We really enjoyed the premiere episode of SYTYCD tonight. Entertaining as always.

The standout tonight for me was Hana Li, the girl from Isreal who survived the hotel collapse disaster. After hearing her story, you almost wanted to see her succeed regardless of the dancing. Luckily, the dancing wasn't a problem... One second into her routine it was clear she had it in the bag, so we're looking forward to seeing much more of her in the coming weeks.

The Latin couples were also strong. I had no issues with their ability, however, that was far less interesting to me because we're used to watching Latin dancers doing what they do best. It will be much more exciting to see what happens when they're forced out of their comfort zones later on. Krumping a la Artem or Dmitry... now THAT'S what I call entertainment!

Things I'd like to see more of this season: New choreographers (not instead of, but in addition to the existing pool), more dance styles, more audience influence over the show results. Also, is it asking too much to have a standard-trained ballroom dancer as a contestant? Yes? Well then how about at least a ten dancer?

Things I can do without: Season-long partnerships (the variety of season 1 was much more exciting), and Disco. Oh, and if I see one more set of Batucadas from a Latin dancer during a solo, I might actually cry.

Anybody else watch the show? Thoughts so far?

Jonathan

Pasha and Anya- YAY! I was so surprised and happy to see them audition- they are such a fantastic couple.

Faina Savich- amazing! I loved her dancing. I hope these latin dancers have done some training in other styles as well so they can stick around.

Any idea who the other latin dancers were who were shown in clips?

Hi! What day,time and station is it on? I enjoyed it last summer more than Dancing with the stars.

Even though he wasn't a good technical dancer, I got such a kick out of Jamal. He was hilarious and had such a contagious personality!!!! I loved that he came out and actually tried the swing. Do you know anywhere that I can get a clip of him from the auditions??

Also, whats with that "sex" guy. He should be banned from every dance studio in the world. He also needs a haircut desperately.

All in all, I think this season will be very very good.

It's on Fox, Wed @ 8/7c.

For more info, the website is
http://fox.com/dance/

Regards,
Jonathan

Jonathan. Can't watch the show, wrong country. But what is wrong with Butacadas. Do you mean by Solo one dancer on the floor. In the first Burn the Floor when the whole company did them I thought it was sensational. I hope we are on the same Butacadas. That is where we press down on the LF . replace RF. Then LF behind RF,. and repeat. Maybe it it goes under a different name here.. They are doing them in the Cha Cha also these days as well as the Samba.

Nothing wrong specifically with the movement itself. But somewhere between the 200th and 250th Batucada in 30 seconds, I find myself wanting to say to my wife, "Honey, wake me when it's over".

The show format puts all ballroom and Latin dancers at a slight disadvantage. Each week, two couples are selected by the judges to be in the "hot seat". To save themselves from being voted off the show, each of the four dancers must perform a short solo routine. Because so much of their training is in partner work, the ballroom and Latin dancers rarely make a strong impact when dancing their solos (or at least, not AS strong as dancers trained in solo styles such as ballet, jazz, modern, etc). This gives the solo dancers a natural advantage.

The exceptions to this rule have been either (1) those that have had previous training in solo styles and have taken advantage of it, such as Benji Schwimmer, or (2) those who have taken a risk and tried something new, such as Dmitri (forgot his last name). The bottom line is, you can't expect to get by on so much bum wiggling. It doesn't impress the audience.

My recommendation to any future contestant from a partner dance background would be to create one or two solo routines well in advance, with the assistance of other choreographers with jazz, ballet or modern backgrounds. You might perhaps incorporate some ballroom and Latin elements, but don't just stick purely to what you know. America will see it as nothing more than a whole bunch of wiggling. And it won't stand up to what the others are doing.

Regards,
Jonathan

Jonathan. Thanks for the information. In our Dancing with the Stars the teachers are all with Ballroom and Latin experience. If the dance being performed is a Samba or a Quickstep that is what they are expected to do. Some lifts are allowed but not to go overboard and turn it into a exhibition dance. If they go out of time as some of the pupils sometimes do they get roasted. Footwork also is looked at and spoken about by the judges. And of course straight knees in Cha or Rumba is a must. Salsa was introduced and there was a dance towards the very end which was more like exhibition. Each couple in all the dances are on the floor on their own as a pair. No dancing as a group. Those who saw the exhibition dancing would probably agree that Paul Green and partners. Michael Jackson's Thriller was as good as it is possible to get. Paul Green was untill a very short time ago about 7th 8th in the world in Professional Latin.It showed. Thank's again.

Quickstep, we have a Dancing With the Stars- that season just finished. So You Think You Can Dance is a competitive show for dancers of any and all styles- last year, Benji Schwimmer, the US West Coast Swing champion won. The year before, it was a dancer who specialized in contemporary. No matter their strength or specialty, the dancers are expected to be able to perform every style they are asked- from ballroom to latin to hip hop to contemporary to jazz to broadway.