DWTS 5-21-12

Dancing with the Stars. Hmm. There’s a first time for everything. It’s my first time enjoying one dance from each of the couples but not both. It’s also my first time being undecided and ambivalent about the champion. It wasn’t so a few weeks ago. What changed?

You tell me.

I’ve never understood why the freestyle makes many a pro forget about craft so that the dance they choreograph looks like a patchwork of tricks, pyrotechnics and frenetic gyrations without rhyme or reason. So many people are wowed by the insanely fast, think fast is high caliber and more difficult. It rarely is true. Slow and sustained can be oh so difficult to pull off. Well, maybe this time it’s moon shine and solar eclipse gumming up the works. All I know is that this was my least favorite analysis to do. Woe.

My analysis:

William & Cheryl. Chacha. My mark 10.
Enjoyable to watch and they enjoyed doing it. William’s arms were cleaner though not 100% as far as creating a singing line or picture. Dynamics improved and that gorgeous charisma of his shone through. Ditto his rhythmic sense and joy of movement. This is his forte.

Katherine & Mark. Paso Doble. My mark 10.
Exquisite. Dynamic. Clean. Incredible “hit” lines that zinged. I felt this dance emotionally from Katherine. Ah yes – she was “singing”. My fav dance of theirs this season. I loved how the costume colors worked to highlight some of the choreography. Great pyrotechnics from Mark, too. (At this point, I thought – these two are the champs.)

Donald & Peta. Argentine tango. My mark 10.
Beautiful lines and shaping. I can’t fault the technique or choreography. Donald was elegant and crystal clear. He maintained his focus throughout. I do lean a bit toward Len’s comment of him being too careful though I saw it more as being a bit soft in his approach to tango. Still, the dance was so well executed.

FREESTYLE.

William & Cheryl. My mark 8.
My introduction to the post came primarily from this dance. I’m afraid that there was not a lot I enjoyed about this freestyle. It was frenetic. I thought they tried too hard though William danced with everything he had, zinged his lines and used his arms well. The choreography for me was so stop and start and lift heavy instead of giving a continuity and that spiritual quality that Latinos so often bring to the dance floor. For the first time, I felt that Cheryl didn’t have confidence in William to dance and carry the style. Instead of giving us the continuity of dancing that I, at least, hungered for, we had to wade through tricks that had no rhyme or reason choreographically and then when William did dance, he sometimes overdid it and once reminded me of a hound dog eagerly and naively humping his owner. Sad.

Katherine & Mark. My mark 9.
Ready set blast off!

Yikes. Pizazz. So much energy. Unfortunately, I’m the boy in The Emperor’s New Clothes. I can’t say well executed when it looked like Katherine was barely making it through several of the lifts. Ugh umph can I get my leg around Mark? Yeowza. I felt this dance was so Not Katherine – and forced her to be someone she isn’t – and that made me more disappointed than I can say. It was like watching the most gifted beautiful dancer miss the train and run frantically and doggedly to catch up.

Forget sweetness, soft, slow and lyrical. Forget glowing sensual unfolding. Forget innocence like dew on the petals of a rose. Not sure why I’d ever think that would come in a freestyle dance. But I did… because to me that is Katherine’s essence. Boy am I a sucker.

Donald & Peta. My mark 10.
Glory be – we actually got to see a heel tapping fun step-laden dance. That means more to me than I can say. Lots of fun and I’m so glad Peta allowed Donald to do what meant something to him. That made him glow. It was honorable and honest. A Texan free for all but not their best dance.

So, what now? Well, I’ve decided on a double champion for my site: Katherine & Mark and Donald & Peta. I’ll LOL if William & Cheryl win & think that’s highly probable.

Happy trails…