DWTS 10-17-11

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80s week. Strange strange strange. Carson tried leading a cheer and it didn’t quite work so he got voted off.

My analysis:

Hope and Maks. Tango. My mark 7.
Well, after the flashy red coat and great beginning (an 8), I found myself focusing almost totally on Hope’s bare middle. As the music pounded, words like pedantic came and went. I could see how Len thought Hope willowy because her middle was so long. I marveled at that and kept seeing that lengthiness while feeling an underlying marching thing going on from the rest of her. I saw tango steps and yet it all failed to gel as tango. So, what to do? I’m not a costumer and yet I feel like the costumes detract from this beauty. They emphasize her bigness and awkwardness. That’s #1. Maks is doing the best he can in coming up with routines, but I don’t feel he understands this athlete, and somehow the bravado, class and gifts she has as an athlete get undermined in the presentation. I come away feeling like choreographing for Hope is hard because of how simple the steps need to be and Maks is perhaps not invested enough this time around.

Nancy and Tristan. Rumba. My mark 6.
Week 5 and Nancy is musical, yes. She often steps as though she is walking barefoot on rocks though and this is not good. Unfortunately, I’m not seeing improvement or growth. Nancy must show us more and I know it’s there. Why she’s not giving us everything she’s got is puzzling. She’s too contained. She needs expressiveness, joy, and enthusiasm that is conveyed beyond the one inch space around her.

JR and Karina. Samba. My mark 9.
Wow can JR groove and shake! I loved it. He’s incredibly flexible and so musical. His Latino roots flood out of him and that exuberance and generosity is contagious. I love how involved he is. When he extends his arms some times, he goes off his center and distorts the line. So that’s something to take a look at. He also needs to remember to continue the performance to the very end. I felt he dropped his energy when he got to the top of the steps. What a delight though!

Rob and Cheryl. Rumba. My mark 8.
His best dance. Sexy and sensual. Romeo helped him. This seemed like the first time Rob felt something and allowed it through his body. Cheryl’s choreography helped to cover his limitations pretty well. I don’t feel that his rumba places him in the same league as JR and Ricki though. Karina’s choreography for JR and Derek’s choreography for Ricki is far more complex than Cheryl’s is for Rob. I also see a discrepancy between the shy Rob that snares the ladies, and the guy who has everything and may only have to signal with his pinky to have the servants come running.

Chaz and Lacey. Samba. My mark 7.
Lacey’s father really worked magic. Chaz enjoyed what he did and seemed lighter and more involved. I’d like to see this freeing up of Chaz continue next week.

David and Kym. Tango. My mark 8.
I can see that David is really enjoying himself. When he needed to flow, he flowed. However, he still doesn’t understand how to attack in sharp staccato movements nor that dancing is always about keeping the body alive, present, articulating. Though I enjoyed David more this time than before, I can’t seem to enjoy him as much as the judges because I keep seeing a stiffness to much of his movement. He doesn’t know how to fill the stillness yet either.

Ricki and Derek. Foxtrot. My mark 9.
I actually loved the weird weird weirdness of this dance. How they slid from repressed 80s to the staid held-in foxtrot! It was like a funky extension of Psycho. Their technique and expressiveness keep them beyond many of the beginning level dancers this time.

I loved this dance even more on second viewing – Derek and Ricki’s flow and connection are amazing. A strange well-executed dance.

DWTS 10-10-11

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I don’t know about you but I LOVE Indiana Jones, Jack Sparrow, Toy Story’s cuddlies, and Alfred Hitchcock, so dances to music from those movies made this week on Dancing with the Stars doubly exciting.

Here’s this week’s dance analysis:

CHYNNA PHILLIPS, TONY DOVOLANI

Chynna and Tony. Tango. My mark 7.
We all know that Chynna was voted off – basically because she blanked out. Yet, much of the time she danced beautifully. Personally, I would rather watch Chynna and Tony dance even with her blanking than some of the remaining stars. Chynna, you belong on the show, sister.

David and Kym. Paso Doble. My mark 7.
Uh oh, the same marks as Chynna and Tony. Effective beginning to this dance. David showed improvement, strength, poise. He handled the whip well. Twice at least he showed wonderful arm extensions and gestures. I can’t say he showed the greatest flow, connection and ease throughout his performance, however. In moments he was the brave hunky hero. Yet, he seemed unable to sustain all the elements that go into dancing. He sometimes failed to look like he was dancing.

How could he improve? You tell me. I can see him wearing really comfy shoes – dance sneakers made for him. There’s a reason he’s an actor and not… a dancer. :)

Carson and Anna. Viennese Waltz. My mark 7.
7-7-7 but not 007, alas. Carson did have some of the Pirates sensibility. There were nuances, and there was a bit of drunken Jack Sparrow about him. There is no one quite like Carson. Yet he really has little technique and as fond as I am of Anna as a dancer, alas I cannot say I saw a lot of waltzing.

