tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19027998003926579392024-03-09T01:43:56.984+00:00Strictly Come Dancing - A Professional's Opinion!Nicole Cutler - Former World, European, Open British, UK & International Latin American Dancesport champion's opinion on this years Strictly Come DancingStrictly Come Dancing-A Pro's opinionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11665126611362633171noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1902799800392657939.post-54892847463193828352011-10-30T14:21:00.001+00:002011-10-30T14:21:25.830+00:00Halloween Week Review<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">AS you all know from my review of Broadway Week, I am not a
fan of themed weeks & so far this series, the couples haven’t needed an
additional excuse to limit their content & increase their use of
props.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is a shame really as many of
the couples don’t need all this ‘ embellishment’ as they are good enough to
produce some really beautiful & memorable DANCE routines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me the stand out routine so far has been
Chelsee & Pasha Quickstep last week which I really hoped would set the tone
and standard for this weeks dances BUT it wasn’t to be and again I felt a
little let down & disappointed with mostly the celebs who can actually
dance & those who are on the right track to improvement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is only my opinion and again, I am sure
many of the millions who watch the show probably feel otherwise & perhaps I
need to look at the show through their non professional eyes – I doubt that
will ever happen though ;-)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Russell & Flavia<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>- Samba<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Unfortunately this was not Russell’s week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It seemed to lack his usual exuberance and
flair – perhaps all due to the troubles & worries regarding his knee? It
was still enjoyable to watch and as usual Flavia did a great job with the
content of the dance, there certainly was plenty of it! He had a very routine
full of basic content including: Cruzado walks & locks, Volta’s, Rolling
off the arm, Solo samba section, Circular Voltas, Spot Voltas, Bota Fogas,
Criss Cross Voltas & Walks in shadow position – WOW that’s a lot of content
to remember & learn but well done to Russell for rising to the challenge
which he always does.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps there was
a little too much (I can’t believe I am saying this) though considering all the
problems he was having with his knee & he made a few mistakes, lost his
timing and generally he lacked the sparkle that is required for the Samba.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Saying all that though, it was still an
enjoyable dance to watch and I hope he will be back to his usual bubbly self
next week!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Content:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>8<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Theme:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>6<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Overall:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>6<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Chelsee & Pasha – Tango<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">It was a great intro that wasn’t too long and introduced us
to the dance very nicely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It had a very
nice Tango feel with great neat and sharp lines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The content was fabulous again and consisted
of:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Open promenade, Open reverse turn,
Progressive link progressive side step, Reverse turn, Rock step, Tango walks,
locks & chasses, Fallaway promenade, Swivels, Contra check, Fallaway
reverse slip pivot and Oversway – absolutely wonderful display of including so
many basic recognisable steps in a complex and interesting routine &
Chelsee copes so well with all this choreography!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do feel that Chelsee still needs to work on
her upper body strength and frame and also her core muscles, as she can
sometimes look a little floppy, especially when she gets tired as the routine
progresses.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She made a little mistake
coming out of their Contra check in the beginning but generally I found it to
be a very entertaining dance with great story telling.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I won’t comment much on the wardrobe
malfunction except to say that perhaps the wardrobe department should have
known better than to put her in such a revealing dress with too little support
however, the malfunction made no difference to me in their dancing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Content:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>9<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Theme: 8<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Overall:
8 <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Audley & Natalie – Jive<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">I thought that although their Intro was rather long, it
couldn’t have been much shorter as the song only started properly after all the
faffing at the piano anyway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did find
the song a bit slow but thought Audley portrayal and character so enjoyable to
watch – he really looks like he enjoys every minute of dancing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me there was too much use of Lindy hop
steps instead of Jive flicks and kicks & this can make the Jive look heavy
– you don’t need to point your feet or use a fast straightening of the knee in
Lindy Hop kicks either like you do in Jive so this can slow the whole look of
the dance down.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The chorus contained a
lot of messing around and repetition & looked a little messy and
unrehearsed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There wasn’t enough proper
Jive content and their dance only contained the following:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>a small Jive flick & kick section,
chasses, Fallaway throwaway, chicken walks and a variation of rotating check
American Spin. Within this content, I felt that Audley needed to pick his knees
up more & get his weight over the balls of his feel more to create a light
and bouncy Jive action instead of it looking flat footed & heavy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, I cannot fault his enthusiasm and
enjoyment no matter what dance he is doing!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Content: 5<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Theme:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>6<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Overall:
5<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Alex & James – Paso Doble<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">This is a difficult song to create a great Paso dance to – I
remember Brendan & Sarah Manners using it in series 2 & it was a good
song choice for them so hopefully it will be a good choice for Alex & James
too.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Alex’s interpretation of the song in the long intro was very
good and believable, the acting part usually is always very good for her apart
from last week but I was glad to see her back to herself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They began their Paso content with:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Promenade to Counter promenade into Twist
turns into Pivots, all nicely done but I felt it lacked upper body strength,
shape and extension from Alex – she can give it a bit more ‘oomph’ I feel! They
had a nice Paso highlight and drop but it looked a little like Alex hangs onto
James sometimes and in turn causes her to look like James is pulling her into
the next position instead of Alex moving her own body weight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I feel that this is a general problem for
Alex and one she should focus a lot more on fixing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their Chasse capes were good although there
was a timing issue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On the whole I
thought the use of Alex’s skirt was a little excessive and instead of enhancing
her movement, it exaggerated the overuse of the skirt use in place of
movement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Despite Alex not being a very
aggressive dancer in this Paso, I did feel that her characterisation was in
keeping with the theme James created as Alex still looked herself in the dance
without compromising herself. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Content:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>6<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Theme:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>7<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Overall:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>7<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Holly & Artem - American Smooth<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">This was a risky, brave, inventive, characteristic,
theatrical & spell binding routine but I was left wondering what type of
American Smooth this was supposed to be as there really were no recognisable
American Smooth steps.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were however
lots of American Smooth lifts, tricks & theatre but for me, that doesn’t
make an American Smooth dance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
therefore is very difficult to comment on dance wise as there it had hardly any
content to comment technically on – although I thought Holly’s frame, head
position & poise was excellent when she was in hold with Artem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She is very elegant and has beautiful use of
arms and length of line but I would like her to ‘live’ the dance more in
expression and give herself more to the dance… there is a dancer in her just
waiting to break free I am sure.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Content:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>4<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Theme:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>9<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Overall:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>7<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Nancy & Anton – Rumba<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">This was a great Rumba song choice & I hoped to see some
good, basic Rumba dancing… <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Nancy is naturally sexy without even trying to be but, as
for so many female celebs, when it comes to being sexy in Rumba, they just look
the complete opposite and it doesn’t work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Their Rumba consisted of the following:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>1 back basic into a type of underarm turn, Hand to Hand, Rope spin,
double Spiral & Opening out section. It was more recognisable content than
usual but, so poorly executed - The timing was rushed to the point of being
almost out of time, there was no hip action, straightening of knees or foot
pressure into the floor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was a
lift that was really unflattering and didn’t do anything for Nancy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To be fair though, when Nancy was posing and
not doing too much, she actually looked OK and less is more is definitely what
she could concentrate on when getting into character in the dance however, I
would have like to have seen that she actually was taught basic fundamentals
and work on them instead of all the time wasting and faffing that went on.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Content:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>4<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Theme:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>5<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Overall: 4<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Harry & Aliona – Tango<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">I loved the theme and look for their set & their song
was a good choice to set the theme of the dance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, a very long intro but it was
captivating and had good story telling and Harry & Aliona were very precise
in their movements and very in tune with each other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once they did get going, their Tango lacked
considerable basic Tango steps and consisted manly of lines & lunges revolving
around turns and spins to create effect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The basic steps that I notice were: Walks in promenade, outside Rock
step with flicks, Oversway, half Standing Spin, Turning Locks & Backward
rocks however, there was a lack of movement around the dance floor i.e. using
all available dance space in a moving dance along the line of dance & this
is reflected in the lack of moving Tango steps and rather too much usage of
static ‘effect’ steps.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a shame as
Harry really is a good dancer and has a good frame & looks the part on the
dance floor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would just like to see
him do more of what he is capable of doing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Content:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>4<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Theme:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>9<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Overall:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>7<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Robbie & Ola – Paso Doble<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">I thought their music choice could have been great if they
had used all the musical accents & syncopations but instead, they used too
many whole beats consecutively to dance to and not enough syncopations which in
turn made it look heavy & slow instead of their Paso having pace &
power.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A little too much ‘walking
timing’.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It surprisingly lacked Paso shapes
due to a lack of bent knees and pelvis forward posture with upper body rotation,
which in turn creates a strong Paso shape.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Paso shape also needs to be created by using your sides in opposition to
each other meaning that whilst one side is stretching, the other is compressing
to create side shaping.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Their dance also lacked enough basic steps to show off these
tradition Paso features and only contained promenade & counter promenade
with Pivot ending repeated, lots of Paso walks but not a lot of Paso dancing
& a variation of Chasse Cape.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt
that there was a lack of commitment to the steps with power & aggression
& a lack of strong heel leads & foot speed to create more of marching
feel rather than a walking feel. It also looked as if Robbie wasn’t really in
charge of the dance or of Ola.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">I felt that the over use of the ‘crotch grabbing’ was inappropriate
& excessive for the theme of the dance and generally I was disappointed
with this dance as I am usually a fan of Robbie’s exuberance and love for
dancing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On this occasion however, it
didn’t look like he was truly into this dance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>However, I thought his cape work was very good & brave of him to
attempt when so much could go wrong.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Content: 4<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Theme:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>6<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Overall:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>5<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Anita & Robin – Tango<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Great acting & characterisation from Anita & she is
at her best when she can sink her teeth in to a strong role & theme.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">This was thankfully a good and quick Intro and straight into
some great Tango choreography:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fallaway
reverse, Forward locks, Turning locks, Oversway, Swivels, The Chase & Flick
tap steps in Promenade & all done within character.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would however like to have seen a more
staccato Tango action & it could have been a bit more aggressive &
attacking in leg & body action with more of a staccato foot action.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Anita’s frame was a little passive for me and
she could have used her head more sharply & had more of an ‘aloof’ upper
body extension.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt it lacked speed
and for me it never quite got going in terms of power & movement<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>& there were a number of mistakes in The
Chase step & a little too much time wasting in the middle of the dance
however, the characterisation was superb & lovely to watch.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Content:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>7<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Theme:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>7<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Overall:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>7<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Lulu & Brendan – Paso Doble<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Theatrically, Brendan never fails to impress & come up
with some entertaining routine whether you like it or not! I liked this &
it seemed so did Lulu.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once again a very
long intro but, it was very entertaining and theatrical and leant itself to the
theme of the dance so almost forgiven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Lulu was very convincing in character and I felt that this was
definitely one of her better dances.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
has put her trust in Brendan and this shows and great to see that Brendan also trusts
her with more content and that she will work hard at remembering it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was great movement and coverage of the
dance floor and I enjoyed the use of their bat wings to enhance their shapes
and not detract from it – they looked like choreographed arm movements.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their Paso consisted of a number of great
basic steps: Bota Fogas in shadow position, Paso Locks. Grand Circle, Flamenco
group, Twist Turns & Chasse Capes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
did however feel that the basic steps in hold lacked strong shapes fro Lulu
& that she needs to work on strengthening her core & frame to stop her
looking like Brendan is also pulling her around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She sometimes looked unsure of her timing
& exact footwork but she is getting better at covering these things up
& is such a fantastic performer to the point where if you blinked you’d
miss the errors. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Content: 6 <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Theme:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>8<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Overall:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>7<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Jason & Kristina – Quickstep<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Jason is the ultimate performer, great at characterisation<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>& so watchable & this dance was no exception.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought him to be very brave to dance a bit
of Quickstep without Kristina & therefore proving that he can dance on his
own without relying on his partner dancing around him to make him look
good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I loved their look – classy,
elegant & non-detracting from their dancing but rather enhancing it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They danced very in sync with each other with
great body contact in some very difficult steps & the content of their
dance was very impressive: Series of hops, skips, chasses & Jumps in
Promenade, Charleston, Standing spin, Chasses in Promenade, Locks & runs,
Running Finish, Running right turn & 4 Quick Run.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Making for a well-rounded Quickstep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jason also has a very strong frame
throughout, it looks natural and easy to maintain and not contrived at
all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There Quickstep had a great energy
to it and maintained a good Quickstep feel although I do think at times that
Jason does get a bit carried away and needs a little more refinement &
finesse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is such a shame he made a
mistake in the Promenade run section – I am sure he will be so angry at himself
for that but don’t dwell on it Jason.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
was my 2<sup>nd</sup> favourite Quickstep of the series!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Content:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>9<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Theme:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>9<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Overall:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>9<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">As you can see, I’ve decided that the only way to fairly
mark this weeks dances is to divide the marks into sections of amount of
content (not necessarily how it was executed, the theme of the dance and an
overall mark).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was because so many
dances lacked content but had good themes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Let’s hope this will be the last time I will have to do this until the ‘show
dances’ but, perhaps it is time to revise how we look at and mark the dances on
Strictly Come Dancing now, especially since it is so far removed from what the
programme was originally all about – the dancing. It wasn’t too long ago when
the use of props, themes, long intros & effects wasn’t allowed or even
considered i.e. When Alesha & Matthew Cutler won with pure dance ability.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Perhaps the marks should now be reflected something like
this:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Content, Technical Merit &
Overall mark?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps we may get fairer
marks this way as it really is becoming increasingly difficult to mark this
competition on dancing alone especially as there is so little of it these days.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Although the addition of all the ‘extras’ makes for
entertaining viewing, it does make it more difficult to watch & judge purely
as a Ballroom & Latin American dance competition which for me is a shame as
I enjoy watching the progress made in the dancing more than watching the
spectacle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">For me, it is always a pleasure watching someone actually
learning to dance, mastering the steps & gaining a sense of achievement
from learning a very difficult skill and a beautiful art form that is Ballroom
& Latin American dancing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">See you all next week. x<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Strictly Come Dancing-A Pro's opinionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11665126611362633171noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1902799800392657939.post-23175980290286325222011-10-28T10:04:00.000+01:002011-10-28T10:04:16.313+01:00Week 4 - Review of couples<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Week 4 – Review of couples<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">It’s been a chaotic week for me as I have been moving house
so up until yesterday, I was surrounded by boxes & hopefully I won’t have
to see another box for a little while! So, I’m very sorry for the delay in
getting my Blog to you but it is finally done and I guess ‘better later than
never’ applies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hope you enjoy it even
though last Saturday seems like an age ago now! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Jason & Kristina – Paso Doble<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">I love knee walks in Paso Doble, they create so much
atmosphere and character to the dance and are also surprisingly difficult to
do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jason had some lovely shapes in his
Twist Turns and I could see that Kristina had worked hard at trying to teach
him the correct technique for this step.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Paso is a difficult dance as there is so much going on in the music
& feel of the dance BUT it is vital that the Man remain composed and calm
in his movements and to not make it look like hard work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There needs to be an inner calm about the
dance and Jason was a little to frantic for me in the Paso.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has great leg and bodylines in lunge positions-
straight line from foot to finger without distorting the hip or chest line.
