Thread: BDSS Babelesque tour dvd

Hi everybody,

Has anyone of you seen this, and would like to share impressions?
[ame=http://www.amazon.com/Bellydance-Superstars-Babelesque-Live-Tokyo/dp/B002JYPVZY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1258203667&sr=8-1]Amazon.com: Bellydance Superstars Babelesque - Live from Tokyo: -: Movies & TV[/ame]

I liked the BDSS Live From Paris more than I had initially thought I would. Neat show, very entertaining to watch, and varied.
Is this one completely different? What is the quality of the show without most of the signature dancers?

I'd be glad about (mini) reviews of the show itself, or better still of the dvd.

Hi,

I saw the Babelsque show last year in Brussels. Although it was my first live show I saw from the BDSS, I have few of their dvd's.
I found it was a great show, the solo and the group choreographies were both fantastic. I happy to hear the dvd is out, I certainly will by it!!

If you love the shows from BDSS you saw before and their dvd's, you certainly will like this one.

sille

thanks for the info :)

Originally Posted by dinavienna

What is the quality of the show without most of the signature dancers?

Jillina is in the DVD. She went to Tokyo just to film it.

Oh! I didnt realise this was out! Where can I get a copy?

LOL! I see now I can get it from Amazon :)

well I have seen all the BDSS shows and this one was exactly the same as the rest and even had some burlesque!?!@$%$#?^
I was not impressed. They even recycled the same costumes. Basically if you have seen one you have seen them all and this one just so you know does not have a raks sharqi solo of any kind. And the intro is way way cheesy. JMO

Originally Posted by eshtabellydance

well I have seen all the BDSS shows and this one was exactly the same as the rest and even had some burlesque!?!@$%$#?^
I was not impressed. They even recycled the same costumes. Basically if you have seen one you have seen them all and this one just so you know does not have a raks sharqi solo of any kind. And the intro is way way cheesy. JMO

I feel like most of paul dinletir's music is pretty cheesy.

I haven't seen the show, but the intro is pharaonic odyssey right? I've seen them do adaptations of the opening number whenever they showed up on media.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UP_yH4z6HzA]YouTube - Bellydance Superstars on Spanish Television - Espejo Publico[/ame]

Originally Posted by eshtabellydance

well I have seen all the BDSS shows and this one was exactly the same as the rest and even had some burlesque!?!@$%$#?^
I was not impressed. They even recycled the same costumes. Basically if you have seen one you have seen them all and this one just so you know does not have a raks sharqi solo of any kind. And the intro is way way cheesy. JMO

Thnaks for the feedback...Thats a shame about the solos..I love watching all their individual styles. As for the costume recycling, that does seem strange-youd think theyd have so many costumes for their use. I have over a dozen just in my closet. onder if it is a response to the economy????

No solos?! not nice :(
Thanks for the youtube clip! I love the costumes. Who's the cabaret girl apart from Sonya and Bozenka? I think the music sounds cheesy because some of the melody line sounds like movie music like from Star Trek or other sci fi movies :)

Originally Posted by dinavienna

No solos?! not nice :(
Who's the cabaret girl apart from Sonya and Bozenka?

I think its Petite Jamilla, one of the tribal girls in Kami Liddle, not sure about the other one

I thought the opening number was cool-a good intro to the two styles (Cabaret, Tribal) to one who's never seen bellydance. I think just having them on that brightly-lit martha Stewart kind of sound stage with the epic music seemed wierd. In the right setting it would be sweet! IMO. ;-)

Originally Posted by Glindella

I think its Petite Jamilla, one of the tribal girls in Kami Liddle, not sure about the other one

Ya, it's petite jamilla
I think the other tribal girl is samantha something...not really sure.
maybe since Jillina's on the dvd she'll have a solo??

Ive got the DVD on the way...saw the show live...but with no Jillina or Rachel Brice...wonder how different it is from what I saw.

There was a sonia drum solo, jillina drum solo, petite jamilla double veil, adore's burlesque thing, lots of tribal, a montage where everyone got to come out a do 20 seconds of something, the polynesian thing and lots of group MGM style numbers. But no raks sharqi traditional solo.
Miles was sitting in front of me so I was audibly grumbling and whispering. So it was basically the same as all the other shows. And with a few costume repeats.
I don't think it's the economy. It's just tired. They should sell those old costumes on bhuz and buy new ones with the $$

you were audibly grumbling to make him understand what was not good? :)

Would it not be smart by designers to give them special deals for every new tour in exchange for being prominently featured in promotion material and on their website?! The exposure of this troupe on professional bellydancers on several continents is singular.. why is no designer using it as a platform?! Didem has been receiving free bellas for many years. And yes, she is on a huge talkshow, but what's the proportion of professional bellydancers watching the Turkish talkshow? What is the proportion of professional, aspiring professional and semi-professional dancers in a BDSS crowd in comparison to that?
Should SO be worth it!

I would totally do it! I already costume some bigger name dancers. But if someone really famous emailed me I'd probably make them a costume at cost or do their whole show if they would promote me. I have always thought that was an awesome idea.
And yes I was totally communicating my 2 cents to miles through grumbling.