What Carson does is in a league of its own since it manages to be quite entertaining. I’d like to hear that Carson has done some tai chi and Limon, gone to watch some Aikido, and most of all explored dance through Laban Effort Shape (creative dance for children in some circles). I suggest he take Anna with him so she can incorporate what she sees in his frolics in her choreography for the two of them. :)

Nancy and Tristan. Paso Doble. My mark 6.
Six – what? Not even Bond? James Bond? Nancy definitely had the conviction and for closeups had the expression. However… dance is a visual art form – it has requirements, physical, mental, emotional. She looks short and squat and she needs to extend and lengthen. Maybe yoga, tai chi and swimming would help her. The main thing is though that if I need a magnifying glass to see what’s going on that isn’t going to register. Nancy is a talk show host so she is a performer – just not a dancer. What she does is a form of entertainment, therefore she has presence and the ability to project, to show us something entertaining and big, and Tristan must get her to this point. Otherwise, she gets voted off – in my view of the universe. Why? Because she’s being given chance after chance and similar comments by the judges and I’m not seeing much change. Er – I’m glad she loves to dance though. That’s evident… in closeups.

Hope and Maks. Foxtrot. My mark 8.
Cute. Quite cute. Uh, Maks? What took you so long to show us foxtrot? There wasn’t enough of it and I was hungry for it.

Hope looked a bit unstable in some of the basic movements and yet most of the time that didn’t bother me too much. These two play well with each other. I was entertained and I like these two a lot, however 1) this seemed like a simple simple dance and 2) I wasn’t thrilled by the performance. As Gertrude Stein would say, “A beginner is a beginner is a beginner.” Still – waaay cute and well done.

Rob and Cheryl. Paso doble. My mark 7.
Ah in the 007 league. Some nice moves with a more sculptural look to Rob at times. Also some good strength beginning to show. I think there might be some ways to help Rob like strength training with weights, work with a male dance coach and something to help him understand that dancing is about flow, connecting movements and coming from within. I say this because he continues to walk and step at times.

PsychoRicki and Derek. Tango. My mark 10.
Quite a challenge for these two and they danced marvelously. I felt though that Ricki might have had a more defined character. I couldn’t tell what her emotions were at times. Was she feeling fear, terror, shock? Who was she? I kept seeing a Martha Graham influence in this… in how Ricki’s hair was styled, in the beginning shadow figures, and more. The music had moments that I would’ve had trouble with – counting it alone – woo. I loved much of the choreography – the slow descent of Ricki to the floor, the all too brief fast tiptoe bit, and all the nuances from attacked staccato sharp to lyrical smooth whirling – gorgeous! The build in tension and the cloaked insanity elicited the movie Psycho on many levels.

Chaz and Lacey. Paso. My mark 6.
A paso but for me not doble. Chaz solo – doing Rocky moves – he inhabited it. But while I appreciate the attempt and Chaz’s obvious hard work, I can’t ignore the way the dance looked for most of the time since he hopped, walked and went all staccato with Lacey, and while those “sound” like the attributes of Paso, they just didn’t work that way. I think this is on her – it was the choreography.

For paso the dancers have to be pros and the choreography riveting and, there is a sense of groundedness, of earth strength and bravado. Chaz’s bulk made his performance look comical at times and Lacey (and the judges) seemed oblivious. I saw potential in Chaz’s first performance of the season… his feet were amazing. More dancing like that please… and maybe if Chaz is open to it, check out the free intention-based holographic transformative mini-session here

JR and Karina. Foxtrot. My mark 9.
So lovely and JR so enjoyed doing it. He inhabited the character and style. Charisma, flow, musicality, line. Fun too! I took Carrie Ann’s comments to mean that she would have liked to see pure foxtrot and JR’s incredible ability to move with Karina around the stage in that way. I would have liked that too and that’s a compliment. Next time?

JR “got” the foxtrot with the movie theme’s entertainment value and Karina gave him some great choreography with qualities and shadings that complemented them. His joy is contagious.

Till next week!

Dancing with the Stars 10-5-11

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I ended my analysis of Dancing with the Stars last time by mentioning how this show is a popularity contest and not necessarily about the best dancers.

When even the judges influence viewers by ignoring certain aspects of stars’ performances and in a sense coddling some stars while not coddling others, it only contributes to a dancer with Kristin Cavallari’s potential going off while a less gifted star stays on.

Most of the celebrities on the show are beginning ballroom dancers and they need honesty, praise on aspects of the performance that isn’t overblown as I feel it was with Rob. The stars also need feedback on where they’re weak as dancers/performers/entertainers and need work.

How the judges choose which dancers to coddle and which to berate sometimes is beyond me. And I don’t mean the judges are dishonest. I mean they sometimes don’t disclose everything. Those dancers who want to learn something may not get what they want when this happens too often. Then again, one hopes the stars know DWTS tends to be a contest about fan base more than technique and performance.

