Tonya Plank

Self-Published Success Maria Murnane Offers Valuable Help to New Authors

2011-08-16T13:10:24-04:00

When I was considering self-publishing, I attended a great deal of publishing conferences. Maria Murnane often spoke at these conferences, on Amazon's panel. She was always the most upbeat, optimistic, sweetly encouraging person in the room.

She had good reason to be. After her first novel, Perfect on Paper: the (Mis)adventures of Waverly Bryson, a romantic comedy about a young woman in San Francisco struggling to find happiness in career and love, garnered a great deal of buzz on Amazon, Amazon chose it out of over 10,000 novels to be one of three it published in its then new venture, AmazonEncore. That was 2009, and it's only gone uphill from there. The book is now in CVS stores around the country, it's been published in German and Hungarian, a film rights agent is actively trying to secure a film deal, and Amazon Publishing is publishing the sequel, It's a Waverly Life, in November.

Murnane, who has a background in both public relations and marketing (like her protagonist, Waverly, she worked at a PR firm in San Francisco, and she has a graduate degree in marketing from Northwestern) believes Amazon took notice of her book because of the publicity it received, which outweighed the sales. Before ereaders became so popular, it was arguably much harder for a self-published author to attain high sales because of the higher cost to customers of a physical book.

Murnane's path to success is charming and inspiring and the engaging way she tells her story always garners her audience applause. Realizing she was profoundly unhappy in PR, she took what was supposed to be a brief trip to Argentina, but ended up finding a job there playing semi-pro soccer, and stayed for a year. It was there she found the time and inspiration to write her book. When she returned to the States, she found a literary agent without too much trouble, but the agent was ultimately unsuccessful in selling her book to a publishing house. Editors found the book funny and entertaining but said it was too risky for them to take on a new author in a genre they said was no longer selling very well. They nonetheless gave her constructive criticism.

Murnane believed strongly in her book, and really felt people would be able to relate to it. She took the editors' advice for improvement, and hosted serious focus groups, through which friends and acquaintances advised her on what did and didn't work. She attended writers' conferences, but received the same response as before -- agents liked the book didn't want to take a chance on it. She then decided to self-publish through Amazon's Create Space.

Once the book was published, with the help of her father and other family members, Murnane scoured Amazon, looking for books similar to Perfect on Paper. She looked at the positive reviews, and, if those customers left contact information in their profiles, she wrote to them, explaining what her book was about and asking them if they'd like a review copy. Many said yes, most really liked her book, and she began to amass lots of positive customer reviews. Murnane says she never sought reviews from family and friends. "As for family members and reviews, I strongly suggest staying away from that to avoid a conflict of interest. If other people in your personal life proactively tell you they enjoyed your book, then by all means, suggest they write a review. I just don't think it's a good idea to ask friends to write a review before they've even read the book. What if they don't like it? That puts them in an awkward position, and if they aren't honest in what they write about it, it's misleading potential customers."

After an Amazon customer reviewed Perfect on Paper on her blog, Murnane searched the blogosphere for bloggers who'd favorably reviewed books like hers, and sought reviews from them as well. Some conducted an author interview with her. She also contacted book clubs, which she found on Craigslist and Meetup.com, and offered to speak to the clubs. And, she contacted several independent San Francisco bookstores, five of which agreed to carry the book. Additionally, she entered the book into several independent publisher book competitions, and ended up winning an award in practically every contest she entered. She has a lengthy list of blogger reviews, interviews, and awards she's won on her website. I admit, in promoting my own book, even though my novel is not as light as hers, I went down her list and wrote to some of those same bloggers in hopes of a review, and entered some of the same competitions. Looking at such author websites is a great way to find bloggers who may be interested in reviewing your book in the increasingly ginormous blogosphere.

Murnane also began a line of greeting cards, tote bags, and t-shirts, bearing some of Waverly's clever, original sayings, like "Not everyone can have a cookie-cutter family, right? Honey, I'd cut your losses and settle for the cookies ," which she sold on Amazon and from her website. She called the line "Honey Notes." She contacted her college sorority, Delta Gamma, who got the word out about her book and the line of accessories, and offered her speaking engagements around the country about her paths to publishing and starting her own business.

After about a year of promoting the book, Amazon took notice of Murnane's large number of customer reviews. A representative contacted her, telling her they wished to edit and republish her book as part of its new publishing arm, AmazonEncore, which was launched in order to give quality, overlooked self-published books a bigger promotional push. Of course she was thrilled.

Since AmazonEncore re-published the book in early 2010, sales figures number well into the five digits and continue to grow steadily. Through Amazon, the book is now sold in CVS stores around the country, and could be sold in similar retail chains if Amazon expands. Amazon also secured foreign book deals for Murnane through its own international rights agent. Perfect on Paper is now published through Random House in German and Hungarian. Another agent contacted Murnane wishing to pursue film rights. Interestingly, in addition to the book, the agent, Murnane says, was impressed with the way Murnane "branded Waverly" through the Honey Notes: "She read my book and thought it was make a great movie-- she also loved the way I'd branded the Waverly Bryson character and brought the Honey Notes that appear in the book to life at Waverly's Honey Shop."

If you keep an eye on Perfect on Paper's Amazon sales rank, it's clear that it's one of AmazonEncore's longest-running successes. The book has continuously had a relatively strong rank, both in paper and digital versions, regardless of pricing. Murnane continues regularly to receive emails from customers: "I get several emails a week from readers who say they couldn't put it down and are dying to read the sequel. The reaction from readers is amazing-- literally a dream come true for me." It's no surprise Amazon Publishing is publishing her second novel, a sequel, It's a Waverly Life, due out in November, and that they've enlisted her to write a weekly Create Space column, where she gives advice to those new to self-publishing on how to market their books.

In addition to working on a third Waverly sequel, Murnane has teamed with the organization SheWrites, an online community of 15,000 writers, to travel around the country giving lectures on how to self-publish successfully. She has a list of those events on her website. She's also doing webinars on different aspects of the publishing process ("Basically I share everything I've learned along my own publishing journey!"), which can be purchased through her website. I'm very pleased she's giving all of these lectures and webinars. Every time I've heard her speak, I've found her words very encouraging, her energy contagious, and her advice -- especially in publicizing and marketing -- immensely helpful.

Meet Mega Bestselling Indie Heroine Amanda Hocking

2011-01-05T11:24:22-05:00

Amanda Hocking is really something of a wunderkind. At only 26 years old, the Minnesota native has written a total of 17 novels. Since self-publishing eight of those books in April 2010, she's sold over 185,000 copies, making her indie publishing's latest star. Most of us are familiar with J.A. Konrath, who, after self-publishing several of his unpublished novels in ebook form and realizing how much more money he could make on his own than with a traditional publisher, became indie publishing's most vocal champion. But many are quick to point out that Konrath had already been traditionally published when he decided to self-publish, so he already had an established fan base. Hocking, on the other hand, was an unknown, until April 2010.

Here is my interview with Ms. Hocking.

TP: You write a couple of bestselling series - young adult paranormal romance and urban fantasy. Can you give us an overview of those series, what they're about and their themes?

AH: I have three series out now - My Blood Approves is the first one I released, and it's about vampires in Minneapolis. There are four books in that series, plus a novella. My other series, the Trylle Trilogy, has the first two books out now, with the third book coming out soon, and that's my best selling series. Hollowland is the only book I have out now in a series about zombies. This one has a really tough heroine, but it's still romance-y.

TP: You began self-publishing these series in April 2010, correct? How many copies have you sold at this point?

AH: As of Tuesday, January 04, 2011 at 9 PM, I've sold over 185,000 books since April 15, 2010.

TP: And are the sales a combination of ebooks and print books?

AH: Yes, they are, but the majority is ebooks through Amazon and Barnes & Noble. I've sold about 2,000 paperbacks since October, and prior to October, I sold maybe 20-50 paperbacks.

TP: Where all are your books available?

AH: All eight of my books are available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Several of them are available at the iBookstore and Sony ereader stores, but I have to upload them through Smashwords there, so it takes longer to get them uploaded there. All my paperbacks are available through Amazon only.

TP: How long did it take for sales to really take off?

AH: I published to Kindle in April, and I haven't sold less than 1,000 books a month since May. So my sales took off somewhat quickly. They didn't really start to explode until November. I published the second book in my Trylle Trilogy mid-November, and my sales really began to take off after that.

TP: When did you begin writing, and what inspired you to become a writer?

AH: I was always writing. When I was a little kid, before I learned how to write, I would tell stories. But as soon I as capable, I started writing. I filled notebooks and notebooks until I got my first computer when I was 11. It never really occurred to me that I would do anything else.

TP: Who are your favorite writers, or filmmakers or artists, or anyone else who inspires your writing?

AH: I think I draw most inspiration from writers like Richelle Mead and filmmakers like John Hughes. They both really understand the experience of being a teenager and how insistent and intense everything feels, but they're also smart, savvy, and fun.

TP: Have you been published before or done any previous writing, or is this your first experience being published?

AH: This is my first experience being published. I did publish books through Lulu prior to going to Kindle in April, but I sold zero copies. I did it so I could get copies of my books for my mother to read, but I didn't think self-publishing was a viable option. The first I ever sold a copy of anything I'd written was in April 2010.

TP: Do you have any "training" as a writer? Did you take any workshops or college classes?

AH: I've taken every writing class I've had available. I took classes in high school, and I took English and writing classes in community college, but I dropped out of college. I also attended a local writing workshop two years ago.

TP: What made you decide to self-publish? Did you try to go the traditional route at all or did you know from the get-go you wanted to be an indie?

AH: I tried to be traditionally published for about eight years. For years, I've listened to a lot of indie music and watched a lot of indie films. In high school, I was obsessed with IFC. But when it came to writing, I never thought it would possible to go that way.

Everything I'd heard about self-publishing is that it was impossible to make a living, reach readers, or produce a quality product. But last year, I heard about how some other authors like Joe Konrath and Karen McQuestion are doing well with ebooks. So I thought that I had nothing to lose. I'd written about 12 books when I decided to self-publish, and I thought it would be better than them sitting on my computer. Worst case scenario, nobody would read them, and that's what was happening anyway.

TP: You're so young and you have such an extensive body of work already! What is your daily writing routine?

AH: I don't really have one, haha. I haven't exactly figured out how to get into a writing routine yet. I've always kind of wrote when I wanted to. Once I get the idea in my head and get it outlined out, I usually just sit and write until it's done.

So much has happened so quickly, it's really hard for me to have established a routine yet. Most of my day is spent on the computer, though.

TP: Do you have a day job, or did you have a day job before you became a bestselling author? Or did you start writing right out of school?

AH: I worked full-time in group homes for people with disabilities for the past five and a half years, so the majority of my writing was done then. In high school and right out of high school, I worked as a dishwasher, and then I went to work at the group home. I always wrote in my spare time, but I had to pay the bills, so I had to keep my day job. Until August 2010. That's the first time I made enough money off my writing that I didn't need to work anymore, so I've been writing full-time since then.

TP: What has been your strategy for marketing and publicizing your books?

AH: I didn't really have a strategy. I think one of the advantages I have is that stuff considered marketing is stuff that I do a lot anyway. I've been active on social networks and blogs for years.
I also send ARCs [advance review copies] out to book bloggers. Book bloggers are a really amazing community, and they've been tremendously supportive. They've definitely been a major force that got my books on the map.

When I first published, I did do a bit of promoting on the Amazon forums, but they're not really open to that, so I haven't really interacted there much at all in months. I hang out Goodreads, Kindleboards, Facebook, Twitter, and I blog. And that's about it.

TP: How do you handle the editing? Do you hire your own editor or do you use beta readers?

AH: I'll be honest - when I first started publishing in April, I thought my editing was fine. The first book I published - My Blood Approves - had been read by me about fifty times and also read and edited by about twenty other people. So I thought that all the grammar errors would be taken care of. But I was wrong.

Since then, I've tried to utilize beta readers and hire people. But so far, people are still finding errors. It's not from lack of effort on my part, though.

I am now looking for a professional editor - as in the kind I would get if my book were to go through a publishing house. What I find most frustrating about editing and being indie is that everything else I can do myself. Writing, covers, marketing, etc. But I cannot edit properly myself. It's just not possible.

TP: You're now published by a traditional publisher in at least one European country, right? Have any of your books been released there yet?

