Rio Vista: Week One

Thank you to the six stunning students signed up for the Fall 2012 session at Rio Vista Recreation Center! I am excited to have three returning dancers as well as some new faces. Interested students are still welcome to join us in week two; we have nine open spaces.

This session is all about fun and high energy! Daler Mendhi’s Tunak Tunak Tun is a Punjabi pop sensation that gained a following in the United States through its inclusion in the video game World of Warcraft. The length of the song – five minutes - does make it rather daunting to dance to, especially at the high velocity tempo.

Belly dance takes many forms as it crosses many borders, within the lines of India it is more about the shoulders than the shimmies. Hops and shoulder drops are prominent with accents through wrist and head movements. A blending of sharp and fluid combinations make dances from India fun and energetic.

I wrote the choreography for Tunak Tunak Tun to test my skills as a dancer. It was my first choreography and still one of my favorites. It does have a few glitches, or unique qualities. Foremost, the steps are left, rather than right dominant. It is written as a troupe dance, to include groups of three to five.

I am very excited to be teaching this dance once again and thrilled to have some great students! Thank you so much! See you soon!

While you wait for class:

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Fitness: Crunch Yoga Review

I decided about two weeks ago to get back into yoga. Now that I am writing and sitting more my back and legs have some seriously unhappy days. This is absolutely helping. I am not a fan of purchasing media but I hope to make up for that by putting the word out about how much I like, or in some cases, dislike the pieces found on Netflix or online.

The Crunch series has several videos in a panorama of workouts. Candlelight Yoga is one of the mellow choices. Released in 2002 and currently available on Amazon and Amazon Instant video , I found it on Netflix. The 45 minute workout and yoga instruction is appropriately listed as beginner/ intermediate.

Sara Ivanhoe began instructing in the practice of yoga in 1995 and is noted as certified in Yoga Philosophy and Ecology. Her voice is incredibly soothing throughout the video adding to the relaxing ideals in the program. Sara’s methods and explanations are grounded and fun too. How many yogis do you know that would explain the yoga breath as Darth Vader-like?

I am not incredibly flexible, nor do I desire to train my body to be a pretzel. Seriously, what is the point unless training to be a circus artist? I wanted something with a reasonable time and without the requirement of being a Vedic in training. Throughout the video Sara explains each movement and the breathing that should accompany it. She makes suggestions as to how to make the moves less stressful for those with minimal flexibility or balance. The musical ambiance was appropriate without making me feel as though I should don some prayer beads, and the colors of the setting and the clothing of the people in the video were calming.

The only complaint, or maybe more aptly, caveat I have about this video is the opening. The standard Crunch series theme and image montage is jarring. If possible, mute your television or computer speakers. Watch for the first images of Sara and her students to appear before turning on the sound again.

This is a quality yoga instruction for beginning basics, lunch breaks, or centering. I didn’t break a sweat, pull anything or get completely lost and confused. It takes less than an hour, minimal space and no special clothing or equipment.

Remember, drink lots of water, never over do it, and everything takes practice.

AdeebA Korsana Bellydance Classes:

Mondays, 6:00PM (Home Studio, Glendale)

Tuesdays, 7:00PM (Home Studio, Glendale)

Wednesdays, 6:30PM (Rio Vista Recreation Center, Peoria)

Fridays, 5:30PM (Foothills Aquatic Center, Glendale)

Food & Fitness: Trainer Bio

I met Frank Levreau in 2011 with no idea that he would be my fitness partner in 2012. Frank has aspirations to be a full time personal trainer and nutritionist and I really feel his story is inspirational. It is also a testament to Frank’s dedication!

In December of 2009, Frank was diagnosed with Type-2 Diabetes. His blood sugar was at 850 and his kidneys were dangerously close to failure; a frightening diagnosis at twenty-eight years old. The culprit; 8000 calories per day of primarily fast food, long stretches of seated video game play, and bouts of depression.

After the shocking news from his doctor and a trip to the emergency room, Frank made the choice to save himself. Gone were the burger and greasy fries, he switched his calorie intake to 1200 per day in multiple small meals. In five months time, Frank dropped 125 pounds! In a week, Frank was off the insulin. He dropped his kidney medication in a month and his sugar production leveled out after only two weeks. He kept his exercise regimen fairly simple, just going with what he had learned when in school and later joined a gym.

Frank’s scare factor made his efforts work for him in just five months, but with his clients he foresees the program working in a year to a year and a half. The basic plan is similar to what Frank used with changes to each client’s needs.

Drawing from his studies on history and antiquity as well as a little something more geek related (I will touch on that later) Frank hopes to create a fitness and nutrition system a bit more interesting than average. There is not a whole lot of grain in the dietary portion of the plan, but there is room for it if need be. For fitness, Frank recommends adding a hobby, or play time to normal day to day activities.

An example of a meal comes from Nomadic Germany; roasted deer meat with baked potatoes. Dessert consists of blueberries and walnuts.

And of course, from the Spartans, the lords of fitness; some compound exercises like basic weapons training drills and the always classic push-up.