Their side-by-side Bots Foga section was good however, his Lock steps lacked
strength and looked a little ‘tip-toey’ & they do very good pivots together
which is a huge bonus as you can use pivots in ALL dances.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Overall I thought they portrayed the dance
very well and for those who know about dance, it reminded me of a Paul Killick Paso
Doble as there were a lot of typical PK steps in the choreography and this is a
good thing as Paul was one of the best at Paso Doble. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">It wasn’t their best dance but I somehow think that if they
had used a traditional Paso Doble song, this would have improved the entire
look and feel of the dance as for me, what you see & what you hear should
compliment each other & I felt that their song choice didn’t allow for the
strength required in a Paso Doble.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">I don’t think that this is a step back for Jason though,
just a learning curve and do think this is a good thing as I am sure he will
come back even stronger from this.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">My Score: 7 (continue to work on technique & developing
an inner strength & calm to create more control)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Alex & James – Rumba<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">This is notoriously a very difficult dance for a female
celeb to look good doing and I haven’t seen too many do this dance justice over
the years – perhaps Cherie Lunghi being one of the very few who bought us a
beautiful classic rumba full of dance and class.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps this expectation on both James and
Alex to reproduce the same or similar was too great?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I liked the beginning, which reminded me of
Torvil & Dean’s Bolero, but it was too long. Eventually when they did start
dancing, I felt that Alex’s hip action was very lacking and this wasn’t help by
the lack of movement in her outfit either.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>An outfit choice like this is only for the brave and for someone who has
tremendous body action, leg action and line as this shows up every flaw and
inability…. I think Ola & generally the other female pro’s are the only ones
who can get away with this kind of outfit whereas someone of lesser ability
should really wear something a little more flowing & revealing in the right
places which can actually enhance movement & body action – sadly, I think
this was a major flaw in their dance and one I found difficult to look past
even though Alex certainly has the body for it!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Back to the dancing – there were too many tricks and any
type of rolling on the floor I am not a fan of either – it is time wasting and
really doesn’t represent a Rumba for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Rumba’s aren’t necessarily always about being sexy and some of the most
beautiful Rumba’s that I have seen haven’t been full of sexy poses, actions or
steps.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is the dance of love and this
can be interpreted in so many ways.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So for
Alex, I wouldn’t worry too much about all the lack of<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>‘sexy’ comments – That is NOT what a typical
Rumba is anyway & very few people look good doing ‘sexy’ anyway.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It did however lack Basic Rumba Variations
and I don’t think I saw 1 Fan position or even a simple step like Sliding Doors.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me this was more of a Show Dance than a
Rumba and the choreography lacked the content to show us Alex’s ability to show
hip action, timing accents, body movement, foot pressure and leg action.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt a disappointed as I was sure that Alex
was on the path to great improvement but on this occasion it wasn’t to be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">My Score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>5 (Lack of
action and content)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">It has become increasingly popular to use so much of the
Intro and exit in the songs to choreograph very long intro’s & exits and
whilst this may be a good idea to introduce a theme to the dance, more often
than not, it doesn’t do the dance any justice as it leaves such little time to
show actual dance content which is essentially one of the things the judges would
like to mark and the audience would like to see<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>- Ballroom & Latin American dancing. Otherwise, this may as well be
So You Think You Can Dance with Celebs – all about other types of dance and not
Ballroom & Latin at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do also
feel that it IS the responsibility of the Pros to choreograph a dance suitable
for the celeb and to enhance their abilities, hide their inabilities and give
us a form of recognisable Ballroom or Latin American dances as this is their
(the Pro’s) profession.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, I also
feel that if the judges feel that there is not enough dance content this should
be bought up privately and the pro in question be given the chance to defend
their teaching methods one professional to another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Who knows, there may be some very good reasons
for some choreography choices that aren’t even up to the Pro in the first
place. But I do think that bickering about it during the show is detrimental to
the show, makes for very awkward viewing & is disrespectful to both Judges
& Professionals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lets hope this
situation can be amicably sorted out, as it would be a shame for the arguments
to become the focus of the show instead of the dancing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just my opinion.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Rory & Erin – Cha Cha<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">The start of their dance wasn’t great as straight away Rory
made a mistake and then lost his rhythm & timing but he carried on
admirably and soon got back into the dance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He doesn’t have a great hip action and is rather stiff in the hip region
& when he did try to show off his hip flexibility is was a little cringe
worthy as I felt that he was trying to be sexy and it just didn’t suit
hip.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hip action in Cha Cha is very
important as this is the characteristic of the dance however, there are many
very good Professional dances who aren’t naturally blessed in this department
either & they take on a more masculine, less rhythmic character which could
have worked a little better for Rory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There was good content in their Cha cha even though their New York
section (chorus) was repeated but generally his feet were sloppy and his knees
were bent which hindered his hip action & leg & foot speed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As always though Rory looked like he really
was enjoying the dance and having fun.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">6 <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Needs to work on
body action and footwork)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Audley & Natalie – Foxtrot<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Foxtrot is one of the most difficult dances footwork wise of
all the Ballroom dances due to the correct use of heels and toes to create the
correct gradual rise & fall over the group of steps. Audley has worked hard
at this and generally created a very pleasant rise & fall action.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has a really good frame and it is
consistent and looks very comfortable for him – no bum sticking out or rising
shoulders.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was quite a bit of
standing around mid dance which although it didn’t interrupt the flow of the
dance because Natalie continued to move and dance around him so well, it just
left Audley in some positions that weren’t very dance like positions. They are
also very good at pivot spins however his Standing Spin is still flat
footed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I again felt that as a whole, it
lacked content from the 2<sup>nd</sup> half onwards but what they did do in the
1<sup>st</sup> half was good, recognisable dancing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">My score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>6 (Find
better non dance positions & keep working on using feet more)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Nancy & Anton – Paso Doble<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">This was a great Paso Doble song choice and it automatically
enhanced the atmosphere of the dance without them even dancing a step.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unfortunately the expectation of their
interpretation of the song wasn’t to be! It was a better start – Promenade to
Counter Promenade movement with a Pivot ending. Their side-by-side Bota Foga
section was OK, timing was a bit questionable & Nancy’s spins were very
wobbly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their content was 100% better
& included a Grand Circle and Separation but there were so many lifts that
weren’t necessary or even allowed! My general thoughts though were that is was
rather stampy, clumpy, off balance, looked like Anton was literally dragging
her around from step to step & lacked positive Paso characterisation.
However, Nancy learnt the steps & there wasn’t any deliberate comedy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a big improvement!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">My score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>5 (keep up
with the proper dancing)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Lulu & Brendan – Samba<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">I remember this song well, it was the song John Barnes &
I danced Samba to the week we went out in the dance off against Brendan &
Kelly Brooke – I hoped this would be a better dance for them than it was for
us.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">I watched a documentary during the week on BBC about Lulu
life, it was fascinating and I was surprised to learn & see that Lulu can
actually dance & has danced with many dancers over the years and has learnt
many styles of dancing so I hope she can tap into these memories &
experiences and bring them to the show as, she is such a natural performer.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">The content of their Samba was good & contained Rolling
off the Arm, Whisks. Samba Walks & Locks, Promenade runs & a very nice
side by side solo section.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There could
have been more & without the repetition or the break in dance half way
through but it kept the party feeling of the Samba going so wasn’t completely
out of character although I do think Lulu is capable of more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It lacked a definite Samba bounce action and
there were some mistakes but it was fun filled & had great characterisation
and atmosphere – I liked it even if it wasn’t a traditional Samba.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">My score: 7 (neater footwork & technique)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Holly & Artem – Vienesse Waltz<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">What a long intro again before they actually started to
dance a proper V. Waltz – a shame really as this was a good dance for Holly as
she looked very elegant and in character.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I still feel that she is somehow very shy on the dance floor and I am
not really seeing her character shine through yet which is a bit frustrating
as, I feel that with the right encouragement and finding which buttons to push,
she could be very good! Her posture and head position was very good and she
looks more comfortable in Ballroom hold.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was a little skippy for a V.Waltz and lacked sway & upper body
extension & Holly needs to work more on using her feet and ankles to
control her movements – her feet and legs need more strength & tone to be
able to control what the rest of her body is doing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me, it was their best dance so far! Well
done.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">My score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>8 (more
personality and strength & tone in feet & legs needed)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Chelsee & Pasha – Quickstep<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">WOW! I was completely blown away but this week’s
transformation in chelsee’s look and dancing! She looked so much better &
loved her ‘uncluttered’ look that made it possible to see her dancing rather
than have to look for it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their
interpretation of this dance was wonderful – so quick, full of content &
lots of fun.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Chelsee created great bodylines,
kept up with Pasha in movement and their body contact was remarkable
considering the speed of the dance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Chelsee’s posture is much improved and she looks very natural in hold
now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I found their dance mesmerizing and
was very excited to see this level of Quickstep so early on! For me it was
ALMOST ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ perfection!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">My score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>9 (keep
working like this & loved the toned down look!)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Harry & Aliona - Waltz<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">I have to say that even before they danced, I was so
impressed with their VT, which I felt was so much better than everyone
else’s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a great and very clever
story line that led beautifully into their dance – I wondered why everyone
else’s couldn’t be like that as it was really lovely.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">They started off with a very difficult slow Contra Check and
then into some great Waltz content – great standing spin up on toes, &
readable and recognisable Waltz variations with very good rise, fall & sway
from Harry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His posture still needs a
lot of work as I found him to be sticking out his bum quite a bit especially on
forward steps – perhaps due to the slight over exaggeration of his heel lead
and lowering action which can cause a distortion in the upper body.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this is very, very good and then, the
unthinkable…. Faffing where it was absolutely not needed especially when the
dance was flowing so beautifully! The 1<sup>st</sup> half was wonderful and the
2<sup>nd</sup> half was just ruined for me as it lacked comparable content to
the 1<sup>st</sup> half and the whole dance became disjointed. What a shame as
this was Harry’s best dance by far in terms of technique, characterisation
& style although I still find Harry not quite at the top of his ability in
a performance sense however it was very, very good!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">My score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>8 (work on
posture & performance)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Anita & Robin – American Smooth<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Anita brings a lovely ‘Old Style’ glamour to her dancing especially
in the Ballroom dances and this was no exception.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This dance really suited her and she really
took on the character of the American Smooth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The lifts were great and elegant although the ‘Horse & cart’ step
lacked extension and wasn’t an elegant as it could have been.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unfortunately Anita did make a few mistakes
but she managed to cover them up rather well and didn’t let it affect the rest
of the dance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a pleasure to see
some Heel Turns as, they are very difficult to master and do properly and I
thought she did a great job with them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Their side by side solo section was well synchronised and overall the
characterisation of the dance was very good however, I would have liked it to
have been a little smoother in transitions from one group to another.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">My score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>7<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(try not to make mistakes and work on the
flow of movement)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Robbie & Ola – Jive<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">I love how Robbie absolutely embraces everything Ola asks of
him and also how Ola choreographs a look & dance around what Robbie is good
at – it works very harmoniously and they come across as a real team on the
dance floor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This was a very good Jive
in my opinion as it contained a lot of basic content – great flicks & kicks
(which could have been sharper and faster, but at least he dance them), some
Drunken sailor steps with good sway, Pivot chasses, American Spin, Stop &
Go & basic Jive with Jive chasses – good enough content for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Robbie really captured the character of the
dance and stayed in character all the way through, he looked like he was really
living the dance and this is what Jive is about – fun, energy &
entertainment!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">My Score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>8 (work on
straightening the knees faster in Flicks & kicks & getting weight over
the balls of feet more to create better Jive bounce action)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Russell & Flavia – Tango<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Russell never fails in the entertainment department and this
dance was no exception! Great story telling in the intro and there was a good
flow of choreography throughout the dance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There was good basic content in the form of a Rock Turn step, Chasses,
Open Reverse Turn & 5 step. It wasn’t staccato enough and lacked a certain
aggression that the tango needs but, I would have been very surprised if
Russell had been able to incorporate this in their dance as I really don’t
think this is in Russell’s personality…to see it just a little would have been
a nice surprise though. As always though, this was very entertaining and kept
me watching to the very last beat & I love Russell & Flavia for the
spirit they bring to the competition!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">My score: 6 (not your best character dance but think the
‘fun’ dances are more for you)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: large;">Whew, I finally have made it to the end and can now finally
post this after a very long week of moving, being without Internet and loosing
my laptop charger along the way! I can’t believe it’s already a week and I will
be doing this weeks write up in 2 days – Halloween week! Will it be just a
scary version of Broadway week or will we see innovative choreography and
themes based on Ballroom & Latin dances with a Halloween twist? Can’t wait!