AH: I haven't been published yet. I've had some offers and some deals made, but the books haven't officially been printed or put on the shelves yet. I am really interested to see how it all goes when it's done.

TP: You're now represented by a literary agent, correct?

AH: Yes, I am represented by Steve Axelrod. He became my agent in August, after I'd been approached by foreign publishers.

TP: What are your publishing goals at this point? Do you want to continue self-publishing here in the U.S. while your agent works on selling the foreign rights to your books?

AH: I don't know what my goals are right now. Everything has already far surpassed my original goals, and it's hard for me to figure out what can happen next. I do plan to continue self-publishing, but I'm not turning my back to traditional publishing.

As amazing as this ebook revolution has been, it's still only 20-30% of the market, and I'm not going to ignore the possibilities to reach the other 70-80% of readers. However, it is hard to compete with what my books are already able to do with Kindle and PubIt.

TP: What are you working on now; do you have any soon-to-be-released books?

AH: The third and final book in the Trylle Trilogy will be out very soon (before January 15th). But that's the only thing I know for sure right now. It's really hard for me to set release dates, because I can publish whenever books are ready. So it just depends on how long they take to get ready. But I have many more projects I'm working on.

TP: What has been your most memorable experience in publishing so far? An early review or fan letter, getting contacted by the European publishing house?

AH: I've gotten several emails from wives and mothers whose husbands are gone because they're soldiers and marines. Those ones I think really strike me the most. These people are sacrificing so much, and they're using something I wrote to escape for a minute. And that really puts the pressure on me to put out something that's worthy.

TP: What advice do you have for aspiring authors?

AH: Write a lot, but read even more. Learn to be open to criticism. And research as much as you can before making a decision about where you want to see your writing career. The internet is filled with information that will help you become a better writer and make better decisions about publishing.

For more information on Ms. Hocking's books, visit her website, or her author pages on Amazon and Smashwords. Her books are also available at Barnes & Noble.

Dancing With the Stars Season 11 Premiere: Surprised At How Much I Liked Bristol Palin

2010-09-21T11:41:35-04:00

Wow, I was really surprised at how much I liked Bristol Palin last night. She seemed so sweet and shy and lacking in self-confidence -- not at all what I was expecting (a smaller version of her mother). I can't believe I'm saying this, but after the first show, I'm finding myself rooting for her. I'm usually partial to the person who, at the start of the show, seems unconfident but hard-working, probably because it reminds me of myself. But she seems to have a smidgen of talent as well -- a natural sense of movement ability and musicality. Anyway, here are my thoughts on last night's season premiere:

Audrina Patridge and Tony Dovolani, Cha Cha: I thought this was generally decent to good, if not anything spectacular. She had no turnout, which always bothers me in Latin. And she lifted her feet off the floor too often; you're supposed to trace the floor with your toe in Latin with every step you take. She looked nervous and it looked like she was trying hard to concentrate and remember her steps. But that's totally normal for a first-timer. I think she'll do okay once she gets over the nerves. This was just the first week. I think she can definitely improve. She received a 19, which I thought was a pretty low score for the judges' high praises.

Kurt Warner and Anna Trebunskaya, Viennese Waltz: Aw, sweet how he glided over and kissed his wife at the end of that. Well, compared to those really pretty bad rumba and Argentine tango walks in his practice sessions, his VW was really quite nice. He had decent shaping in his upper body, he had a certain debonair (as Carrie Ann said) quality about his whole body movement, and he was a good partner for her and made her look good. He jumped a little in some of those pivot turns, but overall, he did far better than I was expecting. He's not a natural though and if he doesn't work hard, he's going to be out early on, but I do think if he got the waltz looking as polished as it did after those not so graceful looking practice sessions, then he can work hard and do well. He got a 19 as well.

Kyle Massey and Lacey Schwimmer, Cha Cha: I didn't know anything about this guy before the show and I found myself really falling for his personality! He's so sweet! And I loved that Cha Cha -- as did the audience apparently. He doesn't have dance training because his feet weren't turned out and his hip motion wasn't proper, but he totally has a natural sense of rhythm and he's willing to do anything and really go over the top, and wow, he can just really move! And they work well together because she's a goof too. Carrie Ann calls him her first season crush, and I completely feel her. His score was 23.

Rick Fox and Cheryl Burke, Viennese Waltz. Cheryl's got another tall, tall athlete. Why don't they give her people more her size? They seem to like to pair her with tall guys and guys who seem to have a real shot at the trophy. I mean, wow, that dance was polished and beautiful and romantic and charming and sensual and dreamy and gorgeous and elegant and just -- perfect, imo. I'm kind of shocked -- I hadn't expected that of him. That really stole my heart. And there were no height problems whatsoever; somehow his posture was absolutely stunning and he maintained ideal contact with her in the martini glass frame. That kind of dancing is what made me fall in love with ballroom in the first place -- it brought me back to the first time I walked into the Marriott Marquis at the Brooklyn Bridge during the Manhattan Dancesport Championship and just knew I had to be a part of that world ... He got a 22.

Margaret Cho and Louis Van Amstel, Viennese Waltz: Hehe, I loved when she said that when she signed up for this she thought she'd be putting on pretty dresses and dancing; she didn 't realize she was signing up for therapy. Learning to dance ballroom as an adult can end up like a series of therapy sessions, for better or worse ... Well, I wasn't sure exactly what they were having her do with that cape. I thought she did pretty well with the steps, but it was obvious they were trying to have her be comically vicious and nutty and all -- it was obvious to me she intentionally got all twisted up in the cape. I didn't think they needed the theatrics here. She seemed to be able to hold her own with the actual dancing. And I agree with Len that the Viennese Waltz wasn't a really good dance to try all the comedics with. I can see those tricks working much better with the Paso Doble though. Judges gave them a too-low (imo) 15.

Brandy and Maksim Chmerkovksiy, Viennese Waltz: Overall, she looked lovely. I thought they looked very good in closed position. She had good shaping and kept up with the footwork. I didn't like it as much when they opened out into open position. I wasn't in love with her arms. It seemed like she kept throwing them up and out with too much vigor. It didn't look like she finished the line. It also looked like she didn't have the spotting on the turns completely down and was getting a bit dizzy. Those turns are hard, though, especially when done in such quick succession like that. I think Maks believed in her capabilities and really pushed her. She does have a natural talent for dance and I think she'll go far in this competition. Her score was a 28.

Bristol Palin and Mark Ballas, Cha Cha: As I said above, I loved it! And I loved her! She seems really sweet and shy, like a regular girl who didn't ask for all the attention she gotten over the past few years. She was nervous, like anyone who's not a natural performer would be, but she was really good with the rhythm. Her hips were working really well, even though you can tell she felt uncomfortable. She had a hard time getting the steps down -- she forgot a few, and was looking down at her feet a bit, which can really put you off balance. But wow, I thought she had a natural talent. She had really good leg lines. She kept her legs straight, which a lot of newbies don't do in Cha Cha, and then it results in a sloppy look. With good training, I honestly think she could go far. I found myself for the first time ever getting slightly annoyed at Mark for being his usual show-off. I wanted to focus on her. Her scores were a too-low 18.

Florence Henderson and Corky Ballas, Cha Cha: That was cute. I mean, I don't have much else to say. I really like Corky so I hope she doesn't leave too early. I don't think she will just because of who she is. But to me she was reminiscent of Buzz Aldrin, Cloris Leachman. She is better than they were though, just nothing spectacular. And she got the steps right, no flubs. Judges gave her an 18.

Michael Bolton and Chelsie Hightower, Viennese Waltz. I thought he was fine. He was actually pretty good, especially his posture, since his frame was so hunched over during practice. He looked a little unsure of himself, and flubbed a step or two, and looked a little unbalanced. He also didn't really have the rise and fall down; he was too jumpy, which I think results from wrongly making every step into a rise. But it's only the first night; I think he can do better with more practice. He got a 16.

The Situation and Karina Smirnoff, Cha Cha. Ha, I don't think I've ever laughed so hard at someone's practice session! What a joker. Really making fun of himself, and, yeah, his mistakes were pretty funny. He didn't have the form down at all, but he was so much fun, and he has rhythm and a natural movement ability. Those knee wobbles and shoulder shimmies were really pretty good. And he had a section of really fast cha chas that were very well done. He definitely has potential. He is one of my early favorites if mainly because he makes me laugh. He got a 15 from the judges.

Jennifer Grey and Derek Hough, Viennese Waltz. That was really good. It's interesting though -- because it seemed she did some of the harder things better than some of the easier. She did all of her many turns beautifully, and the arabesque was lovely, and she had a really beautiful frame that she maintained throughout during all of that dancing in closed position. But then some in-between steps just looked a bit awkward, like it seemed like she was on the wrong foot when she went to arch back at one point, and she couldn't arch as far. Anyway, it was really lovely and I'll be excited to see her go further and see what more she can do. She got a 24, the highest score of the night.

David Hasselhoff and Kym Johnson, Cha Cha. Well, he seemed to have fun, but he doesn't have a natural sense of rhythm or musicality and he seems to have a hard time learning steps. So I'm not sure how far he's going to go here. Len cracked me up with his, "It's never too early to panic." Judges gave him a 15.

So, that leaves David, Margaret, and The Situation in the judges' bottom three, two of whom, problematic routines aside, I really enjoyed watching. But, as we all know, the judges' scores don't always mean that much. What do you all think? Any early favorites?

So You Think You Can Dance Finale

2010-08-12T13:07:53-04:00

I can't believe we're already at the finale. Some of those scenes from the season recap that they showed at the beginning of last night's show -- like Alex's injury -- seemed like they just happened.

So, first on: a Nakul Dev Mahajan Bollywood routine for Kent and Lauren (the all-star Lauren). This dance was a lot of fun, really high energy and Kent definitely delivered. He really camped it up, which was appropriate here. But what I felt was lacking was his styling. He didn't pay much attention to his hands, to the shapes he was making and the way he was ending his lines, so it didn't have that complete Bollywood look to me. Lauren did much better in that regard. At the end, for the ending pose, Kent did have the perfect shaping with his hands, with the splayed fingers and the bent wrists. I just wish he'd have had that throughout. Also, those spins -- both single-footed and on the knees -- didn't quite look that polished. The judges loved him though and had no criticisms whatsoever.

Next on were Lauren and Twitch dancing a Tabitha and Napoleon hip hop. Cute concept! They're both politicians starting out at podiums as if making speeches, and then they come out from behind them and have their little battle. As for the dancing, I thought he outshone her, which is to be expected since this is his style. His movement was just so much more solid. It also could be that he had better choreography, though. He had some slides and some fast fancy footwork to that drum segment. The choreographers didn't give her all that. They gave her a gymnastic flip sequence instead. Which was fine, but as far as hip hop goes, he was just the better mover here.

Next on were Robert and Mark dancing a Tyce Diorio jazz routine, to Devo's "Whip It." I used to love that song! Wow, Robert really comes to life with jazz! I loved this dance for him -- thus far it was my favorite of the night. He really outshone Mark. He just really had the funk down, really rocked it, was very rhythmic, and he really danced with so much more expansiveness than Mark -- some of those jumps were huge. Even his steps, his side-to-side movement, his deep plies -- his movement just had far more breadth than Mark's. Mark did his typical, intriguingly bizarre schtick, which worked well with the Devo music, but wow, I just thought Robert moved so well.

The first solo was by Kent. I thought it was pretty good, but not perfect. He seemed almost to lose balance on his pirouettes, and his form wasn't always perfect -- his feet didn't appear to be perfectly pointed in his jump, and one leg seemed higher than the other. I feel like I'm being very nit-picky though!

Next, Lauren and Robert danced a Dee Caspary contemporary routine. This routine was nice, but as a whole was a bit too spastic to me; there were no slow moments, and I think there needed to be some here. Anyway, very good dancing. I still like Robert better in jazz routines though. He moves well in contemporary but his body just looks better doing jazz. To me, I think he's just always going to look like he's sticking his rump out in contemporary for some reason. There's certainly nothing wrong with being a natural jazz dancer though. He can totally have a career on Broadway. Lauren danced beautifully. I love how much expression she can make with her body. I loved when he pulled her up from a pretty deep back arch, and she came up so fluidly, like her spine straightened vertebra by vertebra. I wish that would have been a bit slower; I feel like that would have been so much more stunning, seeing her move that slowly.

