DWTS 2025

raindance said:
a TV show designed to get ratings and engagement, while being loosely based on a dance competition with voting and eliminations.

I enjoy DWTS for entertainment. Sometimes there are even some nice dance moments in there, either from the contestants, or from the various pro routines. My dance expectations are low.
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100%, and this is why I don't watch it anymore. Dance is not really important here, it's being used as a means to an end.
lucia_l said:
I stopped DWTS long ago. This does not make me want to resume watching.
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Same.

lucia_l said:
The result is there are a bunch of very athletic dance moves and figures that don't strike me as "dancing". It's more like gymnastics made to imitate dancing.


I agree it's better with the sound off. Then a viewer can focus on the athleticism. I like watching Olympic gymnastics.
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I remember making a similar observation years ago (maybe not on DF, maybe just in my head or out loud at home) that some of the routines were just acrobatics/gymnastics (which I also enjoy, in their proper context). Some of them were just one lift after another with almost no actual dancing in between.
ProgressNotPerfection said:
contorted
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"Contorted"... YESSSSSSSSS

ProgressNotPerfection said:
the dancing isn’t just taking a back seat - it’s being locked in the boot of the car!
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Love this analogy. :rofl:
 
IndyLady said:
I remember making a similar observation years ago (maybe not on DF, maybe just in my head or out loud at home) that some of the routines were just acrobatics/gymnastics (which I also enjoy, in their proper context). Some of them were just one lift after another with almost no actual dancing in between.:rofl:
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Agreed. There is a mix. I have no idea which the judges reward since I don't pay attention to the outcomes on these. I admire the lifts. I've even thought, "Wow! Lifting women acrobatically sure develops muscles!" But I often don't feel like it's done in a dance like way. (Some do do it in a dancelike way.)

It can be hard to verbalize why I think it's not dance like. Is it athletic? Yes. Is it graceful? Yes. Does it have a somewhat effortless look? Yes. Still, sometimes it's missing two things I care about in dancing that's also supposed to have an element of "show": storyline, expression/emotion. So it's missing the "acting" and the "dancing" we expect in theatrical dancing.

Maybe cabaret isn't theater? I don't know. But I can admire it and yet not really get into it.

Sometimes there is also little musicality-- and the DWTS AT one is sort of that. The dancing was disconnected from the music. ( The music not sounding like AT contributed to this. I don't think a choreographer asked to come up with a routine to go with that song would have ordinarily picked AT. Modern and theatrical dance has a lot of flexibility. This choreographer had to force fit AT to that.)
 
I, too, stopped watching DWTS several seasons ago. But, this thread sparked some curiosity, so I watched a few of the DWTS routines on youtube. Bleh – not impressed at all. The Argentine Tango that is the specific topic of this thread – maybe the choreography had some manufactured figures forced into the music, but….nope, didn’t “touch” me.

And the Professional ensemble dances on DWTS – meh. They all seem to be choreographed to go from “hard hit” pose to “hard hit” pose. Again, not impressed.

I started watching the BBCs Strictly Come Dancing instead (pulling up the routines on youtube), which I find far superior to DWTS. Strictly has music that matches the dance that is being judged; the choreography uses a lot more syllabus figures; the judges are willing to use the full range of paddles when they score. I also find the costuming to be more appealing (I think DSI does the costuming for Strictly). And the Pro ensemble dances are really good. I loved the group dance for the 2025 series launch with the Poolside Party – Shirley Ballas joined the dancing in that one.

I just watched this last week’s Strictly dances. I am typically “oh, ho hum, a 'Dancer’s Choice' [e.g. do whatever the heck you want]”….but……WOW! WOW! WOW! Lewis Cope and Katya Jones did a SHOWSTOPPING dance routine! Just… WOW!

Also, I’m usually a “meh” re: Argentine Tango numbers in general, but the AT that Karen Carney and Carlos Gu danced was so, so, so, so, SO COOL! (And, as a female Lead…..LOVED the costuming!)
I get it, maybe it's not everyone's cup of tea. But for me, I found them to be routines that I've re-watched.
 
