Dancing is a beautiful art and learning doesn't need to be difficult. We absolutely love dance and vow, to ourselves and our students, that the experience of dance will always be one of pure enjoyment.
On this blog, I post anything related to dance or fitness that I think will inform you or uplift your spirit, leaving you feeling inspired, engaged and successful.
Lots of stuff going on that I'm excited to share with you... but no time right now. However, I wanted to let you know that if you are missing So You Think You Can Dance now that it's over (and congratulations to everyone on that show this season... truly beautiful routines) you can catch two new dance shows if you have cable:
Dance Your *ss Off on the Oxygen network
Randy Jackson's America's Best Dance Crew on MTV
Dance Your *ss Off combines Biggest Loser and Dancing with the Stars for a dance/weight loss competition. It's nice to see a show where the joy of dance is celebrated by everyone of any shape or size!
Randy Jackson's America's Best Dance Crew (what is UP with all these TV shows with their long long titles?!?!?) returns to let dance groups battle it out with original dance routines.
Whether you're dancing or watching... for the rest of the summer, enjoy the dance!
The cast of this season's Dancing With the Stars has changed.
Jewel was originally reported to have tendinitis of the knee but now doctors say she has stress fractures in both knees. Either way, she will be replaced by Playboy bunny, Holly Madison.
Nancy O'Dell also has to withdraw because of an knee injury she sustained during practice. Update:Melissa Rycroft will take Nancy's place. Melissa is the girl that The Bachelor recently chose and then dumped.
Two dropouts from injuries before the season even starts? The good news is that it sounds like they should heal fine - given time. They will both appear on the premiere on Monday, March 9. And since Jewel's husband is a competitor on the show (Ty), we should see her throughout the season in the audience.
This Wednesday, February 25, the fourth season of America's Ballroom Challenge premieres on PBS at 8:00 (central).
This two hour special was shot at a huge ballroom dance competition in Columbus, Ohio, and features 24 world-class couples competing across the four different ballroom dance styles: American Smooth, American Rhythm, International Standard and International Latin. The focus is a "show dance" where each couple takes the floor by themselves. The couples compete in front of a live audience and a panel of judges and the winning couple walks away with the title.
Ron Montez, seven-time U.S. National Latin Dance Champion, co-hosts the show with Jean Lousia Kelly, an actress/singer/dancer who you may recognize from shows like Yes, Dear or Mr Holland's Opus.
The dancers you will see throughout the evening are:
Mayo Alanen and Lisa Vogel (American Smooth)
John Selby and Irina Chalkevitch (American Smooth)
Mikhail Zharinov and Galina Detkina (American Smooth)
Tomas Mielnicki and J.T. Thomas (American Smooth)
Mazen Hamza and Magdalena Piekarz (American Smooth)
Jonathan Roberts and Valentina (American Smooth)
Michael Neil and Danielle Wilson (American Rhythm)
Felipe Telona and Carolina Orlovsky-Telona (American Rhythym)
Matthew Hauer and Karen Hauer (American Rhythym)
Jose Decamps and Joanna Zacharewicz (American Rhythym)
Steve Vasco and Joanna Siekierska (American Rhythym)
Decho Kraev and Bree Watson (American Rhythym)
Erminio Stefano and Luana Conte (International Standard)
Linas Koreiva and Liene Apale (International Standard)
Urs Geisenhainer and Agnes Kazmierczak (International Standard)
Mikhail Avdeev and Anastasia Muravyeva (International Standard)
Igor Litvinov and Yulia Iveleva (International Standard)
Gherman Mustuc and Iveta Lukosiute (International Standard)
Riccardo Cocchi and Yulia Zagoruychenko (International Latin)
Andre Paramonov and Natalie Paramonov (International Latin)
Vaidotas Skimelis and Jurga Pupelyte (International Latin)
Eugene Katsevman and Maria Manusova (International Latin)
Pavlo Barsuk and Anna Trebunskaya (International Latin)
Delyan Terziev and Boriana Deltcheva (International Latin)
Victor Russo and Elaine Sheresky (Exhibition Dancers)
Forrest Vance and Olivia Anderson (Exhibition Dancers)
Daniel Radler and Deirdre Radler (Exhibition Dancers)
Hunter Stephens and Inna Berlizyeva (Exhibition Dancers)
Daniel Shapiro and Katya Kovalyova (Exhibition Dancers)
You can check out their website for a description of the different dance styles you will be seeing. They also have a little "trailer" you can watch here. This could be a good opportunity to find a style that you like but may not have been exposed to until now.
