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They showed the bus ride up to Blackpool and talked about the magic of dancing there. Now that all the celebrities are in Tess room, I guess that means the pros are getting set to perform their Viennese waltz. Well, it is true. It is magical looking. I would have enjoyed watching a single camera view, but maybe that would have taken away some of the magical effect.
Bruce is so much better than the guests last week and the week before. Talent in a triple threat.
I am thrilled that Brian and Ali got three 10's.
Now Rod Stewart is coming on. I always liked him. We will see if he is as good as Bruce. Yep. Best vocalist on the show this year so far. So Sweet Like a Honey Bee-8th summer dance memories for me-we did the "81" to this in 1963. We would make sure we wore cotton or %100 nylon. White cotton and nylon glowed best in the black lights that were popular in the clubs for under-age teens back then. So who is this woman with Matt? Rod's wife? Penny Lancaster? The one who danced with Ian in an earlier show?
I guess Ali's foot feels better. My husband says he will just die if Ali is in the bottom two. First couple safe is Brian and Ali. Thank heavens. He picks her up and twirls her and says congratulations. They are all wearing microphones! Watch what you say. I am glad Natalie is through, I like her jumps and kicks. Phil is one of my favorites, and I wish the judges had scored him better. Laila is safe. Ricky is doing his salsa and fighting to stay in. All the salsas, except Brian and Ali's had way too much shoulder shaking. He is really giving it what he has got . Craig and Flavia are next. He just can't produce the leg action. Cha cha is different than jive. In jive, the pros can choreograph lots of single time and straight quicks in place of the chasses protecting their celebrities from having to produce a really good jive chasse action. Since there is a limit to how much rhythm you may remove from a cha cha, he is at a disadvantage. So Ricky beats him. Quelle surprise.
later....just got back from lessons, and now I am set to watch the show again, straight through I hope, and have a chat with Brian. He told me his music, song and artist for the next dance. I said, "Did you get it started yet?" He said, "I just got the music a few minutes ago!" Then he said, "Well, actually, I have about the first 50 seconds planned already."
I am sure that all the dancers are looking forward to having a day off. I would be. I'll bet some of them will still try to get started on the next dance first thing tomorrow. Don't you think? I would as long as my partner agreed.
Brian said it was a long two days. I asked about how things went for the crew having to set up in a new location, and all. He said, "You know how it is." I can just imagine what a nightmare it could be. It had to at least be very difficult and challenging. All those chandeliers and mirror balls, the lighting, etc. had to be set up, lifted up, fixed to be lowered, etc.
We suggested to Brian that he use a Strauss waltz if he does another Viennese waltz with Ali. He says it doesn't work that way. I always forget it is a show and someone else is in charge of the choices that matter.
My husband is impressed by Jill Halfpenny's dancing. he compared her level to being equal to one of the other female dancers. Well, just because she can dance one number and look as good or nearly as good as a seasoned pro doesn't mean she can do everything the pro can do.
Nov 9-..haven't been able to get Brian on the phone. It was more fun keeping intouch through Skype last year. I suppose they are working on the dance for this week and maybe another pro number. I am not sure if Brian and Kristina have any shows this week.
Claudia's show had Phil, I like him alot; and some more stuff about setting up in Blackpool hosted by James. Claudia even brought up Alesha's "endure" complaint and Craig and Len were on her side. The question of what is a lift and what is not was glossed over with regard to Anton and Laila. Andy told me he counted 3. I hardly watched them, to tell the truth.
Yesterday, I sent an email announcement to my big list about Brian and Ali getting 10's from all four judges. I considered sending a press announcement to the local newspapers, but I am afraid that it will be a waste of time. Local man or not, out of sight is as good as out of mind. I still am pretty excited for them. I wonder what kind, if any, pressure they feel about their dance for this week? Anyway, I can't even keep count of all the congratulatory notes that have been sent to me. Brian and Ali do a great job, and I am getting credit and congratulations for it!!!
I read on a tabloid, yes, those I still follow, that Ali is signed for the tour. I guess one assumes that Brian is signed as well. I am seriously considering going to UK to see a tour show. We don't know how long Brian will actually be at home over the holidays. Last year, I think he was only here for a couple of days. My friend said to me the other day that all a parent really wants out of their child's life is to be part of it. I had never thought of it in those terms before, so that was like a big epiphany. I always thought that what we want is the obvious: health, enough wealth to be financially secure, social and personal ties to give life meaning and a job that doesn't turn you off. But my friend is right. We want to be part of our children's lives and we want them to continue to be part of ours. Being in the same business makes it easier and I find it to be a lot of fun following Brian's career, but it is hard when you are separated by an ocean.