X<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
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<!--EndFragment-->Strictly Come Dancing-A Pro's opinionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11665126611362633171noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1902799800392657939.post-2693628843388386762011-10-16T17:01:00.003+01:002011-10-16T17:27:43.067+01:00Broadway Week Review<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 21px; line-height: 27px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc;"> </span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Broadway week:<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">I felt that this week was a bittersweet week for me. I found ‘Broadway week’ to be confusing on a judging level as I couldn’t quiet figure out what the criteria for judging should be – there seemed to be one set of rules of some and a completely different set of rules for others. It must have also been confusing for the Pros as to what to choreograph & what the criteria was.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Does dancing Broadway mean – dance a Ballroom or Latin dance to a Broadway song; create a Broadway theme dance loosely based on a Ballroom or Latin dance or create a Broadway dance?<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Which one shall it be as all 3 have endless possibilities and rules & regulations to go with each option? None of the options were entirely clear to me as a judge, dancer or viewer which made this weeks dances very difficult to comment on. Therefore, my comments this week will be a lot shorter as I felt that there was a general lack of Ballroom or Latin content – although most of the dances were very entertaining to watch from a theatrical point of view and if that was the purpose this week, it was a success.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Holly & Artem – Tango<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Holly certainly looked the part and in her intro was very convincing & captivating in her character. Holly does have a very natural way of moving which I like to watch as it all looks easy but this is also a draw back as it can look like she hasn’t put enough effort into what she is doing. I was left wondering if their dance was supposed to be Tango or Argentine Tango as there was insufficient content or technique to convince me it was meant to be either one. I do think that Holly looked very good ‘in hold’ and I look forward to seeing a proper Ballroom dance from her as I think she may feel more comfortable in the Ballroom dances.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Content = 50%<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My Score: 7 (Attack the dance with more energy)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Dan & Katya – Viennese Waltz<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Unfortunately for Dan, he just isn’t a natural dancer no matter what style he dances & will have to work very hard to convince me otherwise regardless of the amount of acting he can do. His movements look messy & uncoordinated and his V. Waltz was a little on the skippy side without enough sway. He needs to use his heels & toes more as he looks a little flat footed & his frame tends to drop towards the end of the dance but in the beginning, it does look good so it’s just a matter of concentration & stamina. It just lacked a bit of Broadway theme & characterisation for me.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Content = 40%<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My Score: 5 (work on more fluid movements)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Anita & Robin – Jive<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Fabulous characterisation & interpretation especially in the chorus of the song and Anita kept the theme going all the way through the dance. I do feel that technically there were some issues. Anita needs to point her feet in all kick & flick steps & not only in Jive. Her body weight could have been a little more over the balls of her feet which in turn would have given her a better Jive bounce action. She needs to also be aware of dancing mostly with bent knees – even in Jive our knees need to bend and straighten. They had a good amount of Jive content – Change of places, Chasses, Lindy hop kicks, Drunken Sailor & basic jive steps that I was very happy to see.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Content =70%<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 6 (Leg action needs a little more work)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Alex & James – Viennese Waltz<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">What a beautiful intro – Alex’s arm movements & acting were mesmerising. Their underarm spin sequence was lovely and Alex’s spins have improved greatly. Their V. Waltz had a lovely lilting quality & Alex’s head position has really improved. There was beautiful, simple, elegant, effective & classy content & the characterisation was spot on! <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Content = 95%<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 8 (Just keep working hard)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Nancy & Anton – Tango<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Nancy certainly looked the part & her interpretation of the song was very good in the intro. Unfortunately, I felt that the song was rather slow which in turn made it difficult to show impact & enough content in their dance. She also lacks upper body strength and needs to be able to control her leg action more. At least this looked like a more serious attempt at a proper dance though instead of relying on their version of comedy.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Content = 30%<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 4 (Core strength & content)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Audley & Natalie – Quickstep<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Audley has a lovely personality on the dance floor & looks like he enjoys every moment. His characterisation was good & he has a great frame, although his arm movements when he is out of hold can look a little casual at times. He has a good natural rhythm but he needs to put a little more energy into his movements as for a tall guy, I really feel that he lacks movement around the floor & he could also be a little lighter on his feet, especially in the Quickstep.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Content = 50%<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 6 (lack of stamina & energy in movements)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Robbie & Ola – Tango<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">I was a little confused if they were doing a Paso or Tango in their Intro but as soon as they got into their dance, all became clear – a Tango! Robbie’s characterisation was very good & very serious. He must be careful however not to drop his chin when he feels the dance so much. This is a common problem though and can be fixed easily just with a little reminding not to feel the dance too much in the head and shoulder region. His walks when not in hold with Ola were a little too ‘stompy’ for me but there was good content & characterisation. It was an entertaining & watchable dance again!<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Content =85%<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 8 (work on how you look when dancing solo)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Rory & Erin – Quickstep<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Fred Astaire eat your heart out – Rory certainly got this impersonation right! Their dance contained a good amount of content and had some lovely scatter chasses, skips and hops that were very light. Rory has worked hard on his heels and toes and that is what creates the lightness in the quickstep. His posture does need work & looks a little hunched over but I feel that it is because he lifts his chin up instead of keeping his head up and dropping his shoulders. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">They had a great theme and portrayal of the dance and Rory looked like he really enjoyed it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Content = 70%<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 7 (posture)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Lulu & Brendan – Rumba<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">There was a great amount of feeling and character in their dance and Lulu kept in character all the way through. There wasn’t much content to go on – swivels, fan position & sliding doors and in these movements, Lulu needs to work on straightening her knees more & keep working her feet into the floor to create hip action. Her movements were very lyrical though and I thought their lift although illegal was beautiful. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Content = 30%<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 5 (bent knees & working feet into the floor)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>Side Note:</i></b> I did agree with Brendan about the timing & musicality of the lift in their dance & if it is 'Broadway week', doesn't broadway also incorporate lift work to enhance the theme of the musical? If lifts can be used in Salsa which is NOT a traditional lift dance, I don't see why it is not included in Broadway. The 'Rules' of Ballroom & Latin require that there be Ballroom & Latin content so as to be able to mark it as a Ballroom or Latin dance. In Broadway however, there doesn't seem to be a requirement regarding the minimum amount of Ballroom or Latin content therefore in my opinion, lifts should be allowed.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Russell & Flavia – Foxtrot<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Russell always makes me smile and makes me want to get up and dance when I watch him – that is a very rare quality! He has such a natural ease of movement that even when there is so much wrong, he manages to get away with it because there is nothing awkward and uneasy about how he moves. His interpretation of the dance was good and as always, very well rehearsed – he never seems to look nervous on the floor. Although his posture is good, his actual frame with Flavia needs work as it moves around a lot. Russell is however sheer entertainment.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Content = 60%<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 7<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Jason & Kristina – Tango<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Jason’s interpretation of this song was unsurprisingly brilliant! His hold & posture is very strong and he is very consistent with it. The characterisation, content & choreography was superb and I have never seen anyone give so much to a dance – Jason’s commitment to each dance is very, very good. Their dance incorporated entertainment, comedy, dance & theatre all in one & is one of the best ‘show dances’ I have seen on Strictly!<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Content = 85%<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 9<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Chelsee & Pasha – Cha Cha Cha<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">There is absolutely no doubt that Chelsee can dance and has amazing rhythm & ability and that is why I think I expect so much more technically from her. I thought she had a cleaner, less fussy look, which really enhanced her dancing & made her look more confident. If Chelsee can concentrate a little more on technique, the improvement will be huge. She is a very exuberant dancer & this is a very infectious quality however, she needs to calm down a little to be able to control her body. It was a great attempt at the Cha Cha though, just a little inconsistent BUT it is all there! <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Content = 85%<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 8<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Harry & Aliona – Jive<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Such a great Jive song but where was the Jive & Rock n Roll that is so characteristic of that era? There were a few recognisable steps like the ‘Sugar Push’ (swing step), Chasse – Pivots & 1 small section of flicks & kicks, not one basic group & a lift from Aliona. But the rest was just hand gestures & choreography, floor work & general wasting of music. This all seems really harsh but it is frustrating to watch talent being wasted. The character of the dance or theme was a little lost on me as I didn’t feel it contained enough ‘Grease’ moves & this is a dance movie that the general public would know a lot about & lacked the together dancing of that era. Harry can dance so I was just disappointed to not see it. This was a dance based totally on a theme & little content for me.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Content= 30%<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 6 (only because his portrayal & that he can dance)<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;">Nicole’s</span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;">Pet</span> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;">Peeves:</span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">No clear rules or regulations regarding content or interpretation of what a ‘Themed’ week should involve.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">This is a Ballroom & Latin American dance based dance/entertainment competition therefore there should be a certain % of Ballroom & Latin American dance based steps & content to keep it within it’s own description other wise it could just be another dance/entertainment programme. Content, content, content!<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Well, that’s my Blog for another week, as mentioned at the beginning, it was a difficult week to comment on but I look forward to returning to the unthemed & hopefully proper dances next week even though it was an entertaining week. Xx<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Palatino, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"><br />
</span></div>Strictly Come Dancing-A Pro's opinionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11665126611362633171noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1902799800392657939.post-84535630907849085952011-10-09T18:07:00.000+01:002011-10-09T18:07:27.528+01:00Week 2 - Review of couples<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--> <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-GB</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>JA</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/> <w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/> <w:OverrideTableStyleHps/> <w:UseFELayout/> </w:Compatibility> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">This is going to be a rather long post I’m afraid, as there are so many couples to get through.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a lot of fun to watch so many couples entertaining us on a Saturday night but, it’s not as much fun to write about it afterwards.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s been quite a while since my essay writing days at school & as you all know I am a dancer, teacher, judge & lecture and in no way shape or form am I a writer or author.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All this blogging and getting to grips with grammar etc. is new to me so, please forgive the odd grammatical or spelling error (even spell check isn’t infallible).<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">On with this weeks show & what a show it was! Lots of good dancing, lots of drama and lots comments, here we<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>go…<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Chelsee & Pascha – Salsa<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">First things first, when it comes to Salsa music I am a traditionalist as I feel that the best performances usually are combined with the music that gives us the right flavour to the dance and therefore in this case, I was not keen on their music choice as it felt far to ‘Pop/disco’ in my opinion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I feel that this actually contributed to Chelsee dancing the salsa in the way she did – very POP or DISCO like.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me it was a little too bouncy and 'steppy'.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She picked her feet up off the floor too much instead of working the balls of her feet into the floor first and then lowering her heel to help create a hip action and depth of action.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">I found their salsa to lack a genuine Cuban feel even though all the basic & more complicated salsa steps, arm work, spins & salsa Shines (separation from your dancer to highlight some complicated & interesting footwork patterns) were there & were executed really well, just lacking a salsa feel. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">I am also not a fan of trousers in latin, fringed or not and feel they tend to hide good leg & foot action instead of enhance it – very few can get away with this look and I really feel that if Chelsee had worn a skirt, she could have used the skirt to her advantage to create that salsa feel that was a little lacking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, boy can the girl move and shake her hips – rhythm is something she is not lacking and is a natural performer on the dance floor and for that reason, I feel that she saved herself in this dance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her spins as always were really good and her energy on the dance floor is very infectious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If she could just tone down a few styling issues, and let us see how very talented she is, I do think she could be at the top of the leader very soon.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">My score – 7 (appearance counts for a lot, let us see the dancer)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Edwina<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>& Vincent – Foxtrot<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Again, a poor song choice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The intro was so long, I wondered if they were meant to be doing an Argentine Tango instead of their announced dance of Foxtrot and then when they did start dancing, I was left wondering if they were doing an American Smooth Foxtrot rather than a Foxtrot!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There really wasn’t a lot of Foxtrot to comment on really and from what little dancing they did, I can say that Edwina has to work on her head position, there was no body sway & it lacked movement across the floor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the choreography had included more basic steps instead of acting and ‘faffing’ around I could comment, as even basic Foxtrot steps have good movement around the floor and you really don’t need to include many to create an easy, danceable foxtrot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A Three Step, Feather Step, Natural Turn, Basic Weave would have sufficed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All in all, a disappointing routine due to a lack of content as I do feel that Edwina is capable of much more.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">My score: 3 (lacked considerable basic content)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Audley and Natalie – Salsa<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">At last a decent song choice with a good salsa rhythm and feel.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Didn’t Carol Smillie & Matthew Cutler use this in Series 6?