DARE!

Experience alternate realities,

realms of enchantment,

and infinite possibility.

HOW?

Wear magic

Take a chance and put on an original

Start a new fashion or movement

Try something new – different – like Reiki – sketching – journaling

or Wizard Journeying

Imagine a world you love here now

WHAT IS THE IMAGE SHOWING YOU?
Is it calling to you? 

☼ ҉‿↗༄♫♪❤❤༄♡♫♪❤❤༄ ҉‿✫

Blink, breathe. Look again.

Now what do you see on the Ts here?

Smoke signals? Faerie dust? An Arthurian legend? Messages in the clouds?

A harvest moon and Merlin‘s touch per chance?

Get your friends involved.

What is this ART showing you?

Does it have a message? Is it a poem? A story?

Use your intuition.
B the psychic you are. Use Art as an oracle.

King Arthur, Merlin, Guinevere, Lancelot, the sword Excalibur, and even the birds – hawk and falcon – resonate with me and Arthurian legend has captivated children and adults alike since medieval times.

By the way, there’s an owl in my life too (like in Harry Potter). Really. It comes often and sits outside the window, hooting. There are hummingbirds, and eagle, great blue heron – there are a lot of birds in my life – but that’s another story.

As I explore history and the idea of myth and legend for my own writing, I see something in us – in what we need in our lives… great stories that incite us to new action, new perceptions, transformation, community, and change. Not only that – but I see what it is that aids us – that Magic that comes to us in dream time or waking dreams, a source of enchantment, Love and divine mystery that so empowers us that we go forth and do what we do to achieve our greatness, like Arthur did at least in our collective minds.

As Ash Silverlock writes on his blog, no one can prove that an Arthur as king really existed. Yet there are countless histories and stories that show bits of fact here and there. They point to the possibility that a man or men like Arthur existed and give enough information on which much fiction has been based.

There are so many facts and fictions now that I personally can’t keep straight which are true and which are made up. Thank goodness I don’t have to do so.

Arthur and his knights quested for the Holy Grail. Some of us quest today for the holy grail of understanding, for the greater meaning of our lives and who were are in them.

Arthur and his knights with their round table strove for an age of chivalry, which we could use as an ideal today in dealing with the challenges we face. But what does that mean? How do we use the ideals, the round table metaphor now?

What is chivalry? To some, it’s a code of conduct, the virtues of courage, honor, and service. To keep it more open, chivalry could be perceived as – a choice. The choice to do the right thing, for the right reason, at the right time. That definition allows it to shift to any age.

What an ideal to live up to – chivalry! Can you imagine that in the House and Senate? All of them sitting at the Round Table? Would the United States be better for it and what would have to happen for such an enormous change of mindset?

What exists today that could be seen as similar to then? One idea is sword mastery, fencing, and similar practices that do not have killing as an endpoint… Perhaps also, chi gong, tai chi, and the sword mastery of Aikido… It’s nice to remember that Mikao Usui, the founder of today’s Reiki, was a sword master who worked with chi/ energy and saw Reiki as a spiritual path with mindfulness behind it.

What is it about Arthurian tales and chivalry that so envelopes us? The story is about a mere man – who could be any one of us – and not only men but today, women, too. This man Arthur pulls a sword from a stone and that establishes that he’s to be king of England. When did that aspect enter the tale? And is this really what established him as King of England – as the King Arthur most of us know today? Or was it something else?

Fact. Fiction. Which is which? Speaking of that – what established Jesus of Nazareth as so many things – King of the Jews, the Christ, the son of God, a savior, founder of Christianity? Was he OF Nazareth or somewhere else? I’m sure there are other men like this, whose lives became larger than life.

So that makes me wonder about me and you. What establishes you in your life story as your magic sElf? Is it how you look or what you do or did, or that more mysterious maybe less pinpointable quantity of – who you are?

What brother or sister or “knight” hood do you belong to?