On Claudia's show, Katya expressed her excitement about the trip her mother will make to London next week. I wonder how many of the parents are able to make the trip to see SCD in person. Last year, we met two members of Matthew Cutler's family. They told us that they have been in the audience for every show in which Matthew was performing. I met James parents, too.
Nov 10 There have been so many emails: congratulations on their 10, admirations for their showmanship, speculations on their relationship....how exciting SCD is this year! I can imagine what a highlight these weeks will be for Brian when he is my age and looks back on his life. I like that SCD is still about the journey, about learning and acheiving, about meeting challenges, about developing a trusting relationship with a teacher. I hope it doesn't turn to prioritizing the razzle-dazzle and edgy style of DWTS. Last night, Andy really wanted me to watch it with him, so I gave in on my previous decision to stop watching it. One of the people on the show is a blabberer. When this person gets ready to speak I get ready to roll my eyes. Maybe it is this person's job to affect the viewers this way. Maybe this person just gets tongue-tied. The dancers do AMAZING, RISKY, HIGHLY DIFFICULT, HIGHLY COMPLEX, HIGHLY CREATIVE AND DEMANDING choreography, and the celebrities just jump in and give it all they have. The judges don't adequately acknowledge the teachers' contributions.
T hey had 4 dancers who I didn't recognize in their pro dance. Only Mark and Tony were regulars. Only Mark and Tony were really fabulous. The others didn't really step completely up to the challenge of nailing it. What happened to Anna, Anna, Jonathan, Chelsea, and the rest? The routine was a little like you would expect from a pre-champ Latin couple-very busy like they were trying to fit a lot of moves into a really fast dance. Sometimes, there is more excitement in quality. The guy with the hair was not pulling off his featured entrance. Oh well, the excitement of busy-ness and flipping cameras is the new tv style. I am going to call changing camera shots every 1 to 3 seconds "flipping." I am sure there is a proper term, but since I only know I don't like it, I will have to name it myself. The flipping camera changed my view and appreciation and enjoyment of all the group numbers, DWTS and SCD this week. I realize that a flipping camera hides some of the flaws, but then it hides the beauty of the formations too. It also hides the identity of the dancers. Why would you want that? Are they just bodies doing moves? Aren't they personalities? Shouldn't the viewer get the full treatment of the effect of the dancers moving in and out of changing lines, circles, switching partners? How about all the effort and thought and skill of the choreographer planning the staging and positioning of the dancers to enhance the effect of the dance and .....oh forget it, they are just compelled to hide stuff! They think we are not educated enough to chose the correct couple to watch, or maybe they are afraid we will pick out some mistakes. The person deciding to flip the camera every 1-3 seconds is the person making the mistake. That's the bottom line. Of course, this is my opinion and doesn't necessarily reflect the thoughts of anyone else I know or speak with.
Craig R-H said something on Sat about dissappointment that he couldn't find anything wrong with Ali and Brian's Viennese waltz.
I just removed what I wrote. I knew my girlfriend would make me remove it. She actually wanted to call me last night and tell me the same story about what the judges said that I wrote here, then took off . Probably it is better not to reveal my thoughts and observations that have to do with the judges. I am sure they can be touchy.
She and I had some laughs talking about DWTS. I am actually glad Andy encouraged me to watch it with him. Now I will have to decide if I am keeping my divorce from DWTS or if I am going back to it.
I also talked briefly with Brian. He was on his way into the studio to rehearse with Ali. Andy is talking with Brian about DWTS dances. He is telling Brian what the judges said about one of the couples' performance. I won't reveal what the judges said, but it was very good and it (finally!) acknowledged the teacher.
They showed a little of Randall the Magnificent (I have called him that for about twenty years), discussing costumes. On the show, it appeared that Karina had stuffed some of her bodice fabric into one side of the bra-top, and let a padding shift to under her armpit on the other side. Didn't she feel funny? The bottom part of her costume, the pants for the foxtrot, was fabulous.
Later.... Claudia's Show!!! She had some of the friends and family of the celebrities on her show. Jade's sister is even more beautiful than Jade, and Ali has a very hunky brother. The guests on Claudia's show are so enthusiastic about watching their loved ones participate in SCD. Ricky's grandmother is a celebrity in her village of Norfolk (Norwalk??) by way of being Ricky Groves' grandmother. How sweet is that?
There was some discussion about lifts, and Karen Hardy defined a lift and talked about why they are banned in the early weeks, except for Amer Smooth. They played a quote of one of the judges saying, "I knocked a point off for that lift," or something very close to that, then he gave the couple a 7. I thought I saw three lifts on that particular dance. So either that judge wanted them to have a ten and took off 3 points for three lifts, or he wanted to give them an eight, which is what Laila says her should have given her, and took off one point for one lift. I better re-watch. I guess I may have a false memory.