Next were Kent and Lauren dancing a Mandy Moore jazz routine. Hmmm. The routine itself didn't impress me much. The choreography wasn't all that interesting, or, as Nigel put it, challenging. They did fine with it though. It was cute and fun. They did what was expected of them. It just wasn't anything near earth-shattering as a dance. Sometimes I feel for the dance-makers. They're expected to come up with dance upon dance in a short amount of time, and they're artists. Sometimes they probably just can't find the inspiration.

The second solo is Robert's, which I found very impressive. It was kind of a modern dance with a few hip hop elements thrown in here and there, like the isolations. I think he knows what works well for him. He's not a lyrical modern dancer, but excels more at jazz, or jazz funk.

Next on were Kent and Allison dancing a contemporary Stacey Tookey routine. I thought this was Kent's best performance of the night. All of the problems I saw earlier were completely gone. He had great form throughout -- the jumps, the turns, the kicks, even on the floor when he was on his back, and he pulled himself up from his center, out of that deep backbend. And he was emotionally so on in that piece. I really believed he was beleaguered by Allison's character. He really took me with him into that character's world. And the judges were right: That's what a true artist does.

Lauren is the last soloist, and her solo really made me want her to win. It reminded me of her Aretha Franklin solo earlier in the season, though it wasn't danced to that same music. She has so much soul when she dances her solos. She is like a diva of dance.

Next was a Spencer Liff Broadway routine danced by Robert and Kathryn. Now this dance became my favorite of the night. Robert delivered in my two favorite dances of the night. He hasn't been my favorite throughout the season, but I won't be upset if he wins. The music is "Cool" from West Side Story, although the characters and set-up are different. Robert's character was a businessman trying not to give in to the seductive businesswoman, Kathryn. Robert was just excellent! He is such a Broadway jazz dancer. Every beat he just nailed. I wholly disagree with Mia that he danced it too fast and sharp and it didn't have enough simmer. I loved it danced this way. His movement was sexy sharp. Yet he made it clear how internally torn his character was and how he was trying not to give in to her. He was simmering to me!

Finally, a ballroom routine! Lauren dances a Melanie LaPatin and Tony Meredith-choreographed cha cha with Pasha. She did pretty well with this. I think when she just lets loose and has fun with something, it comes out better than when she tries to play a "man-eater." Pasha still outshone her, but that's to be expected. I think she looked really good with him. At parts it looked a bit hip hop-ish and at parts even kind of stripper-like, like something a pole dancer might do -- with the butt bumps 'n grinds, for example. But it seemed to be the way it was choreographed, and the music wasn't a typical cha cha, so those weren't shortcomings; Lauren did what the choreographers called for.

And the final routine was a dance new to the show -- a "Malevos" for Kent and Robert. A "Malevos," we're told, is a tango-style dance for two men, battle-like, and the way it looked, kind of gangster-ish. This was fun, different. But I can only imagine how much better it would have looked with real tango dancers, or trained ballroom dancers. I felt like Robert and Kent tried as hard as they could with it. But it looked too lyrical, too fluid, too jazzy to me. It wasn't precise and sharp enough. Those gauchos, both wrapping their legs around each others' and crossing one leg over the other -- the legwork in general: The precision just wasn't there, and none of that looked completely right. And the height difference between the two was difficult, particularly for Robert. When he had his hands on Kent's shoulders, he was awkwardly bent over, and then his legwork looked unstable and a bit sloppy, like he was on the verge of falling over. It wasn't something he could help though, because Kent was so much smaller than he and he had to hunch over and lose his posture. Again, I think they did as well as they could.

Overall, that was a fine finale. Not one of the best on this show, but it was good. Kent had a beautiful performance in his contemporary routine, Robert nailed the jazz and Broadway numbers, and Lauren is just the diva of soul with her solos. I usually have a strong favorite, but tonight I'm going to be happy for whoever wins.

There's been a lot of criticism of the show's new format -- I know some of you have said you didn't like it (the pairing of the contestants each week with a returning all-star) - and the show has apparently lost some viewers this season. I'm still not sure what to think. At first I loved the new format because it meant we'd get to see great dancing each week, since at least one half of each duet would be danced by someone who excels in that style. But now I'm seeing what some of you are saying, because I do think very often the returning all-stars outshone their contestant partner. And that often made me so critical of the contestant, which made me not want to root for anyone very strongly. I think it's what made me not feel very invested in any of this season's dancers. Except Alex Wong. Maybe a lot of viewers were exposed to someone of such excellence, they just got depressed when he was injured and then lost interest in the show. Anyway, I don't know what they're planning for next season, but I do think they should at least have all-stars dancers on the results shows. They only did that a couple of times this season; it wasn't consistent. This show is about dance, and there are too many musical performances on the results shows. If they returned to the previous format for competition nights, and then used the results shows to showcase a combination of returning all-stars and star dancers from around the world -- and they did that every week, not just once in a while -- then I think that would make for a better show.

So You Think You Can Dance Semi-Final

2010-08-05T10:56:45-04:00

So, we're only one week away from the final. This season really went fast.

Last night's semi began with a group dance to a Tyce Diorio Broadway number set to Guys and Dolls. I thought this was pretty fun though it didn't really blow me away. Lauren stood out the most to me; she had really beautiful form throughout and danced with a lot of spark, as usual. Kent's backflips were a trip. The other two were fine but didn't stand out to me as much.

First on was Lauren dancing an Argentine tango with Pasha. I thought this was really beautiful and romantic. I loved it. I thought her leg lines were gorgeous, I loved how she danced high on the balls of her feet, on releve, throughout, I loved how almost balletic it looked. I really love balletic-looking Argentine tangos. I think it's the most ballet-like of all of the ballroom dances, and I feel like she understood that and drew that out, via her contemporary training. I totally agree with what Tyce said, about how the silences here were golden and she really worked those to their fullest, made them say so much.

Next was Adechicke dancing African jazz with Lauren. I thought he did well with this. In places he really looked like an African dancer. And I love how fluid he looked, with his arms like waves, moving so fast they were almost a blur, but still with good form and shaping. I think Nigel was right by noticing that his back is very straight, and not quite flexible enough for African. But he is a contemporary dancer and that's how contemporary dancers are trained. He didn't look quite like Alvin Ailey's Antonio Douthit (my favorite dancer in that company, who seems somehow to be able to dance balletic modern and African with equal ease) but I thought Adechicke looked really really good for someone who's not quite at the Alvin Ailey level (as, come on, no one is on the show). I thought the judges were too harsh on him, compared to the others.

Fun to see Jonathan Roberts on this show! I love how, in choreographing Robert and Anya's Viennese waltz he told them, "You screw up, you're screwed." So true! One wrong step and you and your partner are both going down! I thought this was really lovely and that Robert did pretty well with it. His movement was good, he had the proper rise and fall, he really glided over that floor. And he had a nice romantic touch as a partner. He wasn't just in it for himself, but really cared her -- about lifting her right, making it all about her. Which is how ballroom is supposed to be! To be sure, he still did have that contemporary look rather than classic ballroom. But I thought he did very very well for it not being the style he's trained in.

Next on was Kent doing a disco with Courtney. Courtney is the disco queen -- they're always using her now for these disco numbers! Well, honestly, this was one of the most boring discos I've seen on the show. And I love Doriana Sanchez. I think she might have lightened it up for him because there were a couple of lifts but not her usual number, as Nigel recognized. And that last lift with him spinning around and around with her wrapped around his shoulders, looked rather sloppy and actually kind of frightening. That's not easy, especially if you're not that strong on top. And for some reason they don't spot when they turn like that in disco, which seems like a recipe for losing your balance. And with the girl over your head like that. I would have been a little scared if I was Courtney. First lift though was pretty good. And Kent's solo parts of this were excellent -- that multiple pirouette -- really good form and really polished. You can tell he has solid training. But this dance, as a disco, just wasn't all there for me and it showed his weaknesses.

Next Lauren danced jazz with Ade. Wow, that was really acrobatic, and it really showed her flexibility. I thought she really sizzled. She really got all of those lines right -- that one lift that Nigel pointed out with the upside-down splits and the flexed feet. She made really excellent shapes. I agree with Tyce that she could have been a little more ferocious. She was supposed to be a black widow and I didn't completely see that. And the sexual chemistry was a bit lacking, as Mia said. But I still thought it was very good. I so hope she makes it to the finals because the finals are going to be boring without her.

Oh so cool that Adechicke got a routine choreographed especially for him by his dance idol, Desmond Richardson, and his Complexions partner Dwight Rhoden. He danced this contemporary routine with Kathryn. This was a lot of fun. Fast, fun, American, full of youthful romance. Very Jon Bon Jovi-like. Kathryn was splendid. As for Adechicke: I think he has serious potential. But I don't think he's quite there yet. In thinking of how Desmond Richardson would have done that, it just fell short for me. Desmond just has this insane precision, and absolute perfection of line. And Adechicke was lacking both. But of course how can you compare someone at Adechicke's level to someone who's at the height of both his physicality and artistry like Desmond? You just can't. It takes a lot of time, and a real dance maturity that comes with years and years of experience, to develop that. So he needs to keep working, keep trying, keep growing. I really want to root for him! Especially after he got so emotional about being able to take training from his hero, and about being from Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, a rough neighborhood where being a male dancer is not taken so well.

Then, Robert danced a hip hop with Dominic. Well, I really enjoyed watching Dominic in this. I disagree with the judges about Robert though. I felt like Robert did everything properly, he got all the movement down, he didn't miss a beat. But Dominic just so out-performed him. Dominic had the swagger, the bravado, the weightiness, he just had the whole hip hop package. I just thought Robert looked too contemporary, which is what he does of course. But unlike with standard ballroom, hip hop can look really wrong if danced in too contemporary a way. To me, it just didn't look completely right.

And the show ended with Kent and Neil doing a Travis Wall contemporary piece. Another very sweet routine from Travis Wall, about a younger boy's trying to get over being stabbed in the back by the older boy. Kent acted this perfectly - it really actually left me with an emptiness in my stomach. And his dancing was very good as well. As was Neil's. It was stunning when Neil, in kind of tossing Kent aside, really threw him pretty high in the air. Kent really went sailing, and he landed very solidly. To me, Neil has more beautiful lines, but that's a subjective thing. Kent did very well and, because he has such strong technique and he really brought the story to life with his acting, Neil didn't end up outshining him.

Overall, I think all four of them have strong potential. But my favorite is still Lauren. I really hope she got enough votes last night to go on to the final.

By the way, just wanted to make sure you guys saw my interview earlier this week with tWitch! Such a genuinely sweet guy!

Interview with tWitch Boss About His First Big Film Role in Step Up 3D

2010-08-02T10:13:35-04:00

Tonight is the Los Angeles premiere of Step Up 3D, the very first 3D dance movie. Last night, I was able to chat a bit by phone with tWitch Boss, So You Think You Can Dance all-star and now soon to be movie star as well! We spoke about his work in the film, how he prepared for it, how it was different from his work on SYTYCD, and what he envisions for his future.

HuffPo: Hi, how are you?

TwitchBoss: I'm very good, things are all right.

HP: So, your new movie Step Up 3D comes out this week. What is your role?

TB: Well, my character's name is Jason. He's a comic book nerd and he's a fool for gadgets and stuff like that. He has his own lab. He's pretty beef in there; he's a very excitable guy. He loves kicking it with his crew and to battle in dance. And that's something I can totally relate to. He's a freestyler.

HP: And this is an acting part right?

TB: Yes, it is.

HP: Oh cool.

TB: Very exciting. I'm very excited.

HP: It's your first acting part, right?

TB: Right. Absolutely.

HP: I mean, you were in Blades of Glory and Hairspray but those weren't acting roles. Just dancing.

TB: Laughs. Yeah, just dancing. In Blades of Glory, I was running around in a tutu. Laughs some more.

HP: Oh how funny, I'll have to see that!

TB: No, no, I mean, you really don't have to! More laughter.

HP: Well, okay. More laughter. And so you auditioned twice for Step Up 3D? Once for the dance part and once for the acting part?

TB: Yes, I did. The dance audition was first. I went in and did that. I had a blast doing that. That was one of the most high energy auditions. There's a couple of auditions that pass through LA a couple times a year where you get a lot of dancers that go out and sometimes get a little pushy and competitive. But this time everybody was just amped and ready to dance and ready to go. It was a great, great dance experience.