And what are you questing for? What was Arthur’s main quest? Peace? Finding the Holy Grail? Ruling England amicably? A way to live together?

So many questions. Centuries of answers… What’s that? Arthur still lives? Hmm… Is he a Jedi?

(FYI, my poem Le Morte d’Arthur, written after midnight, precedes this post)

inside are
tunes
runes
ha       magic spells

haven’t written in awhile
this way – poetry -
finding the glyphs of it
finding the way
almost day

normal
to be here
inserting… words
finding the rhyme
time
viewing the landscape…
yours
mine

Seeing you on the mountain
wondering about dragons
- his -
Uther’s,
all those men,
dying
dead
for a quest
for…
your holy grail

only now it’s a window
five stories up
and you
who
thought you could fly

why?

- a woman’s guide to
Change

_____________________________________

Comment:

So I guess you can tell what’s on my mind – everything seems to link to the theme of what I’m currently writing – not always sure how or why. Mysterious, eh?  Any way, I’ve worked with quest ideas before, especially with my art, and was listening to “Drive,” a collection of some of Scott Grimes’  work and something about the melodies, voice – allowed the poem to come in.

The art is what I call a “Soul Print” that came to me when I hung out with a friend. I put my hands on him and received images and colors and meaning and made it for him using Paintshop Pro. It’s treated with Reiki. Now – it seems to be about King Arthur – to me.

Do I want J.R. and Karina to win? You betcha. Do I think Rob improved? Sure. Are either of these males on the level of Ricki Lake? Doubtful. So, what to do? Well, I guess that’s up to the viewers tonight.

My analysis:

Ricki and Derek. Cha cha. My mark 10.
Ricki is a 10 on precision and technique alone. She creates gorgeous clear lines. She is a bit stiff at times; however, I saw great hip action, incredible footwork, high energy and definite cha cha style. Though I may not have been electrified or transported and I want Ricki to bring more emotion into her performance through her chest, I was awed by Ricki’s clarity – a clarity which J.R. and Rob don’t come close to having.

Rob and Cheryl. Waltz. My mark 9.
Suave, as usual. Simple, beautiful, graceful and fluid. Some energy drops and disconnects and at times I noticed Rob’s limited range of motion. He isn’t really a dancer per se because his whole body isn’t alive with it. If Rob could have mastered the presence that Bruno demonstrated in rehearsal, Rob could have knocked this out of the ballpark. But Rob’s not there yet.

J.R. and Karina. Cha cha. My mark 9.
A suave, moody cha cha that allowed us to feel all the nuances. J.R. invests everything and really articulates his torso. I watched this dance twice due to the judges’ overly negative comments. Although there wasn’t the precision and attack of a pro dancer, and there was a small section where J.R.’s timing was off, this was still a wonderful performance. J.R.’s ability is amazing for a man with no previous dance experience – the nuances, how he uses his body and his facial expressiveness – wow.

FREESTYLE.

Ricki and Derek. My mark 9+.
Entertaining and fun. An amazing weaving together of ballroom styles danced with conviction. Unfortunately, I felt there were so many tricks that they interrupted the dance’s potential. Instead of being transported and getting caught up in the sheer joy of these two dancing, I got stopped. The quickstep part of this came closest to establishing the continuity of dancing I was looking for.

I wanted to sing and the choreography was simply too broken up for me by lifts and tricks. (Do I sound like Len? Heavens, who would have thunk it.)

Rob and Cheryl. My mark 8+.
I wish I could say that this dance thrilled me, but it did not. And because of the precision factor, the clarity exhibited by Ricki and Derek, I couldn’t give this dance a 9 because the performance and dancing simply were not at that level. Rob was suave and relatively carefree. He enjoyed this number, and he seems to believe that he is most entertaining.

I couldn’t get past what I saw as the limited range of motion of some of Rob’s arm movements and chest, the lack of presence and pizazz, and the relatively simple choreography. But then no one tonight blew me away. I really wish I could say differently.

