miliosr

John Ratzenberger (Cheers) has replaced Vincent Pastore.

Vincent Pastore has dropped out of the competition: "When I initially committed to joining Dancing With the Stars, I didn't realize just how physically demanding it would be for me. Unable to put forth my best effort, I felt it appropriate to step aside and give someone else the opportunity."

I attended the Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company's performance at the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Union Theater on Friday night. The performance consisted of four pieces by the late-Alwin Nikolais and was billed under the rubric of 'Nikolais Dance Theater'. The Union Theater seats 1,300 and I would say the theater was about two-thirds to three-quarters full. Here are my thoughts on the four pieces presented: Noumenon (1953) This "dance" for three seemed to me to be like a repertory etude of the Nikolais 'total theater' style. Three dancers encased in a stretch fabric adopted different poses in unison while various atmospheric elements -- lighting, electronic music -- added to the unearthly effect. As an intro to the Nikolais style/philosophy, I thought this work was interesting. But as a dance work, I thought it was not the kind of work that would ever bear repeated viewings. Since the three dancers don't really dance (they move like synchronized swimmers on land), there is nothing to be gained from seeing it again. Once you've seen it, you've seen it. Mechanical Organ (1980) This piece, which was more of a "pure dance" piece, was more to my liking. (And the music was the least oppressive of the four electronic scores accompanying the four dances.) The dance consists of an opening full company section followed by a male duet, a female solo, a male quintet, a male/female duet and a closing full company section. The full company sections were terrific. In these sections, Nikolais showed he was adept at utilizing human bodies to create spatial effects without relying on the crutch of props or fabric. The final section, in particular, had some striking effects, including a sequence where the dancers threw themselves into motion like spinning tops. Where I thought the dance faltered somewhat was with the quintet, the two duets and the solo. The choreography for these sections, while not entirely uninteresting, was less compelling than that in the large group sections. It was if Nikolais only had a facility for manipulating large groups of people on stage and was less adept at finding interesting things for dancers to do in smaller groups. Tensile Involvement (1955) This was a spectacular work. Of the four works on display, this was the only one that truly lived up to the promise of the Nikolais style/philosophy. The interaction of dancers, props (long strips of elastic?), lighting, scenery and music was perfect and I wouldn't change a thing. Also, the relative brevity was a plus. (Intermission) Tent (1968) I found this long (and I do mean long) work to be excruciatingly dull. Made in 1968, I'm sure it was all very mind-blowing to the pot-smoking audiences of the time. But since no one was passing a bong around in the Union Theater, I had to watch it straight and I can't say that the experience was a meaningful one. While the Nikolais effects (i.e. the giant tent covering of the title) were out in full force, I found that they completely overwhelmed the dancers. Also, this work (in six sections) highlighted to a cruel degree that Nikolas did not have enough choreographic ideas to sustain a long work like this. At a certain point, it became very apparent that he was a man of limited choregraphic means. Overall, I had mixed feelings about the dance theater of Alwin Nikolais. On the plus side, I thought that Nikolais pulled off some astonishing effects. Also, seeing his works made me realize that he was a direct precursor to Cirque du Soleil, Pilobolus and even to the Talking Heads concert film Stop Making Sense. On the down side, I thought that Nikolais was only modestly endowed as a choreographer and too often his experiments in "total theater" were out-of-balance precisely because the choreographic content did not always live up to the special effects content. In addition, the atonal musical scores gave me a headache by the end of the evening. Still, the Ririe-Woodbury company performed the hell out of these works and they should be commended for preserving a repertory that would otherwise be lost.

ABC has announced the "stars" who will be participating in season four: 01 Laila Ali (boxer) 02 Billy Ray Cyrus (C&W singer) 03 Clyde "The Glide" Drexler (NBA great) 04 Joey Fatone (formerly of boy band group 'N Sync) 05 Shandi Finnessey (former Miss USA) 06 Leeza Gibbons (former Entertainment Tonight host) 07 Heather Mills (soon-to-be ex-Mrs. Paul McCartney) 08 Apolo Ohno (Olympian - shorttrack speedskating) 09 Vincent Pastore (The Sopranos) 10 Paulina Porizkova (80s supermodel) 11 Ian Ziering (Steve Sanders from Beverly Hills 90210!) Fatone and Ziering are absolute masterstrokes -- I'm not sure how I feel about the rest. I'm still debating whether or not to do the reports . . .

sandik -- You raise some very thoughtful points regarding the "survival after death" issue as it relates to modern dance companies. Another issue these companies (and ballet companies, for that matter) may have to face is one of "overreverence" towards the core repertory. I thought of this recently when Deborah Jowitt, in her review of the Limon company's recent season at the Joyce, wrote that the company's performance of a suite from "A Choreographic Offering" was reverent to the point of dullness. I suppose there are worse problems (like being disrespectful to the core repertory) but it does seem like companies will have to be on guard against a kind of creeping reverence that drains all the life out of the classic dances.