As far as dance competitions go on television, you can't get more ballroom than this.
Here are the stars and their professional partners that will be dancing this season:
Belinda Carlisle - Singer (partner: Jonathan Roberts)
David Alan Grier - Actor / Comedian (partner: Kym Johnson)
Holly Madison - Playboy bunny (partner: Dmitry Chaplin)
Shawn Johnson - Olympic gymnast (partner: Mark Ballas)
Lil Kim - Grammy Award winning rapper (partner: Derek Hough)
Gilles Marini - Actor from the Sex and the City movie (partner: Cheryl Burke)
Ty Murray - Rodeo athlete (partner: Chelsie Hightower)
Steve-O - reality TV star (partner: Lacey Schwimmer)
Melissa Rycroft - reality TV contestant (partner: Tony Dovolani)
Denise Richards - TV and film actress (partner: Maksim Chmerkovskiy)
Lawrence Taylor - NFL Football Player (partner: Edyta Sliwinska)
Chuck Wicks - Country singer (partner: Julianne Hough)
Steve Wozniak - Apple co-founder & philanthropist (partner: Karina Smirnoff)
** Holly Madison replaces Jewel before the start of the season. Jewel had to withdraw due to injuries to both of her legs. ** Melissa Rycroft replaces Nancy O'Dell before the start of the season. Nancy had to withdraw due to a knee injury (meniscus tear).
Another Cinderella Story 2 is a film that was released direct to DVD but ABC Family channel is airing it this Sunday. The film stars Selena Gomez (from Disney) and Drew Seeley (recently from the touring company of High School Musical.) It looks like a, well... a Cinderella story... but with a lot more dancing. Check out the YouTube video below.
NBC's press release bills this show as "poised to become the greatest spectacle of dancer performances ever seen on television." And it does sound good.
Michael Flatley ("Lord of the Dance") hosts this international dance competition, which will feature prominent dancers from 8 countries showcasing dance genres unique to their nation. Each team is comprised of two soloists, one duo and one group performance:
Argentina dancers: A sensual cabaret artiste, a contemporary Tango dancer, an Argentinian Tango duo and a group of Gaucho dancers (Gaucho's use their bolas to produce intricate dance movements)
Australian dancers: A tap dance soloist, a contemporary dancer, a Latin ballroom duo and a group of contemporary dancers.
China dancers: A traditional Chinese ribbon dancer, a double whip soloist, an acrobatic ballet duo and the Shaolin Monks Kung Fu group (taking a break from their world tour of "Shaolin: Wheel of Life", these dancers have been billed as the greatest performers of Kung Fu for over 15 years)
Ireland dancers: Irish step dancers, in teams assembled from various groups around the world.
India dancers: A Bharantanyam soloist, a Kathak soloist, a Bollywood duo and a group of Bhangra dancers.
Russia dancers: A Ballet soloist from the Bolshoi Ballet, a contemporary dancer from the Bolshoi Ballet, a ballroom duo and a group performing a Cossak-style dance.
South Africa dancers: A Hip/Hop dancer, an Afrofusion soloist, a World Champion jive-inspired dance duo and a group performing Gumboot - a dance born in the gold mines of South Africa.
United States dancers: A "Popping" soloist, a tap dancer soloist, a World Champion cabaret-style ballroom duo and a group of hip hop dancers.
This sounds like it could be a lot of fun and a great intro to a new year of dance.
Brooke Burke and her dance partner, Derek Hough, won this season's Dancing with the Stars. Congratulations go out to them and all the other contestants that gave us a great season.
