Images Courtesy
of ABC
Good AM to
Everyone:
Guys'
Night on DWTS
was quite a
surprise in
several ways.
First and
foremost were
the Latin
costumes, which,
all in all, were
quite tasteful!
I do think it
was a bit
"corny"??? of
Mark Cuban to
wear a PATCHED
set of tails for
his Foxtrot, but
I guess they
were trying to
be clever. I
think the
designers for
the ladies'
costumes must
think these gals
are either
trying out for a
part in a remake
of "I Dream
of Genie"
or that the
newest fashion
is wearing
sparkly
chiffon-and-sequin
cover ups at the
beach. If, of
course, "cover
ups" is the
right choice of
words! Ah,
well, I'd best
get on with the
review.
Cameron Mathison
presented quite
a nice
Foxtrot after having
worked on
dancing for just
a 4-week
period. Partner
Edyta
Slawinska
brought out many
of Cameron's
strong points
and got him
dancing in a
very strongly
committed "all
or nothing"
fashion that is
so desirable in
this arena.
Cameron has good
body rhythm, but
he is weak in
turns, has
sloppy legs, his
footwork is bad,
and his arms,
hands, shoulders
and frame need
lots of
work if
he's to remain a
contender for
the trophy. He
has the
potential to fix
all of these
areas and become
a strong dancer,
so let's keep
our eye on him
if he makes it
through tomorrow
night's
elimination
round. I scored
him at 18 and
felt the 21
points received
from the judges
was a bit high.
Floyd Mayweather
has a good
physique and a
winning smile;
otherwise, he
failed to
impress me at
all. His
dancing was so
erratic and
uncontrolled
that all I could
think of was
that he looked
like a toy
poodle on
speed. When he
stopped for a
"pose",
his legs looked
like an A-frame
house.
His posture was
dreadful. His
leg actions were
a bit bizarre
and his "stompin'-around-the-floor"
footwork made me
change my mind
about who should
leave the show
first. Yes:
definitely
Floyd, not
Jossie, should
leave first! I
was generous in
awarding him 18
points, and
think the judges
were, too. The
overzealous
praise from the
judges makes me
wonder: Why, on
this program, do
they seem to go
out of the way
to praise
sub-standard
performances if
the celebrity is
black? I don't
think
Karina Smirnoff
can pull his
dancing up from
the bottom so,
unless he has an
extremely strong
fan base, we
shouldn't have
to watch this
type of gyration
very long.
Helio
Castroneves
and
Julianne Hough
seem to be
another
excellent
pairing.
They danced well
together in an
energetic yet
relaxed and
showy manner
that made me
feel that Helio
enjoyed being
out on the
floor. In this
case, I think
weaknesses were
fairly well
balanced by
strong points;
sloppy feet
offset by good
rhythm;
occasional
jerkiness
balanced with
reasonably good
arms; weak frame
bolstered by a
good "sell".
Overall, I feel
that Helio
deserved the 25
points awarded,
which was 1
point higher
than my own
estimate. I do
hope we get to
see his dancing
develop over the
next several
weeks!
Albert Reed
reminded me a
bit of that
Country song
with a line in
it about how
alcohol
convinces white
men they can
dance.
He was certainly
enthusiastic,
but Anna
Trebunskaya
has a lot of
work ahead of
her if she wants
to get all that
uncontrolled
energy focused
into a positive
channel for the
creation of a
successful
dancer. Albert
does have good
body rhythm and
is not shy about
pelvic grinds,
shoulder
shimmies or full
out commitment
to the routine.
His footwork was
heavy; his feet
and legs were
energetically
wild. For me,
there was too
little "real"
cha-cha in the
routine.
However: he sold
the act and we
must remember
that it's very
difficult for
untrained people
to get it all
together in a
short period of
time. My
"private" score
was 21, which is
what he got from
the judges. I
do think he has
potential and
that, if he has
a strong fan
base, we will
see him develop
the needed
control over the
next few weeks.
Mark
Cuban
was a surprise
because I took
him to be
"all
blow and no go"
after listening
to his own
promotional
"hype". In the
end, though his
footwork was
sloppy and his
frame and
posture were
weak, he gave a
nice
presentation
with good
timing, good
arms for a man
at this stage,
nice body rhythm
and a good
sell. If he
gets a grip on
the
needed technical
aspects of
dance, he can
also get near
that trophy. (Perhaps
he can get all
the members of
his ball team to
get all
their
fans to vote for
him?) I
actually awarded
him 24 points, 3
higher than the
judges' 21, and
I still feel he
deserved the
higher score.
Kym
Johnson
has a way of
bringing out the
best possible
performances in
her male
celebrity
partners, and
I feel we'd be
well-advised to
think of Mark as
heading toward
the winner's
circle if we go
on potential
dance merit and
not on fan base
alone.
For a
self-proclaimed
active old guy,
Wayne Newton
appeared too
stiff for the
type of movement
needed to win in
this arena. His
arms were
retracted
through the bulk
of the routine;
his footwork was
pretty bad; he
got off time
repeatedly;
instead of using
his feet and
legs to create
some
hip action, he
lifted his feet
and stomped them
back down.
Overall, the
routine was
lacking in
cha-cha and -
even with my
tendency to be a
bit lenient with
the oldsters -
the performance
was just not
very "winning".
The 19 points
awarded by the
judges was 2
points lower
than the 21 my
lenient nature
awarded Wayne.
I think
Cheryl Burke
needs to
concentrate on
his
basic actions
for future
dances if she
hopes to produce
another winner.
Tonight
(Wednesday,
September 26,
2007), we'll see
some great
performances
from
entertainers and
some of the pros
from the show.
We'll also be
subjected to
those moments of
suspense that
drive so many of
us crazy because
they are so
unnecessary.
And,
eventually,
we'll find out
who gets booted
off the
program. My
choices are
Floyd
(how big a
fan base can a
BOXER have?)
and
Josie,
who doesn't, in
my opinion, have
the potential to
develop dance
skills in the
limited time
allotted in this
program series.
That's a wrap
for now - stay
tuned for
further
developments!
Happy
Dancing
and remember
www.the-dance-place.com
is also
www.theplace2dance.com
