Contemporary Persian Ballet, Vol.1

A native of Iran with advanced degrees in the arts from San Francisco State University, Shahrzad Khorsandi, artistic director of the Shahrzad Dance Academy in Richmond, CA, has fused her training in a number of dance disciplines with her natural affinity for Middle Eastern culture to produce a unique art form: contemporary Persian ballet. In this instructional video, Khorsandi demonstrates fundamental elements, including warm-ups, basic positions, movements, patterns, and transitions, reviewing each segment and offering encouragement along the way, ending with a performance that brings the pieces together into a complete music-set routine. The dark background of the set coupled with judicious lighting make it easy to follow Khorsandi's movements, while her instructions are clear and straightforward, making this is a fine tutorial for students of dance. Recommended. [Note: also newly available are the dance compilations Contemporary Persian Ballet and Classical & Contemporary Persian Dances.] Aud: H, C, P. (J. Reed)