J.R. and Karina. My mark 9.
Jungle madness with some of the most amazing tricks I’ve ever seen. A smart move on their part, this salsa freestyle number gave J.R. the freedom to dance like he might at a nightclub while it showed off Karina’s pro style. Whereas it matters in a waltz, foxtrot, or rumba if you’re slow and imprecise, in this kind of choreographed dancing it didn’t. High energy, spirited, joyful, and danced like they meant it.

After pulling off all their dances, we know Hope and Maks were voted off this week. Hope consistently gave it her all – and she’s was feisty and remarkable – that’s the mark of a champion athlete, if not a champion dancer.

What is a champion dancer? Well, 1. dancers are athletes.
2. Dancers are also entertainers. And 3. dancers are also artists. Which couple of the ones left have all three?

As I reviewed the 11-14-11 DWTS and watched J.R. and Karina in their paso doble, I was struck by this semi-finals vs other seasons. After seeing J.R. in past evenings and being carried by his persona, on the 14th he looked like the beginning dancer he really is – despite of how he’s able to carry the audience with his charisma. As I brought to mind Rob, I again saw the beginning dancer showing through his performances.

I flashed to previous champions – Apolo Anton Ohno, Helio Castroneves, Kristi Yamaguchi, and others. I saw no one like them left on the show – except – Ricki Lake. However, I’m human and as much as I cheer for her and Derek Hough, I wanted J.R. and Karina to win. I don’t know if J.R. has a big enough fan base to win over Rob though, and now with an injury, I don’t see how this will play out. A champion will come forward.

Will next week’s champion win due to a large fan base with the judges obviously siding with Rob and Cheryl Burke? Will she be  Ricki with multi-champ Hough? Or, will our all American hero, natural dancer J.R. top the leaderboard with Karina Smirnoff? I guess we’ll see next week.

My analysis:

J.R. and Karina. Paso Doble. My mark 8.
I wanted to love it. I did. But J.R. didn’t know how to exhibit the strength of paso and sustain it in performance. The footwork wasn’t clean and even though he attacked every movement, it didn’t have the quality one wants for this style – which is difficult for beginning men. J.R. is like a tenor trying to sing baritone in this dance. It just wasn’t in him and it’s not his body type.

No matter what, J.R. must learn to act the part. I know he hurt his ankle and hopefully he’s addressing this. He exuded such joie de vivre after every other dance. That’s what engages us. I remembered how young he is and could see his anger at himself,  his disappointment and that he was in physical pain. I want to see J.R. regain his confidence and renew his love of dancing. That’s what’s important here – win or lose.

Rob and Cheryl. Samba. My mark 8.
This dance looked half amateur and half awesome. Rob had a very high level of enthusiasm – moments of sheer joyous musicality. For some reason the judges were over the top with this and him, again not commenting on things that were obvious to me.

Rob still dances with his appendages – throwing out his arms as though they’re there to throw off. He isn’t coming from his core and his torso is frequently still and dead. It’s his face that lights up and engages and the massive suaveness he has gives the ladies a thrill – that makes me think of a matinee idol.

There was an energy drop near the end where Rob stopped and collected and then shook his booty. When he dropped energy, he also dropped the character of Samba, the style and shaping. A dancer must always dance everything, connect stillness and movement, and true skilled dancers with years of training always do. Losing the frame, dropping energy, forgetting steps, happens to the best of us whether it’s because we’re beginners or because we no longer dance every day to be able to maintain our frame, do the style AND remember the routine.

Rob has definitely improved. Sometimes I can’t believe I’m seeing the same young man. Keep up the good work, Rob!

Ricki and Derek. Samba. My mark 9.
More samba in this than I’ve seen in other couples. Fun and musical. I could see that Ricki had worked on her shoulders and they were down. However, I would like to see more freedom in her upper body. There is restraint there, partly from her build and her not being a dancer with years of training.