NBC is adding another dance-themed show to their roster for January when they launch, Superstars of Dance on Jan. 4. After this 2-hour Sunday premiere, the show will settle into its normal Monday timeslot. Another dance "reality" competition from the producers of American Idol, Superstars has the backing to be another fantastic show to follow!
Remember when Cody Green from Step it Up and Dance mentioned that they were making a sequel to the movie Center Stage? Well, it's here. Actually, it's scheduled to play on the Oxygen channel at the beginning of November (Nov. 1) and then it'll be released on DVD in January. It is called Center Stage: Turn It Up and here is a poor quality teaser trailer for it:
The teachers from the original look the same and the plot sounds very similar but if the dancing is as fun, then it'll be a success in my book. Keep an eye out for it.
On Monday, Sept. 22, Dancing with the Stars returns with the following celebrities and dancers paired up (listed alphabetically):
Lance Bass (from NSYNC) will dance with Lacey Schwimmer (finalist of So You Think You Can Dance 3).
Toni Braxton (singer/actress) will dance with Alec Mazo.
Brooke Burke (TV host) will dance with Derek Hough.
Rocco DiSpirito (celebrity chef) will dance with Karina Smirnoff.
Maurice Greene (Olympian) will dance with Cheryl Burke.
Kim Kardashian ("reality" star) will dance with Mark Ballas.
Cloris Leachman (82 year old EMMY winning actress) will dance with Corky Ballas (Mark's father).
Cody Linley (actor and the youngest contestant... ever) will dance with Julianne Hough.
Susan Lucci (actress from All My Children) will dance with Tony Dovolani.
Misty May-Treanor (Olympian) will dance with Maksim Chmerkovskiy.
Ted McGinley (well-known actor) will dance with Inna Brayer.
Jeffrey Ross (comedian) will dance with Edyta Sliwinska.
Warren Sapp (Superbowl Champion defensive tackle) will dance with Kym Johnson.
The season starts off with a 3 night event on Sept. 22. where two of the couples will go home. After that it settles into its 2 night (Monday/Tuesday) slot.
Who will be the break-out star this year? Let's find out...
What an amazing season of this show! After we got to the top 10, all of the dances were magical. The talent we got to watch, along with the amazing choreography was phenomenal! And this was all on TV! Sitting on our sofa, being able to watch world-class talent in dancing and choreography.
Simply amazing.
It came down to the two street dancers for the final two (Twitch came in second place). That, in itself will be inspiring to many people that feel they have talent but that it's too late for them. No, it isn't! Just dance.
As I said, the final dancers were fantastic this year. And we got to see some of the great contestants from past seasons dancing in the finale. And some of the judges.
This season was a great success for the show and brought us truly spectacular entertainment.
The SYTYCD tour comes to Austin on October 12 at the Frank Erwin Center. You can buy your tickets online here.
Thank you FOX and So You Think You Can Dance, again, for bringing more popularity to dancing. And congratulations to Joshua and all of the other finalists for making this the best season yet!
Life is busy and full getting everything up and running at Dance Institute. And I still love it. I hope to have more for you about this a little later this month. If you want, stop by and see for yourself though and sign up for a class or two!
Just a quick reminder that So You Think You Can Dance auditions wrap up tonight. I'm glad. As much as I love this show, I'm not a big fan of the auditions. Why? I think it's because I know that the producers put those people through intending for us to laugh at them. I know the auditions are where we get our first peek at the good dancers too, and that's exciting, but "the rest" aren't just the good dancers that don't make the cut. It's the ones that YOU KNOW everyone knows has no talent and they won't put through. It's not as bad as on American Idol, but it's still not as enjoyable to me as when they get that out of the way. Thursday starts the "real" beginning of the show for me - the callbacks. That's when the real magic starts.
Also on Thursday, the finale of Step it Up and Dance airs. This was the first season for this show and it's on Bravo, a "netlet" so it doesn't have the money of a huge network behind it. The first season of any competition show like this isn't as good as later seasons. Given that though, it was interesting. We are down to the final four - and I've enjoyed quite a few of their dances: Moshi, the older woman with a passion for dance. Nick, who is finding his heart through his dance as we watch.