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">There is a lot of man there for Audley to shimmy and shake around and generally I felt that he did an OK job.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He looks much better<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>& more comfortable when he is actually dancing steps than when he is just standing still with his feet apart not doing much! At times, I felt that there wasn’t enough opportunity for Audley to show this off & left him looking a little lost and awkward while Natalie literally danced<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>rings around him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Natalie is a very good distraction in their partnership and I would say that she is a great foil for him as she can draw the attention to her instead of him but in a positive and nurturing way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would like to see Audley loosen his hips up a bit as we got to see a brief glimpse of his hip action near the judges table but then it disappeared – He obviously can wiggle those hips so a little more of that please.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He does have a wonderful smile on the dance floor that seems to light up the room when he dances and I think he will really disappointed if he goes out early in the competition as he still has a lot to give.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">My score: 5<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(more foot patterns & hip action)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Alex & James<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>- Foxtrot<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Wow, what an improvement from last week & as I said last week I think Alex feels a lot more confident in James’s arms & Ballroom really suits her. I loved their music and thought it really suited their dance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Alex has great showmanship on the floor & looks amazing.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">There was good rise & fall in their dance and although rise & fall isn’t as prominent in Foxtrot as it is in Waltz for example, it is still required and necessary.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt that she could have ‘dragged’ her heels when moving backwards a little more<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>- meaning backward walks are taken with the toes first, with the heel lowering as the body moves over it and at the same time, the toe of the forward foot should release from the floor as the body moves away. This creates a light dragging of the heel & gives more control of the body & feet when moving backwards.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the same time, there could have been more use of heels when moving forward to create more power.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt Alex danced a little too much on her toes and unfortunately, I didn’t see any Heel Turns which really is a required element in the Foxtrot. BUT it was good and I would only analyse this much if I thought she was capable of doing it.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Alex’s posture was good & her head placement was nice, more extension is needed but this will come in time as well as better balance with her spins.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Great improvement though.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">My score: 7 (work of the spins & upper body extension)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Dan & Katya – Salsa<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">I liked their song choice but what was the handspring all about? It didn’t seem to fit in with the story of their dance. A gimmick for gimmicks sake doesn’t usually work.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Dan isn’t a natural Latin dancer and I think Ballroom will be his strength.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His movements didn’t seem very easy or natural to me and it all looked a little 70’s dancing – lots of arms and legs but no rhythm.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A felt that their Salsa lacked a Salsa feel too it and there wasn’t much interaction between Dan & Katya.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It lacked a lot of proper Salsa content probably due to the time taken up doing lifts & it felt a little ‘steppy and walkey’ to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dan does look like he is enjoying dancing though and isn’t as shy as I expected him to be & he does go out there and gives it 100%. On this occasion though, I just feel that Salsa is not his dance and that Ballroom will be his genre.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He may look very good doing the Paso Doble though – just a thought!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">My score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>4 (just not a salsa for me)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">A little side note:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Salsa is notoriously one of the more difficult dances for a man to look good in on Strictly Come Dancing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Salsa needs to be free, rhythmical, sexy, a bit ‘down & dirty’, have a lot of hip action, rotation and the men need to be in command of & lead their partners all whilst looking like they are having the time of their life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is a lot to ask in week 2 and I feel that those doing the Foxtrot tonight will have an easier task in looking fairly respectable of the floor. There have only been a few male celebs that have done very good salsa’s namely Mark Ramprakash, Matt di Angelo & of course I couldn’t leave out John Barnes.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Lulu & Brendan – Foxtrot<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Well, it couldn’t have got any worse than last week so, it was with a great sense of relief that I watched them dance a much better Foxtrot. Whew!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Yet again though, there was an awfully long intro & also exit this time but at least there was some good content to their dance & she remembered it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unfortunately, for Lulu & Brendan, in Ballroom their disadvantage IS going to be their height difference although in Latin it can work to their advantage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is impossible for Lulu to grow any taller and there is only so much she can stretch or dance ‘up’ to Brendan without constantly dancing only on her toes & although Brendan can dance down to her by bending his knees more, their height difference is still going to be a little hurdle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, I think they both coped well with this & minimised it as much as they could tonight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wondered why they spent so long in ‘practice hold’ in the beginning of their routine though but once they got going, they resumed normal hold – perhaps this was a safety measure? Their Pivots were really good & they covered the dance floor well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lulu needs to work on extending her head away from Brendan though and this will also minimise their height difference and create a more elegant look for her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I was pleased to see her do a lovely heel turn too – well done, not the easiest step to learn and execute.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All in all, much improved & I hope it continues.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">My score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>6 (head and posture problems)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Holly & Artem – Salsa<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Hmmm, I’m not too sure about this song choice. I know it rather as a Samba and it feels a bit heavy for a Salsa for me but I loved her outfit and thought she looked sensational.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They had a good short intro and just got straight into their dance with some great solo Salsa shines.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Holly’s balance was a little off in the beginning but once she settled down, it improved however, I was surprised with some of her timing issues where she appeared to be dancing ahead of the music.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps her nerves got the better of her but this has to be solved quickly as dancing after all is ‘movement in time to music’ so this is a big NO for me. Thankfully this also improved during the dance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their dance was a fun & exciting routine but I felt it lacked in intensity and playfulness between them – it’s as if they are being too careful around each other & looked a little like 2 people dancing separately rather than together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I feel than Holly can attack her dances more.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Dancing is a form of acting and the chemistry between 2 dancers needs to be believable even though it is just acting in most cases.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought this would come more easily to them both & felt that their salsa lacked a certain ‘rawness’ that is great to see in Salsa.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Salsa is one of the few latin dances where you can really let loose and be free without worry too much about technique, unlike the other latin dances… I felt Holly didn’t really take advantage of this & it lacked competitiveness to it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am sure that Holly is capable of a lot more & it’s up to Artem to find the right way of challenging her.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">My score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>6 (Needs to up her game and compete more)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Rory & Erin – Salsa<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">This is a great traditional salsa – where have I heard it before?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Matt Di Angelo & Flavia possibly?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Rory has great clean lines when he dances and looks really good on the dance floor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Plus he looks like he really is enjoying the whole experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His posture is good but a little too straight for Salsa, I feel he needs to relax a little more to get into the groove of Salsa.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His knees were nicely flexed – in Salsa you need to have one knee bent and the other straight to create a good salsa hip action and felt that he did this rather well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However because of his posture being too upright, this stopped the rhythm in his hips & upper body coming through completely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His salsa turns with Erin were good and his shimmy’s were fabulous!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was good Salsa content that was generally well danced and as I mentioned, Salsa is a difficult dance for the man in week 2 so I thought he did OK.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">My score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>6 (just a little too ‘nice’)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Robbie & Ola – Foxtrot<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">These 2 just make me smile when I watch them dance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is a lot wrong but also a lot right in the entertainment and watchabilty scores!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, there was a long intro but it contained a reasonable amount of dancing and it had a lovely story.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Robbie’s head position & posture was a little over extended at times but rather this than have him hunched over Ola.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was a good rhythm and Foxtrot feel to their dance however I felt that Robbie could use his heels to move through his movement more instead of stepping onto his foot and then stopping his body flight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His feet were a little too turned out for me and this could have caused the problem as you can’t roll your weight easily from heel to ball of foot if your feet are too turned out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A little work on footwork is needed but overall their Foxtrot had a wonderful feel to it and it was a pleasure to watch a very entertaining and watchable dance & I love the chemistry between them.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">My score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>8 (over extended head & posture)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Anita & Robin – Salsa<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Oh dear, as I mentioned previously, I am not one to usually comment on the dresses but I just have to when I think the look is a distraction to the dancing and when I think instead of enhancing the abilities of the dancer, it hinders it and this is what Anita’s dress did for me – It enhanced the bad things and did nothing for her good qualities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, each to their own and many people may have liked it.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Their song choice was a bit dubious too as it was more of a Calypso rather than a Salsa but it did have a Cuban feel to it so it was more passable as a Salsa than some others.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">I felt that on this occasion, this just wasn’t Anita’s dance and at least she won’t have to dance it again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I love Anita’s dancing usually but thought that her Salsa lacked hip action and movement & she appeared a little stiff & although there seemed to be a lot of rotation, it was more whole body rotation rather than isolation and rotation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt that she could also have danced more into the floor rather than on top of it, which would have created more depth & fullness of action.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There were a few times when Anita was caught with both knees bent and apart and in Salsa and generally, this is generally not a good look.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There should be one knee bent & one straight or both straight if need be – 2 bent knees = not a pretty look on anyone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It just looked like a bit of hard work throughout & there were quite a few moments when I thought she forgot & made a few mistakes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a disappointing dance for me, as I really like Anita and want her to do well as she has a wonderful gracefulness & elegance about her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me, this just wasn’t her dance though – onwards & upwards.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">My score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>5 (lacked hip action & salsa feel)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Jason & Kristina – Foxtrot<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Glamorous, elegant, sophisticated & entertaining!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would have loved for Jason to have worn a tail suit though to complete the look.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">The Foxtrot is a moving & turning dance with it’s main characteristics being sway, rise & fall together with leg & body swing & Jason had most of these qualities at one point or another during their Foxtrot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has a good posture & commits 100% to everything he does.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His Top Spin in the corner was rather good and is a difficult step to do but he coped very well with it. As with Robbie though, I would have like to have seen a little more rolling from his heel to toe over his foot to create a smoother movement but it was a very good effort anyway – I just wonder how much further he can go? I look forward to seeing his progress each week as I feel we have a proper dancer in the making!<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">My score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>8 (technique will improve your movement)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Nancy & Anton – Salsa<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Their song choice was definitely Mambo & not Salsa which automatically hindered their performance as Mambo is a lot slower than Salsa & this is what they ended up dancing – a Mambo.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Possibly someone should have warned Nancy that their lift in the beginning was going to expose her rather a lot and I am NOT a lover of any kind of ‘crotch’ shot. Nancy’s ‘Mambo’ was rather steppy and she picked her feet up too much & it was all very messy. That’s about all I can comment on in their dance though I’m afraid as again like Edwina & Vincent, there was not a lot of content.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was all a bit ‘bad comedy’ & I found it really difficult to watch as I felt it was a bit humiliating for Nancy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wish Anton would choreograph a simple, slick, clean & readable routine for her as I still think she can do it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If however this is the route that Nancy has agreed on taking, I have no pity for her at all. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">My Score: 3 (more content & commitment)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Harry & Aliona – Foxtrot<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Another male celeb not in a tail suit – a shame as I think a tail suit can really make a dancer & surprisingly can actually help with correcting bad posture and Harry needs all the help he can get in this department as I felt his posture was rather bad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was very hunched over, his left arm was far too far forward & his head kept moving around a lot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of this could be due to Aliona’s choreography & her own dancing with Harry, as she is very ‘flexible’ with her upper body and head movements. Therefore, if the male celeb hasn’t got a good, stable frame & posture this could cause them to move with their partner rather than just be there to provide a stable frame. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">There was not a lot of softness in his movements & at times it looks as if he was walking rather than dancing<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>& this is due to a lack of knee, ankle and foot usage to create movement as I have mentioned previously.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is a common fault but, because of a lack of basic content, on this occasion it was even more noticeable and at times it looked as if Harry was almost standing still.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On a positive note, Harry does have lovely use of his arms in their open work and he does look very handsome on the dance floor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In my opinion it just lacked substance and finesse although, I can see that there is a lot of talent & potential there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s hope we get to see it.