Who did you like when you first started dancing? :D

[J4cki3]

Who did you like when you first started dancing? and who do you like now?
Just wondering which dancer has inspired you.

The 1st dancer that comes into my mind right now is Slavik! He's been a great source of inspiration for nearly... 6 months now.. Starting to like Franco Formica as well ;)

[etp777]

Jackie and Jesse were first pros I ever saw compete, and they definitely impressed me. Not enough to start dancing though, that was more a matter of cute teachers in area asking me to dance. ;)

[_malakawa_]

this is a trick question. ;)

when i started to dance i was 9 (that was in 1994/1995) and my teachers (who were also a competitors) were my idols.

than i saw Donnie and Gaynor. http://www.cosgan.de/images/smilie/liebe/a015.gif

and now, Brian and Carmen, Joanna and Michael.

[Nik]

When I was like 13/14 I used to really like Genya Mazo. Then as time went on I didn't think he was that great anymore, probably because I started to improve myself. Then I really liked Slavik, and as I was growing up more, I understood why Bryan was the best in the world.

[Laura]

The first Standard couple that I fell in like with were Pierre Allaire & Mirelle Veilleux. They had retired and were giving the show at the very first comp I went to. I'll never forget their foxtrot to "Fly me to the Moon," it left a huge impression on me.

Nowadays...I don't know...I've seen a lot of great dancing this year (went to watch the UK and Blackpool), there are a lot of couples I like, but I can't say there's anyone I'm like "oh my god" over. Is that sad, have I just seen too much good dancing and am now kind of complacent, or is this just a reflection of where I'm at mentally right now?

I'll pay more attention at Embassy and see who makes me go "wooooo."

[Becca]

I saw Hanna dance and that was it, it was all that I ever wanted to do!

[JANATHOME]

Absolutley was Eddie Simon and Michelle Officer dancing American Smooth. Thier Vwaltz was incredible!
When we started competing Larinda and Steve were dancing Rising Star, loved to watch them too!!

Bak then my favorite standard couple, not sure I have the names right, was Clyde Phillips(??) dancing with his sister. Being a lady I usually watch the ladies but he was so great I could not take my eyes of of his dancing.

[chachachacat]

Donnie and Gaynor, Melissa Dexter, David Hamilton and Olga Forapanova, and the first Italians to grace our shores, Augusto Schiavo and Caterina Arzenton!

[Casey]

Janathome, you might be talking about Clive Phillips - he used to do 9 dance w/ his sister Karen McDonald, so it would have been smooth, though maybe they did standard at some point before I started watching. He hosted a televised dancesport competition in Monaco a while ago when there was more ballroom on tv. I remember wanting to see them dance smooth one year at Heritage and kept seeing him on his cell phone; but she never showed up and they didn't dance any more that I saw. He owns Dance New York and Dance New York Westchester, but she isn't mentioned.

[GJB]

Karen McDonald was teaching at DNY last I heard.

[GJB]

It's been so long I'm not sure who my earliest favorites were. Now, my favorites are Gene Kelly, Yulia, Slavik, and Bryan.

[White Chacha]

My first intro to ballroom was the PBS shows back in the 90s. Everyone thought I was weird for watching them. One night I had tweaked the rabbit ears in my 3rd floor bedroom in Arlington MA so I could receive the NH PBS station and watch the show. While I was doing that, I got a call from a TV pollster wanting to know what I was watching. She was incredulous that I was picking up WENH from Arlington ;-) Now there's cable...

Now I like the Italian Standard couples for their showmanship; Massimo and Alessia - she's gorgeous. Loved Sinkinson with Jørgensen, I like Yulia with Riccardo but I think I liked her better with Max (for the showmanship). Bryan and Carmen. I love Victor and Anna. I want to see Max and Beata do a show!

I appreciate Gene Kelley much more now!

[GJB]

OK, just saw Luca and Loraine's show. So, now I can add them to my favorites.

[hereKittyKitty]

Hazel and Chris were my early favorites, then I fell out with them in favor of the Italians. Alessandra and William, Alessia and Massimo,and so on.