Afterward I asked (producer) Adam Shankman and (director) Jon Chu if maybe somehow I could come in and read for a part or something like that. I kind of hounded them, my manager kind of got on the ground. We came up with ways to keep kind of putting it in their ear to see if I could at least come in and read. And I finally got that opportunity, and I guess it worked out, you know.

HP: Did you find the acting part stressful?

TB: You know, I don't want to say stressful, it was just new. Acting is very different than dancing. Of course I felt so much more comfortable with dancing at first. But the whole process of acting is absolutely incredible. It's a process I respect and love, actually. So, you know, it wasn't stressful, it was work, and it was a learning experience.

HP: How did you train for the acting part?

TB: I had an acting coach, named Mary Kegley. She worked with me very closely.

HP: Had you taken any acting classes in school? Didn't you go to a dance school for college?

TB: I mean, I went to a university that had a dance program, yes. But it wasn't specifically a dance school. So, I did go to college and major in dance. But acting is fairly new to me. I had an introduction to acting class for dancers there, I've had those classes here and there throughout my life. So it wasn't something that was completely foreign to me, you know, learning lines and stuff like that. But actually doing it the real deal, doing it on film, that was the new part.

HP: So you've now worked in film, TV and on stage. Which do you like best?

TB: You know what? I kind of have my favorite part of each one. TV happens so quickly, you get to see the results and study them and learn from what you did on TV a lot quicker than you will on film. But I mean film, I love the quality of film, and the anticipation of it, the building it up to seeing the finished product is amazing. Because after the editing and the music are put in and all that stuff, it's just a whole new monster.

HP: How was the dance training for the movie in comparison to the dance training for SYTYCD?

TB: Oh, the hours are way, way different. For So You Think they had you rehearsing for hours for a number you'd have to do in a couple of days, as opposed to rehearsing for a couple of days for a number that you'd have to do in a couple of months. So, the schedule's just very different.

HP: Have you seen the movie yet?

TB: I have not seen it, not yet. I'm seeing it for the first time tomorrow.

HP: In LA? Is the premiere tomorrow?

TB: Yep, the premiere's tomorrow, in LA. My family's in, my mom, my brother came down. But one of my brothers is actually in the Army and he's wasn't able to make it down for the premiere. But man, just sending love out to him because he's out there holding down the country.

HP: Is he in Iraq?

TB: No, actually he's training in New Mexico before he's deployed.

HP: Oh wow.

I also wanted to ask about the choreography in this, in Step Up 3D. I read that it was choreographed specifically to be shown in 3D. So I was wondering if it was a lot different in that way from what you've done.

TB: Right, certain aspects. I mean, you know, not the entire thing. There were definitely a couple of different eight counts that were made specifically for a 3D effect, but the dancing was still definitely raw, still battle style, battle mentality. But there were some shots where we definitely had to hit our mark for that 3D effect.

HP: Oh cool. I can't wait to see it.

TB: Me too. Laughs.

HP: Do you want to do more acting? Even pure acting, non-dance parts?

TB: Oh absolutely. That's actually what I'm striving for. I will do more acting but away from dance parts. As far as the dancing goes, I love to perform, I love to get down, but my passion lies in education and in teaching. I teach hip hop to kids, and I teach hip hop workshops and stuff like that. So in the near future, I will still teach and stuff like that. But I'm definitely striving for and trying to make a name for myself in acting.

HP: Are there any filmmakers or directors you really want to work with?

TB: Ah, let's see. Laughs. There's a bunch actually. I'd love love love to work with M. Night Shyamalan because his entire mind, is just ridiculous. Just ridiculous! And I'd love to be in some action movies. I want to be a superhero and I want to run and jump from building to building. More laughing.

HP: So, back to dance for a minute. What initially made you fall in love with dance?

TB: Oh I mean, looking back on it, I think I've always really been in love with it. I was the kid that during spare time at home with friends, I was always like, 'let's make up a dance routine real quick.' Laughs. I don't even know why, but I just would. I'd see my family just dancing around the house, not professional-like, just dancing around house. We always loved to just jam out to music. I tried out for my high school dance team my senior year, and that's when I really fell in love with the entire idea of making a career out of show business.

HP: Did you ever foresee that you would become a professional dancer or was it just like for fun at first?

TB: Yeah, of course. I mean it was definitely fun. As a kid there were a couple of theater workshops that they'd do during the summer. I'm from Montgomery, Alabama, and so the arts aren't that heavy there. So during the summer, they have the summer arts program where the kids will come for a month, and learn all kinds of different performing arts, you know, like acting and singing. From that program I realized I loved to be onstage. So the dancing kind of came afterward. It was something that I really did pick up naturally and that I really loved to do.

HP: And what do you love about hip hop in particular?

TB: Oh, it's just the lifestyle. Hip hop is more than just a style of dance. It's an entire lifestyle, you know, an entire history, and an entire culture.

HP: Are there other choreographers you'd like to work with?

TB: I haven't worked with Kenny Ortega yet, but he's more into directing now than choreographing. But yeah, Kenny Ortega, that would be amazing. And though you know, even though he's passed on, it would be so amazing to work with Gene Kelly. Awwww. He's just, he's the man.

HP: Which dancers have inspired you?

TB: Oh all the classics. Bob Fosse, Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire. And on up a generation: Michael Jackson. And some of the guys in - I don't know if you've heard of these movies - but Breakin', Breakgin' 2 Electric Boogaloo. There are these movies that happened in the 80s and I happened to run upon those in the rental store and I promise you I probably rented them every week when I was a kid. Laughs.

HP: I read that you have your own production company now.

TB: Yes, ExperiMENTAL Industries. It's for producing movies and shows. It's a whole production company. It's a good time.

HP: So, would you want to work behind the camera too?- As a filmmaker?

TB: Not so much filmmaking. I really enjoy the creative process, but I'll leave it to filmmakers to make the films. But being behind it, putting on the shows and producing - absolutely. To get involved conceptually - absolutely. But I mean, to get behind the camera and actually set up the shots - naaa, I don't think that's really up my alley. Laughs.

HP: Well, thank you so much for chatting. Good luck and I can't wait to see the movie!

TB: Awesome. It was great talking to you.

Step Up 3D opens nationwide on August 6th. Look for other SYTYCD alum, like Joshua Allen and Katee Shean, who appear in dance roles.

So You Think You Can Dance Week 7: Can it Be, a Week Without Injuries?

2010-07-29T12:55:06-04:00

Well, almost! Really hoping that whatever happened to Lauren that required her to see a medic at the end of last night's show is not serious. I'm beginning to feel like I'm jinxing people! Whoever I end up favoring as a possible winner gets hurt...

Anyway, onto last night's show. First Kent danced a cha cha with Anya in a Jean Marc Genereux and France routine. I thought this was very good for someone who isn't trained in that style. I didn't think it was anywhere near perfect. It looked way too jazzy, which is how contemporary dancers often look dancing Latin to me. Too loose-kneed, too fluid, and not enough sharpness, not quite enough hip action. I agree with guest judge Toni Redpath who said it was better and more grounded than he's been before. He was definitely better but it still wasn't all there. I loved what he said in response to Mia's "face" critique though: "I'm sorry, I'm trying not to do anything with my face; it just feels good to express myself and I forget." (I'm paraphrasing.)

Next Robert dances a Stacey Tookey contemporary dance with Kathryn. Wow, what a beautiful song (a slowed down version of "Heaven is a Place on Earth") and what a gorgeous routine! One of the best contemporary routines I think I've seen on the show. I loved how original some of the lifts were. That was a dangerous one where she kind of did a somersault over his shoulder. Lots of risk-taking here, both in terms of the dancing and the emotions. Honestly, I couldn't take my eyes off of her; she completely mesmerized me. I really felt for her character, having a breakdown with him going off to war. Maybe that role is more actable for the woman, the one being left, because I felt more for her than for him. I think he was good though; I think he did very well. But it's the same old same old with me - he just doesn't blow me away the way other contemporary dancers have. I like what Mia said here - let the emotions be the catalyst for the movement. Maybe that's what wasn't quite at the highest level for me. Kathryn did that; he didn't. He moved very well, but I didn't think he let the emotions act as a basis for his movement.

I really love watching Jose's solos and if he gets kicked off (and I think he may soon) that's what I'm going to miss about him. He always does something new too. I liked those traveling kind of crab-looking walks where he was flipping himself over this way and that as he moved sideways. I don't know much about b-boying but he seems very original to me.

Next are Adechicke and Courtney doing a Tyce Diorio jazz routine. This was interesting - it was like big band Cuban music that I would expect a kind of old-style Mambo Kings-era Salsa to be danced to; this dance didn't seem to go so well with it. It looked like part modern, part jazz, a little African even. And it seemed like they were dancing different styles, the two of them. I actually liked his style better. The part I loved the best was when he was inching toward her with those snaky, undulating pelvic back and forth moves. You know what I'm talking about? I loved that! And I loved how at certain points he looked like he was doing movement from Alvin Ailey choreography, especially when he'd put one bent leg behind the other and hold it there, striking a kind of weight of the world on my shoulders pose. It was just like something out of "Revelations."

Next was Lauren's solo. Whoa, another excellent solo from her! She's one of my favorites to win this. The way she'd move with speed, then slow way down to draw out the beat and the lyrics - it was perfect for that soulful Aretha Franklin song. She danced that just like Aretha Franklin sang it.

Next were Jose and Comfort dancing a hip hop choreographed by Marty Kudelka and Dana Wilson. I really loved this choreography. I found it very original, and loved the bluesy feel, loved the Otis Redding music. I really liked Comfort, again. Her movement was so much sharper and so much more pronounced than his. I thought he was good in places - like when he did those loose-hipped rolls of the pelvis back and forth and back and forth, rocking on his feet. And I loved how he came toward her at the beginning. It was like he was trying to be all full of bravado at the beginning and then just gave it up and walked toward her sans swagger and started to be all romantic. Again, I really do like him personality-wise and I think he acts the parts well, but I just don't think he's generally a tremendous dancer.

Now Billy's solo. Hmm. Well, it seemed like he was trying to do a slightly different style - like something more hip hop-like with the staccato movement, the isolations of the different body parts. I know he started his dance career with hip hop so maybe he felt comfortable going back to that. But it didn't seem to suit him. I liked the more contemporary parts -- the battemants and developpes, and the wide-legged jump. Nigel had said last time he did a solo that we already know he can do developpes so he needs to stop doing them all the time. Maybe he was trying to show Nigel he was obeying him. But that's what he does best, so why shouldn't he use his solo for what he does best?

Next was Kent's solo. Is it blues night or what? Cute solo. I have a feeling cute isn't what he was going for but that's the word that comes to mind most after watching that. He really did give it a lot of energy, he really did try to go beyond cute. Not sure he did but he gets A for effort.

Next Lauren and Allison danced a Tyce Diorio Broadway routine set to the "Damn Yankees" score. I wasn't in love with this choreography - it seems like whenever a choreographer does two routines a night, s/he really concentrates on one and then the other is lacking. I agree with Adam that Lauren is dancing like a star already. It was like watching two stars. Lauren did all those moves with such pizzazz and such perfection. I agree with the judges, nothing to critique dance-wise here.

Then it was onto Robert's solo, which I really liked. That had a lot of passion, and a range of movement I haven't often seen from him. He really can be very good.

Then Billy danced a contemporary Stacey Tookey routine with Ade. Wow, I found that really powerful, my favorite of the night. Billy's performance almost made me cry, he was so good at bringing that poor junkie to life and making him believable and so sympathetic. How happy am I that the white guy was the poor druggie in need of help and the black guy was the high-powered businessman! Both of them were amazing, but I really couldn't take my eyes off of Billy. So much emotion, so real and so heartfelt. I can't say how much I felt for his character. His dancing was splendid perfection but who cares! That wasn't even the point of it. That rivaled Alex's first routine of the season. I agree with Adam - that was art. And I love how Mia said, win or lose this competition, he's going to be a very respected artist in this industry and that's so much bigger than this one competition.

Now Adechicke's solo. Okay he has definitely studied Lester Horton technique because everything he is doing is looking very Alvin Ailey. Which I love!

Now it's on to the contestants partnering each other.

First on: Jose and Kent in a Broadway routine by Spencer Liff. Kent was pretty good in this. I think these kinds of Gene Kelly-esque, Fancy Free-esque, highly actable comedic Broadway numbers are his thing. I could really see him in a Broadway musical like this. Great acrobatics and great acting it. Jose again was good, worked hard, tried hard. But, again, his movement just didn't have that dancerly quality about it. I would love to see him perform in his own style on a stage full of other b-boys and hip hop dancers. I wish someone would choreograph a touring hip hop / b-boy show.