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">My score: 6 (posture & frame)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Russell & Flavia – Salsa<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Again not a typical Salsa song as it is a bit too slow and doesn’t really have a Salsa feel to it – rather a Samba but very appropriate for Russell so I can almost forgive it.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">It was fun, entertaining, well rehearsed & well presented.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Russell has fabulous rhythm and attitude & when it comes to Salsa, it isn’t all about technique.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It ‘s about bringing the party to the dance, being free & expressing yourself and this is certainly something that Russell is brilliant at doing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is just sheer entertainment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">There is a lot to criticise but, Russell knows what he is here to do and that is to entertain us & he takes this role very seriously.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He is very importantly learning to dance while entertaining and makes us all want him to do well because he hasn’t completely gone down the comedy route - He is still being respectful to our art form & I truly believe that he really appreciates this opportunity he has been given to learn to dance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was captivating for all the wrong reasons but it made it so right too.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">My score:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>6 (just keep doing what you’re doing)<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">And this week, my PET PEEVES are:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Music choices:</span></u><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It would be nice to see the correct tempo used with the correct dance and the correct style of dance danced to the music.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Correct tempo:</span></i><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most of the Salsa’s were too slow which takes away from the feel of the dance.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Correct Dance:</span></i><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some choices of music could have been another dance completely e.g. Argentine Tango/ American smooth instead of Foxtrot or Mambo/Disco instead of Salsa.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Good comedy/bad comedy and Entertainment:</span></u><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Comedy is actually very serious & very hard to master – ask all the failed comedians out there. It requires hard work, dedication, choreography, construction & rehearsal.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Bad comedy lacks imagination, commitment & all of the above & only makes a fool of itself & those that laugh at it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It has no place in a dance/entertainment show as there is no talent in that & makes a mockery of all the other contestants who do take their role in the show seriously.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><u><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">Judges marks:</span></u><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;"> (just a little niggle) where do you go if you get 9’s in week 2?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16.0pt;">I hope you enjoyed reading my blog and I look forward to writing for you again next week –at least there will be one less couple to comment about ;-) xx<o:p></o:p></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><!--EndFragment-->Strictly Come Dancing-A Pro's opinionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11665126611362633171noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1902799800392657939.post-49552330236029329592011-10-03T22:06:00.000+01:002011-10-03T22:06:29.723+01:00WEEK 1 Saturday night review of couples<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Harry & Aliona - Cha cha</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Harry is the youngest male celeb this year and comes from a performance & musical background so I had high hopes for their first dance. It wasn't bad but, I expected more. He looked very self concious and nervous & I hope that it was just first night nerves. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">I would like to see much more hip action & hip rotation to stop him from looking linear and 2 dimensional & for him to 'throw it about' a bit as it all looked a little subtle. He has nice, neat arm movements but a little too subtle for me too. Harry needs to learn to be less self conscious and to perform more. For me it lacked a genuine chemistry & excitement between Harry & Aliona but I look forward to seeing how their partnership develops from here onwards. Aliona's choreography had a good amount of basic content e.g. the Natural Top, Fan Position, some Ronde chasses but, I did notice a lack of any turns or spins from Harry in comparison to some of the other celebs dances. His footwork was good, all toe leads...thank you! I felt that on the whole their Cha cha seemed a little slow & lacked impact. Again, I blame 'Pop timing' and not enough Cha cha timing or syncopation in the dance. It was a very good attempt at his first dance however did he have the 'Moves like Jagger'? Not on this occasion & I think he will have to work really hard on his performance skills to overcome his shyness on the floor.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 6 <i>(more hip action & performance needed)</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Rory & Erin - Waltz</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">A very good job from Erin & Rory is obviously a good student. It was elegant & sophisticated & it looks like Erin & Rory have a great chemistry together. They had good movement across the dance floor & a good connection most of the time. Rory's heel leads were very obvious indeed - perhaps Erin drummed this into him & it could have been more subtle but at least he was doing heel leads where required. Rory's standing spin was very 'steppy' like Audley's but, in Rory's case, at least he did it on his toes. I was very impressed with their hesitation in Whisk Position right in the beginning of their routine, it is a difficult position to hold as you are up on your toes and requires a lot of balance so well done for that! Rory has a good posture and frame however, his head did move into some strange positions at times and he has to learn to keep it more still. I feel that his left arm was a little to far forward and this made his back appear a little rounded or hunched. Take the elbows back slightly and this will fix the problem. Rory looked like he enjoyed the dance and so did I.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 6 <i>(posture & more subtle footwork)</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Alex & James - Cha cha</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">I feel that this perhaps wasn't the best song choice for a Cha Cha. The intro was far to long and left me wondering what dance they were supposed to be doing. Even after the actual proper rhythm kicked in I still thought it was a dull & sluggish song to dance to, especially for a beginner. Once James & Alex did start dancing though, I found Alex's steps to be too 'walkey' and lacked a Cha cha feel or rhythm about it. For me there wasn't any hip rotation and not enough hip action or isolation. I felt her leg & foot action could have been sharper and stronger & for a female dancer, I found her to be standing in a 'legs apart' & flat footed position too often. This is a position that even experienced dancers can look terrible doing. Perhaps a more feminine position would have looked better for her as I think Alex has it all look wise. She has a great body, is gorgeous to look at and is actually quiet sexy when she is posing but, she needs to put these assets to good use when she dances by using angles, rotation & hip action and awareness of her leg & foot positions. On the whole, there is room for improvement & I would like to see Alex be a little more aggressive in her approach to her dancing which may help her movement have a little more 'bite' & attack. I hope she finds her confidence this week and I think if they are doing a Ballroom dance, this will help a lot.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 4 <i>(more hip action & more dance)</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Chelsee & Pasha - Waltz</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">I have to start my review of Chelsee & Pasha with Chelsee's look. I usually wouldn't comment on this but I can't let it go on this occasion. I felt that her whole look was very distracting from her good lines and good dancing. I feel that with Chelsee & her look, 'less is more' may be a good way forward as her personality and her excitement on the dance floor is enough without adding big hair, hair accessories and floats (sleeves) on a dress too. For me, it was all just a little too much and I found it difficult to see the real dancer underneath all of that. I hope someone advises her on this but then again, if this is how Chelsee wants to look, it's her choice but she will just have to work a lot harder to get everyone to see past the excess. OK, now onto the dancing. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Their Waltz was a little 'lumpy' in movement & this was mainly due to Chelsee dancing predominantly on her toes. There was a distinct lack of heel leads from her in their waltz & you need to do heel leads to create rise & fall. By using her ankles to control her rise & fall, this will improve her movement and also give her more control over steps. I feel that although Chelsee is very flexible in her spine, I would like her to concentrate on strengthening her core muscles so that she can hold her upper body in a more stable position - sometimes, it seems that she collapsed her frame. I felt that her head was a little too far left and over exaggerated & she must watch out that her left hand on Pasha's shoulder doesn't look like she is hanging on but rather placed elegantly. Chelsee does have a very good ability for spins and line & arm extension though and I hope that Pasha with take advantage of these very good qualities. I seem to have made a lot of criticism of Chelsee however, it is only because I can see a whole lot of talent and potential in her & can see a dancer slowly emerging over the coming weeks, if she is given the chance to shine.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 7 <i>(technique & 'less is more')</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Edwina & Vincent - Cha cha</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">I've never heard this song as a Cha cha before but, then I've not heard a lot of the songs used on Strictly as the dance they were dancing to. I was also disappointed to see that their routine was repeated twice with a bit of 'fluffing' in between as I think Edwina isn't a bad dancer at all and is more than capable of learning, remembering and dancing a more complex routine. There was a good mixture of basic steps but there could have and should have been more. I also felt that Vincent shouldn't have left her on her own to literally do her own thing. Very dangerous & I do think that some of the celebs feel very vulnerable when this happens, especially in the beginning when you literally need to hold their hand all the time unless they are very good and confident. Edwina did look a little flat footed though and I wonder if it was mainly because I noticed she had a very low heeled shoe, unlike most of the other ladies. This can make your feet look flat and she will have to work a lot harder than the others to make her feet look beautiful & make it look like she is using her feet & ankles. I think that Edwina does however have a very natural rhythm when she moves and she obviously enjoys dancing very much, she isn't shy and retiring on the dance floor either and I feel that she embraced the whole experience.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 3 <i>(more content & footwork)</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Nancy & Anton - Waltz</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Well, I'm really sad to say that I can't really comment on their dance - there really wasn't enough of it for me to even form any sort of dance opinion. All I am left with is this: Why the epic intro and props when it was clear from their training footage and a few very fleeting moments during the dance that Nancy can actually dance? I was expecting a 'Karen & Ramps' moment & almost wished they had just started again but, we will never know now what Nancy may have been capable of on the night - a shame really!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 1<i> (just not enough to score)</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Jason & Kristina - Cha cha</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Is Jason a favourite to win this years Strictly yet? Well on that performance, he should be! His continuous Cha cha walks and locks were very rhythmical & natural, they could have had more rotation as that is what Cha cha is all about - hip rotation but they were very good. He looks like he is already leading Kristina or at least understands the concept & technique of it. Their New york section was a little skippy but I found that generally their Cha cha had very good content - a lot of readable basic steps and some very exciting, more complicated trick steps. Jason's timing was crisp and clear and their song choice was very good as it had a good Cha cha tempo and feel about it. Jason looks strong, confident & 100% committed to whatever he has been given to dance and whatever he is doing. There were a few standing still moments but not too many and he still seemed to dance them even if his feet weren't moving. His arms movements are strong, masculine & sharp. It is still a little rough around the edges but I would rather watch that than someone who is too perfect & I have to say that I almost did expect Jason to be too much of a perfectionist to allow himself to enjoy his dancing - I am glad I was wrong. I look forward to seeing his Ballroom now & hope he will have a refined & elegant look to compliment his rhythmic and exciting Latin. Hard work pays off - 100% correct!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">My score: 8 <i>(just keep working hard)</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Wow, that was a lot of couples to review! I'm looking forward to this weekend already and hope that some of the couples that disappointed will have stepped up their game and that everyone has now got over their first show nerves and are eager to give their best performance again at the weekend as this time, it counts & someone will be going home. Good luck & happy training to all! And thanks for reading my blog. X</span>Strictly Come Dancing-A Pro's opinionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11665126611362633171noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1902799800392657939.post-85750637098377812902011-10-02T17:46:00.002+01:002011-10-02T18:00:23.634+01:00WEEK 1 Friday Night Review of Couples<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Unfortunately I didn't get to see the show on Friday or Saturday night due to various other commitments so, thank goodness for BBC iPlayer! It was also very difficult to stay away from Twitter/Facebook so that I didn't form any preconception of the show but, I have managed to keep to myself and have had a chance to review Friday night so far. </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Of course, these thoughts & opinions are entirely my own as a professional dancer & former Strictly Professional so, I hope I don't offend anyone but, as we all know, everyone is perfectly entitled to their own opinion and Strictly does have a tendency to develop an opinion in us all - That's what makes it so watchable & on that note, on with the show!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">First up & to open this series of Strictly Come Dancing are:</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Holly & Artem - Cha cha cha</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">At first glance, Holly looks very natural on the floor & fairly at ease considering she is first up to dance however, after a while, I expected the nerves to settle down and for her to really get into the dance and give it a little more 'wellie' or 'oomph'. This just didn't happen so for me the naturalness turned into a kind of sluggishness and tended to make her arm movements look slow & unfinished & her leg action lazy which I am sure is not the case at all. I feel that because Holly is a natural dancer, she will have to work harder than some of the others to make it look like she really is going for it in terms of energy, animation & interpretation when she dances. I think for the future, Holly could concentrate on her ankle usage and beware of her leg positions. At the moment, Holly has a tendency to dance with her legs apart a lot instead of brushing her knees when she passes her legs through positions & she needs to straighten her knees quicker in order to obtain a sharper leg & foot action which will help with her overall look in making everything look a lot more crisp. There were a few timing issues however I felt that this was perhaps caused by the speed of their Cha Cha which I thought was quite slow and lacked a clear Cha Cha beat. I will cover this more in my section at the end of each weeks Blog which I am going to call <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;"><b>Nicole's Pet Peeves</b></span> ;-) This seems like an awful lot of criticism BUT I wouldn't say it unless I thought she had the potential to be really good and I would love her to do very well. I know the Aussies never generally give up without a fight so I hope she takes on board everything the judges said and comes back even better next week! Saying all that I have though, I really did like it.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">My Score: 6<i> (Needed more attack and sharpness in leg & arm movement)</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Dan & Katya - Waltz</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I thought Dan looked very handsome indeed in his tail suit & I think the Ballroom dances are going to suit him very much. He did do some really good continuous spins towards Katya in their Intro which I was very impressed with & I like that fact that their intro was very short and they got straight into the dancing (This will also be covered in my <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;">Pet Peeves</span> section!) Dan has a lovely Ballroom shape and when he dances out of hold, he has a great sense of line and extension. His rise & fall was very good and not too jerky, timing was generally good although I felt that he wanted to rush through some steps at times but this was more than likely just down to nerves and this is very normal for the celebs to want to go faster & faster. I thought he could have had a lot more sway which would have made them look more musical & would have also made their dance look more exciting but to expect this all in the 1st week would be asking for a lot. Dan's head does tend to 'wobble' a little when he dances though & maybe he could be made aware of this sooner rather than later & it's important to keep your frame up from beginning to end no matter how tired you are or how sore your arms may get but again, this is something that will become better over time and I am sure that Dan & Katya have the time to work on all these things as they will be in this competition for a long time.