Sometimes it seems as though ballroom dancing is full of contradiction. Keep your shoulders down. Have a solid frame – don’t be a noodle. Then having to express from the heart, having movement move through you from the core of you out.

ARGENTINE TANGO.

J.R. and Karina. My mark 9.
This had some risky and difficult partnered moves yet J.R. exhibited the strength that was missing in his paso. He attacked while being sensual and suave. He’s not a pro, however he allowed Karina full fluidity to be the melody that the female usually is.

The amount of pain J.R. must be in I can’t imagine because of how he was after the performance. Gone was the joie de vivre and the glow of his personality. I hope he recovers sufficiently to perform for the finals.

Rob and Cheryl. My mark 9.
Strong and connected. Rob sustained this dance better than the last. His tango was of a different quality – softer and not as dynamic or thrilling as J.R.’s – yet still viable. The choreography was simpler. Near the end of the dance, Rob walked across the dance floor – walked – rather than strutting or attacking or tantalizing us, extending his body through space as an electric aware dancer needs to do.

Ricki and Derek. My mark 10.
The style already had me at a 10. A dancer brings choreography to life and when the choreography is Derek Hough’s there’s bound to be excitement. This dance built. Ricki embodied every move. She was the character. She shone. She handled the intricate footwork, the emotion, the partnered moves and lifts, and even her facial expression fit each part of this multi-layered dance. Talk about craft. Hats off to these two.

Cha cha relay. My marks:

1. Ricki & Derek
2. J.R. & Karina and Rob & Cheryl
3. Hope & Maks

Nancy and Tristan were voted off. She’s a character and she has chutzpah but even those of us in Bowling Green, Ohio can say that she didn’t have the emotional connection down.

My analysis:

Rob and Cheryl. Quickstep. My mark 9.
Wow. Great job. He was musical plus he enjoyed it – his facial expression showed that – and that was genuine. He started off a bit slow again yet as soon as he connected with Cheryl he was in it. A misstep here and there but I saw real improvement and I found myself cheering for him. Can he grow from this stage now? My suggestion: keep enjoying it, find the music before you’re out there and keep that dancing feeling inside to carry it out to the stage.

Hope and Maks. Quickstep. My mark 8.
The dance was light, breezy and it was Quickstep. She seemed to convey more ease with Maks and he helped her. However, it did look at times like Maks was hauling her around the floor and there were moments when her face showed me how hard it was and that this dance was Not as light and fun as the illusion created for most of the performance. The yellow umbrellas and colorful balloons were a nice touch. It could take some time for Hope to create artistry. However, as a skill for her to add and for the sheer fun of it, I hope she keeps dancing.

Ricki and Derek. Waltz. My mark 9.
Beautiful shaping and precision. A lovely waltz. However, I’ve grown to want more from Derek Hough and whoever he partners. Perhaps he does not have exactly the right connection with Ricki for that and this particular waltz.

While I would not have come down on Ricki, I do want Derek to switch things up a bit. I jotted down romantic until I saw J.R. and Karina and since that was sheer romance, I went back to take another look at what really was going on with Ricki and Derek this time.

There was some sort of trouble with the last pivot turns and I didn’t feel there was enough content. But more than anything, there wasn’t the emotional connection conveyed through the little surprises and nuances that are a hallmark of Derek Hough’s choreography when he’s on his game. I really had no problem whatsoever with Ricki’s dancing. She stopped but so did Rob. She wasn’t hauled around the stage like Hope had to be. She danced well. So for me, the dance with Ricki’s clarity, precision and artistry merited more than an 8. Ricki is not Hope, nor Rob, nor Nancy.

Next time, whatever the dance, I want Derek to give us the juice. What is at the dance’s core – what makes it what it is? The lilts, the connection, the celebration of space and design and the magic that is possible with waltz. And there’s always the inspiration available through watching the masters of performance on youtube. I was actually delighted recently by seeing Western Symphony for the up-teenth time as performed by Miami City Ballet on PBS and marveling again at George Balanchine’s masterful choreography.

