Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Kelly Kole on November 22, 2010 at 8:05pm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weq0EHnPd3c

Permalink Reply by Caroleeena of Circles of Joy on November 22, 2010 at 8:37pm

Hoop It Out!
I am embedding Kelly's video here so that it is easier to see and give feedback on:

Permalink Reply by Kelly Kole on November 22, 2010 at 8:41pm

Oh thanks Caroleena! I should have thought of that! haha

Permalink Reply by Cuban Leigh on November 22, 2010 at 9:37pm

I have to say you do a beautiful hoop dance. I loved the opening sequence it was powerful yet graceful. I also enjoyed the dramatic expression you have with your head flowing along with your body and hoop moves. It truly gives it extra emotion and character.

I think this is a great idea and once I am able to make a video I would like to post it on this forum ...
all luv

Permalink Reply by Caroleeena of Circles of Joy on November 22, 2010 at 9:41pm

Fun video! I love this song. Your Beat Punctuation was really good from 10 - 14 seconds and then again in the drop at 16 seconds. If you use this song again, I would try to punctuate every beat in that opening part, right up to that big drop, which you did perfectly. You do a good job of carrying on your beat punctuation afterwards as well and I really like that you use your head and body and not just your hoop for this. Directed gaze is a powerful way to punctuate the beat.

I like that when you did that leg lift in the first minute, you kept your toe close to your knee. This makes more of a line and is cleaner looking, especially when accented by the pops of Beat Punctuation.

I really like your hand movements, especially the ones close to the face. You can make the ones away from the face look a little more flashy by articulating the fingers -- either spreading them far apart or making a mudra or finger pose. This is something that dancers usually start to work on after they've integrated armwork but I think you're ready for it. I already see some finger articulation happening naturally.

From :55 to 1:00 you do a series of lifts and drops. These are pretty and fit the flow of the music perfectly. You can make them even prettier by lifting higher, so that the arm is straight (I realize you may not be able to do that in your space because of the drop in the ceiling but if you can, it's good practice. It improves both your posture and your lines) and also dropping the hoop lower so that instead of passing it from one hand to the other at mid-back, it's actually behind your bottom. Reaching as high as you can and dropping as low as you can actually makes this move easier. I know that sounds counter-intuitive but it's true. You can do it slower and get more bounce with less effort from the shoulder. It also makes a cleaner line going up and down.

I like that you let your body flow and bend following those lift drops. Lines followed by collapse create an interesting juxtaposition that keeps the viewer intrigued. Martha Graham was really into this.

Your arm lift outs are also really good. This is another place where finger articulation can look cool (and one of the most challenging places to do it!) I recommend playing in your mirror and seeing if you can figure out a pretty way to pose your fingers as you do those lift outs just to polish them up even more. OR, you could keep the fingers together and the hand flat or ball the fingers into a fist. Those are also forms of fingerwork. Now even as I say this, I find fingerwork in these liftouts challenging too! I've finally found something pretty for horizontal lift outs but I've been struggling a long time to come up with something clever for vertical ones. If someone comes up with something, I want to see!

I like how rounded you keep your arms for your lift outs. Those are perfect flamenco arms! My only suggestion about them would be, try to make the lifting hand end up straight above the crown of the head, so that your open elbow frames the face. It's a little tweak that packs a lot of punch!

There is a point at 1:23 or so where both arms are above your head that is very pretty! I recommend staying there and doing some finger rolls! (I'm doing a tutorial on those soon in case you don't know what they are. ) The way your arms frame your head is gorgeous and you could milk that pose for a while, especially while leg hooping. So pretty!

Those pop-out freezes at 1:32 and again just after that are fierce! Your lines are so clean, like the bottom of the hoop is sliding across a bar in front of you. Good job! Your facial expression also really compliments this staccato pop-lock move. Characterization is important and you really have it in these moments, which makes the smile that follows so much more dramatic also.

At 1:51 you are doing some infinity cross-overs. Notice your arm that is not doing anything. The back of the hand is to the hip. You have a couple of pretty choices in this moment. You can put the palm on the hip, elbow out and make it sassy like, "Uh-huh, I got this!" or you can straighten the arm and tuck it behind the back to make a cleaner line with the body so the only lines you see are the body and the cross-over. (Utilizing the hand that is not holding the hoop is generally the second big challenge for hoopdancers ... right after learning to use the hands in the first place! We tend to wield the hoop in our dominant hand, the one we usually lead with in hand work also, which leaves the other to form a t-rex arm or tentative wave. It takes a bit of concentration to put our attention on the Free Hand instead of the hoop hand but it adds a lot! (I have an article about this in my blog.)

Great job pointing your toe as you step through the hoop at 2:02! You use your toes really well in general. Even pointing before stepping on the ball of the foot at 2:12. Excellent!

At 2:14 you do a very pretty piece of handwork where you drag the fingers down from above and close to the body. It looks great! I recommend doing it even slower and touching yourself as you bring them down. It's a very sensual move and you look great doing it. Really go for it. Don't be shy. Touch the back of the head and let the fingers draaaaag down.

Nice save of that hoop on the floor!!!! Wow!!! Twice even. And your leg lift out was beautiful. You looked like a bird, which is ideal. (That's what they teach you to go for in flamenco. Flying birds.)

Your footwork just keeps getting better and better. By 3:15, you're doing lovely step outs with pointed toes and coming all the way back to center each time. Your lines are beautiful.

Nice level change into floor work. Level changes also keep things interesting in dance. Your smile is gorgeous also.