</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">My score: 5 <i>(Needed more musicality & interpretation)</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Lulu & Brendan - Cha Cha</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Oh dear! This is hard to write anything about as there really wasn't much to go on and it is hard to tell what Lulu really is capable of but, I will do my best to give my opinion on what I saw. I felt that it started well, Lulu looks confident to a degree when performing & she initially looked like she was having fun. Her walks & locks down the floor in the beginning were actually OK & her swivel section although a bit manic had a lot of rhythm but then it all fell apart & I really felt for her. I did feel that she was left alone to dance for too long and that the choreography that Brendan gave her perhaps challenged her a little too much for their 1st dance and nerves got the better of her & that is why she forgot her routine. If the routine was a little easier with more basic content & in hold, it may have been easier for her to remember & for Brendan to control her. Sometimes, you never know what your celeb is going to get up to if you leave them alone for too long. Let's hope they can both put this behind them and move on during this weeks training. If they do a Ballroom dance, I am sure this will give Lulu her confidence back as she will be in the safe arms of Brendan.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">My score: 2 <i>(Simple routines that you can remember)</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Audley & Natalie - Waltz</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">It's good to be tall for Ballroom and both Dan & Audley have demonstrated that they look fantastic in tail suits! Audley has a lovely wide frame and good posture and was able to move his body in one piece rather than isolating his top & bottom half (which however is necessary in the Latin dancers). This also helped him keep an elegant look and he managed to not stick his bum out too much while dancing which most men do in the 1st couple of Ballroom dances as they can't move their bodies forward or back in one piece. He looks like a gentle giant on the floor and has a lovely watchable personality. He was however rather flat footed, especially in their standing spin & generally this created a lack of rise & fall for me. Natalie's choreography was very clever in that she was able to provide the 'flourish' to Audley's frame & he didn't look as clumsy as I expected but I would have liked to have seen a little more basic content, it was however a very sweet waltz to watch.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">My score: 4 (<i>too flat footed & not enough rise & fall)</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Robbie & Ola - Cha cha </span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Wow, these 2 are mesmerizing & very watchable just for their glamour & that's without them even dancing a step! Robbie has a great energy when he does dance & even when he's just standing and posing - he 100% believes in himself or so it looks anyway so I am led to believe that he is a bit of natural performer & I guess he should be after playing football to thousands of fans - this IS a different competition but the performance side of it isn't & I felt this part of their dance was very good. However, I did feel that there lacked a lot of dance content & foot patterns & instead we got quite a lot of posing while Ola danced around him, again a <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;">Pet Peeve</span>. Although the poses were good, they were all the same and if the poses and lines were varied, it would look like he was doing more than just standing. I think Robbie definitely can be challenged with more intricate foot patterns - he should be able to pick this up quickly and on the occasion when they did dance a New York section, his foot work was good & quick. More dancing means we get to see more hip & body action too which I only caught glimpses of which is also a shame as I think he is capable of a lot more & would rise to the challenge! Ola can always get John Barnes in for a quick competition to see who can move their feet the quickest... John's score for Cha Cha was 26 (Len, I think you owe John an apology, I know how devastated he would be ;-)</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">My score: 5 </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><i>(more foot patterns & less posing)</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Anita & Robin - Waltz</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Anita looks so very elegant on the dance floor & moves so gracefully! What a lovely song choice too. It was a very believable performance and had a lovely interpretation to it. I love how Anita uses her arms and the extension she has all the way to her fingers really finishes the lines off. I would however like to see her left hand placed lower on Robin's arm as it seems a little high for me and makes her look like she is dancing too close to him & hanging on. She needs to work on extending her upper back away and to the left of Robin more to create a better shape, which will help her turn her head slightly to the left more as she will feel that she has the room to do so. But overall, I felt that her head position was rather good, this is just something to make it even better which I am sure she is able to do. Anita uses her heels and toes very well & has neat feet & points her feet beautifully. I hope Robin keeps within an 'elegant characterization' for the other dances they do as I feel this is where Anita's strength lies and she will be able to dance some beautiful, elegant & classic dances. This was a joy to watch as a first dance!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">My score: 7 <i>(work on upper body extension)</i></span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Russell & Flavia - Cha cha</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">This was sheer entertainment and all in a good way unlike Anne Widdecombe last year! It was energetic, fun, tongue in cheek & camp but it also had a good amount of recognisable dance steps mixed with a lot of Russell flavour! Russell's Cha cha walks & lock steps weren't too bad & his New york section was OK too BUT they all had heel leads & that cannot be overlooked. Please Russell, toe first in future unless Flavia tells you otherwise (another of my <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta;">Pet Peeves</span>). There was however a lot of expression, characterisation and rhythm. I smiled all the way through their dance with a genuine enjoyment. It may not have been every one's cup of tea & some people will say that Russell is relying too much on comedy & campness BUT at least he has learnt some steps, dances in time to the music & dances the routine together with Flavia whilst entertaining us in a well thought out choreographed way. I liked it!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">My score: 5 <i>(only because of the huge amount of heel leads)</i></span><br />
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<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: magenta; font-size: large;"><u><b>Nicole's Pet Peeves:</b></u></span></i><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><u>POP TIMING instead of dance timing:</u> I noticed rather a lot of couples using this sort of timing in their choreography meaning that instead of counting 2,3,4 & 1 or 2,3 cha cha cha, they seemed to be dancing 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 etc and therefore dancing without showing a cha cha rhythm & dancing across the accents in Cha Cha which are 1 & 3. This tends to slow the choreogrpahy down a lot and although whilst watching it you may not notice it initially, you may feel that there is something wrong with how a step looks and how it doesn't fit with the music's timing. This usually happens when a lot of walking or 'pop' styling is used & for me I find it difficult to appreciate this timing in Latin American dances, it just takes away the Latin feel, flavour, pace and rhythm of the dance.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><u>POSING:</u> Sometimes it is nice to see someone hold a good line for a little while & there has to be a certain amount of still (not stop) positions in a dance otherwise it can end up looking over choreographed however, when there is more posing than dancing, I have to object especially when it is not absolutely necessary and the person can dance. Even if someone is a terrible dancer, they usually will look better than posing, doing a very basic step even if it is just step-tap-step-tap as to stand still & look spectacular is rather difficult & too many lines or posing can make the dance look very empty choreographically & rhythmically.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><u>HEEL LEADS;</u> There are very few dances in Latin American dancing than allow and actually necessitate heel leads, Paso Doble being the only one that absolutely requires it & the other times are certain in dances wthin a particular step eg. the <a href="http://www.dancesport.uk.com/tid-bits/issue047.htm">Corta Jaca</a> in Samba amongst a very few. So it is almost a sin in the usual Latin dances to do this. Toe-Heel is a must for many reasons but mainly to ensure the straightening of the knees, create pressure from foot to dance floor, create smaller steps and therefore faster foot speed. The lowering of the heel also facilitates hip action. Therefore there is a huge importance of Toe-Heel or Toe-Flat rather than heel leads to create a good action plus it just looks better!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">In Ballroom, there are also different rules for heel leads for different dances and different steps but my peeve this week is only in the Cha cha cha.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Well, that's it for today... I will continue with my review of Saturday night's show hopefully tomorrow!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">I hope you enjoyed my review as much as I enjoyed the first show! Bring on next week.</span>Strictly Come Dancing-A Pro's opinionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11665126611362633171noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1902799800392657939.post-1940887895827352152011-09-30T10:42:00.002+01:002011-09-30T10:43:56.965+01:00Training Videos - Finally Russell & Audley<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Whew, I didn't think we'd get to see these two in training but thankfully the BBC gave us all the couples in the final hours yesterday. And here are my final thoughts!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Audley Harrison And Natalie Lowe</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Shrek he definitely is not but a sweet nickname for him. I have a feeling Audley may surprise us all and look and dance like a Prince on the floor. He looks like he has a very fluid and easy style of moving and like Rory, seems to already understand rise & fall. Natalie is absolutely right, due to Audley's amazing height, he can afford depth of movement and his rise & fall can be exaggerated more than if someone doesn't have his height. This will enable them to increase their movement across floor and will have a wonderful lilting feeling about it. As I mentioned in an earlier blog (I think when talking about Robbie) sportsmen tend to learn visually and Audley confirmed this so, the quickest way for Natalie to teach him is to literally just show him by dancing herself what he has to do and look like. Audley's personality seems very sincere and I can see the audience warming to him. For a very tall person, he has good posture and doesn't look down too much. He also has a great frame but must be careful not to drop his elbows which could then pull his posture down but at least he doesn't seem to have the problem of raised shoulders. I am looking forward to seeing some great movement and style on the floor from Natalie & Audley.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">I do feel for the male celebs that have to dance Waltz in the first week as this is not the easiest beginner dance to learn & they have to try to lead their partner around the floor whereas the female celebs can be lead (possibly dragged) around the floor which makes them automatically look better. Perhaps a Tango would be better in the 1st week? I'm not too sure what the solution is though.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Russell Grant & Flavia Cacace</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">'That's Entertainment' should be Russell's moto! Whatever he lacks technically, he will undoubtedly make up for in performance. That should take them a long way and I for one cannot wait to see what they bring to the competition as they will certainly up the stakes in a theatrical sense!</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">Saying that though, technically his cha cha doesn't look too bad at all. He has a nice little hip action going on and some basic positions like New York look very nice and neat and even in training he looks like he is having a ball. He isn't afraid of using his arms which for some men can be a struggle but his arms, hands and fingers look precise & finished.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">I have heard some rumours about a injury but I always ignore those rumours as sometimes they are rather embellished for sensationalism, unless proven otherwise. Everyone has injuries of some sort in the beginning as they are doing something their bodies aren't used to doing and the hours are long and gruelling BUT as any champion will tell you - 'No pain, No gain' or my favourite 'Blood, sweat & tears makes a dancer through the years' (or series in this case).</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">I think Russell & Flavia will be very entertaining & hopefully they will also prove to everyone that you can be a performer, entertainer and learn to dance at the same time & not only rely on one aspect to get the votes!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">So, there we have it. All 14 couples getting ready for tonight's show. Oh, I know how they feel & for some, I wouldn't want to be in their shoes. The nerves, the excitement, the tension & the unknown can almost be too much! They may even want to run away or suddenly feel like they can't do this and definitely can't remember anything. But this much I know, once they get on the floor, dance and do their best whether they make mistakes or not, they will come off the floor feeling the greatest buzz ever and will want to do it all over again! The dance bug would have well & truly sunk it's teeth into them! So, I wish them all the very best of luck, they will need it and hope that they all enjoy the competition, the entertainment and the spectacle that is Strictly Come Dancing!</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-size: large;">We all look forward to watching you! Break a leg x</span>Strictly Come Dancing-A Pro's opinionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11665126611362633171noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1902799800392657939.post-43102757007586389722011-09-27T23:28:00.004+01:002011-09-29T11:16:17.012+01:00Training Videos - PART THREE<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #c1c1c1; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 20pt;">Harry Judd & Aliona Vilani</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 20pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #c1c1c1; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 20pt;">1st Impression - this looks good! Harry has nice arm placements in New York position, good weight placement and good posture. It is difficult to tell but it looked like there were some good basic elements in the choreography too like, the Natural Top - I hope his footwork for this step is technically sound as it is a very difficult basic step to do well. I am slightly concerned about Harry's lack of hip action or natural body rhythm present at the moment but to see everything in less than 20 sec of footage is impossible. Who is going to win this years 'Snake Hips' Title - I think Jason Donovan may just be in the lead on what we have been shown at the moment. I think Harry & Aliona, together with Artem & Holly will have the greatest expectations on them this series so, I'm hoping to see a slightly different approach to choreography this year from Aliona & it looks as if she has listened to some of her critics. There seems to be a good amount of basic steps coupled with some intricate trick steps - Great! Let's see what they've got then... So exciting!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 20pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #c1c1c1; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 20pt;">Alex Jones and James Jordan</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 20pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #c1c1c1; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 20pt;">Hmmm, there's not a lot to go on from this training clip is there really? This slightly concerns me as it could mean that either they haven't had a lot of time to rehearse or that there really isn't anything that good to show or that we're in for a shock and they will be fabulous. I have my reservations that it will be the last option I am sad to say as, I was really hoping that James would have a celeb this year that he could win with. Alex has it all, good looks, great body & a lovely appeal about her but unfortunately from the little (and I can't stress enough... little) footage we have seen, she doesn't seem to have a very natural dance ability or gracefulness & even in comparison with some of the other older ladies, I would expect her to have a little more ability. This seems rather harsh but, if Alex wants to stay in this competition and improve & do well, she will have to become a lot more serious about this and listen to every word James has to say. James is a hard taskmaster but, if Alex wants to do well, improve and become a dancer, she will accept his way of training & working because it does produce good results. You never know, there have been a few really bad dancers in the beginning who have gone on to be really good in the end and I hope Alex has that ability in her to do the same.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: 20pt;">Holly Valance & Artem Chigvintsev<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: 20pt;">As I and I’m sure everyone else expected, Holly looks rather good in their training video. Out of all the ladies this year, I feel that Holly & Chelsee are so far the stand out ladies BUT it is earlier days, the competition hasn’t really begun yet and we still want to see improvement and that awful ‘J’ word (journey for those who are unfamiliar) will count for a lot.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: 20pt;">Holly has great use and understanding of her arms and their placement as well as a very good co ordination between her body, hips and leg movement. She has nice, neat feet and a good use of her ankles, which should hopefully stop her from looking flatfooted at times. I think Holly will be more like a fiery, exotic and slightly ‘wild’ (in a good way) character on the floor rather than a demure dancer which for me is a good asset as her dancing won’t look too precise or contrived which can look a little boring at times. She has the wonderful natural antipodean qualities of being feisty, direct, strong & competitive from what I have seen & I look forward to seeing how far Artem can push her and what Holly will be able to produce I just hope that the expectation on her won’t be too much too soon.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: 20pt;">I doubt very much that we will get to see Russell Grant and Flavia or Audley Harrison & Natalie which is a shame as I was really looking forward to blogging about these two, especially Russell who has been very prolific on Twitter so, I was very eager to see what their training footage would be like. However, if I don’t update my blog later today with some last minute footage from the BBC, I shall definitely be blogging a whole lot this weekend!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span style="font-size: 20pt;">How very exciting – only 1 day to go now and all is revealed! Good luck to everyone and I wish you all a very happy, exciting and successful series! <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