The Diane Solway article in Sunday's New York Times, which discussed the plans Merce Cunningham and Paul Taylor have for their repertories once they are gone, touched on something that I've been pondering for some time: What is the key to continued longevity for a modern dance company once the driving creative force behind it is gone? I thought there were two very interesting quotes in the piece that pointed out the problem and its solution (at least for some): ". . . no single-choreographer company built by a towering figure has ever sustained its status after the founder's death. Not even the Graham company." and "But he [Paul Taylor] intends for his company to become a repertory company and admit work by other choreographers, as the thriving troupes of Alvin Ailey, Jose Limon and George Balanchine have always done." While Ailey, Limon and Balanchine were alive, their companies were -- to varying extents -- true repertory companies. This to me seems like the key as these companies were better positioned -- institutionally and psychologically -- at the founder's death to branch out and renew themselves with new works (which, admittedly, are rarely as good as the heritage works.) I guess the problem for single-choreographer companies is this: Is the underlying creative philosophy expansive enough to accomodate outside ideas? And if it isn't, does the reliance on recycling one person's works over and over again lead to diminishing creative returns?? It would appear that the Graham company will be the test case for this approach but, based on my impressions of a recent Graham company performance, the jury is still out on the viability of that approach. I would be interested in reading people's thoughts on this . . .

I bought my ticket to the Sunday matinee on the 25th w/ Gillian Murphy and David Hallberg. Here are the rest of the pairings if you're interested: 21st Kent/Gomes (evening) 22nd Murphy/Hallberg (afternoon) 22nd Dvorovenko/Beloserkovsky (evening) 23rd Reyes/Corella (evening) 24th Herrera/Gomes (afternoon) 24th Dvorovenko/Beloserkovsky (evening) 25th Murphy/Hallberg (afternoon)

Saturday's Wall Street Journal featured a very interesting article by Terry Teachout discussing the end of the "ballet boom" and the ensuing decline in viewership for ballet and modern dance in the US. (Sorry no link -- you have to register to read Journal pieces.) Teachout has many interesting things to say but this piece of information really caught my eye: "Consider this: Of the 120 American dance companies that received grants from the National Endowment for the Arts in 1986, 50% are no longer in existence, among them such noted ensembles as Alwin Nikolais Dance Company, Chicago City Ballet, the Cleveland Ballet, Dance Theatre of Harlem, Feld Ballet, the Oakland Ballet Company and Twyla Tharp Dance."

Since Tudor and Limon both taught at the Juilliard School, I'll do a variation on this theme and suggest what each man's base company should revive in 2008 as a tribute to the other man. For the Limon Dance Company, revive Tudor's Dark Elegies from its repertory -- I've heard their performance of this work was very expressive. For ABT's 2008 City Center season, revive The Moor's Pavane and let Marcelo Gomes have a go at The Moor. If the ABT brass don't want to stage the Limon version of Othello so soon after staging the Lubovitch version of Othello, then pick up on Julio Bocca's experiment-in-a-void performance of Limon's solo Chaconne at the Spring 2006 Gala and turn Cornejo, Corella, etc., loose on it.

Final ratings report . . . The performance show for Week Ten finished 2nd for the week with 26.8 million viewers. The results show finished 1st for the week with 27.5 million viewers.