Next were Adechicke and Lauren in a Jean Marc Genereux and France foxtrot. Well, this was supposed to be a rather jazzy foxtrot (danced to "Fever") and I think she brought that out more. She had a lot more spark and sizzle than he did and she had much more movement in her body, especially her upper body, especially her shoulders. He was too upright, which would be proper for standard ballroom but not this American-style, loosened-up jazzy foxtrot. He danced it as a standard; she as an American style. So it looked unbalanced. I thought he did a great job partnering though - you could tell she really trusted him on those lifts, really throwing herself into them and taking a lot of risk. It's all-important to be able to trust your partner so big kudos to him for that. Anyway, in ballroom the guy is supposed to be the frame; his role is to let the woman be the picture. So, Adechicke came through on that.

And finally a Bollywood routine by Nakul Dev Mahajan for Robert and Billy. That was a lot of fun and I thought Robert really shone in this. It's funny because last week Nigel said the judges thought he wasn't growing anymore, or at least not as much as he had been, but I think the opposite. I'm finally starting to like him. I really really loved him in this. He was just so on with the styling, those hands were perfect, the kicks, the feet, the rhythmic, undulating mid-body movement. And the attitude. So there! I'm surprised; I never thought he would do Bollywood well. The jazz from last week and the Bollywood from this week are my favorites of his performances thus far on the show. Billy was fine; he didn't quite seem as precise and as full-out as Robert. Weird that I'm saying this because I usually feel the opposite about them.

So tonight there will be two eliminations. Here's hoping Lauren, due to injury, isn't one of them.

The Season of Injuries Continues: So You Think You Can Dance Week 6

2010-07-22T10:51:05-04:00

Oh no, now Billy too?! Well, at least the doctors don't seem to think his knee injury is that serious, so hopefully he'll be back to dancing next week.

First on were Lauren and Twitch in a Tabitha and Napoleon hip hop. This was fun and I thought she did quite well with it, even dancing next to Twitch. Loved those somersaults -- wow, what form she had in those and throughout! She really had the attitude down, and you can tell she worked really, really hard. Every movement was right on the beat, was totally sharp. I thought she actually stood out more than Twitch, which is saying a lot with a hip hop routine.

Next were Jose and Allison in a contemporary routine by Sonya Tayeh. Well, Allison is really blowing me away this season. That was SO Sonya Tayeh; she danced that perfectly. As for Jose, I thought it was clear he worked really hard and this was actually so much better than he did with anything last week. He acted it very well. But I think the judges were right on about Tayeh giving him a more amateur role based on gesture than a technique-based one. He just didn't have Allison's form at all. It was supposed to be about two people not sure about each other, then sure and in love, then kind of falling back into not being so sure again -- like the stages or layers of a relationship. With Allison I got that; with Jose I didn't so much. The movement was supposed to be fast and passionate, then slow and unsure, then fast and passionate again, then slow and unsure again. And his stops and starts weren't sharp and powerful enough. Also, a recurring motif for his character seemed to be his using his hand to push his head toward her, like he had to force himself to look at her at points, and then look away. And someone like Mark Kanemura would have made that so much more clear. But it wasn't really clear from Jose that that's what was going on.

Next, Robert danced a Tyce Diorio jazz routine with Lauren. I think this is the best I've ever seen from Robert. And not because it was sexy and he licked her leg! (Everyone in the audience screamed at that part -- hilarious!) I think I liked it so much because this didn't require a lot of expansive movement as in the contemporary routines he's done, and so what normally bothers me about him wasn't present here. Instead, he moved so well, so fluidly, but all the same made the perfect jazz lines, and hit every beat right on. It had a lot of soul. Good for him!

Adechicke had the first solo of the night. I liked it but it didn't really blow me away. I feel like the jeans might have restricted his movement a bit. The sequence of turning jumps was nice; I've just seen that kind of thing done so much more magnificently.

Next, Kent and Kathryn danced a Sonya Tayeh jazz number. I thought he did pretty well in this. I didn't like this routine overall as well as Sonya's other one -- this one was more basic and less original, but Kent danced it well. His movement was fluid, his jumps were high and energetic, his handspring over her was stunning, his form was excellent -- his arabesque in attitude -- overall, really good form.

Then was Robert's solo, which I thought was pretty good. Maybe he dances with more breadth -- longer leg lines, fuller shapes, more weighty jumps - in his solos? Because I don't see that same kind of movement at all in his partnered routines.

Lauren's solo was one of my favorites of the night. It had everything - loads of energy, intensity, spark, passion, range. I loved it. I think after Billy, she may be my favorite.

Next was Adechicke dancing a Tabitha and Napoleon hip hop routine with Comfort. Wow, my favorite routine of the night, and I'm really not much of a hip hop fan! Both of them just nailed that, both passion-wise and movement-wise. I mean that was so intense. It was about a relationship gone bad, the woman deciding to leave the man, and I so felt her immense frustration at him, and his at her, and all that anger, and his desire to keep her there. And that stomping on the ground that was both stylized dance but also real and human and conveyed so much meaning. I usually think of hip hop as fun and funk but not so expressive of narrative and emotional depth.

Next on was Jose's solo, and, again, he blew me away with it. When he does his own thing, his own moves that he choreographs himself, he is really brilliant. Those legs moving in the air at lightning speed, their twisting and turning around each other! And that kind of movement takes razor sharp precision to keep from fumbling. It's really too bad he can't bring that to the other dances.

I thought Kent's solo was okay but nothing earth shattering. He can move well, he just doesn't seem to have that extra something that really stands out that other contemporary dancers of the past and present have -- Billy, Jacob from last season, Danny and Neil from season three. You know what I mean? He seems to have a real fan base though.

Now, onto the contestants dancing with each other:

First, Lauren danced a Dmitry Chaplin samba with Robert. I thought this was fine, but to me it still looked like two contemporary dancers dancing Latin. It was okay; it just wasn't Pasha and Anya. The polish and precision weren't really all there; it was more like watching two people shake their butts. Mia mentioned that Lauren did too many plies and that brought weightiness to the routine. Latin's not supposed to look light and feathery like ballet but I understand what she means. It's like they were both plie-ing too much and that made some of the movement too jazz-like. There's a rule in Latin that you shouldn't take a step larger than the length between your shoulders, because if you do it starts to look too jazzy, it becomes more about the legs and less about the hips and movement within the torso. And they both kind of did that. They still moved their hips -- particularly Lauren -- but it just didn't look as sharp as it could have if the steps weren't so large. Also, I thought Lauren's bachachatas (the small backward steps with the rolling hips) were too bouncy. That's where it needs to look weighty, so the hips can really work.

Next, Adechicke and Jose danced a Dmitry Chaplin Paso Doble. Well, that wasn't really as thrilling as I was hoping for. I did think they both acted it tremendously well and Jose tried very, very hard, which is what ultimately makes him so endearing. Adechicke's form was just so much better than Jose's -- his posture, his shaping, that gorgeous jump. They both had good attack, but Jose looks more like a regular guy in most of the dances that aren't in his style. He works incredibly hard and he always gets the emotional aspect right, but he just doesn't have the polish of a trained dancer in anything but his own style, which he does superbly. I thought even though the routine was a bit bland that Adechicke really brought a lot to the table. I thought he did quite well with this. Very good night for Adechicke.

And we ended with Kent's stepping routine by Chuck Maldonado danced with Twitch (who replaced Billy). Ok, did anyone else think this was a bit ... off, for lack of a better word? I'm definitely no stepping expert; my only experience with that dance comes from watching a movie about it a couple of years ago, but the stepping in that movie looked completely different from this. Twitch looked like he was doing a jumpy version of hip hop, and Kent just seemed to be jumping around. But the judges thought it rocked. Adam said Kent kicked ass. And, Nigel, who said he himself did a stepping routine in an earlier season (which I vaguely remember) said he knows stepping and that Kent did it perfectly. So I guess I'm wrong...

I really hope Billy isn't going home tonight. I have a feeling it may be Jose.

Anyway, thanks for all the great comments last week, you guys! This show is so much more fun to write about than Dancing With the Stars because people actually talk about the dancing and not all the celebrity crap.

So You Think You Can Dance Post-Alex Wong: Week 5

2010-07-15T12:04:24-04:00

I thought I was going to be too depressed over Alex's injury to watch this week, but once the show got going and there was some good dancing and great choreography, I felt better. I love how they had a little update on Alex from his post-operation hospital bed though. Has any dancer on this show ever been more beloved?

My favorites this week were Billy (who nailed both of his dances in my opinion), Adechike (particularly in his second dance), and Lauren. Here's my recap:

First, we learn Ashley has rib soreness and possibly a rib injury. So, she'll be in the bottom three this week, and will suffer same fate as Alex if she can't return next week. People have remarked on the number of injuries this season, and it does seem like there have been a lot, ranging from minor to major. This is a dancer's life unfortunately. Dancers will disappear all the time from my local company's performance roster, and then you'll see them in the audience hobbling on crutches, and find out they're not returning until next season. It's so sad, especially when they've been all excited about a big role. I just hope they all have good health insurance.

First on is Lauren dancing a Tahitian dance with Mark. Wow, fun costumes. And music! At first I couldn't take my eyes off of him, and then I couldn't take my eyes off of her. It was repetitive movement -- knees shaking for the man, hip and pelvic shaking both side to side and front to back for her. It looked simple but that kind of movement takes precision and concentration to pull off because it is so repetitive and so blasted fast. It's the type of movement that could look really sloppy if you lose your concentration, you know? Mia says Lauren looked like a "duck in heat." Hmmm.

Next, Adechike and Anya dance salsa. Wow, there were some really difficult lifts here -- I think this is the first overhead one we've seen this season. And that opening throw and catch with a double twist in the air! It was a really exciting routine, but I think the tricks kind of took over and made it difficult for Adechike to concentrate on getting his basic movement right. He was fine and he did all of those crazy lifts and throws very well, but the hip movement wasn't all there. Still, huge kudos to him for pulling off such a hard routine.

Next, Jose and Courtney do a Broadway routine. Well, he did a jump in the air with a multiple turn that was exciting. But that was all to me, unfortunately. He just didn't have the polish, there was no pizzazz with those jazz hands, the line wasn't there -- his barrel turn just didn't have any height and fullness at all. I mean, he looked like a regular person dancing that routine, not a dancer. As the judges said, it just showed how little dance training he has.

Next is Robert and Allison's contemporary routine to Travis Wall's choreography about his mother's recovery from surgery. I loved Allison in this. I missed much of the season when she was on and this is the first time she has really blown me away. Both the way she acted that and the way she danced it, she was just incredibly moving. I'm sorry but Robert still didn't come through for me. It's hard to criticize anyone in this because you get caught up in the emotion of the choreography but it seemed like his posture was off, like he doesn't stand up straight and sticks his rump out too much. Maybe it's just me because no one else has mentioned this and the judges just drool over him. I think he's a fine dancer; there's just something in his movement that is lacking to me.

Now, Billy and Anya jive. This was one of my favorite dances of the night. Louis van Amstel is my favorite ballroom choreographer. He really knows how to choreograph to people's strengths and create an exciting routine that's big on dance, short on tricks. Billy really blew me away because I thought Anya would totally outshine him. And I found myself unable to take my eyes off of him. He had the speed, the height on those jive kicks, the precision, the lines with his arms, the lines on the rond de jambs and the jetes, and he just had the overall flash. That was absolutely the best he's done on the show so far.

Next, Kent does a baseball-themed Broadway number with Neil. I thought this was a lot of fun. Very gymnastic, which played on Neil's strengths for sure. A lot of the movement was side-by-side, in sync, and I thought Neil was just so much better. He was so much sharper, his movement was fuller, and to me he was so much more thrilling to watch. To me anyway; the judges seemed to love Kent. One even said he may win this season. He had a couple of great moments, like the leap frog at the beginning. Neil's tall and he stood pretty upright, so that was a big leap for Kent! Also, Kent's jumping pirouettes at the end were very impressive. I wished there would have been more of that, more interaction between them than side by side movement.