There's some tango history there with the use of the compadrito-like characters and men practicing with men so they would be able to dance with women (as it's explained in the film Tango Bar). I don't think I've seen any such staging in DWTS ever.
 
Cal said:
..stopped watching DWTS... but the AT that Karen Carney and Carlos Gu danced was so, so, so, so, SO COOL ..LOVED the costuming!)
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Agreed, as a viewer, I found this performance by Carlos and Karen very entertaining. The choreography varied, had an arc of tension, and was engaging. Music matched movement. There was a story. Admittedly, it does use a clichéd tango theme, the ritualized fight between pimps, but that didn't bother me; after all, it's a stage performance, it's entertainment.

I thought it was courageous that so much more Argentine tango vocabulary was incorporated, much more than in the performance by Pasha Pashkov and Danielle as linked above. Critically speaking, Carlos's styling and technique are terrible. I'm this harsh, because this forum was just as harsh in in criticizing bad International or American technique. I would advise any professional against choreographing an Argentine tango if they can't dance it themselves: the most striking and embarrassing flaws are the bobbing and the rise and fall. Therefore, thumbs down for now; you have to master the basics first.

Steve Pastor said:
There's some tango history there with the use of the compadrito-like characters..
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For those interested in the compadrito fight: this is a technical flawless example:
Source: Tango Libre 2012,
en.wikipedia.org

Tango libre - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org
 
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OK, I admit I haven't watched in at least 10 years because of all the issues brought up. I have seen the exceptional pro dances by Derek/Mark, the tribute waltz to Len, etc. However, I may need to step up and find a way to get around the YTTV/Disney p.....g contest this week, as there will be a supposedly epic opener for the 20th anniversary, choreographed by Derek. I can't find the original post by Louis Van Amstel (possibily IG?) but there will also be at least some of the original pros appearing in the episode, including...

Louis, Alec Mazo, Edyta Slewinska, Ashley DelGrosso, Jonathan Roberts, and Charlotte Jorgenson!

I found another mention of the episode below, which sounds interesting.

"According to a report by Deadline, an exciting twist for the relay round has also been introduced this season. For the first time in the history of 'Dancing With The Stars,' the celebrities will be taking over the ballroom floor without their professional partners. Instead, the contestants will be hitting the stage with a returning mirrorball champion to perform different dance styles, including jive, quickstep, and more. At the time of writing this article, the names of the mirrorball champions who will be returning to the fan-favorite show were yet to be revealed. "
 
kckc said:
OK, I admit I haven't watched in at least 10 years because of all the issues brought up. I have seen the exceptional pro dances by Derek/Mark, the tribute waltz to Len, etc. However, I may need to step up and find a way to get around the YTTV/Disney p.....g contest this week, as there will be a supposedly epic opener for the 20th anniversary, choreographed by Derek. I can't find the original post by Louis Van Amstel (possibily IG?) but there will also be at least some of the original pros appearing in the episode, including...
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One option to access ABC is to get a inexpensive over the air antenna and hook that up to your TV. I get all the major networks plus PBS and a bunch of other stuff via antenna, and it's in HD and free (well, other than the cost of the antenna, which I bought a few years ago now).
 
j_alexandra said:
oh. wow.
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It's a common stereotype in show/stage argentine tango. Just one contribution from that mix making argentine tango today. Recently seen it as well in a touring show in the UK - 'Tango Passions'. Interestingly, on a rough audience survey, it looked like 70%, or more, women. I presume there to observe the 'Italian Stallion' (although, IMHO, not the best dancer there, but Shirley might have warmed up). Somehow audiences (well, Strictly/DWTS audiences) like that type of show from the seedier side of history.

Apparently the compradritos were often the former gauchos who moved to the town.
 
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Speaking of Wicked... Just had an exchange with one of the young baristas at Starbuck's before going to dance at a place I've lived near for almost 30 years but never been in. Read the book years ago, but haven't seen the film or the musical. Had to remind her of the WIzard of Oz - that old timey film !
 
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