I promised something really different at the beginning of this blog. Frank is still a hardcore gamer and geek. He is proud of this and I think that is awesome, because I loves the gamers. But, what does gaming have to do with health and fitness?

How about some squats like Zack in Final Fantasy Seven? Shadow boxing like Zell in Final Fantasy Eight works too. My personal favorites come from Link in Legend of Zelda; like the overhead pig press, or a nice cardio chicken chase!

Most important Frank says to stay motivated create game related goals. Finish a quest and reward yourself with a walk or a run up and down the stairs. Every twenty minutes, try jumping jacks or those classic Spartan push-ups.

Instead of chips and soda and energy drinks, try snacking on those treats your adventurous characters might have handy; nuts and berries, maybe jerky, with water or herb tea. Frank also recommends taking a page from a World of Warcraft cookbook! I had no idea this existed!

Overall, Frank seems pretty sure that my belly dancing, sword fighting, and acting out character roles might work well enough for me and for anyone else out there with a geek slant, maybe it is time to choose the role of Luke or an Assassin instead of Jaba.

The Making of a Bellydance Video: Day One

I have never done this before. I have no idea what I am doing. I have seen enough finished products that I know what I am trying to make it look like. I know how to teach a belly dance class. I know how to write a basic script. These were my pros and cons before I even got to the business of making an instructional Bellydance video. I am still not certain I have any clue at all what I am doing, if I am qualified or if it will be worth anyone’s time. The things that I do know so far; I am having a grand time, I am learning along the way, and I am creating something that I think, at least some of my students will get a kick out of.

The Script

Being a writer and a bellydancer does make sense every now and again. Typically, I see the plot monkey writer come out when I am working on a stage performance. What is the story the dances are trying to tell and why should the audience see the dances in a particular order? When I write the syllabi for my classes it is nice to have a firm grasp on the English language and proper formulae for creating an outline.

I am still in the early stages of understanding proper script formatting and creation of a written diagram for a director. I am not sure if my method will work for everyone, but so far, it has made the work stress free and really fun.

In the video I am working on, I want to have several short videos on the proper break down and execution of each move the student will come across in the primary choreography. The camera man did not need to know what the moves were prior to filming. He did need to know if I would be traveling directionally, and when to stop and start recording.

Make-up and Costuming

On the first day of shooting, we planned to work on basic move breakdowns only. For learning movements, it is always easier to see the body and not get lost in a confusing blur of glitter and fancy costuming. While Shaun worked on arranging lighting and stabilizing the camera, I dressed as if heading out to teach any typical class, black yoga pants, black sleeveless top and coin belt.

Again because of the need for easy visuals and because I knew those lights were going to make things rather warm, I opted to pull my hair into a neat bun. I did add a little color with a headband and dangle earrings to match the coin belt.

Make-up was a bit of a different story. I typically do no more than maybe eyeliner and lip gloss to class, but the lighting in the studio would require full performance make-up to not look ill, so on with the show.

Eye of the Beholder

Most important to note here; trust your camera man! If he is good at what he does he will know what lighting to use, how to angle the camera and where in the room you should stand to make the image in the frame look fantastic. Second guessing his work is only going to frustrate both parties. Do make staging notes to the effect of; eliminate shadows and minimize angle changes though. Just telling him that this is a video for instructional purposes should let him know not to get artistic and keep it simple.

I gave a simple list of the names of each move to the camera man so he could read them off to me instead of my running back and forth to see what I wanted to do next. I also told him before each move if I would be traveling and we checked the view of the camera before proceeding. I let him know in the outline to help me stay within a 40 second to minute long clip for each move, and we really did pretty awesome at that!

Time to Make a Moving Picture

To make it extra easy for the camera man, and for the viewer later, I made certain to introduce each move with the commonly used name and a brief verbal explanation. I carefully explained each component of the move then demonstrated the movement a few times through smoothly and completely. I finished each segment by saying the name of the move a second time, this allowed the camera man to know when I was really done.

Because of our prior communication and the simple but well defined outline created, this part was easy for the camera man, and really easy for me, if I didn’t get a few slips of stage fright here and there.

Some moves are easier to understand from different angles. Do not make your camera man move all of his equipment, find the best lighting and turn your body to better demonstrate the movement. You would not ask your entire class or your audience to move around you, have the same respect for the camera.

Outtakes

It is going to happen! And, if you let it, it can make the project even more fun. Not to say you should get carried away with the giggles or trying to do a section to death trying to get perfection, but those funny oops moments are what it is to be human. Don’t get mad. Have a quick laugh with your camera man and move on. But don’t delete them! Someday you will need to relive that moment when you said 100 degree turn rather than 180.

Tomorrow is Another Day

Tomorrow we move on to the breakdown of the song and a final full costume display of the completed dance. I am excited, and a little nervous, but I am going to follow my own words and have fun no matter what!

*Look for AdeebA Korsana’s Bellydance Level One Video set for release Spring 2012*

Until then, check out AdeebA’s Bellydance classes in Peoria, Glendale and Phoenix, Arizona; www.easalle.com , Easalle.z@gmail.com , and bint Hazine dance troupe; Facebook.com/bint.hazine .