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<div style="color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium;"></div>Strictly Come Dancing-A Pro's opinionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11665126611362633171noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1902799800392657939.post-15556834719693058272011-09-26T12:34:00.000+01:002011-09-26T12:34:15.727+01:00Training Videos - PART TWO<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: medium; line-height: 25px;">Nancy Dell’Olio and Anton Du Beke</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: medium; line-height: 25px;">Nancy is a lucky lady to have Anton as her leading man, who will be able to lead her around the dance floor & make her feel like a lady. I do think that Nancy has got some good dance moves in her, as she seems to be able to dance quite fluidly with Anton and looks good in Anton's frame, I do wonder if she will look equally as graceful on her own though? I do hope that Anton will sort our her head position as she was constantly looking at him in the video - this could just be because it was very early days in training and she may have been looking at him for reassurance. Let's hope this doesn't become a habit. I'm not entirely convinced that Nancy & Anton should be going down the 'comical/humerous' route in their partnership as this has already been done last year & I am absolutely 100% sure that Nancy is</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: medium; line-height: 25px;"> by far already a better dancer than Anton's previous partner! So I would like to see them take this seriously and see how far they can go in this competition.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: medium; line-height: 25px;">Chelsee Healey and Pasha Kovalev</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: medium; line-height: 25px;">Well, what a lovely surprise - I am not sure what I was expecting from Chelsee but for some reason, it wasn't what I saw in their training video. Chelsee is a surprisingly elegant and graceful dancer! She looks confident in what she is doing and has a lovely use of arms and arm extension all the way to her fingertips. This is not something that can be taught so quickly and usually is just a natural understanding or feeling for movement. Her continuous 3 step turns (or shanae turns as Craig may like to call them) were very impressive as they are difficult to do, especially for a beginner. Pasha is a great partner for Chelsee as I feel that he will work her to her potential and also keep her focused - something which she may find a little difficult due to her wonderful youth! I am hoping for a transformation with Chelsee from 'Cinders to Cinderella, who shall go to the ball and meet her Prince Charming' (Sorry, I got a bit carried away then!). I'm very much looking forward to watching Chelsee's transformation and in my opinion - she could very well be the one to watch this series.</span><br />
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: medium; line-height: 25px;">Still waiting for BBC training footage from:</span><br />
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: medium; line-height: 25px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"></span></span><br />
<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: medium;">Russell Grant and Flavia Cacace</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: medium;">Holly Valance and Artem Chigvintsev </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: medium;">Harry Judd and Aliona Vilani</span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"></span><br />
<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: medium;">Alex Jones and James Jordan</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: medium;">Audley Harrison and Natalie Lowe</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: medium;"><br />
</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: #cccccc; font-family: Georgia, Utopia, 'Palatino Linotype', Palatino, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: medium;">Let's hope we get to see them before Friday! Not long now & I CANNOT wait!</span></span></div>Strictly Come Dancing-A Pro's opinionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11665126611362633171noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1902799800392657939.post-84757059505883632582011-09-22T20:51:00.001+01:002011-09-22T20:53:56.162+01:00Training Videos - How it all starts! PART ONE<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Unfortunately these videos are more of a teaser than anything else and we don't get a real feel for what is happening in those first couple of training sessions. Generally, I can assure you that there are nerves from both sides as you don't really have an idea until that first training day what your celeb is capable of or if anything at all. So it will either be relief or a sense of dread & this is pretty much what the celeb will be feeling too as they won't have a clue what to expect either. It is a very surreal situation to be in and not one you can really fully explain to anyone who hasn't been there & done it.</span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">The first few days will be the building blocks for the rest of their time together. If they get off to a good start that's great but you can usually tell pretty much straight away if you will get along with each other or not - just like any meeting of new people in the real world!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Baby steps - this is how it all starts, just like a baby learning to walk, your celeb has to learn a few basics of a dance first. Then how to count in time to the music (that is if they have a sense of rhythm) and also get used to a 'hands - on' approach by the Pro they are dancing with as this is generally unfamiliar to them in terms of the proximity you have with each other almost immediately & can make them feel rather intimidated and awkward.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">On top of all that, there are cameras watching your every move, listening to your every word, ready to be edited and then you have to try and act and feel natural in a totally unnatural situation! That is why I often think that the celebs haven't really a clue what they have signed up for until they start their training. All the glitz & glamour only happens once a week, the rest is a lot of hard work. BUT... there is a lot of fun too. There is a lot of laughter whilst teaching & learning to dance, quiet a few painful moments of either been accidentally kicked, punched, slapped, dropped, stood on, frustration on both sides and the list goes on.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">BUT it is all worth it in the end for that 1 and a half minutes of dancing on a Saturday night to an audience of millions of people watching Strictly Come Dancing & everyone is rooting for and hoping that the celebs will do well & be entertaining. Now, that's entertainment!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">So, let's see how they are getting on in the first weeks of training:</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Lulu and Brendan Cole</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;">Lulu seems to be very keen to learn and although I fear she may not be as natural a dancer as we somehow expect her to be, her enthusiasm and eagerness to learn & get it right will help a lot & I am sure this will please Brendan. He loves a hard worker & appreciates that even if someone one doesn't have a natural talent for dancing, if they are a 'trier' - he's very happy! Lulu does look very good in the shapes she makes, with her arms and body and has a natural awareness for what 'looks' good & this goes a long way towards making a dance look correct in the beginning. I am sure there will be a lot of people including the judges perhaps that will criticise their height difference however, this should not be a problem at all. I for one would know having been very successful with Matthew Cutler. All Brendan needs to do is to be clever with choreography & the height difference will actually be a bonus. They will be able to do a lot of interesting choreography that a couple of the same height won't be able to do! I look forward to seeing this development in their partnership and, now that lifts aren't strictly prohibited, these two could be the King </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">and Queen of lifts this year! Very exciting indeed.</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Rory Bremner and Erin Boag</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</div></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Wow, at first glance this looks very good! Erin is a fantastic Ballroom teacher and her Waltzes have always been very memorable for being so classic and sophisticated. This I am sure will be no different. Rory has a great physique for Ballroom - tall & elegant and his posture isn't bad at all. His shoulders 'pop' up from time to time but this is natural in the beginning and I am sure Erin will sort this out very quickly. His movements look very fluid & smooth already which in a Waltz is very hard to achieve as a first dance for anyone so this is very promising indeed & shows that even if Rory doesn't understand rise & fall yet, this is something that is fairly natural to him! I can't wait to see their Waltz on the night as I think it will be a very beautiful, sophisticated and classy number.</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;"> </span></div></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Edwina Currie and Vincent Simone</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</div></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Who would have thought Edwina has such natural hip action? (no jokes please!) Seriously, I was very pleasantly surprised with how natural she looks doing something that most women can look pretty awful doing if not done correctly! I hope she uses this asset to her advantage but not to 'overkill' it either. Edwina is obviously a very clever woman and I like how she thinks about all the dance steps already -she seems to compartmentalise them which will help her learn them and remember them quickly as a lot of the same steps are present in different dances. Edwina looks to be a very natural mover and with Vincent's humorous charm ;-) I expect to see a rhythmical & cheeky Cha Cha Cha if that is in deed what they will be dancing in the first show. I hope so as it might actually be rather good!</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</div></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Jason Donovan and Kristina Rihanoff</span><br />
<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">If there was a glitter ball for the celeb who is totally engrossed in learning to dance, Jason would get it! Yes he is a perfectionist, yes he works hard but I think he needs to relax just a little so that he doesn't stress himself out about this too much. Dancing is a hard skill to learn but this is a long & hard road which I feel Kristina and Jason will be on for a good length of time & I don't want Jason to frustrate himself to early - plenty of time for that later! If they are doing the Cha Cha as their first dance, this is quite a difficult dance for a man to master initially as there should be good hip action and a cheeky & sexy character to the dance. Jason already seems to have the same natural talent for good hip action as Edwina which is very impressive. I hope that we get to see Jason's 'showman' personality come through as I am sure he can be a wonderful entertainer if he gets in character in each dance - I just don't want him to concentrate too much on making everything perfect & forget that he needs to be entertaining too. I'm looking forward to seeing Jason wiggle those hips on the dance floor!</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;"> </span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Anita Dobson and Robin Windsor</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</div></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">I like Anita! She gets it... This IS hard work & she knows what she has signed up for - learning to dance in firstly a dance competition & secondly an entertainment competition. But there needs to be both elements in order to be successful & win Strictly Come Dancing. Anita for me has a natural & graceful look when she dances and moves, whether it be with or without Robin - something not often seen so early in training and I like the way Anita's head moves naturally when changing positions. The actual pace of movement they seem to have looks very good & they look very suited together. The only thing that immediately bothered me was Anita's left arm placement on Robin but it is early days & I am sure this will be remedied. I feel that perhaps Anita & Robin won't have a traditional and purist look about their choreography & their dancing but, they will be very watchable and Anita will be very elegant in terms of arm placement and movement </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">on the dance floor. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Robbie Savage and Ola Jordan</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Another celeb who didn't think it was going to be so difficult! But... At least Ola has a sportsman & that is a tremendous advantage in the fact that they will not quit until they either get it right or physically cannot do anymore! Unfortunately, I think Robbie is in the category that people will automatically think he will be a natural mover just because he is a sportsman & footballer however, I think that he's going to have to work extremely hard for us to believe this. He doesn't have a natural hip action YET and looks a little tentative & reliant on Ola but, on a positive note, he does have good posture, good neat footwork & straight knees where he should have. I have been told (& it is true) that sportsmen are very good at repetition & copying things like body action & footwork & perhaps this approach would help a little. Without a shadow of a doubt, Robbie & Ola will be the most glamorous couple of the floor & I hope that with his tenacity for repetition & hard work we will see that fancy footwork on the dance floor too.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Dan Lobb and Katya Virshalis</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">I didn't realise that there is quiet a big height difference between Dan & Katya & although I said earlier that just because there is a height difference, this shouldn't be a hindrance... it does however make a difference if it is the male celeb who is a lot taller than the pro dancer as it is a natural tendency when they are unsure to look towards or at their partner for assurance. In a partnership of equal height this wouldn't be very noticeable as looking down but in this case it may pose a problem. With Katya's persistence however, I am sure Dan's posture will improve & it was after all only the early stages of training. I do think that Dan & Katya will be a very glamorous Ballroom couple though & look like they should have a good presence on the dance floor - I look forward to seeing what Katya can achieve with Dan as all the right tools are there to create a good dancer.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Still to come:</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Nancy Dell’Olio and Anton Du Beke</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Russell Grant and Flavia Cacace</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Holly Valance and Artem Chigvintsev </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Harry Judd and Aliona Vilani</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Chelsee Healey and Pasha Kovalev</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Alex Jones and James Jordan</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Audley Harrison and Natalie Lowe</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">As I said earlier, it is very difficult to make an accurate assessment of the couple's and the celeb's dancing after watching such a limited & edited amount of footage & I am sure that by the time we get to see everyone on the first show, they will be leaps & bounds from where they were in the beginning (well, we hope so anyway!) So, for now this is only my opinion on what we have been shown & I look forward to being proven wrong & right about some of my opinions - after all, that is what makes us tune in each week to watch Strictly Come Dancing isn't it?</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Good luck to ALL pros & celebs for their final week in training before the first show - make it a good week and most of all enjoy the experience because come the first show, you'll be far to nervous to even think about enjoying it until it's all over!</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia;"> </span></span></div></div>Strictly Come Dancing-A Pro's opinionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11665126611362633171noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1902799800392657939.post-32890347035822444982011-09-15T12:58:00.005+01:002011-09-15T19:15:04.182+01:00The Celeb & Pro Pairings Launch Show<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">It's that time of the year already when the nights get darker, the weather gets colder & you know that Christmas songs will be playing in the shops very soon... </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">This can only mean one thing; it's <span style="color: #f400ff;">STRICTLY COME DANCING</span> time! At least the glitz & glamour of Strictly brings brightness, warmth and entertainment to this otherwise gloomy time of the year when the seasons change & summer seems a distant memory (or non-existent memory this year!) And this year's series seems to be no exception I am very happy to say! </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">As always, every year promises to be the very best series yet & possibly after the last few years, this would not be too difficult to achieve as I have found the last few years of Strictly to be a little lack luster and in Craig Revel Horwood's immortal words - DULL, DULL, DULL! I am not entirely sure why, I can't seem to put my finger on it but this year has gained my interest almost immediately when I heard a few rumors regarding which celebs may be taking part - this may after all be the very best series yet in the last couple of years!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">I eagerly awaited the Launch Show on Saturday night which unfortunately I wasn't able to watch after all as I was visiting Matthew Cutler who has just recently moved into a new house and he 'forgot' to set up his telly - Thank goodness it was going to be repeated on Sunday but the suspension was killing me & thankfully a few friends kindly kept me informed via text as to who was paired with who... by the time Lulu was paired with Brendan I thought, this is going to be a very interesting series indeed! I thought hurry up Sunday so I can watch it for myself & so I did and I loved it!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Right, here we go...