J.R. and Karina. Waltz. My mark 10.
Beautiful. Romantic as all get out. Sheer joy. With J.R.’s smile, charisma, musicality and joie de vivre and Karina’s femininity and expressiveness – those dipping turns under J.R.’s arm twice – whoa, I was on the floor swooning! This is what waltz is for me. It transports you and Karina’s choreography did that. She was able to show off the elegance of waltz while allowing J.R. to win our hearts again and again. This was magic. He is magic and she’s right there with him. The best choreography and performance I saw so far on this night.

Now for the instant dances…

Rob and Cheryl. Jive. My mark 7.
For me this seemed a real beginner jive. Rob stepped and marched rhythmically without the light quickness needed for this dance. He looked slow on the uptake – a real Kapha state if you know anything about Ayurveda. He got better though and if he keeps dancing he could be quite a wonder.

If I were Rob’s trainer, I’d want to take a look at what he’s eating and how he metabolizes food. It’s not just about one’s weight, it’s about growing in wellness. Mind-body-spirit are involved here and there’s been a change in the way the energy feels with him, which is wonderful. Sometimes all of this takes time. We tend to forget that. In looking at this for Rob, I wonder also about Cheryl, and I’d take a look at food again with her. Something’s been going on for Cheryl for a couple of seasons though she covers it. I’d suggest that she discover some little things that bring her hope and joy.

Hope and Maks. Jive. My mark 8.
Great fun. So upbeat. Kicks much improved. What’s wonderful about Hope is how invested she is. She throws herself into it. She got hunched at times and doesn’t yet have great alignment or placement. However, the enthusiasm, energy and entertainment value fo these two was 100%.

Ricki and Derek. Jive. My mark 9.
Fun, precise and upbeat. Some stunning, clean moves even with her two slight off times. I can’t mark her down to the level of Rob and Hope as I’ve said and I don’t know why anyone would here. Ricki deserves the support the judges have in them. I’m thankful that the remarks made did not affect the voting of the viewers as it has at times. I don’t believe that anyone left on the show could come close to dancing the way Ricki did. Though she isn’t J.R.  or a pro like Karina, she is her own person – and with a little more time dancing and a different focus from Hough we would all see that.

J.R. and Karina. Jive. My mark 9.
Sometimes I’m so amazed by J.R.’s ease and fluidity. He’s a bubble of delight. Some really gorgeous moves – those side kicks – timing – wow. However, I can’t go off like Bruno because I saw a stop in the beginning where J.R. seemed to be counting and getting into the whole dance. There were moments where J.R. slowed and looked tired. I felt his energy drop. Then he miraculously picked it back up and covered.

The energy drop might be the toll of the evening showing up. However, I’d look at that in two ways: first, how J.R. eats that gives him energy and sustains him, and second, what J.R. can do if his energy drops mid-evening that might help him come back up before he’s out onstage needing to go deep to find reservoirs of energy left for him.

I love Halloween. I love dressing in costume and the transformation it brings. But who wrote the Dancing with the Stars’ script for Halloween night? Where were the fairy princesses? Where was R2D2 or the hunky football player or the masked crusader? Where were the wizards? See that’s what it’s about for me. Magic.

I didn’t come here to write a downer analysis. These men and women all danced their hearts out. But what happened? Can you guess? The magic was in the Group! Shows what teamwork can bring. Team Paso, for me, performed a group dance that was THE Halloween Spectacular. More of that on the show, si vous plait.

My analysis:

David and Kym. Cha cha. My mark 7.
Improved and still, he was voted off.

J.R. and Karina. Tango. My mark 8.
Technique good. Definitely tango. However, ghostbusters lacked attack, sharpness, precision and the music didn’t help because it went against what tango is. These two were out of sync and much didn’t gel for them.

