As a swing dancer I wanted to try to expand my repertoire a bit while working on developing my core muscles. This ballet workout seemed to be a great idea to introduce me to that world and attacking my strength from a different perspective.
However, while the exercises themselves are interesting, different, and are in fact working different muscles than I'm used to, the DVD itself is extremely problematic.
The organization of the DVD is erratic. The "Sections" seem to move in random order, and even though they are numbered 1-17, they are not organized in that manner even within the menu items. For instance, the menu for sections 13-17 are ordered in the sequence (from top-down, left to right, the way most English speakers read): 15, 17, 16, 13, 14. Attempting to run the sections in order fails miserably, as there is apparently some randomizing element (e.g., the last time I did this it took me from Section 2 "Warm Up 2") direction to Section 7 ("Floor Barre 2"), skipping two more warmup and stretching sections). As noted elsewhere, you simply cannot fast-forward or rewind to the next section, but rather have to exit to the menu and then return (supposing you don't have the patience for rewinding 2+ minutes of exercises to the beginning).
The menus themselves are problematic at best. Often times selecting "Menu" changes to a sub-menu, and it becomes a crapshoot as to whether or not you wind up at the place you are expecting. For instance, moving into the sub-menu "features" brings up sections for interviews, "sports ballet", and a couple of other items. After trying 3 different DVD players I've verified that it's not working as one might intuit. Sometimes I've exited an exercise to find myself at the interview sub-menu. Trying to click on "menu" in the interview sub-menu just refreshes the menu *or* brings me back to the Features menu, but clicking on the only "menu" option on *that* screen returns me back to the Interviews submenu! The Sports Options submenu (with Football, Skiing, and Racquet Sports) simply doesn't work at all and merely brings me consistently back to the Features sub-menu.
As noted elsewhere, the narration is quite poor. While the tone and tenor of Peter Martins' voice is soothing and even, it is often late with instruction (e.g., dancers have already begun the move on screen by the time he directs the viewer), incorrect (e.g., he describes working the left side when the dancer is working the right), or missing altogether (e.g., some exercises require you to be face-down and unable to see the screen, and thus unaware of what the exercise is that you are doing because there is no accompanying narration). This can get quite frustrating when you remember that the DVD will not let you navigate back to the beginning of the exercise to see what you missed!
Additionally, for someone who comes from a different style of dancing with its own terminology, the lack of definitions of terms was problematic. Some terms, such as plié, are defined only in their own section (in this case, it's the ninth!), long after they are introduced in the warmup. There is no instruction on how to do them properly, nor what each exercise is designed to do. I was fortunate that my girlfriend did ballet for many years and was able to translate for me and show me what each movement was and term meant.
Now, having said all that (and the frustration with the DVD itself is huge), the exercises *are* good. There is no question that they're demonstrated in proper form (and with incredible precision, as one would expect), and even the most dedicated dancer can aspire to the strength, flexibility, and grace demonstrated. Truthfully, if you're not breathing heavier after doing this, you're not focusing on the form properly.
The video itself is beautiful, soft lighting (though it does tend to interfere at times with seeing the actual forms, but only in a minor way). The music is, well, "meh," doesn't do much to add or subtract to the exercise (though some of the contemporary options are more likely to put me to sleep rather than motivate me to work harder).
My recommendation: If you already know the movements and are looking to improve form, flexibility and already have a workout that you use, this is a passable third or fourth-string backup. The DVD navigation issues will likely hold you back from daily use (because, after all, becoming motivated to work out is hard enough without having to add in the mental preparation necessary to fight with the menus). Finding this in a $10-or-less bargain bin is the best option, but anything more than that would be unwise. |
Expedited Available
"DVD problems overshadow workout value"
"Where would we be if we never tried something that we couldn't master immediately?"
"Good workout, but hard to follow..."