My analysis:

Rob and Cheryl. Foxtrot. My mark 6.
Some nice moments in this and Rob has a boyish charm. What’s not to like? It’s not about like. It’s about how beginning non-dance types tend to move, and I always see the beginning dancer in Rob. He steps and walks instead of dancing it sometimes. The movement doesn’t flow through his body from his core at times. He’s arms, legs instead of a whole body with movement illuminating him from within through his entire being.

Rob is a low key casual kind of guy. Again, what’s not to like? It kind of feels good to be on that energetic level. I mean, he pushes himself just enough and no more. I don’t believe he knows that is how it comes off though. So, it was a “nice” job, something for a man at his level to feel proud of. I think he enjoyed himself and that’s what dancing is all about. He could articulate his fingers and hands. He could incorporate the sway and lilt of foxtrot more. He could bring a whole lot more energy and passion to the dance floor and still be suave and debonair.

Chynna and Tony. Rumba. My mark 8.
Lyrical and exquisite at moments. Chynna is beautiful when she dances and looks wonderful with Tony. Sometimes however,  Chynna doesn’t  know how to use her energy to create connection and flow in stillness and between one phrase and the next. If she can create that, carrying an aura from beginning to end she’ll be stunning, and in my opinion, one of the final three.

Chaz and Lacey. Rumba. My mark 7.
This time Chaz didn’t seem to lead. He used his arms to fling Lacy away, not incorporating his body – his body looked still. Then he got into it and I’d see the hips of rumba and the involvement of his totality. His facial expression confused me and I was never sure what emotion Chaz was feeling or trying to convey. He didn’t seem his usual self.

Kristin and Mark. Samba. My mark 8.
Kristin danced incredibly well alone. She was genuine and involved. She can really shake it. Pretty amazing performance for a beginner. However, she was voted off so I won’t say more.

Carson and Anna. Tango. My mark 8.
Quite a style here. Flamboyant and attacked. Although Carson doesn’t have finesse in using his legs sometimes and he doesn’t always bring his feet back under him to pass through center, he’s so committed to what he’s doing that I’m engaged. I saw the rapt beginner and entertainment professional. Colorful and nuanced performance.

JR & Karina. Rumba. My mark 9.
An emotional and poignant performance. JR is able to really inhabit mood, feeling, character, theme. His emotional state infused everything. He partnered Karina well, always maintaining the intensity of emotion. However, I have to agree with Len that I also must mark on what I see.

This week I actually saw more of a beginner level look about JR than last week. I don’t know why except that JR may have more facility doing faster dances. While I saw the movement start in JR’s center, he lacked fluidity in the chest sometimes. He also didn’t always extend as fully through his arms as he could have, continuing the impetus from his core, the center of his body, through his body and into his arms and hands.

Nancy and Tristan. Waltz. My mark 7.
Lovely and musical, however, some stilted bits. Nancy is constrained physically in many ways so her lines are shorted. She’s very feminine so she could use that much more. Tristan needs to show her how to enhance her look and if he can’t, he could bring in a female pro dancer or coach to help her. If Nancy can come out of herself more, if she can extend her lines more and sustain fluidity that will help raise her marks, I think.

Ricki and Derek. Rumba. My mark 9.
Smooth and exquisite. They were in sync and felt this dance. I so enjoyed the nuances: lyrical soft juxtaposed with the fast turns and other little touches. I still want Ricki to learn to sustain movements when she moves in place though. There are always ways to grow.

Hope and Maks. Cha cha. My mark 7.
I have to say that I reacted quite strongly to Maks seeming to want to change who Hope is–wanting to force her to be someone he sees as sexy that in some way is not the Hope Solo I see. The costume only added to this distortion of Hope’s potential for me as I kept feeling, “harlot” and I don’t believe that’s what Maks wanted.

A choreographer can go in a couple of directions. Use what’s there – the dancer’s natural gifts – and enhance and bring them forward. Maks didn’t do that. Another choice is to raise the bar for a dancer – push a dancer to embody a role and interpret choreography no matter how different they may be from the dancer’s natural self or natural tendencies. I believe this was Maks’ intention. I question whether that’s the choice to make for a beginner. It’s certainly the way to go with a high caliber artist, and since Hope is a top athlete Maks trusted his gut that he knew Hope well enough to get her to inhabit his choreography.

Hope is sensual. A big woman, she does not have the more  traditional kind of femininity and beauty. With a little more work, I think she can get past her stuttering walk, which has to do with how she uses her legs and feet in her sport, a sport that requires quite a different use of legs and feet than dancers use. With quite a bit more work, she may discover who she is as a performer. She already has the charisma and facial expression.

David & Kym. Rumba. My mark 7.
To me David hardly did rumba and that was partly the choreography. I didn’t see hips for quite awhile. What he did he managed well, allowing Kym to show off the styling for rumba. I’m afraid I didn’t see half of what the judges touted him for because I wasn’t seeing the hips and kept noticing a stiffness to David and that beginner way of using his arms.