When you change to foot hooping, try to keep the non-hooping leg down. Again, it makes a better line. It's okay to just lie on the floor and hand hoop as you pick the perfect moment to lift in. It'll be smoother and easier on you and it looks nice also. I usually have to bend the one not hooping if I am going into shoulder stand but I try to keep it flat otherwise. Also, point your hooping toe! It's prettier but it works better also. Good job returning to you feet. That's a challenge to pull off without losing the hoop and a challenge to make look pretty but it gets better and better with practice. I often come up turning to try to smooth that out in my dance so it's like a waterspout coming up from the ground.

Great kick-starts. I'm so lame at those. When you do it, see if you can lift from your chest and keep your chin up. Refuse to look down at the hoop! Look forward. Spot at a place directly in front of you. Elena Lev does these beautifully in her Alegria video and the woman in the Valkyrie video is also impressive. (I need to learn that. I keep hurting myself and giving up! It's a great way to get the hoop up and going from the floor though and you make it look natural and easy.)

At 4:02, your hoop is considerably catty-cornered (and I think I noticed this a couple of other leg hooping times too). That's because you are driving almost completely with one leg -- the one kicking under and up. (I think it's your right.) Try to get into the habit of using BOTH legs. Of letting your heels slam the earth after each push while the other heel rises and you you move weight into the ball of that foot. It will keep your hoop level and give you more control too.

Way to introduce a Ta Da moment just before the denouement and final pose. Great finish! I also like that you returned to the same Beat Punctuation you started with (though I think you had sped up in your dance so it's not quite as pronounced. Remember you can set your tempo with your breath -- breathing slow, and steady and long, no matter how fast the music gets.) I like the continuity of returning to the same moves you started out with. Very clever. I also like the coin rolls that you finish with. They're a great way to wind down in the denouement. My only feedback about them would be work from the center, not the back inside part of the hoop. (And sister, I do the same thing! Center, center, center, like the head on a penny. I am committing to do better at that!)

I loved your final pose!!! I wish we'd had a couple more seconds of it even. It was so pretty and, really, perfect! If there is only one thing you get right in a whole dance, it should be the final pose. It's the impression people are left with of your dance. And you rocked it.

Your musicality and beat punctuation were on the money. Your footwork was exciting and prevalent throughout your dance. Your armwork was sensuous and varied. I love that your facial expressions faded between smiles and fierceness. You did a really good job here. Excellent job altogether!!! Brava!!!!

I'm curious. How long have you been hooping and also, did you dance before hooping? The way you float your arms up and down and point your toes make me wonder if you might have a dance background.

Again, great job. Thank you for sharing and for being brave enough to be our first guinea pig! I'd love to hear how you found the experience. YOUR feedback will help us all be better coaches.

Permalink Reply by Caroleeena of Circles of Joy on November 22, 2010 at 9:41pm

Phew! That was longer than I realized!

Permalink Reply by Traci "CircularPraise" Bonney on November 23, 2010 at 4:46am

Lol - you always give such thoughtful feedback, it's bound to get a bit longer than "Cool moves - loved it!"

We may have to rethink this format, but we'll leave it as is for now.

Permalink Reply by Sarah Bellum on December 1, 2010 at 4:38pm

Caroleeena did a really good and thorough review of your video Kelly and I am in agreement with her on her tips and feedback.

I'd only like to add:

1) Your music choice was beautiful, I was feeling the flow and swaying to it sitting here watching you.
2) Remember your face throughout the performance. I struggle with this as well, but I remember dancing in class and teaching and saying "If you forget about your face in practice, you'll forget about it when you're on stage." SO, that being said, there were moments where you absolutely looked like you were having a blast or that you were in the music, but the majority of time you seemed totally absorbed in your movement (which is beautiful), so keep on remembering your face. Your face is apart of your dance as well. :)
3) Continue to work on your transitions, a lot of them were really good and flowed, but work on every transition from trick to trick, plane to plane, that they flow.

Can't wait to see another video from you :)

StudentPermalink Reply by Shelley "HoopyChick" Gilbertson on November 23, 2010 at 8:03am

I haven't had a chance to really watch the video while reading Caroleeena's comments in depth yet, but I will soon. It's a great way to analyze things, and I think I'll learn a lot just from doing this. Cool.

I will be the one to say quickly, "Good job, Kelly!!" LOL!

Permalink Reply by Kelly Kole on November 22, 2010 at 10:33pm

Oh wow, I have never gotten such detailed feedback in my life!!! I loved it, thank you thank you thank you! I have been hooping 9 months, going on 10. I have a little bit of belly dancing history which is where I pull my arm movements and some modern dance history which is where I get my pointed toes. As far as where I got the experience? I'm just a self taught hooper. I've never had the luxury of a class. I just try to play with my hoop every day and experiment with things that might look cool. sometimes it works and other times it doesn't.

I always wondered why the hoop gets catty cornered looking while leg hooping. I didn't realize it was because I was only pushing with one leg. Good advice, i'll have to work on that one!

Permalink Reply by Sarah Bellum on December 1, 2010 at 4:19pm

This is me and a few of my friends hooping from earlier this fall, nothing professional or a piece we're working on, just practice. I'm the girl in the red tank top. I'd like some feedback on my flow and overall hooping. Also any comments on my friends would be welcomed as well. Thanks so much for putting up this forum, I think it is really beneficial :) It was a great idea.

Permalink Reply by Kelly Kole on December 1, 2010 at 5:16pm

Sarah, those first 20 seconds were OUTSTANDING! Not only did you have really fast, fluid transitions, but you were rockin it.

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