Week Ten -- The Finale Miliosr's Thoughts How fun was it to see so many members of the Dancing with the Stars "family" -- Joey, Drew, Stacy, Lisa, George -- return for finale week? Jerry dancing with one of Emmitt's daughters at the end of the results show was very, very cute. I haven't had much to say about Tom Bergeron this season but I want to take this opportunity to praise his work as host. He continues to impress me with his ability to host the show while functioning as a one-man Greek chorus commenting on all the insanity around him. He gets a "10" (delivered in my best, melodramatic Bruno voice!) Scores from the Judges What a shock -- the judges tied the two teams! Grrrrr . . . Emmitt/Cheryl = 30 + 30 + 29 = 89 Mario/Karina = 29 + 30 + 30 = 89 Emmitt vs. Mario Since the judges were on hiatus, I went into "Method critic" mode and pretended I was tart-tongued fourth judge "Arlene" for the finale. "Sir Duke" Round Both teams did a samba. Round One was a bit of draw for me. I thought Mario and Karina's dance was more difficult than Emmitt and Cheryl's and I thought Mario and Karina's execution was crisper. BUT, I have to fault Mario and Karina again for not making better use of the dancefloor. They have this tendency to get stuck in one part of the dancefloor and, as a result, they look like they're dancing in place. Emmitt and Cheryl are much better about employing the entire dancefloor and this creates a propulsive quality to their dancing that makes Mario and Karina seem static in comparison. My scores: Emmitt/Cheryl -- 8 Mario/Karina -- 7 Performers' Choice Round Mario and Karina did the paso doble. Emmitt and Cheryl did the mambo. Mario and Karina were the clear winners of this round. The dance was suitably dramatic and Mario is always better when he has a "serious" character to play -- it reduces the smarm factor. And they even moved around the dancefloor more than they usually do. Emmitt and Cheryl were adequate but I thought Emmitt looked sloppy. My scores: Mario/Karina -- 9 Emmitt/Cheryl -- 7 Freestyle Round I always hate the freestyle round and this year was no exception. What bothers me is that the performers seem to think that throwing off the "shackles" of the individual dances will make their dancing "freer". Instead, it just makes them look undisciplined and unruly. They need to remember that the discipline of ballroom dancing will set them free. Emmitt and Cheryl's "It's Hammer time!" routine was an obvious homage to the MC Hammer videos of the late-80s. Unfortunately, the routine itself looked like second-rate MC Hammer. And both lifts were awkward and unattractive. All that being said, I hated Mario and Karina's freestyle even more and for a whole raft of reasons -- weird 80s breakdancing, standing in place, ugly lifts, etc. Worst of all was how Mario danced the freestyle as if it was a solo. It was the Super Mario Show and who cares about relating to your partner! Was Karina even there -- I can't remember given Mario's showboating!! My scores: Emmitt/Cheryl -- 8 Mario/Karina -- 5 My scores -- totals: Emmitt/Cheryl = 23 Mario/Karina = 21 And the Winner Is . . . Results night saw Emmitt and Cheryl storm to victory and claim the coveted glittery disco ball. While I think either team winning would have been an acceptable result, I'm pleased that Emmitt and Cheryl pulled it out in the end. Mario is a cleaner dancer than Emmitt but, to me, Emmitt and Cheryl ended up presenting more of a complete package (dancing, chemistry, razzle-dazzle) than Mario and Karina did. Also, Emmitt seems to have a genuineness about him that works brilliantly on television and tends to make Mario look fake in comparison. Once again, being the early front runner on this show does not result in victory. John O'Hurley, Stacy Keebler and now Mario Lopez have all learned that being strong out of the gate can hurt you in the end as it seems that one factor in winning it all is to show development over the course of the show. Finally, congratulations to Cheryl Burke for successfully defending her title! Final Thoughts This season was somewhat of a disappointment to me as I found the casting and judging to be very flawed this time. I would still rank Season Two as the best season with Season One following at a moderate distance behind it and Season Three trailing in the rear. Season Four will start in March. The miliosr report may or may not be back at that point. Writing these reports is a big time commitment now that the show is up to ten weeks and, when the casting is weird like it was this season, it becomes more of a chore than it should be to right the reports. I think resuming the reports in March will depend in large part on who gets cast. In the meantime, I hope everyone enjoyed the reports!

The recap show for Week Nine rated 7th for the week with 18.2 million viewers. The performance show rated 2nd for the week with 22.0 million viewers. The results show rated 4th for the week with 20.7 million viewers.

Thanks for the positive feedback about the reports . . . Unfortunately, neither Season One nor Season Two are available on DVD. I'm not sure what the stumbling block to a DVD release is. Maybe securing the rights to all the songs is too prohibitively expensive for a DVD release as compared to securing them for the performance nights? I would be the first one to say that anyone expecting Dancing with the Stars to be a "pure" ballroom dance competition is bound to be disappointed. I think a more realistic (and not unenjoyable) view to take is that the show is a hybrid consisting of one-third ballroom dance skills, one-third chemistry between the professional and the celebrity amateur, and one-third old-fashioned Hollywood razzle-dazzle on the part of the celebrity amateur. When you watch the show through that lens, it really is an interesting competition to score. As to the show's impact, I make no claim that what we are seeing is anything other than popular entertainment. BUT, in a world where so much of popular culture seems to be a race to see who can reach the gutter the fastest, I find it admirable that there's a show where the people involved are aspiring upward and are trying to present, however unevenly, something beautiful. And, given how young males who are interested in dance still take such grief for that interest, I think it's a positive thing for them to see people like Jerry Rice and Emmitt Smith participate in this show. If even one young person can point to Jerry and Emmitt's involvement and take a little less grief as a result, then the whole thing has been worth it in my mind.