Kym was quite flashy. Because she moved so much David didn’t look like he was doing any real dancing until well through the routine. What can I say? They don’t really engage me and I’m not seeing the qualities in David that the judges see.

We all go through hardships and either deal with them or do not. I’m seeing how that hardship and emotional devastation has affected David’s muscles and the combination of looseness and stiffness in how he inhabits his body. I can also see how he feels about himself. It’s subtle. I’m amazed at times that he’s able to perform carrying the emotional weight he’s got inside him. It’s clear he loves his family. I wish him the best in continuing to find the support he needs.

Dancing with the Stars 9-26-11

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The thrilling second week of DWTS. Here’s my analysis.

Many times this show is a popularity contest and not necessarily about who the best dancer is. I wish it were not so because I know the hard work that goes into dancing since I am a dancer with many years invested in an art that requires dedication and discipline.

We know Elisabetta and Val went off and I feel it must be because she didn’t have the fanbase to keep her on as she danced wonderfully. She is better than a couple of celebs who remain.

The nitty gritty:

Hope and Maks. Jive. My mark 8.
For an athlete non-entertainer, Hope shows strongly. She has an ability to connect to the audience. She’s laid back, real, honest and enjoys the competition of it. She’s so energetic and fast and she gives it her all.

My suggestions: since her jive kicks were awkward and her feet unable to articulate the movement, she might work on that. Stretching, pointing the feet, getting footwork of some kind (massage, acupressure), soaking the feet, and practicing the basic steps very slowly as often as possible. Exploring how the foot works, rising, lowering – articulating the feet in ways she might not use in soccer such as: rolling through the foot, using the inside and outside and heel leads and toe leads as appropriate.

I have to laugh at DWTS because each season they give difficult fast advanced dances like Quickstep and Jive the second week to beginners. Why not let these celebs learn a bit and then have them wow us with these dances later in the season? Alas, the question must go unanswered.

Kristin and Mark. Quickstep. My mark 6.
She’s cute, yes. However, I couldn’t get away from noticing at times her raised shoulders, ungainly posture and loss of frame. That’s where she needs work. Her weaknesses were disguised well when she connected to Mark. He acted as a stabilizing force, but she needs to be able to find this for herself.

Her energy felt inside her and in some sense held in. Yes, she gave it her all and danced with greater confidence than before. Kudos to her for that! Though Kristin did well for the second week in, there is not the presence yet, the sparkle that there could be – and that there needs to be for a champion. What sold this dance to me? Her smile.

David and Kym. Jive. My mark 5.
Yes, David gave it his all. Unfortunately, his all is there for entertainment value. This dance was a jive and for that fast, attacked dance, David flailed. I didn’t see technique, line, or speed. David’s performance was simple.

If I were Kym, I would introduce qualities of movement to David. Like inhabiting a character, exploring movements with a range of effort used might help David. He needs to practice basic steps as well – to learn to articulate. He has a loose musculature or at any rate that’s how he seems… lacking in muscle tone. He can’t make his movements effective, direct, inhabited. I’d like to see a big change in his stance and movement quality next time.

Elisabetta and Val. Quickstep. My mark 8.
Lovely and surprisingly good. Both can feel good about their work and contribution to this performance. I won’t say more because they were voted off.

Rob and Cheryl. Jive. My mark 6.
He’s obviously shy and needs to claim himself as powerful and each dance as his own. I keep feeling like he needs to get “tribal.” Back to that in a moment.

Rob did the steps musically and yet I felt he was slow and a bit pedantic – words for someone who is still tentative, a beginner. The judges raved and that seems an injustice. Perhaps they felt it would help his sense of himself.

I want to encourage Rob to continue to give enthusiastically – to let himself focus on a place inside that feels powerful rather than doubting himself. By tribal, I mean I want him to perform as though he is dancing at a party and having a good time. When someone is fearful and lacks self-confidence, s/he lets that fear step into the body. It’s a bit like being inhabited by a ghost energetically. There are many many ways to work with this – EFT is one. NLP is another. A simple way could be to have Rob take a few moves he really enjoys that give him a sense of power and confidence and work those, practicing broadcasting himself in a part where he knows he is exactly who he is. Wonderman.

Carson and Anna. Quickstep. My mark 6.
Unfortunately, Carson’s flamboyance didn’t save him this time and that in large part was due to the choreography. I noticed his slowness in this dance, and my attention was drawn to his stiffness, lack of ease, and the movements of a beginner at ballroom. Still, he had to have worked his butt off to do this difficult dance as well as he did. I’m stunned he could smile through it all.