Nancy and Tristan. Jive. My mark 7.
Okay, this one’s a doozie. A Hospice nurse told me that when Nancy performed the jive, the nurse turned to her husband and said, “Nancy’s not kicking her legs out like she needs to.” The nurse knew jive in just that simple way and she knew Nancy wasn’t doing the jive – not really. But Nancy told the viewing audience that she was doing the jive and not only that, that she felt she had done a good job. So, what do you do with a student like this?

Nancy puts up a good front. She’s tough. She’s not going to let the judges get her down. Her toughness keeps things out. That quality while great in some respects keeps Nancy dancing the way she’s been dancing. When someone shows me that kind of response, I sense fear underneath. Now that fear can be masked – by toughness, anger, and denial. No one wants to be “bad.”

So without commenting much if I were Tristan, I would show Nancy a DVD of a good jive done by Nicole Scherzinger or someone like Nicole or Kyle Massey so that Nancy sees what a jive looks like when done well by a competitor like she is. I’d ask her if she wants to get better at jive and the remaining dances she will perform so she can grow in the language of ballroom dancing, a language that she is learning. I’d invite in female pros to work with Nancy each day and leave it at that.

Rob and Cheryl. Tango. My mark 8.
Bums and energy. Yikes! Let’s not criticize here. It’s a fine line between helping and harming.

When Rob performed in the group dance, I saw this involvement and sheer joy. I wondered what had ignited that. Perhaps being in a group enabled Rob to let go of his self-consciousness so that he could truly experience the joy of dancing. He went into a space of being the music and the dancing and forgetting about him. I saw this again about three-quarters of the way through the tango – when it was a bit too late. If I were Cheryl, I’d get Rob to make contact with that space in him – where he is for it and see if he can find it each time as he begins each routine.

Ricki and Derek. Paso Doble. My mark 9.
Weird, intriguing and a paso doble. Gorgeous lines and shapes and movements. Ricki’s face was, however, often blank and because I saw her as Little Red Riding Hood I wanted to see her fear or terror or feistyness as a character. What was this character supposed to be feeling throughout this dance?

Technically superior to other contestants, Ricki shapes well – she’s great in the big broad moves and Derek uses that gift of hers. Derek can then fly about the stage doing the spins and pyrotechnics. Ricki becomes the accompanist while he’s the virtuoso. APPLAUSE here! Derek not only knows craft of choreography, he knows how to use his female celebrity partner’s strengths. I, however, want more. Yes, dancers do tend to want that. I’d like to see Ricki finding more fancy footwork she can do – some small movements to contrast the big broad ones and perhaps, something virtuosic she does. With the broad there is it’s opposite. I know Ricki has this and I’ll be looking for it next time.

Hope and Maks. Samba. My mark 7.
She had fun and it helped her to rehearse with Teddy – his spirit helped her. Sometimes when someone comes in and seems to do a better job with someone than we feel we’re doing, jealousy then anger rears its ugly head. In this case Maks was allowed to be the coach he can be and the added bonus was what Teddy brought in. Hope flowed more in this and it looked like she loved it. That’s dancing too.

art by m.a. stinson

]]> http://melaniestinson.com/2011/11/03/dwts-10-31-11/feed/ 0 Weaver of Yarns/POFFF Master colorsdance by M.A. Stinson http://melaniestinson.com/2011/10/27/dwts-10-24-11/ http://melaniestinson.com/2011/10/27/dwts-10-24-11/#comments Thu, 27 Oct 2011 14:32:35 +0000 Melanie A. Stinson http://melaniestinson.com/?p=1570 Continue reading →]]> Broadway Theme Week. The music, the dancing. Musical theater whoop whoop whoop!

Chaz went off this week. He worked hard and that showed. His physique inhibited him. That he had mixed feelings about what he was doing dance-wise showed as well. Did he achieve what he wanted by simply being on the show? I hope so. There’s a lot of ignorance in the world and young people need to know there is support for them to be who they are.