Week Nine - Semi-Finals Miliosr's Thoughts I wish ABC had cut the performance show from 1 1/2 hours to 1 hour -- the 1/2 hour clip show was unnecessary. I missed the James Bond pro dance on Wednesday but I heard it was outstanding. So nice to see The Pet Shop Boys as this week's musical guest and the audience seemed to love them as well. Scores from the Judges Round One 01 30pts Mario/Karina (tango) 02 29pts Emmitt/Cheryl (waltz) 02 29pts Joey/Edyta (quickstep) Round Two 01 30pts Emmitt/Cheryl (cha cha cha) 01 30pts Joey/Edyta (rumba) 02 29pts Mario/Karina (cha cha cha) The judging was beyond ridiculous this week. The three teams wound up in a numerical tie! What is the point of having a judging panel if they cannot or will not make distinctions between teams? Bruno, in particular, might as well stay home -- he gave out 6 "10s"!!! Miliosr's Scores Round One I would have put the three teams in the same order that the judges did but I would have put a little more distance between the teams. Mario and Karina did a very clever thing by revisiting a dance -- the tango -- for which they received a lot of criticism. It was a good way for Mario to look humble even though he really isn't. Strategic considerations aside, I quite liked the actual mechanics (speed, holds) of the dance although Mario's expression, while correct for the dance, looked wrong to me. I think Stacy and Tony's tango from Season Two is still the gold standard for this show. Emmitt and Cheryl fell just short of Mario and Karina for me. They had nice unison, beautiful chemistry and Emmitt is so much lighter on his feet than one would ever expect. I can't explain why I liked this slightly less than Mario and Karina's tango. I guess I just prefer Emmitt in the Latin dances. The judges overscored Joey and Edyta. First of all, Joey's costume was too gimmicky. I realize it was a tribute to his grandfather but still. (The scarf was particularly tragic.) As for the actual dancing, the quickstep didn't seem all that "quick" to me and Joey's tap dance interlude has gained nothing with time. And that was one awkward last slide at the end. Round Two I would have put Emmitt and Cheryl first and then placed the other two teams at a moderate distance behind them. Emmitt's hips were out in full force for this dance and that's always a plus for this team. I also liked how this team didn't employ as many whimsical embellishments as the the other two teams did. Just give me the darn dance -- I don't need all the other cutesy stuff! Mario and Karina were definitely doing a cha cha cha but I thought it got lost a little bit in all the leather bar theatrics. Joey and Edyta's rumba was unmemorable to me and that was one unattractive final pose. (Was it the camera angle?) The Bootees Joey and Edyta departed the competition on Wednesday night and I can't say I disagree with the result. Joey was like the male Lisa Rinna of this season -- only more talented. It's a pity that Edyta wasn't a better coach/choreographer for him as I don't think she always maximized his natural ability to their advantage. It would have been interesting to see what Cheryl could have done with him as she has now had great success with two very different competitors -- Drew in Season Two and Emmitt in Season Three. Predictions Since the judges have more or less gone on vacation, it looks like this season will come down to a battle of the fan bases. Mario is very popular but also somewhat polarizing -- loved by many but hated by a vocal minority who find him smarmy and fake. Emmitt appears to have a wide fan base but is it big enough to offset that huge voting block who are dazzled by Mario's dimples and his blatant sex appeal? We shall see . . . See you after the finale!

The performance show for Week Eight finished fifth with 20.5 million viewers. The results show finished sixth with 19.2 million viewers.