This time I feel it’s Anna who needs support and I think of asking someone like Derek, Mark or Tony to help with the choreography or a comedian who is known for his or her ability to move–Ben Stiller, Carol Burnett and Jim Carrey come to mind. Why? Because Carson is a personality and that is where he shines. Yes, he needs work on technique, precision and flow. However, if he isn’t allowed to be himself – to shine through antics – we won’t see his gifts and after so enjoying his bravado the first week, we may continue to be disappointed.

Ricki and Derek. Jive. My mark 8.
These two have a unique quality and work in such a lovely way together. She so enjoys dancing. However, I noticed stops and starts in which she lost all semblance of being a dancer because the dance for her stopped dead with only Derek gyrating. These moments were Ricki standing there, unable to extend her energy into the space, unable to continue the dance in her body, connecting each movement to the next. Even stillness has energy to it – a musicality and often subtle movement.

I would have liked to see more jive steps and, I want the choreography and the dance to send me. I want to marvel at the way these two connect and entertain. Ricki needs to find the nuances now, the qualities possible in each step and phrase. For some reason too, I’m feeling that Derek may be finding his way back into the show. He’s the master craftsman and something seems to be missing in the choreography… maybe he needs a greater challenge… a new sort of inspiration for the next dances… some musical or theatrical theme, a visit to an art gallery or to go watch some great pole dancing?

Chaz and Lacey. Quickstep. My mark 7.
Uneven yet enjoyable. There were moments of such beauty when the speed was there juxtaposed with moments that Chaz virtually walked through it (as others did). He has an endearing charm that comes through; however, I am concerned with the weight he’s carrying and the pain he’s been in.

Chynna and Tony. Jive. My mark 8.
I responded to them this time as the best of what I had seen so far. She was on top of it, entertaining, present, shimmering, musical. I was glad she kept her steps small so she could do them. Yes, one could say she played it safe but I didn’t sense that for a minute. To have upped the energy might have meant that she would not have had the precision she had and she might have run out of steam though I don’t actually get lack of stamina from her at all.  The way she danced enabled her to have a consistency to her performance and that consistency matched Tony. She was elegant and truly enjoyable.

Nancy and Tristan. Quickstep. My mark 6.
The steps were there. The speed was questionable at times. She’s musical and enjoys it. She’s also a tad quiet and this show is about the wow factor. There’s no razzmatazz yet from her and there can be in the quickstep. The way she did it seemed a bit staid and limited. A traditional quickstep that was a bit too slow and lacked pep at times.

JR and Karina. Jive. My mark 9.
Wow! Incredible. JR is a natural. In this wonderful, engaging choreography, he shone. The dance was precise and energetic and he really felt it. That ability to show us emotion contributes so much. His joy is palpable and uplifting. I felt connected to him from the inside out. Together, JR and Karina sold it. They sustained the energy throughout. Was it jive or lindy hop? I don’t know. I do know that dances often overlap and steps cross from one style of dance to another with different attack. JR must have worked his butt off because that did not look like a dance done by someone with no dance experience. Maybe the dancing is in his blood. The only reason I didn’t give this pair a 10 was because of the lift.

Till next time.

Choreographer or Fan – Why Dances Fail

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Gregory Hines

Designed movement

You think you have all the right moves. The music is frenzied and full of power. Your dancers are fulfilling your expectations and are really gifted. The future looks bright. Still you’re nervous on premiere night. Who wouldn’t be?

You think your dance concept is genius. The movements flowed out of you like water. Yes, you sweated your guts out at moments but any artist does that for their art.

So why are the critics panning the ballet now? Why did the judges give you and your partner a 3? Why didn’t your tap routine work?

Because, you say to yourself, The judges don’t understand you and seem to hate everything you do. You take this criticism personally.

_____________________________

Egos aside, dances often fail because they lack choreographic craft. Of course, sometimes dances fail because the dancer or dancers are under-rehearsed, lack presence and a whole slew of other reasons having to do with performance, technique and training that will not be touched on here. That’s another post.

Many dancers who have had fulfilling careers go on to choreograph. They may be teachers and need routines for their students. They may head a dance company and have an interest in putting dances together.

All too often, these well-meaning dancers choreograph as the dancers and teachers before them have – believing that choreography is simply putting steps together.

Choreography is a craft. It can be taught. That’s why I’m writing and why, after dancing professionally a short while when I studied to be a dance educator, choreographer and dance critic, I changed direction. I coined my own term for an aspect of what I offer – dance analyst.

A dance analyst knows dance and can help choreographers and dancers by offering a different perspective than critics, instructors, judges and well-meaning fans.

From my viewing experience, many dances fail because they are not well crafted. They fail because they are a string of steps that felt good as they flowed from the choreographer’s dancer self.

If they felt good, chances are they were the steps most easily accessed – like the first ideas that strike a writer when s/he sits down to write. Usually these are easy to do and feel good. They are the stuff of stream of consciousness. They do not provide the coherency and connection needed for a work that inspires, engages and involves others and thus score points with judges.