And then there is Cody, who everyone assumed from the beginning had the whole thing in the bag. Cody has amazing technique - which is always sort of hypnotic to watch. The judges keep telling him he is missing something and I can see what they mean. At least in what we are shown in the episodes. His passion doesn't shine through and he seems more stoic than passionate in his dancing. That being said, I still think he is amazing. And he casually mentioned in the last episode that he was in Center Stage 2. What? I didn't know they were doing a sequel to that movie. I really liked the original. There doesn't seem to be any promo material out there for it yet, but I'm going to keep my eyes open and I'll let you know if I hear anything. But if you want to check out one of the dancers from the movie, turn in to Step It Up and Dance tomorrow night and watch Cody.
From the MTV website: Have you ever wondered what it takes to see your name up on the marquee of one of Broadway's biggest hits? Well, Legally Blonde The Musical: The Search for Elle Woods shows you all the hard work, dedication and determination that's needed to become a leading lady in a mega-musical. (Watch the trailer.)
After a nationwide casting call, thousands of girls auditioned for the chance to become Elle Woods. Now that the intensive search is over, 10 girls with larger-than-life dreams are going to be given the opportunity of a lifetime -- a shot at the starring role in the Broadway musical Legally Blonde. But only one of them will take center stage when the lights go up.
Filmed in New York City, the search will pull back the curtain on the audition process and show you exactly what it takes to become a Broadway star. The 10 lucky finalists will live together in a NYC loft while working their butts off with some of Broadway's biggest names, including choreographer Denis Jones, vocal coach Seth Rudetsky and some of the cast members of Legally Blonde. Plus, they'll be mentored by singer/actress Haylie Duff, who had her own starring role in the Broadway musical, Hairspray.
It's going to take a lot of hard work, dedication and determination to be the next blonde on Broadway, and the competing girls will be given a crash course in singing, dancing and acting. Each week, the Elle Woods wannabes will step onstage in front of a panel of judges... The last girl standing will land the starring role in the blockbuster Broadway musical!
Swingtown premieres on CBS on June 5th at 9. This show isn't really about dance, but I choreographed the dance sequence for them while they were in Austin and you can see me and some of my students in the scene.
Master of Dance is scheduled to premiere on June 9th and airs Mondays 7-8 on TLC.
From TLC press release: Do you have the moves it takes to be TLC's MASTER OF DANCE? The new competition series – hosted by Joey Lawrence – tests the dancer's moves by changing the song mid-performance to see if they can really go with the flow. Only the dancers with a full repertoire and the flexibility to keep up with the beat will be able to claim the grand prize - $50,000.
Dance Machine is scheduled to air on ABC, Fridays from 7-8.
From ABC website: Each episode features six real people from all walks of life who will face off against each other in a series of one-on-one dance-offs to the most popular songs of all time. Imagine a 70-year-old grandmother in a dance-off with a 25-year-old gravedigger to the tune of Michael Jackson's "Thriller." Throughout the night contestants will be eliminated by voters in the studio audience. By the end of the evening, just two finalists will be left to challenge each other for the honor of being crowned that night's "Dance Machine" -- and to take home the $100,000 cash prize. Popular E! News correspondent Jason Kennedy is host.
Some of these shows seem like they'll be more fun than others but all of them sound like they will have something to offer the Dance Lover.
One of my favorite TV dance shows is about to begin. Returning this summer for Season 4 is So You Think You Can Dance. Its normal timeslot is 7-9 Central on Thursdays. However, the schedule is always a little wonky during the "audition" process. The first episode of the audition process is scheduled for Thursday, May 22. The second episode is the following Wednesday. After that, I think it sticks to Thursdays (but check the link to TV Guide's episode page to make sure.)
For those who love dance, this is a phenomenal show. Those with training and those without all compete. The only thing they share is a love of dance. All forms of dance show up: Ballroom, Ballet, Jive, Latin, Hip-Hop, Krumping... and some that are so new there is no name for what they do.
This season, auditions were held in Milwaukee, Charleston, L.A., Washington D.C. and Dallas.
AllWaysDance.com
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Brooke Burke and her dance partner, Derek Hough, won this season's 
Joshua Allen
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