Week Eight - Halloween Edition Miliosr's Thoughts How much did I squeal when Willa strode onstage to belt out the theme from Fame? I love, love, LOVE that movie although somehow I doubt that students at, say, the School of American Ballet are performing musical numbers in the cafeteria! Just when I think the music choices for the show can't get any more insane, the show manages to prove me wrong -- "Sympathy for the Devil"? "Ghostbusters"?? The theme from The Addams Family??? Given that the performances occurred on Halloween night, there were some interesting costume choices this week. Unfortunately, poor Monique got the worst of it again. Do the costume designers' have something against her? She is always costumed so unflatteringly. Scores from the Judges Round One 01 28pts Joey/Edyta (tango) 01 28pts Mario/Karina (waltz) 03 25pts Emmitt/Cheryl (foxtrot) 04 24pts Monique/Louis (tango) Round Two 01 29pts Emmitt/Cheryl (rumba) 01 29pts Mario/Karina (samba) 01 29pts Monique/Louis (cha cha cha) 04 26pts Joey/Edyta (paso doble) Totals 01 57pts Mario/Karina 02 54pts Emmitt/Cheryl 02 54pts Joey/Edyta 04 53pts Monique/Louis (Sorry, I didn't run the percentages this week.) The Alpha Males Several weeks ago, I complained that the three surviving alpha males in the competition -- Emmitt, Joey and Mario -- weren't taking charge of the competition. Well, it looks like Mario and Karina have been reading these reports because this week they went in for the kill. I thought both of their routines were outstanding. Their waltz was beautiful and dramatic and actually told a story. Mario and Karina were smoking hot in their samba and the choreography set Mario off to particularly good advantage. I thought Emmitt and Cheryl had an up-and-down week. Given that Emmitt is generally better in the Latin dances, I was surprised to see him dominate in the foxtrot instead of the rumba. For reasons that I can't quite fathom, Emmitt looked somewhat sluggish in the rumba. And, at times, Emmitt and Cheryl looked too much like they were doing the kind of slow dance that you would do in the 9th grade. Not the best look for a team whose strength lies in their refreshingly adult sexuality. I don't even know what to say about Joey and Edyta's tango to the Addams Family theme. I was so distracted by the music I couldn't even concentrate on the dancing. Their paso doble was OK but -- again -- Edyta's choreography is very choppy and those were some very awkward final moves. The Story of Mo First of all, the lipstick Monique was wearing did not flatter her at all. As for the dancing, I have to fault Louis once again for choreographing two routines that stretched Monique's abilities to the breaking point (and frequently well beyond them.) In both routines, I felt that she was always a half-beat behind Louis and was perpetually trying to catch up. Sorry but I didn't think either routine worked. The Bottom Two I would have picked Joey/Edyta and Monique/Louis for the bottom two (with Monique/Louis leaving.) On the night, Monique and Louis were eliminated but we never learned what other couple was in the bottom two. Tom Bergeron and Samantha Harris revealed Mario and Karina as the last couple to be safe but I don't believe for one second that Mario and Karina were ever in any real danger. As a point of fact, the hosts stated that the last couple declared safe wasn't necessarily the couple with the second lowest vote total. As for Monique and Louis, I wasn't surprised by their ouster and I put much of the blame on Louis. He ostentatiously claimed in one of the backstage interview segments that his choreography was "more difficult" to perform than that of the other choreographers. To an extent, I admire his doctrinal purity in these matters but, unfortunately, he doesn't seem to realize that a moderately difficult routine presented cleanly is more likely to lead to advancement in a competition like this than an extremely difficult routine presented unevenly. Or, to put it another way, he needs to realize this is a pro-am competition where the audience is voting as much for the overall effect and chemistry as for the difficulty of the steps. Predictions Based on their performances this week, I have to say that the competition is Mario and Karina's to lose. I don't see Joey and Edyta posing a significant threat to them given Edyta's choreographic problems. Emmitt and Cheryl could beat Mario and Karina but they will have to step up their dancing significantly to have any chance of walking off with the coveted glittery disco balls. We shall see if Emmitt's competitive instincts kick in more than they have so far. See you after Week Nine!

The performance show for Week Seven finished 2nd for the week with 20.7 million viewers. The results show finished third with 20.0 million viewers.

The Miliosr Report - Week Seven Miliosr's Thoughts This was by far my favorite week of the competition. No scandals or fake rivalries or judging controversies -- just five teams trying to convey something beautiful. I enjoyed seeing Season One winner Alex Mazo again. I would love to see him return as a regular for Season Four. Scores from the Judges Round One - Ballroom 01 29pts Mario/Karina (foxtrot) 01 29pts Joey/Edyta (foxtrot) 03 28pts Emmitt/Cheryl (waltz) 04 27pts Monique/Louis (quickstep) 05 24pts Jerry/Kym (foxtrot) Round Two - Latin 01 29pts Emmitt/Cheryl (mambo) 02 28pts Joey/Edyta (mambo) 03 27pts Mario/Karina (jive) 03 27pts Monique/Louis (paso doble) 05 22pts Jerry/Kym (mambo) Total Scores/Percentages after Three Dances Out of a total of 388 points, the points/percentages are: 01 84pts Mario/Karina 21.6% 02 82pts Emmitt/Cheryl 21.1% 03 81pts Joey/Edyta 20.8% 04 77pts Monique/Louis 19.8% 05 64pts Jerry/Kym 16.5% (Due to rounding, percentage totals add up to more than 100%.) Round One - Ballroom I more or less agreed with how the judges scored this. Mario has beautiful posture but I was more impressed with Emmitt on the night. For such a big man, he is surprisingly light on his feet. I'm still not "feeling" Monique and Louis. I stubbornly persist in the belief that Louis is pushing her far beyond her limits. Edyta's choreography for Joey is just so bad. All the gimmicks and tricks just killed the flow and pacing of the dance. Jerry's foxtrot was sweet but basic. Still, it was one of his better efforts. Round Two - Latin With the exception of Emmitt and Cheryl, everyone else was overscored. I thought Emmitt and Cheryl killed in their mambo -- those hips of his were on fire! This was far and away my favorite dance of the night. Mario and Karina were decent but it didn't look like true jive to my eyes. They also didn't make very good use of the floor. I felt sorry for Monique and Louis -- they consistently get stuck with unsuitable music. Duran Duran for the paso doble? I'll give them a pass because of that but I have to say that sometimes Louis' choreography is intricate to the point of being distracting. Nice last drop/hold, though. Edyta laid another egg with her choreography for the mambo. And Jerry and Kym's mambo mercilessly revealed his limitations -- why did Len gives this an "8"? The Bottom Two I would have put Jerry/Kym and Joey/Edyta in the bottom two (with Jerry/Kym leaving.) On the night, the bottom two consisted of Jerry/Kym and Monique/Louis (with Jerry/Kym leaving.) It was clearly time for Jerry to exit the competition and he knew it most of all. While I don't think his future is on a dancefloor, I must say that he was the "heart" of this season and, from that perspective, it was sad to see him go. Predictions Amazingly, astoundingly -- we actually are left with a credible Final Four despite the bizarre boot order this season. I suspect that the Final Two will come down to a showdown between Emmitt and Mario but you can never be certain with this show. Everyone expected Stacy and Tony to make Final Two in Season Two and they finished third. So, I'm bracing myself for the unexpected. See you after Week Eight!

