Ballet Workout [VHS]
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Product details
Actor: Melissa LoweProducer: Dennis Hedlund
Edition: VHS Tape
Format: NTSC
Running Time: 83 minutes
Release Date: 1991-10-22
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Publisher: Kultur Video
Studio: Kultur Video
VHS Movie Reviews of Ballet Workout [VHS]
Movie Review: I Love This!
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought the VHS version of this about 4 yrs ago and could not believe the body I got from the exercises. Not only did I build strength and flexability, but my posture and carriage greatly improved. I've had no professional ballet lessons, except one class as an adult, but doing this in my home made me feel like I was in the studio again. I was 36 when I started this and after about a month felt like I was 25 again. My abs bacame flat, my legs leaner and by backside and hips shrunk. Plus, I hardly had any back problems anymore. Also, I have flat feet and consequensly had foot and knee problems. With the exercises in this, it increased the strength in my arch and foot. It got rid of most of the pain in my feet knees and I could wear shoes that I normally couldn't wear before. Ballet is deceptive, in that it appears easy to someone watching it done, but start doing it yourself and you have a new respect for dancers. It's hard work, but the results are worth it! I highly recommend this for someone who wants to feel like a real ballet dancer and look great doing it.Movie Review: It works!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
The workout is great. I was going to start an adult ballet class in January and there weren't enough people registered. Since I had already bought my ballet shoes and was determined to start ballet again (hadn't done it since I was a child), I ordered both dvds of the ballet workout to do at home. My favorite is the 2nd level on the 1st dvd. It really tones your legs and bottom. I've gotten comments from girls half my age asking me if I'm a bodybuilder!!!Movie Review: a video you may already have
Summary: 3 Stars
I do like the Ballet Workout DVD, but after buying it on Amazon, I realized I already have it in video tape format. They've put a new cover on a very, very old recording. Whoever the woman is on the cover is not in the program! I was really looking forward to having a new program, and this is the same old one, complete with outfits and stretching programs from the 80s. Disappointing!Movie Review: Old, Old, Old...and time to be retired
Summary: 2 Stars
I've done this tape/dvd about 120x from 1999-2006 -- only because there wasn't anything better at the time. It's what you'd call an 'old stand-by'. Nothing outstanding to recommend itself by todays standards in production or intellectual 'snap', but not the worst thing you will ever own as far as a ballet dvd goes.
It's stand-out points include: an overcrowded class, ancient hyper-extended stretches, ugly costumes, an akward piano score, uninspiring stressful undertones, and a forced and failed attempt at grace - but all that said, it IS a ballet class! There is no getting away from that. It might be a ballet class from 1981, and you'd probably assume there'd be some redeeming nostalgia about that, but, no, it must have been a bad filming day.
Back when I used to first do it, I never liked it but, it was the best there was, and I was bloody grateful and probably would have given it a much more glowing review 8 years ago. Now, tho? It's not worth the money in my opinion. Get Dmitri Roudnev's Ballet Class with Dmitri Roudnev (Demonstration of exercises for music of Best of Ballet Class Vol V) and be truly inspired by a worthy ballet class. (see my unabashed, miles-long, glowing review of Dmitri's DVD.)
I've seen a lot, a lot, a lot of good reviews for this tape/dvd, The Ballet Workout. I believe they stem from the same gratitude my only positive feelings about it do, as well. Honestly, back in the day, there was this ballet class to buy - and that's it. And because it covers 'basic ballet' the gratitude for this even existing for home use was, understandably, overwhelming when it was reviewed in the past. But it doesn't hold up any more for that singular reason, and thankfully, others have come along to replace this stiff class that always made me feel like the tention in it would make it blow apart at the seams.
Is it the worst ballet dvd you could by? Is it a waste of money? No. It really isn't. You do ballet exercises in it. It's a hard class. If it was the only ballet class left in the world, I'd again, be thrilled to have it. It takes itself very seriously. It's akward, stiff, static, and tense. There's almost zero joy in it. It reminds me of what taking ballet in prison would be like, except that's an insult to anyone studying ballet in prision.
Is the Ballet Workout a treasure? Beautiful? Uplifting? Inspiring? No. It's just an old tired, ballet class now, and not wonderfully 'old' in that you can learn marvellous timeless things from it. Just old. Tired. Done. And not what my ballet class dreams are made of.
Movie Review: A good place to start.
Summary: 3 Stars
I own all three of the Ballet Workout DVD's. This one is my second favorite out of the three, and the best place to start if you've never had ballet before. It's structured like a ballet class (floor work, barre work, and center work). You don't need a barre. I use a chair.
I took ballet for 10 years when I was younger, so I knew all of the terms used in this DVD. There is a lot of time spent demonstrating and explaining the terms, so people who don't know ballet should be able to stay caught up.
The patterns are very simple and very repetitive, so it doesn't take many repeated viewings to learn them.
Some of the stretches require good flexibility (especially the level two workout) so I couldn't do a lot of them all the way at first. The people in the video are professional dancers, so of course they make it look easy. Just do what you can do and don't worry about the people on the TV.
You can tell just by watching that this was filmed in the 80's, so it's old. On some of the stretches she tells you to bounce. Don't. People don't bounce anymore. It''s bad because it doesn't let you ease into the strech and can force you to go to far too fast.
This is a good video to start with. I don't use mine anymore because I find the patterns repetitive and boring now, but if you don't know what you're doing the repetitiveness is good. My favorite DVD is the second one, but it is faster paced and you need to know what all the ballet terms mean.
Summary of Ballet Workout [VHS]
The title is somewhat a misnomer: this 83-minute video isn't a "workout" so much as a ballet class. If you've taken ballet in the past--or if you've always wanted to--pull on your tights and leg warmers and enjoy this video. Melissa Lowe, a former soloist and principal dancer with several ballet companies, leads two levels of workout. Level 1 is for those with little or no ballet training; ballet experience is helpful for level 2. Each level has three segments: floor work (stretches to warm up the muscles), barre work (standing exercises and positions done holding onto a barre or chair), and center work (more intense conditioning with balance, traveling, and some jumping). If you're not already flexible, you'll find the stretches daunting, even at level 1. This is a 1984 video and doesn't have the production quality you find in more current videos, but ballet is timeless. The music is solo piano--just like in ballet class. The lithe, willowy instructor doesn't smile or try to engage the audience, but she sure knows ballet, and her flexibility and grace are awe inspiring. --Joan PriceGeneral Video
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