You may have noticed I didn't blog about last week's SYTYCD results show. Mainly, that's because I was crazy tired after the show ended. I had good intentions to blog about it the next day but never got around to it. In a nutshell, I was only half-surprised with the judges' decision to send Cedric and Shauna home and there's nothing terribly revealing to say. If you watch the show, you probably agree with me.
Also, I've been totally engaged in my first fan blog, about the show, of course. I enjoy the diversity and frequency of their posts and I can always count on the reliability of their pre-show spoilers (which I never read but appreciate), their live-blogging and post-show recaps, and countless other goodies in between. I've noticed, however, on this blog and elsewhere (i.e. places and people they link to from time to time and related comments), a pretty clear division in fandom: those who know how to dance (or at least think they do) and those who just like watching. I clearly fit into the latter category so what I'm about to say is obviously a bit biased. Dancers appreciate the technical nuances, which explains the outrage they express on blogs and elsewhere when a less savvy writer props up another, less technically superior dancer as the favorite to win, or points out Danny's, uh, confidence level. I really could care less whether or not the energy extends from his fingertips; if he can't communicate the absolute joy he must be feeling when he moves the way he does, he's not going to win the competition. I'm sure he'll have a long career in dance (well, long for such a physical career choice as dancing), but at the end of the day, SYTYCD is a t.v. show, and there are a lot more factors in determining a winner than technique alone. All that said, I'll be a little annoyed if another Schwimmer wins, mainly because they've already eliminated several dancers I liked better.
Related to all this...Oh, how validated I felt when Entertainment Weekly gave the show a B+! I love, too, how on their blog, Adam Vary spells (occasionally though not consistently) Shauna and Anya's names as irresistible hostess Cat Deeley prounounces them, i.e. Shauner and Anyer.
A final note to dancers: Not to be snippy or anything, but you should really come up with a more unique online handle than "dancer" or it's ever so slightly varied rendition "danser" (is that French for dance?). I always say, there's only one thing more obnoxious than an art student, and that's a dance student. Or is it drama?..
7.17.2007
so you think you're an expert
Posted by Becky G. at 7/17/2007 04:29:00 PM
Labels: so you think you can dance
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To me, the tradition that SYTYCD continues is not the tradition of any classical dance aesthetic, where performances are judged based on their adherence to established forms or rules (limbs should be extended, etc.), nor even some concept of "originality" by which those who break those rules are vaunted. Rather, to me, SYTYCD carries on the tradition of the best dancing stars of the Hollywood musical. Film dancers like Gene Kelly synthesized ballet, vaudeville, and ballroom, bringing technical virtuosity but also celebrity charisma. Hollywood musicals were populist spectacle and technical achievement. By this standard Danny, despite his formal perfection, does not measure up, as he comes across as arrogant. But Cedric, despite his "original," rule-breaking (and physics-defying) movements, is similarly at a disadvantage. He doesn't have that chameleon quality.
That said, I still don't like the Schwimmers, who go quite far over-the-top for my tastes. It's a thin line between charisma and cheese.
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