sidwich -- I agree with you about the lousy music for Monique and Louis and about Edyta's deficiencies as a coach/choreographer. In ratings news, the performance show for Week Six finished second for the week with 21.3 million (!!!) viewers. This is the series' highest rated episode apart from the finales for seasons one and two. The results show finished fifth for the week with 19.2 million viewers.

papeetepatrick -- The Graham company has been touring the upper mid-West recently. They've been performing in college towns like Ann Arbor (University of Michigan) and Madison (University of Wisconsin). I'm not sure where they are heading to next. The company Web site probably has a list of performance dates.

The Martha Graham Dance Company performed a program titled Prelude and Revolt: Denishawn to Graham at Madison's Overture Hall on Tuesday night. The structure of the program was unique in that it traced Graham's evolution over time through a lecture/performance format. Various members of the company would take to the stage before pieces were performed to give the audience some context about what they were about to see and how the dances related to Graham's evolution over time. I have to say that I had mixed feelings about this approach. While the contextual comments were thoughtful, I didn't think that this approach always worked within the confines of a concert hall. I think a lecture/performance of this sort would work better as part of a residency at a college (like the University of Wisconsin-Madison) than it did as part of a concert hall performance. My other reservation about the format is that the tone was -- at times -- too jokey for my taste. At one point in the program, the company showed footage of Danny Kaye's famous filmed takedown of modern dance in general and Martha Graham in particular. The company member who introduced the clip remarked that, when you get as big as Graham did, you're bound to attract affectionate tributes. The problem with this is that the clip didn't seem terribly affectionate. I found that the clip, rather than enhancing Graham's reputation, had the no doubt unintended effect (from the company's standpoint) of exposing one of Graham's shortcomings -- the lack of humor in her work. Format questions aside, here are my thoughts on the actual works performed: The Incense (Ruth St. Denis, 1906) Gnossienne (A Priest of Knossos) (Ted Shawn, 1919) These solos premiered, respectively, in 1906 and 1919 but they look like they could have premiered in 1806 and 1819 -- they're that dated. The point of showing these was to show where Graham's later interest in presenting Greek/mythological themes in her own work came from. As concert dance works, however, these pieces were so boring that I nearly fell asleep. Serenata Morisca (Ted Shawn, 1916, danced by Graham from 1921-1925) This solo contained every Spanish/flamenco cliche you've ever seen in your life but what made it more palatable than the first two was the dancer's ankle length skirt which was weighted so that the skirt took on a life of its own as the dance progressed. While Shawn's choreography is nothing to write home about, the interplay of the dancer and the skirt was interesting. It was as if dancer and skirt were conducting a duet of sorts. Three Gopi Maidens (Martha Graham, 1926) This was the low point of the evening. Sub-standard Denishawn at its worst except that Graham herself was the author of this inanity. It would fit right in with ABT's production of Le Corsaire, though. (Yes, that's meant as an insult to ABT.) Lamentation (Martha Graham, 1930) Satyric Festival Song (Martha Graham, 1932) These two Graham solos were a considerable step up in quality from what came before them. Unfortunately, because they represented such a radical departure from the whole Denishawn ethic, I couldn't help wondering if the lecture/performance format wouldn't work better if the company ditched the Denishawn works and, instead, just gave the audience aural context about Denishawn before presenting the Graham solos as revolts against what came before. I liked both solos well enough but I thought that the two dancers in these pieces lacked the kind of explosive stage presence that history tells us Graham had. Steps in the Street (excerpt from Chronicle) (Martha Graham, 1936) This was my favorite piece of the night and, to me, was a virtual master class in how to animate stage space through the positioning and movement of human bodies. There were many memorable sections to this work but the best was watching lead dancer Carrie Ellmore-Tallitsch use her swinging left foot to mark time on the stage floor (as if she was a human metronome) while the rest of the company traversed the stage. Outstanding! (Intermission) Appalachian Spring (Martha Graham, 1944) I had mixed feelings about this one. I loved the scenic design and how Graham filled the stage space -- everything and everyone looked like they were in perfect harmony. The performances lacked something, though. I didn't think the leads were charismatic enough to put the work across. As a result, I found that it only sprang to life intermittently. (The audience liked it, though, so maybe it was just me.) Acts of Light (Martha Graham, 1981) This dance was a split decision for me. The first two sections of this dance (a duet between a man and a woman and a group dance with one woman and five men) were very bad. The duet was vulgar and unsightly and the group dance was Graham at her self-parodying worst. (If I hadn't known better I would have said that the second section was the handiwork of the Carol Burnett Modern Dance Troupe -- it really looked like that much of a parody.) Amazingly, I loved the final section, which featured the entire company. This last section was a remarkable contrast between the "earth" and the "air" with the company members alternately taking flight or plunging to the earth. My only reservation about this piece was that the Graham dancers (particularly the male dancers) looked a little ragged in the air. I found myself wondering what a company like ABT could do with this section if you could detach it from the other two sections and present it as a stand-alone piece. But then I doubt ballet dancers would be at ease with the "earth" sections of this dance like the Graham dancers are. So, at the end of the day, maybe the answer is that this is a dance where the perfect performance of it will always remain elusive because no company can ever measure up to its peculiar demands. All told, I thought the Graham company's performance in Madison was an up-and-down affair. They're alive and kicking but both the repertory choices and the actual performances were very uneven. Based on what I saw on Tuesday night, I don't think they're anywhere close to being where they should be based on Martha Graham's reputation.