Now, Lauren and Billy's jazz routine. I loved this as well. I think overall this one might have been my favorite of the night. The dance was about putting on your shoes and the shoes taking over and just making you move. And they both really worked those shoes! The routine was cute as the judges said, but their movement wasn't cutesy; it was sharp and focused while looking laid back and that's what made it work so well. And talk about connection -- I think Billy connected with Lauren better than with any other partner before. It was a really good night for Billy.

Next, Jose dances a b-boy routine with Dominic. I thought this was a real treat to watch. I do think Dominic was so much better though, which you could see when they danced side by side. He was sharper, his movement had more power and speed, and he was just more thrilling to watch. This was Jose's style so he should have been just as good. I like Jose's personality - I do think he's sweet - but to me he disappointed this week. I think he may be going home soon. I really like how the all-star dancers are being so supportive of the contestant they're paired with each week though. They always have something uplifting to say while the poor contestant's getting roasted by the judges. So sweet!

Next, Kent and Adechike perform a contemporary routine. I liked it this one too, particularly after they got rid of the chairs, which really freed up their movement. The chairs were a little restrictive. I thought Adechike gave just about his best performance this season. What height on those jumps! And he really showed how strong his technique is. He could really have blown me away with his movement alone, but he danced this so passionately; he was really in character, desperately wanted to keep Kent away from the object of his obsession. Kent was really knock-out too in this. I think he did far better here than in his dance with Neil. To me, Adechike still outshone him though.

And the night ended with Robert and Kathryn (who replaced Ashley) dancing a Disco. This routine was a lot of fun, as always with Doriana Sanchez. Great spinning lift sequence at the end - those always look like hell for the poor man! And his wavy body rolling at the end was good. But the rest of it was just not there for me. I have to agree with Mia on this, when she said, "I hope I never see you do that again." I think he looked sloppy at points. And I thought I saw some pigeon toes which really just throw off the line even in a social dance like this. He didn't look sexy and rhythmic at all. I just don't get why the judges are so wild about him at all.

I feel like I'm in the minority in liking Billy and not liking Kent and Robert as well though. What do you guys think?

Please Let Alex Wong's Injury Be Minor! So You Think You Can Dance Week 4

2010-07-08T12:36:05-04:00

Ugh, how heartbroken am I that Alex Wong is injured and may have torn his Achilles tendon? If he's out permanently I'm going to be very upset; he was the main reason I'm so into the show this season. I guess we'll find out tonight...

I'm also surprised Nigel basically kind of chastised audiences for putting Robert in the bottom three last week. I understand Nigel was only trying to tell people Robert's not arrogant, as his internet research has led him to believe is the reason people aren't voting for him. I've never thought he was arrogant but more that his movement just doesn't have the expansiveness and breadth of other Contemporary dancers. But people don't like being told what to think and I think Nigel may have made it more difficult for Robert.

Anyway, my favorite performance of the night was Lauren and Kent's Travis Wall Contemporary routine. This week everyone danced twice, once with a former star of the show, and once with another contestant. Lauren went first, dancing a Cha Cha with Pasha. I went to a big DanceSport competition over the weekend so maybe it's just that my mind is on still those excellent dancers, but I wasn't as in love with Lauren's Cha Cha as the judge were. I thought Pasha really stood out, even though Lauren looked good and sexed it up and had really decent Latin technique. Her legs were straight -- too many people when dancing international-style Latin bend their knees too much, and it ends up looking like social Salsa. It's not right for competitive Latin though. So I was happy she did that well. Her hip movement was good as well -- she didn't settle fully, as fully as he, into her hips, but she did enough that it looked like real Latin. It just didn't have the spark of his. She looked like a very advanced Latin student rather than like a pro.

But I thought where Lauren really excelled was in that Contemporary routine with Kent. I like Kent but I thought she really outshone him. I really believed she was a young girl in love - she was very authentic, and her movement was superb. What gorgeous back arches! Every time she arched her back, she went way, way back. But it wasn't like, 'look what I can do'; she used it to show how blown off her feet her character was by this guy. Her lines throughout were just perfect. Such a sweet cradle lift and the splits jumps showed passion and excitement - so, again in character, with superb lines. Kent was a good partner for her - he was strong with the many lifts, and his jumps were good, his technique solid. I just didn't think he stood out as much as she did.

I really didn't like either of Jose's performances much this week, unfortunately, because I agree with the judges that he's got a very endearing quality about him. In his Contemporary routine with Lauren, his lines weren't really as clear and finished as they should have been. He didn't always point his toes. He was into the character, but you could tell he just wasn't thinking about the shapes his body was making as much as she was. She's more trained to do that, being a Contemporary dancer of course, but she just really outshone him. He was a good partner for her, though, enabling her to do some hard lifts and really allowing her to look beautiful.

I thought Jose started out well in his African routine with Billy. He began really making me think he was a hunter and his movement had strength and power and authenticity. I thought he somehow lost that about halfway through though. Probably tired out; that routine looked pretty athletic. But in a competition like this, you just can't lose it halfway through.

I thought Kent's Hip Hop with Comfort was really good, way better than I thought it was going to be. I thought Comfort really looked gorgeous though - better than I've ever seen her look. She was strong, sexy, sharp, gutsy. It was hard not to focus on her. But his body was so wavy, very rubbery, and very fluid but also very rhythmic. He had the funk and the groove and the musicality. He was really good - big kudos to him for pulling it off so well. As I said, I thought Lauren outshone him in their Contemporary, but I still thought he did very well. It was a good night for him overall.

I like Adechike and the judges' harsh words make me want to root for him. But I have to admit, he doesn't stand out to me all that much; there seems to be something lacking, though he does seem to try very hard. Parts of both of his routines -- his Jazz with Courtney and his Bollywood -- were compelling, but only parts. I liked the smoothness and rhythm of the grapevines in the Jazz dance, he had a very good jump with a high kick at one point, and he had a difficult sequence of chaine turns while carrying her across the floor. He has good jazzy rhythm and can make fun fluid snaky movements. But overall, she still stood out more than he. And I agree with the judges about his Bollywood. Those continuous splits jumps at the end were absolutely stunning, but that was really all for me. His gestures were not all there, his hands and feet weren't fully articulated, his shaping just wasn't proper, and, as the judges said, those things are crucial for making a Bollywood routine Bollywood and not just fast movement combined with gymnastics.

I thought Billy did pretty well this week. His Macavity Broadway routine (with Katie Shean, replacing an injured Allison) was really enticing. Good fast turns, sneaky lightning-fast kicks and jumps. And he had a great rond de jambe at the end which was done in sync with hers and showed much greater fullness than hers. He was a great sneaky feline burglar! And I thought he did pretty decently in his African routine with Jose. He was a cat again - a jaguar this time, and I thought he was really in character, not just acting-wise but movement-wise too. He's so good at those deep deep plies in second position; he has looser hips than anyone I think I've ever seen. He was a little too ballet-like, and I agree with Adam that sometimes when you fully extend all of your lines, it just doesn't fit within the meaning of the choreography, and sometimes you have to be more attentive to meaning than lines. I think that's what he said anyway...

I thought Ashley was pretty good this week, although not great. Her Hip Hop with Dominick started out good, she was very strong and precise - those hip grinds were really excellent! She seemed a little off musically though, like she was going a bit too fast. Maybe nerves since this was the first time she's done a routine not in her style. Overall, she looked rubbery and rhythmic and gave a strong performance, especially for a Contemporary dancer.

But I'm sorry, I thought her Quickstep with Robert was awful, for both of them. Again, it could just be that I've just returned from a pretty prestigious ballroom comp - where the best in the world in ballroom competed - but this was just so not there, and the judges thought so too. I can't put my finger on anything specific, it was more that it just lacked polish. They both looked nervous and not at all at ease, and Quickstep needs to look fun and flirty and like excitement uncontained. Neither of them had the proper posture, neither was upright enough. His looked particularly wrong to me; it looked like his behind was sticking out way too much. He didn't look properly connected to her. The pivot turns looked particularly awkward; both looked downright scared during those. I would really really love to see Katusha Demidova and Arunas Bizokas on this show!

One thing that confused me though: Nigel said to Robert that he had one thing over ballroom dancers, which was that he was trained in "technique." But what technique? What does that mean on a show like this, with all different styles of dance? Technique is different for every dance. Ballroom dancers certainly have training in ballroom technique, but even if by "technique" you mean specifically ballet technique, the vast majority of professional ballroom dancers have training in that as well. But did he even mean ballet technique? Mia keeps telling Robert to take ballet because ballet will really help him. I agree with her. So I'm not sure what Nigel was talking about.

Anyway, I didn't like Robert again this week. I thought Katherine really outshone him in their Jazz routine. They were supposed to be dolls come to life, and she was. I didn't feel that he was though. He made doll-like faces and all, but his movement wasn't anywhere near staccato enough. He should watch the Nutcracker or Coppelia. And I repeat that he doesn't have the anywhere near the range of movement other contemporary dancers have. When he and Katherine were in their respective boxes, they did some movement in sync and her kick was just so much higher and more pronounced than his. His jumps were good, but still not at the level of Billy's or Alex's. And I already talked about what I thought was wrong with his and Ashley's Quickstep. I don't mean to harp on him; he's a really decent dancer. I just don't understand what the judges see in him that makes them almost defensive.

I have no idea who's going home tonight, but I really, really hope it's not Alex.

Ballerino Alex Wong Nails Hip Hop: So You Think You Can Dance Week 3

2010-07-01T14:38:44-04:00

So, this week, they had the first same-sex routine (not the first ever, but the first pre-finals) -- and it turned out to be an excellent one -- a hip hop Alex Wong danced with Twitch, and they also allowed the contestants to talk a bit about their inspirations for starting their dance careers, which I thought was nice.

First on: Adechicke and Lauren dancing a hip hop choreographed by Dave Scott. First, Adechicke says he's inspired by Desmond Richardson, which excited me greatly because I love that man! Says he liked him because he's manly, nothing feminine about him, not to mention an excellent dancer. The routine: I thought it was pretty good. Adechicke doesn't completely blow me away for some reason (Lauren didn't either though), but I thought his form was excellent, he was really fun, had a real funk about him, and those kicks and that turning jump were awesome. I liked his solo - contemporary but with a little bit of breaking movement. It reminded me of someone else's from a past show - maybe Will.

Next, Ashley and Ade dance a contemporary routine by new choreographer Dee Caspary. First, Ashley's inspiration is her dance teacher, whom she calls a second mom. Sweet. This is yet another contemporary routine for Ashley, which we know she does well. But I thought this was particularly beautiful. She has such lovely lines. I love how she never forgets to point her toes, unlike some other dancers, and she never stops thinking about the lines she's making. And yet she's so fluid and natural you'd never know she's thinking about such things. She also danced with a lot of intensity and intention. In my opinion, she outshone Ade in this. I agree with Nigel that it was her best performance yet.

Robert's biggest inspiration is his mother, who's been through a lot of life crises -- cancer, death of two children, miscarriages -- wow, a real survivor. He and Courtney's do a Sonya Tayeh jazz dance. I thought the best part of the routine was when he bent over and shot Courtney this crazed look, then started working his fingers like he was an evil magician, before coming toward her. Deliciously creepy! But still, I didn't think the whole performance was at the level of someone like Mark Kanemura, and Courtney really outshone him. I think he tried hard with this routine and I think some of his lines were, as I said, deliciously creepy, but most of them just weren't all the way there, not at the level of others who've done Tayeh's work anyway. And his solo was nice but to me his movement just doesn't have the range or expansiveness of other contemporary dancers like Alex and Billy. The judges love him though, so I totally understand if people disagree with me!

Jose's inspiration is Bruce Lee. He took his philosophy on life and applied it to breaking. I love it! He dances samba with Anya to a Dmitri Chaplin routine: Well, this is Anya's best dance, I think, and it was hard not to concentrate on her. When Jose went fast his hips didn't really move properly, but when he went more slowly he was so sensual. There was a set of cucharachas (slow, hip swaying movement) that was really mouthwatering! He's not a natural Latin dancer but I still loved watching this. He looked really suave and smooth and virile. And he does have a sweetness that really shines through no matter what he's doing. And that solo, wow, he is an excellent b-boy. Love love love those head spins with the different leg lines. Wrapping his legs around each other like that, raising and lowering them into a winding, snaky pattern makes it interesting and not just about the trick of the head spin, you know?