However I recently had the opportunity to see some footage of Hazel and Chris doing a show here in the US. I can now say they are again one of my favorites. She is such and amazing girl. As far as the Italians, I have a new appreciation for Simona and Fabio.

[cornutt]

I mostly notice the smooth dancers. The first ones I ever saw, and I still enjoy watching them, are the owners of the studio where we dance, Tom and Mendy Langford. Then there's David Hamilton, the guru of smooth; Michael Mead and Toni Redpath; Steve Dougherty and Eulia Baranovsky; and of course our lovely Larinda.

[fascination]

well...mostly b/c of FP...I was rather partial to Kathryn Schaffer and Victor Veryssat (sp?)... and I also liked Jean-Marc and Franz, and Pierre and Mirielle...I would watch my boss's old tapes and couldn't get enough of them...oddly I don't recall watching much smooth, which happens to be my favorite...shrug...later I had a strong affinity for Shalene b/c of her strength and body type ...and I have a sentimental attachment to Victor and Anna

[Natalka]

Just like everyone else here who is coming up with names of many of the "old timers" shall we say...my favorites have always been Bob Powers & Julia Gorchakova and also Jose (who is my teacher). What I thought was funny when I was at Manhattan Dancesport watching the Pro Rhythm was this:
It's funny how the two top people competing in American Rhythm right now, Jose Decamps & Julia Gorchakova...are the same top two that were on top 10 years ago. Funny how things come full circle...
I guess when you are really unique & good at what you do that is "your own", it works for you forever.
It gives me faith to always do what you do best & continue to work on the rest to improve yourself always...

[Natalka]

Karen McDonald was teaching at DNY last I heard.


You're right GJB...I saw her teaching there at Dance New York...

[dancepro]

My favorite is by far Gene Kelly, his center awareness was just awesome. I also like Bob Fosse in "Kiss Me Kate".

Those two guys and my grandfather were the ones that got me started appreciating and loving the expressions through dancing, using dancing to communicate feelings, stories and life. My grandfather taught me that dance could be use to discover the spirit, mind and body and get them all working together in harmony. :)

Dancepro

[Josh]

Steve Dougherty, when I saw Eulia and him dancing live.

[Laura]

It was funny -- not more than an hour after I posted about Mirelle V. as being my first favorite, I was on the floor competing and she was judging me :) (The marks show that I need to improve more to catch the eye of my first dance idol. :) )

Now my favorites in Standard are Domenico & Gioa from Italy.

[Warren J. Dew]

I didn't even know competition existed when I started dancing; I guess the person I liked was whoever I was dancing with at the moment.

The first time I saw someone whose dancing actually impressed me? It was a couple - I didn't know who it was at the time - who were taking a lesson from one of the Barrs, who for some reason was at our studio for a few days. As best I can figure out, the couple was Joe Jenkins and Stacy Cuneen, who as far as I know never competed together.

The first actual show I liked was Hans and Anne Laxholm. I also remember really enjoying watching Steven Hillier practicing by himself after a competition had closed for the night, though I don't think I actually saw the Hilliers' show the next day.

[hereKittyKitty]

It was funny -- not more than an hour after I posted about Mirelle V. as being my first favorite, I was on the floor competing and she was judging me :) (The marks show that I need to improve more to catch the eye of my first dance idol. :) )


You know, DM talked with Pierre V and told him that he was his inspiration for dancing. During the early 90's DM saw Pierre and Mirelle here in Atlanta doing a show and was astounded. This convinced him that this was what he wanted to do. So it was awesome having Pierre judging us. What a priveledge.

[latingal]

Beata, Slavik, and Joanna.

Have since added to the list; Bryan, Karina, and Yulia.

[pinkstuff]

Slavik & Karina, Hanna Karttunen & Paul Killick, Yulia & Max

[ashybang]

What a lovely question and an easy one to answer for me.
This brings back many happy memories to remember and think of the greatest of champions. This couple were unbeatable for years and years and were a delight to watch.