The Miliosr Report - Week Six Miliosr's Thoughts As I suspected, this week ended up being a non-elimination round due to Sara's departure. I have to admit that I liked the group disco number. None of the celebrity amateurs will ever replace John Travolta in the public's imagination but I liked how everyone was enjoying himself or herself on the dancefloor -- a first in an otherwise tense and joyless season. I would rank Emmitt as the best of the men -- he is a born disco dancer. Scores from the Judges 01 28pts. Mario/Karina (mambo) 02 25pts. Emmitt/Cheryl (jive) 03 24pts. Joey/Edyta (rumba) 04 23pts. Monique/Louis (samba) 05 18pts. Jerry/Kym (paso doble) Thankfully, there was no insane bunching in the scores this week. Still, some of the scores were inexplicable. A "7" from Carrie Ann for Jerry and Kym? Please! The Alpha Males I thought the judges got it just about right with the top three celebrities -- Mario, Emmitt and Joey. What frustrates me, though, is that the alpha males aren't taking control of the competition. Mario, Emmitt and Joey all showed aptitude at the beginning of the competition and they continue to show aptitude. What they're not showing is improvement -- they are not progressing the way Drew, Lisa and even Jerry did in Season Two. As a result, the competition has a very static quality to it. There isn't much excitement to be had because the top competitors aren't giving the kind of definitive performances that would energize the audience and elevate the nature of the competition. Miliosr's Bottom Two My bottom two would have been Monique/Louis and Jerry/Kym. The second I saw Tommy the Clown with Monique and Louis in the rehearsal footage, I knew the routine was going to be problematic. (FYI -- Tommy the Clown is the "father" of the dance style known as krumping.) I don't know what Louis was thinking trying to graft the krumping style on to a samba. The result was a bit of a mess. I also question why Louis gave in to Monique's desire to perform a solo. She's not always in command of herself when she's performing with Louis -- why would he think she would be any more in command by herself? As for Jerry and Kym -- I don't know what to say other than I think Jerry deliberately tried to throw the competition on Tuesday night. He looked mighty guilty when Willa and Maks went over Kym and him and I think he decided to fall on his sword this week. Or maybe he's just that bad -- take your pick. The Actual Bottom Two Joey/Edyta and Jerry/Kym were the actual bottom two on the night. Joey didn't belong there BUT he's been coasting along in the middle of the pack for a long time now. That's a dangerous place to reside in a competition like this since it is very easy for the audience to forget about you when you're neither memorably good nor memorably bad. Now that all the low hanging fruit has been picked, Joey can no longer afford to coast along under the radar. He must deliver two stellar performances next week or he may find himself following Willa out of the exit door. Predictions Next week will give maximum power to the judges as the scoring percentages from this week will carry over to week seven where they will be added to two scoring percentages from the judges (the contestants will perform two dances next week) and the audience percentage from next week. It will work like this: Percentage - Week Six - Judges + Percentage - Week Six - Audience + Percentage - Week Seven - Judges - Dance 1 + Percentage - Week Seven - Judges - Dance 2 + Percentage - Week Seven - Audience This is the time for the judges to put the hammer down on Jerry. Whether they will or not remains to be seen. See you after Week Seven!