If that dancer self learned these stream of consciousness steps from Jerome Robbins, Bob Fosse, Paul Taylor, Martha Graham, and George Balanchine, all well and good. Those choreographers all display knowledge of the craft of creating dances… Robbins knew theater… Taylor studied art first… Fosse grew up watching vaudeville… Balanchine studied music… So you – if you’re a choreographer who danced under the tutelage of Robbins, Fosse, Taylor, Graham and Balanchine – learned craft by osmosis and hopefully, through observation. That may not mean you know why a dance or phrase of steps evokes what it does.

Steps borrowed from somewhere and thrown together with other steps are often a hodge podge with no rhyme or reason. They leave out a whole lot of the infinite possibility of the art form.

Dances fail when the choreographer worked with a vague intention and had only a glimmer of a concept of the dance. Never mind designing the look of it. Never mind captivating us – the audience. Never mind that the piece is a patchwork quilt of hackneyed moves from every dance a wannabe choreographer ever learned.

Great crafters choreograph for the eye. They know audiences respond to what they see – line, shape, air and floor pattern, spacial relationships, tension, surprise, emotion, the physical body gesturing, sculpting, responding.

street dancer

attention to shape and design

Great crafters notice nuances. Aware of craft, they note the elements of dance, group work, duets, trios, solos, moments of stillness. They see how past masters used moments of rest and breathing time, as well as tempo, rhythm, attack, lyricism, and patterns and motifs. They are aware of how dancers bring a movement out of themselves with a sense of inner connection and conviction.

Good crafters are also conscious of historicity – of the time period of their dance – and of the elements of a specific style, for example that Argentine Tango is not American Ballroom Tango.

Jennifer Grey and Derek Hough

Attention to shape, use of levels, surprise, humor, design, drama

Sadly, dances also fail when a well-meaning choreographer does not have basic gifts for creating movement. When s/he only knows how to improvise, throwing steps together but has no understanding of music, and little ability to create flowing organic phrases that connect one to the next. When creating a story ballet, many choreographers have little to offer through the story and the chosen theme. They know little about creating drama through the dance and movements that need to convey so much that comes from the theater.

Choreography is a craft. Craft can be taught and learned. That craft is taught mainly in colleges and universities helps those dancers who go to college. Craft of choreography needs to be taught in dance studios and professional dance and dance theater schools so professional dancers gain the benefits. Exploration is required. Trial and error. And hours in the rehearsal studio.

Why do dances fail? Why do dances work? See what you’re aware of now with regard to this dance from youtube, then check my short list afterward:

My short list – why the dance works:

  • that low dip they take – a change in levels – which adds the unexpected
  • lots of circling motifs: they dance around each other, they go in a circular pattern around the dance floor
  • their connection
  • air patterns and shape – the dancers make pictures in the air as well as on the dance floor and in their bodies
  • variety: the dancers dance together, facing each other and side by side. They also dance apart.
  • changes in rhythm and timing

Thanks for stopping by!

If you believe in magic…

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Hi. I’m Melanie A. Stinson, LMT, and I believe in magic. I thrive on the enchantment in this world. I get excited by mystery, by the wondrous, and that’s what I want you to encounter in me, know about in you, and re-discover in the world inside and around you.

I love close encounters of the third, sixth and twelfth kinds and I often find such divine ‘faerie-dust’  encounters in the process of writing and making art.

If you’re here now, chances are you’re on a spiritual quest and see life as an adventure you’re in, each moment unfolding its artistry and enchantment. Or, you may be searching, looking for something, yearning, as I still do.

CCT, which I use daily and with individuals and groups, and Reiki, which I teach, allow you to evolve at your own pace with you at the helm. I love to explore–me and my universe–and these are exquisite tools for that.

CCT and Reiki are your process and I am here to facilitate your journey on the planet when you set up an appointment with me online or in the greater Toledo area, or when you participate in one of my experiences. But they are also available in a different way through my art.

I give CCT and Reiki sessions because they have helped me when I needed a new perspective, when I quaked with fear, when I felt overwhelmed or overwrought and sought peace. They brought me a new sense of me, of what is possible, and aligned me with a greater spiritual vantage point, so that I could look more at the qualities I sought in my life than always at the next job or plane ticket. I know they can do this for you too.

I write screenplays because I love cinematic experiences, putting it all together–visual image, language, music, dance, characterization, story. I feel film connects us to romance and intrigue and infinite possibilities… even to rapture. Movies and movie-making are opportunities to find wonder in ordinary things and thus to translate life into something extraordinary.

Interesting to come to that. I am a translator of experience, a transformative and intuitive being, as we all can be when we follow the magic of the heart.

Spiritual art here, there, everywhere

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All my wearable art and most of my digital work is blessed with Reiki and could be considered spiritual art.

I was recently asked to contribute art to Michael Ellison’s new kind of musical, Key Changes, which had a workshop process in Bowling Green where I live. It will have a showcase production off off Broadway in Brooklyn starting July 9th. To see and purchase that art, visit my store at cafepress.com. Other T-shirts, posters, prints using my art are in my store aplace4us.