` Richard and Janet Gleave.`



Recent dancers who i adore are Jonathan Wilkins dancing with Katusha Demidova. I love their Foxtrot and Tango. - I was sad they split.
Mirko and Alessia seem to have everything, but my ultimate experience was Richard and Janet Gleave.


On the Latin side of things Alan and Hazel Fletcher were my idols originally, followed some time later by Donnie and Gaynor.

Recently i have liked Bryan and Carmen, though not with the same passion as the earlier Champions.

The current crop are by any `standard`, brilliant dancers!!! There`s just a little something missing for me though and i can`t even put my finger on what it is. sigh!

[White Chacha]

You know, DM talked with Pierre V and told him that he was his inspiration for dancing...

For the record: Pierre A.

[and123]

Marcus and Karen Hilton. Unquestionably.

[fascination]

It was funny -- not more than an hour after I posted about Mirelle V. as being my first favorite, I was on the floor competing and she was judging me :) (The marks show that I need to improve more to catch the eye of my first dance idol. :) )

Now my favorites in Standard are Domenico & Gioa from Italy.isn't is odd how that works? and I have found that, for no reason that I can comprehend(beyond my un-dying admiration), the more Canadians on the judging panel, the better I fare...go figure

[tangotime]

Fred and Wilma :rolleyes:

[Ithink]

One of the first couples I ever saw dance when I first started were Eddie Simon and Michelle Officer doing Am. Foxtrot. Back then, I knew virtually nothing about dancing - it was my 3rd comp ever, the Daytona Beach week-long dance festival, and Eddie and Michelle were on staff there. Each night, one staff couple did a show (so Jean-Marc/France, the Masons, Rutherford/Carroll all were there) and I just remember being amazed at theirs - so romantic and beautiful! Sometimes I still hear the song they danced to (can't think of it right now) and it just brings me back to that magical, for me at the time, performance. They really blew me away and now I don't even like Smooth that much:)

These days, people/couples that still amaze me are Yulia Z. and Mirko/Alessia.

[biggestbox]

when I started it was all slavik and karina, I like paul and hanna too but slavik was my favorite. Nowadays i like Bryan watson, Franco Formica, Melinda TöRöKgyöRgy, Joanna Leunis, and Yulia Zagorouitchenko

[njdancegirl]

Started watching dancing on PBS back when Gary and Diana, Jean Marc and France and Tony and Melanie were the top couples in Latin. Was in awe of them all...

Since I've started dancing, Slavik and Karina, Yulia and Max and Michael and Joanna became my faves. And even though he's not currently competing, love Max C's style...

[old dog]

This is an easy question to answer: "Anyone who can dance better than us." (And that was most everyone when we first started.)

We have no idea who are most of the dancers that have been mentioned so far as inspirations and role models.

Out here in the hinterlands of dancing, it is extremely rare to see pro dancers other than on TV (OSB on PBS and recently DWTS). There are only three or four studios in the entire state of Iowa that emphasize ballroom dance and only one of these is owned by a well-known pro (Ed Simon, and he is not around very much). ["Well-known" has to be qualified -- if you would ask all of the hundreds of people we share the floor with, 95% would never have heard of Ed Simon.]

We would have to travel hundreds of miles to see a 'real' ballroom competition. After dancing at most of the eastern Iowa venues for well over ten years, we probably know or recognize most of the people who are frequent ballroom dancers in eastern Iowa and we know of only two or three people who have entered a national-level dance competition. (Some of the studio instructors probably have, but we don't know them or see them at social ballroom events very much.)

Don't feel sorry for us -- we enjoy dancing very much and hope to continue doing so for the rest of our years. We dance for many reasons and continue to take private lessons from a very good semi-pro instructor, but have never aspired to any kind of competition as it seems most Dance Forums posters do.

As an aside, I have noticed that most DF posters seem to emphasize the "I" when speaking of their dancing. Does that mean they dance without their spouse or SO? To me, dancing is a "we" process. Am I weird or maybe considered an "outsider" in the DF community? Just curious.