Originally Posted by eshtabellydance

There was a sonia drum solo, jillina drum solo, petite jamilla double veil, adore's burlesque thing, lots of tribal, a montage where everyone got to come out a do 20 seconds of something, the polynesian thing and lots of group MGM style numbers. But no raks sharqi traditional solo.
Miles was sitting in front of me so I was audibly grumbling and whispering. So it was basically the same as all the other shows. And with a few costume repeats.
I don't think it's the economy. It's just tired. They should sell those old costumes on bhuz and buy new ones with the $$

sonia also has been doing pretty much the same drum solo for the last 3 years; from what I hear; I think it changed once from the old "art of the drum solo."
Pj has been pretty much adding veils, from 2 to 4 to now 6

The babelesque one also has this reggaeton number; the abdel qader one in bedlahs
I heard they still perform that now too

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXY48pH0RlY&feature=related]YouTube - Bellydance Superstars: 3/3/06 [Video #4][/ame]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=coQJux3O3IQ&feature=related]YouTube - BDSS Reggaeton Fusion[/ame]

I really like jillina, but.........this piece makes me cry....though I've never seen it in entirety.

And eshta, at least you didn't throw up on Miles!

Thanks for posting - I think ;(
That is an unworthy dance !

LOL I can't help but feel very sorry for Miles for all the beating he routinely seems to get!

Originally Posted by sharifeh

I really like jillina, but.........this piece makes me cry....though I've never seen it in entirety.

And eshta, at least you didn't throw up on Miles!

I saw this a few years ago when I went to a (my only) BDSS show, I was disappointed that most of the stuff was the same as on the Paris DVD. I think it was 'The Art of Bellydance' it was when the Indigo was touring with them doing the saloon girl thing (I really liked that, those girls are so intense!). I remember thinking Sonia looked really uncomfortable doing the hip hop thing

Originally Posted by dinavienna

LOL I can't help but feel very sorry for Miles for all the beating he routinely seems to get!

Pfft. He doesn't even feel it.

ya probably :) (or maybe he is edgy on the outside and sensitive on the inside?:) )

I watched some of it yesterday with a friend and we had the same reactions; first off the sound quality is bad and the video editing is...well, bad...the paris dvd is of great quality so I was shocked
well I don't want to get too carried away but if you want to know my detailed feelings you can send me a message
I think it would be disappointing if you are comparing it to the paris dvd
the performances are:
the pharaonic odyssey opening
sonia and issam (issam does his audience thing)
a tribal piece called balkanesque? I didn't watch it.
oriental group piece
then the reggaeton
then there's an egyptian piece, group drum solo, quadruple veils, another tribal thing somewhere, jillina's drum solo, sharon kihara performance (I didn't see it) and the finale
I may be forgetting something
oh yeah the bellynesian

Oh! I forgot Sabah's ballet thingie, to be honest, I like half watched it, it couldn't keep my attention and I also forgot adore's burlesque thingie
my reaction to that was
.............................

oh ok :) no enthusiasm from your side.
But you did like the Paris dvd quite a bit I get from your message?
(that would be important to know for me, because I really enjoyed that dvd for the category it ranks in, poppy Las Vegas mass entertainment big stage style of dance).

Originally Posted by dinavienna

oh ok :) no enthusiasm from your side.
But you did like the Paris dvd quite a bit I get from your message?
(that would be important to know for me, because I really enjoyed that dvd for the category it ranks in, poppy Las Vegas mass entertainment big stage style of dance).

Then you would probably really enjoy this one especially if you haven't seen any of their shows so you won't really be aware of all the recycling of choreos and costumes;(nothing is the same as the paris one since that was so long ago, though you will probably recognize one of sonia's costumes that she re-uses) but the quality is lower.

I'm quite biased towards Jillina because I like her. I liked some parts of the "egyptian" (quotes because really only the music and costuming were egyptian) piece she choreographed on this one as well as the piece to lebanese music because I'm partial to Charbel Rouhana (the composer of the music piece they used).

The Paris one was of higher quality, can't say I liked all the content though.
I wouldn't even say I liked the content of the Paris one better than this one. There was something about this one that was bad maybe it was the bad lighting on this dvd....I feel like the editing is worse too(if that's even possible)?

By the way I forgot to mention the folklore piece, they mixed Lebanese and Saidi assaya,
they did a lebanese song with the canes first then they transitioned into a saidi song

Originally Posted by sharifeh

Then you would probably really enjoy this one especially if you haven't seen any of their shows so you won't really be aware of all the recycling of choreos and costumes;(nothing is the same as the paris one since that was so long ago, though you will probably recognize one of sonia's costumes that she re-uses)

Thank you, that is good to know!
Not having repetition with the other show is what I was most interested in. Sounds like while it is lots of fusion (which I am not a big fan either,but once in a while a solid colourful entertainment show like the BDSS is nice to watch, at least for me) it should be solid entertainment. Thank you!

Originally Posted by sharifeh

I'm quite biased towards Jillina because I like her. I liked some parts of the "egyptian" (quotes because really only the music and costuming were egyptian)

ya well said. In the beginning I used to get puzzled by why in the US Jillina was referred to as the Egyptian expert when I personally saw neither classical Egyptian nor the very modern style in her dance. It is very American style to Egyptian pop music for me, and for what it is (like the BDSS) it is nice and entertaining to watch IMO. If you ask me what I prefer it will be actual Egyptian style :) though.

Originally Posted by sharifeh

By the way I forgot to mention the folklore piece, they mixed Lebanese and Saidi assaya,
they did a lebanese song with the canes first then they transitioned into a saidi song

really that s interesting. I am not sure how well I can imagine Lebanese dabke and saidi mixed together. apparently folklore is all the same to them ,r:;