If you want art that’s framed to put on the wall, one sample of my early oil pastel work and a couple other pieces of digital art as prints are available through American Frame in Maumee online. Click here: AF

Reiki-blessed art promotes feelings of well-beingSome of my wearable art, shawl/scarves which can also be wall hangings, are available at Space 237 in Toledo. Some people might see them as prayer shawls. These light beautifully colored weavings can be given to those in hospitals and nursing homes as they are soothing and comforting and can be of great benefit to those suffering from most kinds of dementia. Originally created to offer a bit of protection from AC or drafts and to dress up almost anything, these little confections make wonderful gifts to wear, to drape over furniture, or use creatively as you see fit.

My ceramic/fiber jewelry–often brooches–which I produce on occasion, is available at the Toledo Artist’s Club mini gift shop in the Toledo Botanical Gardens. Call ahead to make sure there is someone there who can help you. I keep forgetting the gallery hours myself and have shown up on Mondays when most of the world knows galleries are closed. Framed art along with photographs and sometimes fiber art can be found in the gift shop and/or the gallery there on a rotating basis, depending on the show. The Toledo Artists Club has taken over where Spectrum Friends of Fine Arts left off and the board there is trying to build its name and reputation. You can see some really fine watercolors, oils, landscapes, nature art and photography there, again, depending on the show.

None of my shawl/wall hangings are available online as of 6-20-10.

Sometimes a bit of my art is available at the Toledo Art Walks offered through the Arts Commission of Greater Toledo. These days, however, I tend to give Magic Art Oracle readings as I love interacting with my public. These readings are for entertainment purposes only and are safe for any age. Completely intuitive and relaxing, these mini-sessions can become a game of story weaving and magical storytelling. They can help anyone become more creative. I often take along rocks and crystals – nature’s art – for the kids.

The Toledo Art Walk is June 24 from 6-9p and you can find me on St. Clair Street somewhere between Lafayette and Boz Arts Gallery, weather permitting. No appointment is needed for these readings.

For some fun multi-media art, check out my work on youtube.com and for my homage to Chicago (photography) visit my Picassa gallery.

-Melanie

The Prince of New York… evolution of a screenplay

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I have adventures in New York City. One such adventure, as inspiring to a writer in process as viewing the latest Robin Hood, began in October 2008 and led to the writing of a screenplay… an enchantment experience.

That day I set off to see what lay at the corner of Fifth Avenue and 65th Street. It was a location I had used in a poem about Duo Concertante (a love story) and the address had come to me out of the blue. Why had that location come to mind? I didn’t know what was there.

As I walked east from City Center I saw the number 140.

In a somewhat willy nilly fashion (using an intuitive hit the likes of which author and intuitive Laura Day might have), I decided to be at that corner at 1:40 p.m. I took pictures along the way as I do, noting how certain themes arose in my head as I walked.

At 1:40 p.m., I noticed the scaffolding on one side of Fifth Avenue at 65th. Though I discounted what I saw, it still worked on me from behind the scenes, for scaffolding means something is being built… At that time for me, I was building a story around a man who follows a fairy into the woods… the story of La Sylphide.

On the other side of Fifth, however, I noticed roofs within Central Park. What is this, I wondered.

The trees had a mystical, almost faerie-like appearance.

My heart sang. What is this, I asked again. I reached a series of steps going down and as I began my descent saw to my complete amazement, the actor Russell Crowe talking to a slighter man. They were talking about how Crowe was to walk through the area for what I was certain was his next film.

I had an internal dialogue with myself that went something like this: “Shit, it’s Russell Crowe. What do I do?”

I discounted asking for his autograph as being simply moronic and something that someone who’d grown up in Bowling Green, Ohio, would do. Having lived in the New York metro area for some 20 years before my latest trip, I knew I simply would not do it. I felt like Carrie from Sex in the City enamored of all the possibilities this city of enchantment holds.

I flashed to my camera as I had been taking pictures all along.

Do I ask him if I could take his picture? Most people would not have questioned. They would have just snapped the picture. But I switch from impulsive to let’s see how long I can stew about it.

As I stood there, I finally allowed the feeling of the scene to wash over me instead of focusing on some need to act. I knew he would not want his picture taken. I knew somehow not to intrude. I also felt and would process later the most incredible power coming from him, and without knowing what I was doing consciously, I honored it.

I let the two men go ahead, still wondering what this was all about for me. They disappeared into a crowd like a scene out of Shakespeare or a painting by Renoir.

I began to see England and the Chalice Well. Then I turned a corner and went nuts with all that greeted me. I wished I were the best professional photographer in the world, all the while taking pictures. Children swarmed around me.

A little girl in pink came toward me and said, “There’s a slide over there. A slide!”