It looks like Laila will be doing rumba. I don't know why they make it to be like she is a total klutz. Her clumsiness looks manufactured to me.
Natalie and Vincent are going to be on AGAIN tomorrow. I like her spirit and they are pretty goofy and fun to see and listen to, but I'd rather see my Brian and Ali. Or if you don't want to put Brian and Ali on every week, how about Ian and Jade? You can't over do them. Natalie is on more than any other celebrity. I would bet on it, even though I don't have statistics. I guess it isn't a contest to see who gets on Claudia's show most often, and probably it cuts at least a little bit into rehearsal time, but it is kind of like the flipping cameras-you are pushed into looking at and listening to who the director wants you to be aware of, not who you choose.
November 10-I watched the results show of DWTS with Andy. Sabrina did a pasodoble with Mark. It was part of the Macy's design your own dance thing . I don't know the details of the entire contest, but evidently, the online visitors choose their favorite celebrity and partner, select the music and decide the costuming by voting. The costume designer was in the audience and acknowledged by Tom Bergeron. The dance was incredibly energetic. I don't know when I have ever witnessed the performance of a dance that carried so much conviction and commitment, assurance and confidence. All the artistry was in the choreography and Mark did a great job of making something memorable and impressive out of Sabrina's strengths. It was really wonderful. If you missed it, you missed something.
The guest artist was Michael Buble, who is a song stylist, but not a vocal technician. By the TV in the other room, I just heard Jimmy Kimmel mention George Michaels, my absolute, all-time favorite singer, and George is a technician, a stylist and a performer. Including George Michaels as a guest artist would make me swoon.
Aaron and Kristina were supposed to be on Jimmy Kimmel (it is a tradition that the couple removed from DWTS appears on Jimmy Kimmel's show the night of the dissappointment) but it sounded like they were on the telephone, not actually on the show. I could be wrong. It becomes increasingly difficult for me to do nothing but sit there and actually watch the show.
So another set of dances, another couple of dance programs, and another couple of chances to see people discover dancing, discover their own potential and explore opportunities to be creative and expressive. It's great.
Nov 11-Brian called and talked for about two minutes, then had to hang up. He and Ali are on the way into the studios to get ready for Claudia's show. I am not sure what the thrust of the interview will be-probably Claudia will say, "How excited are you to get a perfect score?" They will say, "Oh, we are so excited." I guess they will announce the dance they are doing for Saturday, too, and maybe reveal if Brian is in a pro group number or solo. I wonder if there will be any training footage of their dance? I wonder why they never show training footage of the pros? So maybe I am wrong and misunderstood what he said. Maybe he is just going to watch and be in the audience. We will see. I think there are as many fans for the pros as for the celebrities. Then again, that is my perception and I have no statistics.
I wanted to know how Brian is feeling. He is finding it a challenge to be disciplined about nutrition and rest with so much whirlwind of interest in him and Ali and so much pressure to do well with the choreography and planning of the dances. I had some suggestions for him on where would be good to go for a break. He will definitely need and deserve one before all the 2010 obligations kick into gear.
He had to hang up to bring gear into the studios.
The show, Dancing on Wheels is going to be soon, and I want to ask him about it. I am wondering if the entire 6 episodes are complete yet and if Brian has seen them. James and Ola were judges, so I am interested in whether they have seen any of the edited footage.
I would love to think that more than the UK fans, the few US fans and the family and studio friends of Brian have knowledge of his and Ali's great success this past week. Those who I know who watched the VW video were all just blown away. I am still sending links to different people.
It seems that Brian and Ali must have cut it close arriving pretty late for Claudia's show. I was talking to him at 1:00 our time, and it sounded like he was just arriving at BBC. Even though he promised to call right back, I don't expect to hear from him til when and if he is with Claudia, since her show starts at 1:30 our time. Of course, if they are just in the audience, I won't see him. I'll bet he and Ali wanted to get in as much practice today as possible, and I hope they had time to get something healthy to eat. So yesterday, it was announced that Vincent and Natalie would be on the show, and I complained that I wanted to see Brian and Ali. Is it possible someone realized that it is time for Brian and Ali to get more air time? Or did Vincent and Natalie need to stay in the studio and keep practicing? It is all conjecture and doesn't matter at all, but next year I will keep a tally, starting week one.
Claudia's show isn't connecting well. Today is a holiday and it is cloudy so I guess circumstances will make it a little more difficult to follow. Uups! There they are-Vincent and Natalie. I guess Brian and Ali are not going to be interviewed. Darn. I am skipping visiting the gym for this!!!!