[fascination]

"I" think that most df posters use "I" b/c they aren't sitting at their computer with their partner and can't always speak for their partner...and it is true that a large amount of the ballroom forum is comprised of competitors but it certainly doesn't mean that one needs to aspire to compete to participate here....and speaking from the "hinterlands" myself...I can relate

[ChaChaMama]

I'm going to answer this more in terms of who I particularly enjoy watching, rather than who inspires me. (It's not like I'm delusional enough to think I can dance "like" any of these people.) This is just about my personal pleasure and who I find a charismatic presence on the floor:

When I first started:
LATIN: Bill Sparks and Kimberley Mitchell...and then when he started dancing in the U.S., Louis van Amstel
RHYTHM: John Abrams and Adriana Chessa

Currently, the couples that give me the most pleasure to watch include:
Andrei Gavriline and Elena Kryuchkova
Eugene Katsevman and Maria Manusova
Nikolai Pilipenchuk and Natasha Skorikova

I also get a lot of pleasure from watching the amateur events. (In fact, I often enjoy watching the amateurs as much or more than the pros, including the junior and youth events.) Some of my favorites (in various age categories) include:

Valentin Chmerkovskiy and Valeriya Kozharinova
(Until recently) Tal Livsh*itz and Kate Kapshandy.
Armen Petrosyan and Nicole Pyatetskya
Allan Rudman and Michelle Tuzman

[Ithink]

Since CCM started naming some Am dancers, I'll say that I always enjoy watching Elijah Piker dance. I just wish she'd stick with a partner for more than a few weeks, lol:) Not even sure who she's dancing with right now... Also Pasha and Inna's standard is very fun to watch!

[NoDayButToday]

I really liked maria and eugene when I first started. I still enjoy them, but my favorite now is yulia and riccardo... I could watch them allllll day. :)

[Laura]

As an aside, I have noticed that most DF posters seem to emphasize the "I" when speaking of their dancing. Does that mean they dance without their spouse or SO?
In my case I am unmarried and am not dating anyone, so I have no spouse or SO to be a "we" with. I don't have a dance partner either (although I'm looking for gentlemen to try out with) -- I take lessons from two teachers and compete with one. So unfortunately there is no "we" for me at this time. And even if there were, it's quite possible that we'd have different opinions on who we each liked the best!

[ChaChaMama]

Since CCM started naming some Am dancers, I'll say that I always enjoy watching Elijah Piker dance. I just wish she'd stick with a partner for more than a few weeks, lol:) Not even sure who she's dancing with right now... Also Pasha and Inna's standard is very fun to watch!

I was going to put her on my list too! The only reason I didn't is that I haven't actually seen her dance with Pasha Stepanchuk, who I believe is her current partner. (I liked him very much when he was dancing with Sasha Nissengolts, so I have a feeling I'll like the two of them together, but need to see it.)

I'm also looking forward to seeing more of Danielle Karagach and Stan Faynerman, both of whom I enjoyed with previous partners.

***
I completely agree with Laura that just because two people are married doesn't mean they will have the same favorites. (CCP and I share a lot of favs in common, but there is one amateur latin male we disagree about rather strenuously!) We also don't agree on whether physician-assisted suicide ought to be legal, on whether it is possible to believe in an omniscient, omnipowerful God and still believe in free will, or on whether animals other than humans can "think" in any meaningful sense of the word. We have been having some of these debates on and off for over two decades, and if I can't win the debate about God or cats, I doubt I'm going to win the one about the latin dancer either.

[Lorelei]

Pino
I still love some of his old tapes

[madmaximus]

Mom and Dad.

To me, the epitome of grace.





m

[samina]

Mom and Dad.

To me, the epitome of grace.





m

dear lord, that's romantic...

[J4cki3]

Hmm... I had just been talking to a fellow dancer at my studio, he said that most people had a slavik phase when they started dancing because he's able to do the basics in a very pronounced, easy-to-see manner. but after awhile, when people start to understand dancing more and more, they move on to other dancers....

For those people who likes slavik, what's in his dancing that does it for you????