“I know,” I said, spying it. Of course, I took a picture with my trusty little Kodak. And then I saw them… bridges… bridges everywhere… in silver chain, lined with tree stumps and stones… some narrow… some you could never walk across your self as they bridged space and other dimensions, and the enchanted fairy realms. I had seen the sign that said, Children’s Zoo, but somehow had never been in there.

As I meandered, I came to a bridge with a fence. On one corner sat a crow. I am not making this up. I may be an urban fantasy writer with a vivid imagination, but I did not make this up.

After seeing Russell Crowe, I saw a crow crow, not so unusual really as crows are everywhere. But this crow was different. This crow was quite a show-off, tilting his head animatedly. His bright yellow beak took my attention and the word, magpie, flew out at me. I was stunned that he didn’t fly away as I stood so close to him. I snapped a picture, but it came out dark and blurred.

As I continued to walk and glanced upward, I saw two pinkish-orange parrots up high that did not move. I knew immediately that they were fake.

I kept walking. I was now wondering if I really saw the crow, if the crow was real or some paper mache animated thing, and for a brief moment felt as though I were in some incredible dream. But I wouldn’t allow it to be only dream. Russell Crowe had been real, as real as this writing is today.

At some point during my walk I began to hear swashbuckling music. This along with the feelings of ancient England continued to imbue me and I wondered what kind of intuitive information this was for me. I knew it felt like the most magical visit to New York City I’d ever had.

I return to New York in June, only for a few days, but this time I carry the finished story about an English actor, a musical theater star of the Broadway stage who risks all to be the dancer he always wanted to be. That story is the one that evolved from my encounter with Russell Crowe. Even though I said nothing, even though I took no action toward him, something happened. From then on I knew I wanted to write a screenplay for him–that great an actor. I felt the challenge, the kind one feels with a great dance partner.

I write dramas but often have a slew of ideas that I play with. I have an idea for Ben Stiller that could work much better if I were a comedy writer. I was told by a colleague to find a high level comedy writer in the industry to be a writing partner. I feel the comedy in my bones.

You see, Ben Stiller is a one form of dancing actor. And though it’s not obvious if you look at his physicality, Russell Crowe is too. The main character in my story, Alek Patel, is this kind of actor. He is not a Robin Hood or gladiator, he sings, dances and is a celebrated Broadway musical theater ham who in some sense loses his beautiful mind.

To recover, he goes to England and meets The Witch, Tild White, on the suggestion of a little girl, a girl he adores who he calls Fairy.

TILD
Want to lead or shall I?

Alek doesn’t move.

TILD
Hate to break it to you but this is a
rehab center and I use dance to get
you where you want to be, even
when you don’t know where that is.
(she takes his hand)
The question is, will you take a step
in some direction?

Tild attempts to pull him. He resists.

TILD
Charming. A bullfighter.

He pulls her into him.

TILD
That’s right. Don’t let me lead. And
if you sense me back leading, stop
the whole dance. We can’t get
anywhere like that.

What is back leading? My ballroom instructor said it’s when the woman doesn’t allow the man to lead as he should. In conflict, the pair look like they’re not a good match. Alek Patel begins his return to the stage at this point in the story. Of course, he has many more adventures ahead of him, especially when he returns to the city he loves.

Who will read of my adventures? Will my screenplay be made? Who believes in the power of ballroom dance… ♫♪ the power of music ♫♪, character, film, the written word, language… to move us beyond time and place?

My adventures continue as I live and write each day. I’ll be in Manhattan June 10-11-12-13, and I can’t wait to be imbued with the sequel to my encounter with Robin Hood, not in Nottingham but still, in an enchanted glade.

The Prince of New York.
Genre: Drama.
Logline:  An award-winning stage actor finds himself pitted against the friends who feel betrayed by him when he risks his career as romantic leading man to fulfill his dream to dance.

Enchantment Experiences… its about transformation

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Collegiate ballroom: UT Ballroom team in Michigan 2010

The Embrace Your Magic blog that I shared with several colleagues is an enchantment experience and so it has moved to this site. Read about my impressions of Dancing with the Stars (DWTS) new season for spring 2010 here.

Reiki is an enchantment experience and so is CCT: think, Guided Meditation or Meditation-in-relationship.

My wraps, shawls, ponchos and wall hangings (all Reiki-blessed) are arts enchantment experiences, ushering in the transformation of a home, of a school classroom, of a gallery, of you when you wear them, and of your dancing or dances if you use them as you float, glide, try some petit allegro in your ballet attire or foxtrot or tango if ballroom is more your style (to keep you warmer in frigid A/C in summer or over a turtleneck in winter and could bring a totally holy Toledo kind of magic too).

Writing, language, stories, plays, novels, and screenplays–at least for me–are enchantment experiences… how structure, character, and story change and how you as writer-reader-experiencer transform through them.

Oh, did I happen to mention? This is a weaver of yarns site. Wooooohooooo!

Embrace THE Magic!

~Melanie