</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #f400ff; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">THE FEMALE CELEBS & THEIR PRO PARTNERS:</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Ola Jordan and Robbie Savage</span></u><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Well, aren't they a fabulous looking couple! I wasn't too sure who had more fake tan on though but at least we already know that Robbie will embrace the 'Strictly experience' on that front! He did look awfully shy though and not quite the show off footballer that I half expected from hearing various other reports about his reputation. Just goes to show, you should never believe everything you read in the press ;-) </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">I am really pleased for Ola that she has a younger celeb this year and a sportsman that she can work her magic with as this is where Ola's strength lies - getting her celebs to work so incredibly hard and only a sportsman can really fully appreciate that intensity! Footballers however are a strange conundrum on the dance floor - they should have it all really - fast & neat feet, rhythm, be able to change direction quickly, remember foot patterns, have stamina & showmanship BUT this is not always the case - I should know after dancing with John Barnes MBE. All of the above applied to John & he was a pleasure to work & dance with but, after sending a lifetime looking down on the floor at a football posture was a huge issue - I hope that this will not be the case for Robbie & if it is, Ola needs to nip this in the bud as soon as possible! </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">I really am looking forward to watching Robbie & Ola & they will be a little bit of eye candy for everyone all in one beautiful partnership!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><i><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Natalie Lowe and Audley Harrison</span></u></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">I remember a few years ago when Erin was paired with Peter Schmeichel MBE who is equally as tall as Audley, many people said how a tall man like that would struggle to dance and make it look graceful. Well, Peter probably wasn't as graceful on the dance floor as he would like to have been but it had nothing to do with height (and it rarely does), it just has to do with the ability to move in time with the music & a natural disposition for dance, some things that just don't come naturally to some. In Audley's case I can hear many people saying the same thing, that he's too tall etc. however, Audley is used to a form of dancing already albeit in the boxing ring. He should be very light on his feet and be used to learning different foot positions and having to move quickly in his space so let's see if he still has some fight left in him. With Natalie, he is in very good hands and she has proven twice how good a partner she is to her celebs. Can Natalie do it again? I hope so and hope to see Audley take up the challenge.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Flavia Cacace and Russell Grant</span></u></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Wow... What a genius pairing of a couple! Flavia, the tiniest of dancers with the work ethic of a racehorse and Russell who is in personality it seems larger than life and has a passion for understanding things most of us don't! Russell is no stranger to reality TV programs so, he should at least understand the concept of Strictly...whether it be an entertainment or dance competition or both, it is still a competition and Flavia is no stranger to hard work, in fact I'm sure she thrives on it. I do believe that Russell was once a Redcoat & so I hope he remembers some of his dance & performance days too. Hopefully with the dedication from Flavia and the fun and jovial side from Russell we will see a very entertaining couple. I am really hoping that Flavia & Russell will be one of the surprise couples this series as, they are secretly one of my favourite couples already!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Erin Boag and Rory Bremner</span></u></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Erin 'Miss Whiplash' Boag & Rory 'The impressionist' Bremmer - wonder if he'll impersonate Erin? </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">From they moment they were announced as partners, they looked truly happy and relieved to have got each other and so I predict that they will be a very good match in personality and work ethic. They look good together, great height match and seem to have already created a rather classical look about themselves. Although I'm sure there will be lots of laughter in the training room, I can't see that translating to the dance floor in any gimmicky way. Erin is too sophisticated for that and I hope she uses that wonderful strength to their advantage. Their Ballroom dances will be their strongest and if they create some authentic Latin dances, I can see them being very popular. Classy is always good!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Aliona Vilani and Harry Judd</span></u></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">It seems Aliona is very lucky to have had 3 young, good looking and able partners in a row now, let's see if it's 3rd time lucky. On paper this looks like a fantastic partnership - full of youth, energy & sex appeal but sometimes what's on paper doesn't necessarily mean the same on the dance floor as we have seen in many series past. It all depends on how the partnership works together & how the Pro creates the dance to enhance the celebs assets or disguise their weaknesses, not how to create a dance to show off themselves. Aliona has been guilty of this in the past & has had this pointed out to her by the judges so, if she takes heed and has learnt from the past, perhaps this could be the year for her. But it's not about the Pros - it's about the celebs! Hopefully Harry won't look as petrified as he did each time he goes out on the dance floor and it seems to me that he needs a lot of encouragement & I hope he gets it, as it would be wonderful to see what dance talents he has on the dance floor.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Kristina Rihanoff and Jason Donovan</span></u></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Boy was Kristina happy to get Jason! Good for her, she deserves someone with potential & hopefully Jason is it! We haven't really been given the opportunity to see what Kristina can really achieve with her partners yet as she as had some unfortunate celebs so I am looking forward to seeing what Kristina can give us with Jason. Jason seems to be a very hard working person, a perfectionist and looks as if he is already taking this competition very seriously which I am sure is music to Kristina's ears BUT can he dance? I am not quite convinced but then again Darren Gough wasn't very good at all in the beginning & look what the lovely Lilia was able to achieve. So there is every chance that Kristina can turn him into the dancing machine that by the looks of things, Jason very much wants to be! I too have a soft spot for him & hope he does really well!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Katya Virshilas and Dan Lobb</span></u></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Unfortunately, I hadn't heard of Dan before the Launch show but I am sure he has a huge early morning following ;-) and he will have enough people on set to ask for tips who have already done Strictly! I believe Dan was also a model as well as a tennis coach at one stage. Therefore, he should have: showmanship, competitiveness, co ordination, dedication & the ability to think about this competition with a sportsman's mind combined with the smouldering looks of a model... interesting combination! As we saw last series, Katya is a very determined woman when it comes to getting what she wants out of her partners & even managed to break the ice surrounding Gavin Henson & we actually got to know Gavin more than we thought possible so, hopefully Katya can do the same for Dan.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="color: #f400ff; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">THE MALE CELEBS & THEIR PRO PARTNERS:</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Brendan Cole and Lulu</span></u></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Now that wasn't the reaction I expected & neither did Brendan by the looks of things! I don't quite know what to make of it but I do think that it was quite insulting & disrespectful to treat your chosen Pro like that. Perhaps we misunderstood however, never before have I heard of or seen that reaction. I really felt for Brendan & despite what he is portrayed as by the powers that be, he really is a sensitive soul & would have taken that reaction to heart.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Hopefully Brendan & Lulu will be able to get past this & be allowed to get past this so that we can all enjoy what I believe to actually be a rather good pairing & hopefully Lulu will soon realise this too! Yes, Brendan is hard working and a stickler for perfection however this all comes from a very good place and has always worked for him in the past in his own professional career and also with his successful record on Strictly - Brendan is 'old school' and believes in hard work, dedication and getting the best from his partners & the one's who want to do well in the competition usually have no problem with this. Let's hope this is what Lulu has signed up for as, she could & should be rather good at this sort of 'Showbiz' thing! I would love to see them do well & I am sure there will be fireworks along the way but that makes it worth watching right?</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Vincent Simone and Edwina Currie</span></u></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">I was sure that Vincent would be paired with Nancy & by the looks of things, it almost looked as if Nancy thought so too... this did make me giggle as for once it looked like Anton was a little lost for words. But no, the potentially fabulous for TV pairing of the 2 Italians was not to be. Possibly because we may have had to have had subtitles all the way through their training videos & VT's?</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Anyway, Vincent & Edwina may just be as good a viewing as Russell & Flavia! I am sure that Edwina will do everything that Vincent tells her to do unless she disagrees with it ;-) and I am sure that Vincent will be his usual charming self and charm her into submission! It may be a close call as to who will win the battle of the wills but my money is on...</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">It did look that Edwina really did enjoy herself in the group dance and that she is in no way a shrinking violet & if Vincent can develop that side of her personality even more and give us some simple but beautiful routines, I am convinced that we will be quite surprised and impressed!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">A little personal story springs to mind talking about Edwina - Matthew & I had the opportunity recently of working on the same cruise ship as Edwina. We were performing and Edwina had been doing a public speaking session just before our performance. Edwina was brilliant and is a wonderful speaker & performer. She stayed afterwards in the audience to watch our performance and she looked like she thoroughly enjoyed it, clapping and smiling away. Afterwards, she came over to speak to Matthew whilst I was getting changed & told him how very much she enjoyed our dancing BUT thought that Matthews public speaking in between the dances could do with some work! Well Edwina, the shoe is on the other foot now, so come on - show us how it's done!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Anton Du Beke and Nancy Dell’Olio</span></u></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">I think that Anton has finally met his match with Nancy & Nancy needn't look any further for that gentleman she has been waiting for - at least in the dance sense anyway! I am not too sure what to make of Nancy as I am not entirely convinced she actually knows what she has signed up for. Apparently she was not too happy about the 2 inch heel dance shoes she has to wear as she is far more used to 4 inch heels! Well, let me tell you - you CANNOT dance in 4 inch heels but perhaps she doesn't plan on doing much dancing and maybe Anton has some great choreography up his sleeves again where Nancy won't have to dance and she can just stand there in 4 inch heels. I hope not as it is already a shame that so many gimmicks & props are now used in place of proper dancing. But I guess sometimes you just have to make the best of what you have and I think Anton is one of the best when it comes to this. It ain't going to be another Anne Widdecombe but it will be interesting.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Artem Chigvintsev and Holly Valance</span></u></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">So the Champion gets a chance to defend his title with the gorgeous Holly - wow Artem, you are a lucky guy. We all know what a fabulous choreographer & dancer Artem is & in his dance career had also achieved some very good results so it is no wonder that he is able to bring out the best in his partners. We also know that Holly is no stranger to some dance moves herself and that being a TV/Movie & pop star means she is also quite used to being in front of the camera, understanding different characters and portraying confidence. So given this combination - I have to say that Artem & Holly must be one of if not the favourite to win this series without even dancing a step together yet. A match made in heaven just like last year? For me, I hope so. We haven't had a double win yet in Strictly and perhaps these two have what it takes - Great dancing as always should win a competition as it did last year!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Robin Windsor and Anita Dobson</span></u></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Aw bless - these two looked absolutely delighted to be dancing together and I think they will have a wonderful relationship in the training room and on the dance floor! Robin is a very sympathetic dance partner and doesn't ever try to over shadow his partner but rather allow her to stand out which is what I like to see in a partnership. </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Anita therefore has the perfect partner for her as I feel already that Anita can hold her own on the dance floor and is already a capable dancer and performer. She actually seemed to look like one of the most comfortable celebs on the dance floor in the group dance & didn't seem to mind being left on her own to do her own thing which was rather good. </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">I think Anita will also have a great advantage in being such a wonderful actress and she should also be able to portray the various characters in each dance beautifully and hopefully she will really understand about this not only being a dance competition but also a entertainment competition too - there is something to be said about age, wisdom & experience & Anita has that advantage & she looks absolutely phenomenal too. Anita is one of my other favourites and I am sure there will be a few gentlemen of a certain age who will be watching and admiring her too!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Pasha Kovalev and Chelsee Healey</span></u></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">The 'New Boy' & the 'Single to mingle' Chelsee.... does Pasha have any idea what he is in for? Yes, of course he does ;-)</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Pasha certainly did make an impact didn't he – I’m not sure if the other Pro boys weren't a bit jealous knowing how competitive they all! But Pasha looked like he was really enjoying his moment. It was really nice to see someone new on the show who is a good Ballroom & Latin Dancer & who is representing our dance world on the show as are all the other Pros! And in Pasha's intro dance, it was great to see some recognisable cha cha steps in their basic form - showing how it should be done, well done!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Pasha is no stranger to competitive dancing where he has had a very successful career and he is also no stranger to reality TV dance competitions so, he will know what this is all about. Make no mistake he won't be the naive new boy on the block!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Chelsee has made no qualms about one of the reasons why she is on Strictly but I hope she takes it a little more seriously than a dating show. She's young, fit and able and with a partner like Pasha, they could go all the way - oops I'll rephrase, they could do very well! I am sure they will be the 'young, exuberant, bubbly' couple this year that will appeal to the younger audience and I look forward to seeing what they have to offer!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">James Jordan and Alex Jones</span></u></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></u></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">James is now officially together with Anton & Brendan one of the 'oldies' in the show - or rather one of the more experienced Pros ;-) This is not a bad thing at all as James has some great results under his belt too and this makes him one of the best Pros for Alex to be partnered with. He has shown and proven time & again that his work ethic works and I hope Alex appreciates that she is getting a tough but fair teacher.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Alex seems to be a quiet & reserved person & it may be more difficult for her to 'come out of her shell' on the dance floor as easily as some of the other's i.e Holly, Anita, Chelsee as she isn't an actress or performer but, I'm sure that James will find the right buttons to press to bring out the best in her. Alex does look stunning on the floor and together her and James have this wonderful Masculine/Feminine look going on which is very attractive to watch on the dance floor - a true Man/Woman partnership that could raise temperatures - ooh la la!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">On a little side note, both James & Brendan sometimes get a lot of flack for being so tough on their partners but, this is a dance competition & their job is to teach someone to dance to their best ability. It isn't a little bit of dancing and a lot of time for fun, it's HARD work & there really isn't that much time for laughing and joking about but it is still fun if you want it to be! </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">I thought the Pro dances were good - I did miss seeing more authentic Latin American & Ballroom steps and partnership dancing in the dances though as this is what our Pros do best & felt that it was a little too 'stagey' & contemporary for me. Perhaps I am a little old fashioned in that I would still like Strictly to be more about Ballroom & Latin American dancing. I am sure many will disagree with me but this is only my opinion. I did however love the themes & effects and I am always looking forward to seeing the creativity & professionalism of all the Pros in future Pro dances.</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">So there it is, my humble take on this series of Strictly Come Dancing. I am sure there are a lot of differing opinions out there and that is great! That's what it's all about. Someone likes one couple for whatever reason and someone else likes a different couple for entirely different reasons but it's all good competition. </span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">It is a dance competition firstly as there wouldn't be Strictly without the dancing but it is also a personality and entertainment competition so may the best dancer/personality/entertainer & performer win! </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 16pt;">Good Luck to you all!</span><span lang="EN-US" style="font-family: Times; font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: white; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div>Strictly Come Dancing-A Pro's opinionhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11665126611362633171noreply@blogger.com