Review: Habiba's "Gawaher" choreography DVD
by Sherezzah Bint al-Waha (FL)

I first encountered the choreography that is on Habiba's new teaching tape at the Raks Adunya Festival August, 2001 in Gainesville, FL. I have taken workshops with Habiba on several occasions in the past, but they were always for her folkloric specialties (Ghawazee, Tunisian, Andalusian). Although I had seen her perform Orientale, this was my first time to experience her teaching of it. And what an experience! She chose a 15-minute Egyptian-style choreography to music by Dr. Samy Farag. It was hot. There were times during the class that I actually cheered because I loved what she was doing so much. And as some indication of how good a teacher she is, we actually got through most of the choreography (I think about 13 minutes or so). And even though we didn't complete the whole thing, the music had a lot of stops in it so we actually got several possible routines. So when I heard she'd released a teaching DVD of the same choreography, I was interested to see how it translated to DVD. And besides, it would be a helpful reminder of the choreography, which I quite enjoyed.

When I got the DVD, I immediately appreciated that she listed the music, which is readily available, right on the DVD box cover, along with where to get it. The piece, from Dr. Samy Farag's album "Midnight Magic", is about 15 minutes long. I had to wonder how she was going to squeeze it all on a DVD. But she does. First she shows it in costume, in a live performance. This introduces you to the music and gives you an idea how the choreography works as a complete dance. I liked that it was from a real show; it's nice to get the feel of the audience interaction.

Next, she breaks down the choreography in sections. Each section is identified by its rhythm--this was a nice extra tidbit for those of us who might recognize the rhythms but don't remember all the names. For each section, first she breaks down the steps for that section; then she does a walkthrough of the section without music; then she dances it with the music.

The breakdowns go pretty fast--they need to, to get everything on a two-hour DVD. But after all, this is DVD, and if you miss something you can always rewind and look at it again, as many times as you need. Habiba's explanations are very clear, and when apropriate, she turns sideways to make it easier for you to see what she's doing. This is not a DVD for raw beginners, though, because she doesn't break down every individual movement. You do need to have at least a basic bellydance vocabulary. On the other hand, she does provide additional helpful details and tips for some of the more unusual or potentially misunderstood movements.

The walkthrus could have been omitted to make a shorter DVD, but I think they're helpful for reviewing the steps and making the initial rhythmic connection with the music. The dancethrus with the music are a pleasure: it's fun to see how the steps fit with the music. And Habiba really gets into the mood when the music starts, smiling and enjoying it even though she's just in a studio.

Some of the sections are a bit long to digest all at once, but there is that rhythmic logic... and of course, it's DVD, so you can always work on just part of it if you want.

Overall, I would recommend this DVD to dancers of intermediate level and higher. The material is within the grasp of an intermediate dancer, but still contains some really nifty combinations and stylizations to make it fun and interesting for the more advanced dancer as well. The music may be a bit too long for performance for many of us, but the sections allow it to be cut and shortened in any number of ways. So whether you choose to use the whole choreography, or an edited version, or just want to pick bits and pieces out to put in your own choreography, you're sure to find Habiba's DVD a useful resource.

Linda