I am very interested in the dancing. He [Brian] says that he should've come to England years ago to learn. Not only are the pro dancers fabulous, they are precise. The choreography for the group numbers is very specific. The dancers really work. On the group numbers they spend 10-15 hours learning and rehearsing, whereas in Amer they may only have an hour or so. I think that is a cultural thing. Americans are always in a hurry, and we are loose with our expectations for excellence. When I saw the dancing on the tour shows and even on the tv DWTS there was alot of individual interpretation. Evidently, on SCD, they are able to do more group numbers because they are prepared to spend more time and make it a point to show uniformity. We must be very relaxed and accepting of so-so quality here in America. We are innovative, I think, but we are not as exacting in general. I guess the English like to just "do things properly." The English and the German in me agree with that. Kristina, who I imagine has a very good sense of discipline and lots of motivation to be an exemplary dancer, especially after partnering with Michael Wentik, was amazed that after the physical difficulty of some of their rehearsals that Brian still went to the gym and running on the same day. She didn't know how he did it. That's how hard they work. I'm not amazed, but I am pleased and impressed. On DWTS stars they would kid Brian about dancing "full out this time, Bri." He would be dancing full out even when others were marking it. I am pleased he has the energy and motivation.
Kristina and Brian are both aware of the quality difference in the dancing on the SCD compared to DWTS. In America we are always so absorbed with the "individual expression" that we put priority on that. Once on a group number on DWTS one of the couples ended in a different pose than the rest of the dancers. It turned out that one half of the partnership insisted that they would do a different pose. In the ballet company we would have been fined for doing that kind of thing. On SCD there must be no option unless they are dancing their own feature section. From the videos I have seen, even the final pose "tableaux" are beatifully matched.
On DWTS this week, the gimmicks were the driving force. I am entertained but not as absorbed and affected by the dance routines as I used to be. I think that I liked it in the beginning because it really was about dancing, now it is so over the top I watch it to see what kinds of craziness they will bring to the show. The Viennese waltzes were easy to compare for me. The judges have changed their shtik about what they expect and want to see. They don't expect any real Viennese waltz anymore, that's for sure. Really...."
