal dance training NOT a follow along for 15 minutes and voila do a belly dance for your hubby type training. This is an entire practice that includes toning and strengthening curriculum. High quality product for a dance enthusiast!

There are two DVDs in this set. The first concentrates on the different techniques Ms Brice uses, showing very clearly how to achieve the movements and how to practise them. The second DVD shows the choreography of her dance, both as costumed performance and broken down into sections in the rehearsal room. Both sections are filmed in a large and airy room, mirrored floor to ceiling and very well lit so that it is easy to observe Ms Brice's movements from all sides. The practice dress she wears allows us to see exactly what any part of her body is doing at any time. The first disc begins with warm-up exercises and yoga practice before progressing to isolation drills for each part of the body. The drills (shoulders, torso, hips, etc) are accompanied by simple music, for the most part a drum, and this threads together the different exercises. At the end of the lessons there is a yoga cool-down section and some suggestions as to how one can make a practice schedule to fit the learning/practising into one's week. I found that particularly helpful. As Ms Brice observes, not everyone has three or four hours daily to devote to dance. The second disc has two performances by Ms Brice, and what a pleasure it is to watch her! The count of the dance is explained and her routines are taken apart like jigsaws so that we can see how each dance is being built from the lessons shown on Disc One. There are sections on feet movements (to avoid being glued to the spot) and on arm movements. All the demonstrations are done slowly so that we can understand how they link, and then, if necessary, faster. Ms Brice suggests (very sensibly, for my money) that we become comfortable with the body movements before we include the feet exercises, and then when we are good with those two, we add arm movements. I find this much easier than the insistence of some teachers that we try to do everything at once from the very start. How to breathe is also addressed; one thing I used to forget during a new exercise was the need to breathe regularly but there is no fear of this here. The pacing of the DVDs suited me very well, neither too slow nor too rushed and it really feels as if Ms Brice wants us to learn, and that we can learn. Her approach is friendly without any jollity, businesslike without brusqueness and her attitude is very down to earth. There is not any cultivated mystique or glossing over a movement. Only Ms Brice appears on these DVDs so one is not distracted by a screenful of other dancers. The camera work is well-considered and makes what is shown very accessible. This set is excellent value for money; even if you decide belly dancing is not for you, to see her dance is a real delight. I am so pleased I bought this.

This has two DVDs, one choreography and one of drills and conditioning. There is a lot of yoga in the conditioning section and a very long shimmy drill that is not easy. I would recommend this for advanced dancers, it is too difficult for a beginner and doesn't really teach movements, it is to supplement training for experienced dancers. That said, if you have several years of training and are looking to improve or keep up your technique, I would recommend this DVD set. The choreography is not traditional belly dance, it is a very modern American style but it is good for experienced dancers to branch out just for a new experience.

Non solo Rachel è una delle migliori danzatrici al mondo, ma è anche un'insegnante fantastica! Tutto è molto ben curato e i contenuti sono chiari e ben organizzati. Le posture yoga sono scelte in maniera specifica in base al tipo di esercizio di danza ed è massima l'attenzione alla stabilità della spina dorsale. Le coreografie sono spiegate in sezioni e il linguaggio scelto è chiaro e preciso. I video dimostrativi finali delle coreografie lasciano come sempre senza fiato Questo dvd è un'esauribile fonte di ispirazione e incoraggiamento alla pratica

La verdad que es un pack muy completo. Consta de dos DVD's, entre los dos seran más o menos dos horas y media de video, o sea que esta muy bien. El primer dvd es de técnica, y es muy útil; empieza con ejercicios de yoga que a la larga te hacen ganar flexibilidad, hasta tiene un apartado específico con ejercicios para conseguir el backbend de Rachel Brice de una forma segura para tu espalda. Yo he notado mejoría des de que los hago y no noto dolor ninguno; porque para tumbarte para atrás como ella lo hace en la foto de la portada se necesita mucho entrenamiento y haber calentado muy bien la espalda, eso es algo que ella recalca mucho. El segundo Dvd es una pasada, con dos coreografías donde te enseña paso a paso com se ejecutan, contando los pasos y por secuencias, o sea que esta muy bien explicado. Lo recomendaría a apasionadas del bellydance!!!! Lo único que esta en inglés, y hace falta tener un buen nivel de esa lengua para poder entender algunas explicaciones, aparte de eso me encanta!!!

parfait pour yoga shimmies isolations a votre rythme. tres technique bien expliqué. Parfait pour debutants ou confirmés en plus il y a 2 dvd un de cours et un de choregraphie