So the costume ladies are there with the costume previews. I see that Laila is fringed, isn't she lucky! Oh, so is Ali. I am going to make sure that Brian and Ali practice with that dress. The weight of the fringe with the triangular shape is gong to be a leg tangler. They are saying that Laila knows how to work the fringe. I thought the point was to put fringe on to enhance the movement so you could get the effect of movement even if there is little. Well, I am planning to wear my new fringed bellbottoms to the local ballroom this Friday, and I will work that fringe-I will work it like mad. I had fringe on my Halloween costume and I did definitely get a sense that I could fling the fringe and it was fun!
Ian is saying that he hasn't done tango on SCD since season three. He and Jade look fabulous in their tango training footage. It is going to be a VERY good show this week.
Everyone who is doing standard has an advantage on this show. On DWTS everyone who does Latin has the advantage.
Nov 12-Late-Didn't even leave the studio til after 11:30pm. It just goes on and on and I have so many projects that I am neglecting. Andy talked to Brian today. I was at work. We did watch Claudia's show, though. We were both impressed with the tiny bit of footage on the cha cha. I have no idea if it was from Tuesday, Wednesday or today. We will have to wait til Saturday to see. Are they always LAST ? Seems like they ran out of time. Oh, well, we will just have to wait til next week.
Andy set up my computer so that I can watch the BBC videos. It's pretty nice to be able to just stop what I am doing and take a look at a recent video. I certainly miss Sype. The problem with skype was that it automatically put everyone's contact numbers next to their names. I tried not writing, Brian Fortuna, for example, because if I did, his contact number was automatically inserted by the computer. Enough of that. I did enjoy it while it lasted.
How can I help Brian and Ali do better? I can't. I can only help, affect, influence, the dancers with whom I have physical contact. I guess support and interest are helpful, but that isn't really as effective as I wish I could be. Aubree and Nick will get together tomorrow and we will go to a local high school and they will dance for the Phys Ed class of the special needs teens. This is pretty exciting. I will not be able to watch Claudia's show live, but I will watch it!
One of the men from our school and I are planning to go to the local ballroom on Friday night to dance with the dancers from Universal. We are calling this outing "Fringe Friday." I will be wearing a fun outfit and we will probably be spectacles. I will ask the owner of the ballroom to make an announcement about Brian and Ali's fabulous Vennese waltz, and maybe I will ask her to play a DVD of Brian and Ali on the huge screen they have near the music station.
Nov 13-I missed Claudia's show today. Nick came in from Kansas. He and Aubree went over their samba because it was the dance we selected for a demonstration this afternoon. At exactly the time Claudia's show, the three of us were at a local high school to do a presentation for the disabled children in Phys Ed class. The principal and some of the teachers came in to see us, too. It was very good. I set up the dance by referring to the dance shows on TV, talking about the history and character of the dances, about the connection between the partners, what to look for, etc. Aubree and Nick did samba and ended up doing rumba, too. Some of the chidren got up and danced and one of them challenged the principal! It was a lot of fun and the students appreciated this special treat. We will do more of this. Then we went over to the studio and worked on the cha cha. HOT! Aubree will take Nick to get some dance shoes tomorrow and he'll be set to "roll." They are performing at a big fundraiser for some children's fund on Nov 18. They are going to Utah on Monday for this. It's going to be a real puzzle to get two wheelchairs all the way there, especially since the dance chair can't get exposed to the ground.
I've been trying to watch Claudia, but today's show still isn't available.
Nov 14-Eventually, I was able to watch Claudia's Friday show. Today I watched most of SCD. Ali did a fabulous job. She looked at ease, self-confident,....what's all this crap about cha cha needs to exhibit a trashy side to put the dance across? I am not in agreement with those judges.
Brian and Kristina did a dance. I don't know who labeled it a "bolero," but it was nice. It was a "theater arts" routine. The group number for the pros, (was it just those eliminated?) was impossible to watch because my picture kept freezing. I gave up. Maybe later I will sit down and watch the show again.
I like the way Brian looks in the turtlenecks. Now here are some other thoughts about the costuming. Ola looked magnificent. Natalie of Natalie and Vincent, had the best dress of the night. Katia's dress looked like some turquoise chiffon was applied over a silver sequin bodice that came down to a point. I really liked the two piece outfit that Natalie of Natalie and Ricky wore for the jive.
Since Jade didn't dance, and I assume that means she will be cut from the show, I wish they had done away with tonight's dance off and elimination. Oh yes, I didn't think about the votes. Someone makes some money off the votes. Without an elimination, there is no need for votes.
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