Melinda's inspiration is an older tapper named Dr. Harold Cromer, whom she actually met and who's helped her. Melinda dances a Fabian Sanchez salsa routine with Pasha: Even though she's a tap dancer, I thought she had some really lovely balletic lines- like with the opening fish dive which was gorgeous, and some great battemants (fast high kicks) scattered throughout. Would have been great to see Cristina doing something like this, but Melinda was fine. She's not a natural salsa dancer. The shakes and shimmies and twists of the waist were good, but, as Mia said, her frequent pigeon toes were very noticeable. She sure can move her feet as a tap dancer though, as her solo showed. But I wasn't in love with that slow song to fast tapping.

Kent's inspiration is his older brother, whom he's always looked up to and is now a youth pastor. He dances a Mandy Moore routine with Allison. He's another one whose endearing qualities really stand out. He had a good cartwheel trick and despite his size he's got real strength -- some of those lifts are hard. But I don't know if you can win the competition on sweetness alone, and his movement doesn't have the range of some of the other contemporary dancers. There are a lot of male contemporary dancers on this season, aren't there? It's hard to stand out with Alex and Billy in competition, especially Alex.

Lauren's inspiration is her student adviser who helps her with basically everything. Lauren dances a Joey Dowling Broadway number with Neil, and the song is "Let Me Entertain You" from Gypsy. The dance should have been really seductive and sexy but, to me, she didn't really pull it off. I didn't notice until the end that her dress had torn and she had to hold it up, so she obviously hid that well! That could be the reason she didn't dance as full-out as I would have liked with a number like that. I think her hips should have had more sway, her shimmies should have been bigger. She seems to have seduced Nigel though. I liked Adam's suggestion to think of yourself dancing through water when doing a routine like that. That would definitely have brought out the slinkiness.

Billy's inspiration is Legacy from season six of this show. Billy'd actually seen him dance hip hop when he was a child and he's the one who originally inspired him to take up dance; he actually began with hip hop. Billy dances a Stacey Tookey contemporary routine with Katherine. I thought he interacted much better with Katherine here than he has with previous partners. Big improvement on that end, although the judges don't seem to have agreed much with me. His movement is really beautiful but it doesn't always reach a certain intensity. At one point he did an arabesque and his leg was bent slightly in attitude and his toe was sharply pointed and his back arched way back, and the whole shape just had so much breadth and fullness and beauty. He just needs to do that more throughout, make every shape the fullest it can be. His solo was really lovely with such expansive movement -- from the deep knee bends to the high split jumps.

But it was Alex and Twitch's hip hop that really knocked me off my sofa. Whoa. First of all, I'm so happy he named Edward Villella (artistic director of Miami City Ballet and probably the most famous ever American-born male ballet dancer) as his biggest inspiration. Alex says he's made him the dancer he is today, which I love. So the routine: I love the little story Tabitha and Napoleon created -- Alex as a ballet dancer trying to learn hip hop from master Twitch. I love that they gave him a little balletic movement, like the slow turn in attitude and the port de bras (ballet arms) at the end. But more importantly, he really nailed the hip hop. He was down deep in the knees, he had the precision, the isolations, the swagger, the whole package, both movement- and attitude-wise. I just couldn't believe how well he did with it. And I'm apparently not the only one who thought so, judging by that standing ovation and crazy Bravo-laden applause! Cat said she's never heard a roar from the crowd like that. Alex went on this show to do dances like this. He's already proven himself a stunning ballet dancer -- makes perfect sense why someone like him would want to see what else he's capable of. But it's also the little things with Alex, like how he'll be on the floor in a split and pull himself up slowly using only his leg muscles. It looks impossible, like magic. But, still, even though you notice the little things, the whole is far better than the sum of the parts, unlike with some other dancers. It's the whole thing that blows you away.

Anyway, what did you guys think? Who do you think is going to go tonight? I think it may be Melinda.

Officer Michael Carey Should Sue the NYPD Not the Sean Bell Estate

2010-07-01T00:39:25-04:00

Officer Michael Carey Should Sue the NYPD Not the Sean Bell Estate

2010-07-01T00:38:54-04:00

Officer Michael Carey, who was recently named a defendant in a wrongful death action by the Sean Bell estate, has filed a counter-claim, seeking to sue the Bell estate for a leg injury he sustained when his van collided with Bell's car. The counter-claim has inflamed the blogosphere, and rightly so. Although such claims are an oft-used tactic in civil cases, this one is particularly outrageous, not to mention borderline absurdist, given the facts of this case.

Sean Bell, I'm sure you'll remember, was an unarmed black man killed when five police officers fired a total of 50 bullets at his car as he left a Queens strip club following his November 2006 bachelor party. Three of those officers -- Detectives Gescard Isnora, Michael Oliver, and Marc Cooper -- were acquitted of criminal wrongdoing in a 2008 trial. The other two, including Carey, were not tried, and, from reports, it seems this may be part of the beef Carey has with the Bell estate: that he wasn't charged in the criminal case but was named a defendant in the wrongful death suit.

Carey claims that Bell negligently injured him because when he got into his car he was intoxicated and wasn't wearing glasses. Experts testified at the criminal trial that, though Bell was nearsighted in his right eye, he had perfect vision in his left, and it was legal to drive in NYS with one good eye. But that he had one bad eye and had been drinking at his bachelor party were hardly the causes of his car's collision with Carey's.

The NYPD team went to Kalua Cabaret that night in hopes of making a prostitution arrest -- there had been such an arrest there the prior week and they needed one more to close the club. Most of the team members had never worked in Queens before, having just transferred from a Chelsea initiative. Isnora, the operation's primary undercover, had been the undercover in the prior arrest, and testimony made clear Isnora was fearful he'd be recognized and subjected to great danger. Because of this, his backup undercover went into the club first to ensure none of the prior arrestees were inside. He told Isnora he was clear to come in but warned him the crowd was rowdy. Isnora went inside and began trying to do his job that evening -- soliciting dancers for prostitution. After a dancer looked at him suspiciously and asked if he was a cop, he became more nervous and called for an additional backup officer.

According to a dancer in the club, one of the dancers brought her boyfriend into the backstage changing room. When another dancer needed the room and asked the boyfriend to leave, he punched her.

Out in the bar area, Isnora, who was trying unsuccessfully to solicit another dancer, saw a woman walk up to a man and tell him a man backstage had just hit her. That man touched his waistband and fingered an object under his clothing that to Isnora resembled a gun, and told the woman not to worry, he'd take care of it. The man, who was wearing a White Sox baseball cap, then walked off.

Isnora told his two backup undercovers what he'd just seen, then went outside and called the team's lieutenant. The lieutenant ordered them to find the White Sox man. The undercovers searched the club but couldn't find him.

After the club closed, the lieutenant ordered Isnora and his backup to stand outside and wait for the White Sox man to exit. Before doing that, Isnora went to his car and armed himself.

White Sox man never emerged. As Isnora and his backup officer stood outside, they saw a man standing in front of a black SUV. Sean Bell and his friends (there were about seven) were in a group talking. Bell, realizing he'd left his hat inside the club, went back to retrieve it. When he came back out, the man in front of the SUV called him over and said, "You can't be doing that. I got bread in there," indicating he thought Bell was going inside to get a prostitute and he was her pimp and letting Bell know he wasn't allowing it. Bell was annoyed and had a few words with the SUV man telling him not to tell him what to do. But the SUV man kept arguing and eventually made a veiled threat that he lived in the same neighborhood as Bell and should look out for his vehicle. The argument escalated and Bell's friend, Joseph Guzman, walked over, followed by several of Bell's friends. The SUV man reached into his pants pocket and pointed something through its fabric that appeared to be a gun. One of Bell's friends said something along the lines of, "Don't point that at us or we'll take that gat from you." (Gat is slang for gun).

Isnora and the backup undercover who watched the argument heard Guzman say, "Go get me my gat." None of Bell's friends heard Guzman say anything about getting a weapon, though some heard another member of the Bell party mention a gat in reference to the weapon the SUV man apparently had. According to Bell's friends, Guzman and the others decided the SUV man wasn't worth fighting with and walked off. Isnora thought Guzman was going to his car to get a gun to do a drive-by of the SUV man.

The SUV man drove down the street after the Bell men, but determined they didn't pose a threat and returned to the club.

The lieutenant ordered Isnora to follow the Bell men while the backup undercover stayed behind to wait for White Sox man. Isnora put on his badge and followed the men, but as he got to the corner, several of them stopped and were talking, so Isnora took off the badge and put it in his pocket so they wouldn't know he was a cop. After he passed them, he said, he clipped his badge back on, at the top of his collar. He also took out his gun.

Isnora saw Bell and Guzman get into Bell's car. He called the lieutenant and described the men and location. The lieutenant said he was on his way and called Oliver and Carey to come to the scene as well but failed to be specific as to the exact location. According to Oliver's Grand Jury and Carey's trial testimony, they drove around the area looking for either Isnora, the lieutenant or a man with a White Sox cap. They tried to call the lieutenant again but he didn't respond. Their testimony also revealed they became nervous once the lieutenant told them there was a gun involved. They'd expected a prostitution bust not a weapon recovery case. Once the case had been elevated in seriousness, they put on protective vests before proceeding to the scene.

Guzman got into the passenger seat, Bell the driver's. According to police reports, Bell was intoxicated. Guzman was not.

Isnora stood off to the side of the street and waited for the lieutenant and the arresting officer to arrive and stop Guzman. Soon, the lieutenant drove by. Isnora pointed at Guzman but the lieutenant didn't stop. Isnora assumed the lieutenant hadn't seen him. The lieutenant said he did see Isnora but continued down the street, stopping near the end. A passenger in the lieutenant's car figured Bell and Guzman weren't the suspects since the lieutenant didn't stop. One big mystery of this case remains, to me at least, why the lieutenant didn't stop when he saw Isnora.

Suddenly Isnora saw Guzman looking right at him. Isnora was scared. He claimed he said, "Police, don't move, put your hands up." None of Bell's friends heard Isnora say that, but one heard him say "Let me holler at you" (let me talk to you).

Meanwhile, Oliver and Carey were driving around the area directionless. Finally, they spotted the lieutenant's car and took off down the street after him, seeing him round a corner.

Guzman saw a man holding a gun coming at them. Scared it was an attempted hijacking, he said to Bell, "Go. Go, go." Bell, now seeing the gunman too, stepped on the gas. As he pulled out from behind the car parked in front of him, Oliver was rounding the corner and driving down the street trying to catch up with the lieutenant. The two cars collided and stalled. Guzman saw the man with the gun now coming up from behind and yelled at Bell again, "Go go go." Bell frantically put the car in reverse, backed up, and pulled out again, trying to go around the van. But he misjudged and struck it again.

Bell's car struck the van as Carey was getting out and ordering Bell to stop. This is when Carey sustained the leg injury that he now complains of. (I haven't read his counter-claim but when he testified at trial he looked fine.)

After running into the van again, Bell's car again came to a halt. This time Guzman and Isnora locked eyes. Isnora thought he saw Guzman reaching into his pocket. Isnora feared Guzman was going for a gun and yelled to Oliver and Carey, "He has a gun!" then fired at Guzman. When Oliver heard the gunshot and saw glass from Bell's windshield spray outward at the officers instead of into Bell's car (expert testimony revealed it's not uncommon for glass to spray outward, against a bullet) he assumed someone inside the car was firing and he began shooting as well. Oliver fired 31 times, stopping briefly to reload. Carey fired four times and Isnora eleven. (The rest of the bullets came from officers in the lieutenant's car.)

No gun was found in Bell's car or on any members of the Bell party.

Two hotly contested factual issues were whether Isnora identified himself as a police officer and whether he had his badge on. Having watched the whole trial, I believe a reasonable finder of fact could easily have concluded that either Isnora was so nervous he forgot to put his badge back on after he took it off to pass Bell's friends, or else he did put it back on but so high on his collar and around his neck that it wasn't readily seen. I also think, if he did say "police, don't move," he said it so quietly no one heard. It was clear to me that no one in Bell's car had any idea the man approaching with a gun was an officer. Before the men in Bell's party went into the club that night, they were stopped at Bell's car and carded by another officer. None of them gave that officer any problem whatsoever. No one was interested in hassling police and certainly not in running one over. They'd just gotten into a fight with a threatening individual who likely had a gun. And now, they saw another gunman coming at them.

This post is long and I've still left out many, many facts, but suffice it to say, it's ludicrous of Carey's attorneys to argue that his injury stemmed from any negligence on Bell's part. His injury was the result of the same thing that caused Bell's death -- a botched undercover operation that probably shouldn't have been conducted in the first place, and more perniciously, the underlying systemic racism that leads to race-based assumptions and fear.