_______________________

Dancing with the Stars is about entertainment. Although it’s a competition so it gets us rooting for our favs, it’s really about entertainment. So, who sparkles? Who is dancing rather than walking through their routine? Who’s charisma or energetic presence makes me want to sing? I’ll tell you. So far only one couple has brought this response in me, though another couple is so close that for everyone else they’re on top. I wish there could be a tie.

Rob & Cheryl. Cha cha. My mark 8.
I love it when I see delight on Rob’s face. I saw that in the group dance at the end of the night. I’m on that wavelength with Rob and that’s worth the price of the ticket. In this dance with Cheryl, Rob had fun and enjoyed it. That alone could do the trick if I weren’t analyzing each couple and looking for sparkle, dynamics, nuances, and technique. Cheryl must help Rob strut his stuff -  dance – through each performance, beginning to end. He’s still not doing that. Like Hope he is a beginner.

Nancy & Tristan. Foxtrot. My mark 7.
Nancy’s a nice dancer, a person who looks as though she’s keeping some of her energy on reserve – like she could run out of gas. It’s partly her mindset, I think. She’s going for doing the steps perfectly, dancing perfectly. She dances small and misses the mark for me. IF she can perform her next dance in a way that would probably be over the top for her (like “heavens I’m making mistakes but woo this is more fun than I’ve had in years”) exuding with bravado something she has hidden deep inside her, she could so startle us that we’d all see she can dance. This would enable her to use something that I see she has as a T.V. host. That’s what I’m looking for now.

David & Kym. Quickstep. My mark 8.
For me, this was David’s best dance. It flowed. He enjoyed doing it. It fit him. It had legitimate quickstep styling. He had good energy and exuberance. He’s powerful at inhabiting a character. As a bodywork therapist I see in David someone who doesn’t think he’s good enough. Reiki, Crystalline Consciousness Technique (CCT), Rosen Method Bodywork, and Hakomi all could help him with that. I had early childhood trauma that affected my legs and self-esteem. Since it still affects me when I’m learning new dances, I know the benefits of this work and when I see someone who needs that kind of support I want to share the info.

Ricki & Derek. Quickstep. My mark 10.
Gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous! It had everything – razzmatazz, form, dynamics, craft, precision and sparkle. This couple takes the cake. They’re in sync and their energy matches, filling the space around them. The choreography? I couldn’t ask for more. These two on Broadway, please.

Hope & Maks. Rumba. My mark 7.
Hope’s upper body was much improved. She has a natural femininity. However, she doesn’t quite know how to use it in dance though that is improving. Her legs and feet still aren’t up to par with her upper body and I agree that putting her in boots was a mistake. Boots make it difficult to feel the floor and articulate the feet. Hope is just beginning to find her connections inside to show how dance flows through the body in a sinewy way. That’s quite something for a beginning dancer. Athletes don’t use their bodies like that, although movement does flow through their bodies. I applaud Maks for bringing in the three pro dancers to help. Hope needs more work with such women to emulate them. I understand that as a female studying with male instructors. Men don’t have to use their bodies the way females do

What happened with Hope brings up the topic of respect and disrespect. Often, when we feel reactive about something – reactive about someone’s behavior toward us we are often behaving similarly.

I feel that Maks had a point about judges targeting Hope when other celebrities walk and step around the floor and aren’t truly dancing but the judges ignore that and openly favor that particular celebrity. I can see how frustrating it can be to feel your partner is picked on when she is trying as hard as anyone else on the show.

J.R. & Karina. Quickstep. My mark 9.
Yeowza – fun! Contagious joy and so entertaining and well done. Karina looked gorgeous. J.R. was simply amazing yet again. The only reason I gave a 9 is because I felt J.R. was not as crisp and precise as he could have been. Yet that’s minor. The choreography challenged him and showed off both dancers. I really adore these two. They’re enchanting together, like watching a fairytale unfold.