So You Think You Can Dance's New Format Is a Huge Improvement

2010-06-24T09:31:07-04:00

I'm really loving the new So You Think You Can Dance format, which was originally controversial among fans of the show. Instead of the usual twenty competitors - ten male, ten female - this season there are half that number, and instead, those ten competitors (expanded to eleven for the first week) are paired with returning finalists from former seasons. What I love about it is that the returning dancers perform in their style, so, no matter how lacking a competitor may be in a certain dance style, you get to see dancers who excel in that style each week. Makes, in my opinion, for a far more stunning show.

Last week, we got to see ballroom dancer Pasha Kovalev (really one of the most exciting ballroom dancers in the world to watch) do an absolutely mesmerizing jive with the contestant he was paired with that week, Melinda, and this week we got to see him do a nearly perfect paso doble with contestant Cristina as his partner. Ditto for ballroom diva Anya Garnis, who did a mouthwatering cha cha with contemporary dancer Kent last week and a gorgeous Argentine tango with Robert this week. Twitch never ceases to amaze me with his very clever hip hop, Dominic is always fun to watch, and who can resist Mark Kanemura and his brilliant weirdness, particularly in Sonya Tayeh routines!

The drawback of course is that the returning dancers have the tendency to outshine the contestant they're partnered with, which is I think what happened last week with Alexie and Twitch. Alexie was the first eliminated and I think it's because she just wasn't memorable, Twitch so outshone her. But, still, this is what makes watching dance so fascinating - seeing dancers performing at their best, in their style. Of course the competition is to see which competitor is most versatile and can dance well in styles not his or her own. So, this way, the show can entertain with brilliant dancing and remain true to its format. It's just too bad Danny Tidwell didn't return for the contemporary numbers.

Thus far my favorite competitor this season is Alex Wong. His contemporary Hallelujah routine last week proved he's not just an excellent dancer with superb technique - which you'd expect of a Miami City Ballet principal - but that he is capable of conveying so much meaning with his movement, poetry as the judges said. They weren't as into his Fosse-esque routine this week. I thought he did really well with it though - it didn't look at all balletic to me, but very jazzy, slick and precise in hitting those lines right on the beat the way Broadway dancers do. Maybe I'll have to watch Fosse's The Little Prince too to see what Nigel's criticisms were about.

I'm also a big fan of Billy. He has splendid technique and is a really beautiful and compelling mover, but he does have to work on his artistry and versatility. His Footloose routine last week demonstrated great energy and superb technique but he didn't interact with his partner, Lauren, very much at all. It was probably nerves, because I've seen him dance live in New York (with DeMa Dance Company) and he played off his partner very well in that. And, regarding last night's Krump routine with Comfort, I actually thought he did quite well with it. He does have a naturally lyrical body; he looks feather-light - the opposite of a hip hop dancer or krumper, but all those kicks and stomps had a genuine power and aggression to them. I think he made it his as best as he could. And I loved when he play-licked her neck!

But my favorite dancer this week was Ashley. Last week I felt Neil Haskell really outshone her -- they're both contemporary dancers and they did a contemporary routine. But this week (dancing with Mark) she really blew me away, with another contemporary routine, that the judges complained was supposed to have been jazz. It was choreographed by Travis Wall so what did they expect? Anyway, she had absolutely gorgeous leg lines - -really stunning. And she was so light on her feet with those lifts. There were some very difficult moves in that routine - not just the crazy dive Nigel mentioned but her turns on the floor -- very hard, and she made it look so easy. And, she had no problem bringing the passion and emotional intensity to the dance even with the difficulty level.

I loved Jose's hip hop last week with Comfort. His style is b-boying, which is similar to hip hop but not exactly the same, and I thought he actually outshone Comfort. He looked so rubbery, vertebrae-less, and that head-spin was stunning. I liked its shaping as well - the legs in the air were kind of asymmetrical. You can see the yoga training in his flexibility. His Bollywood routine with Kathryn this week was less technically adept but charming nonetheless. Jose's lines were not what they were supposed to be most of the time, but at some points he did have the proper flexed feet and hands. But in all, he looked like a b-boy dancing Bollywood. Still, a lot of fun though. I like him!

Kent's cha cha with Anya last week was a lot of fun too. For the most part, he genuinely looked like a real Latin dancer - unbelievable on your first try when it's not your style. He really had the hips, the speed, the precision down. And you could tell he tried really hard and was really having the time of his life up there. But this week's jazz routine with Courtney didn't do much for me. I thought his best movement was at the beginning, when he was lying on the table, lifting his legs, then torso in various positions. Other than that I just didn't find that routine memorable or moving.

I liked tapper Melinda much better this week with her contemporary routine than last week with her jive. I thought she worked very hard on the jive, but she still looked like a tap dancer doing jive. She didn't have enough height on the kicks and it looked like she was shuffling her feet, which is tap. Pasha clearly outshone her. But her contemporary routine with Ade last night was very good. Her leg lines were really lovely and she danced it with passion and clarity. I have to say, though, regarding her solo last week, I have to disagree with Nigel that she did not "dance for her life." I thought her solo was absolutely spellbinding. It looked like her feet were going ninety miles an hour. It's tap; it's supposed to look free-form, smooth, subtle and jazzy and not trick-laden.

I haven't been in love with either of Cristina's performances, though I think she is an awesome salsera. Her part of the Sonya Tayeh jazz routine with Mark didn't really go anywhere for me; he is just so much more brilliant at Tayeh's odd but compelling movement. I mean, he and Sonya practically share the same brain. The judges loved her and Pasha's paso doble last night: But I couldn't take my eyes off of him, which means she didn't deliver to me. I thought she did all the steps right and she tried hard to make her body shaping proper (the hips need to be really far forward in PD) but her form just wasn't perfect, and next to his it was all too obvious. She kept up with him though, and some of the lifts were really difficult. She just didn't blow me away.

I liked Adechike's routine this week much better than last. I thought Kathryn really outshone him last week in their would-be sexy Travis Wall contemporary routine. She really came through, both with truly beautiful movement and the passion and the meaning. He danced technically very very well, but he didn't do anything for me passion-wise. He was supposed to be seduced by her and I didn't see that at all. This week's contemporary routine with Allison was much better though. He had great form, excellent technique and he interacted with her well. Big improvement, and good for him.

Ditto for Lauren, who improved greatly this week. Her contemporary dance last week with Ade was well-danced, but it was supposed to be all about flirting and the entire time she kept looking out at the audience, smiling cutely, not interacting at all with her partner. Her performance was more about playing to the audience than off of her partner. But that all changed in this week's hip hop with Dominic. I thought there was a lot of passion and intensity. I do think, however, she looked a bit too lyrical for hip hop. Her upper body was far too fluid, the way she'd arch way back. It was really beautiful though - just don't know if it was hip hop. But then again, I think that expansiveness and breadth of movement is what brought the passion and intensity here, to me. This was one of my favorite performances of this week regardless.

I'm just not as in love with Robert as the judges are. I thought his and Courtney's African jazz routine last week had a huge amount of energy, and they both tried hard with it, but I just kept thinking how that movement didn't really suit either of their bodies. It would have looked so much better on several Alvin Ailey dancers I can think of, but it just didn't look that good on them. They weren't loose enough in their pelvises or backs. I thought Anya looked gorgeous in this week's Argentine tango but I didn't feel he delivered. The footwork - those gauchos and swivels - were mad fast and he managed to get it all down, which is no small feat. But his posture was all wrong. His body wasn't firm; he was way too wavy and insubstantial. It felt like she was doing all the work and he was a good partner for her, lifting and supporting her and making her look beautiful, but he just didn't act the part; he wasn't giving her anything more in return.

The Behind the Scenes Goings-On Are Becoming More Interesting Than the Actual Dancing on Dancing With the Stars

2010-04-20T14:01:54-04:00

My favorites from last night's show were Niecy, Chad and Erin, but not necessarily because of their dancing -- more because of their personalities, their interactions with their partners, and all the behind-the-scenes goings on... which is probably why most people watch this show anyway.

Niecy cracked me up when she explained why her jive was so tiring: "The thing I was doing before to stay in shape was nothing." I love her! And Louis is having so much fun with her, and I like Louis, which makes me like her even more (I'm probably the only person watching this show to whom the pro dancers are more familiar than the celebs). Her jive was not all there, to be sure -- she didn't have enough bounce and precision, but it didn't matter to me at all. She likes to have fun but she also tries hard and it shows.

I couldn't really figure out what was going on with Chad and Cheryl during practice. It seems like he has a crush on her and she's not reciprocating because she wants to keep it all professional. So his joking around is getting too serious for her. That's what it seems anyway. He's a likable guy though, and I thought his quickstep was pretty good. He had the footwork down and he looked polished and the dance looked good on him. Those long skinny pants with the stripe running down the sides only accentuated his towering height though. Oh, and so sweet how he paid tribute to his late teammate Chris Henry.

But it seems there really is a hook-up that occurred between Maks and Erin (I don't always keep up with celebrity gossip so I please forgive me if this has been all over the tabloids). Maks, who seems to want to put out this bad-boy persona but is really a big sweetie at heart -- looked like he was getting cutely beaten up during practice. And rightly so. Arghhhh, men just don't get how hard it is to adjust to a new pair of dance shoes! We are wearing high high heels and trying to twirl around like seasoned ballerinas, you goofs; a heel that's a millimeter higher than on the previous shoe is everything! Anyway, if it's true they're an item, then it seems to have helped her tremendously because that jive rocked! This is not a dance that tall, thin people generally look good doing and she looked like a total natural. I badly wanted her body. I don't agree with the judges at all that she struggled to keep up with the music. I thought she danced fast with flair and looked very precise for a non-pro. The Uma Thurman Pulp Fiction thing really worked for her.

I thought Chelsie, or whoever choreographed Jake's Tom Cruise Risky Business cha cha, did an excellent job. Usually it's hard to tell a story through the movement with ballroom -- there are certain syllabus steps and you end up having to put the story at the front and maybe in the end and then just have the basic ballroom in the middle, but here the steps were unique to the story. I loved his guitar-strumming, his leg kicking up, rocker-like, at the end of a cha cha run, and his side-to-side lunges in response to her in-place cha chas. Really cute routine. The Walk Like an Egyptian routine from last week was clever too.

I don't think the Dolly Parton Nine to Five theme worked very well for Pamela Anderson. All she and Dolly have in common is their inflated chests - their personas are completely different. Pamela was right that the Fellini Britt Eckland Anita Pallenberg "hot chick breaking things naked" in her words, would have worked better for her. (Kind of funny that she called herself a "hot chick"!) Pamela Anderson is an actress though, and actresses are able to take on characters unlike themselves, but the foxtrot is hard - -a lot harder than it looks -- and it looked like her focus on getting the steps and rise and fall right took time away from her ability to act it.

I thought Kate did fine with her Breakfast Club foxtrot. The judges -- and Tony during practice -- thought she wasn't working hard enough, but it may be that she's so scared of failure she only wants it to seem that way. You know how if you work really hard at something then it's all the worse when you fail? Or maybe she was just tired from her kids' visit. Anyway, she's obviously not a natural dancer but I still thought there was some stylized movement (and not just strolling around as Bruno said) and there was some rise and fall, and I agree with Carrie Ann that there's a smidgeon of grace and fluidity developing. Foxtrot is hard and she had to do that pot stir trick (where she's kneeling down and he's spinning her), which is more complicated than it looks.

Nicole and Derek's tango was simply gorgeous. The most professional-looking dance on the show thus far this season. Carrie Ann's comments were right-on - -the lines, the shapes, the form, and I'd add the attitude and character of the dance -- all standard tango done to stunning perfection. That dance rose to the level of art.

Evan is sweet and I like him as well. I couldn't stop laughing during his routine though -- that was such a ballet boy rumba! It makes perfect sense he'd dance it that way -- your hips work completely differently, serve a completely different function in ice-skating and ballet than in Latin. If you have a natural balletic turn-out, or if you've developed your hips to have that turn-out, then if you settle your weight into your hip as you have to in Latin, you could really hurt the joint. Still, even without the hips, he had beautiful lines. It was a really beautiful rumba.

Here is one of my favorite couples -- Sergey Surkov and his wife Melia -- dancing a rumba. Sergey kind of looks like Evan.