Helene -- I'm glad you're enjoying the reports. Regarding the Sara Evans situation, I guess I don't like my reality TV to be quite that real. Dancing with the Stars only works when it has this magical, Brigadoon-ish quality to it. Once true reality intrudes, the magic begins to fade. In other news, the performance show for Week Five was fourth for the week with 20.1 million viewers. The results show finished fifth with 18.2 million viewers.

The Miliosr Report - Week Five General Thoughts The big event of this week was the announcement that Sara Evans was quitting the show because she is divorcing her husband. I'll leave it to the readers of the Miliosr Report to find the prurient details of the divorce on the Web. For the purposes of analyzing this competition, the circumstances surrounding Sara's departure are not relevant to us. Instead, what is relevant is the impact said departure will have on the rest of the competition and, in my opinion, that impact will be considerable. More on that later . . . Scores from the Judges 01 27pts Emmitt/Cheryl (samba) 01 27pts Mario/Karina (rumba) 01 27pts Monique/Louis (rumba) 01 27pts Willa/Maksim (rumba) 05 25pts Joey/Edyta (samba) 06 24pts Jerry/Kym (samba) 06 24pts Sara/Tony (samba) I had a real problem with the scores this week. By allowing such a terrible bunching to occur, the judges pretty much gave the audience a free pass to determine the result and the result was that the audience ousted one of the more talented teams. If the judges are so upset that talented teams are going before untalented teams, then they need to step up to the plate and score the teams more accurately. Based on what we saw on Wednesday night, there was no way that Jerry/Kym and Sara/Tony should have been anywhere near the Top Five. But because they were, the new scoring process ended up killing Willa and Maks. Let me explain. Under the new system, the teams get a percentage based on the number of points the judges give them relative to the total number of points assigned. So, out of 181 points, the four first place teams each got 14.9%, Joey and Edyta got 13.8% and the two sixth place teams got 13.3%. All of the teams are then given a percentage based on the percentage of the fan vote they got and the two percentages are added together to give the teams their overall scores. This is a good system -- if the judges are scoring aggressively. In the absence of aggressive scores from the judges, a talented team that does well with the judges but does not command (for whatever reason) a large and motivated fan base is going to get killed. Which is more or less what happened this week. Miliosr's Bop to the Top For the most part, I thought the majority of the performances were of a reasonably high quality this week -- I would put Emmitt/Cheryl, Mario/Karina, Monique/Louis, Willa/Maksim and Joey/Edyta in this group. I thought Emmitt and Cheryl were the best on the night. I delight in watching Emmitt as he gives the impression of having a ball on the dancefloor. He has good hip action and he and Cheryl traversed the floor very well. My only concern about Emmitt is that his upper body can be as limp as soggy spaghetti at times. I agreed wholeheartedly with Carrie Ann's assessment of Monique -- her dancing is too internalized. Carrie Ann may be right that this problem stems from Monique's not having a background in live performance. But I also think Louis and his New Age-y coaching isn't helping the situation. Monique often looks baffled at some of his more "out there" instructions and that bafflement sometimes peaks through in performance. The other three teams were solid if unspectacular -- not necessarily a good thing in a competition of this sort. Miliosr's Bottom Two My bottom two would have been Jerry/Kym and Sara/Tony (with Sara/Tony going.) Jerry and Kym's performance was memorable and I give them credit for really selling it. But c'mon -- Jerry is doing the bare minimum and even that isn't so great. I know I'm an ogre for picking on a woman going through a painful divorce but Sara was perfectly dreadful on the night. She isn't terribly graceful and the routine was as simplistic as Jerry and Kym's (but without their performance energy.) And why are Sara and Tony's routines always so painfully sloooooow? The Actual Bottom Two Jerry/Kym and Willa/Maksim ended up in the bottom two (with Willa and Maks leaving.) No way should Willa and Maks have gone over Jerry and Kym and Jerry knew it on the night. The look of horror on his face when he found out a more talented team was leaving before him said it all. I'm not sure why Willa and Maks failed to gain much traction in the competition. To my mind, Willa was the most talented dancer among the women and she was a hard worker who was making progress. I think the absence of a large and motivated fan base at the start was a huge impediment for them and I also think the judges didn't do them any favors with the scoring. But, if I'm being honest, I have to say that Willa and Maks never delivered that one breakthrough performance that would have endeared them to the voting public. As Lisa Rinna has noted, being a solid but unmemorable team is often the quickest way to get booted off the show. Predictions Until Sara's surprise annoucement, I would have said she was a lock for the Final Four based on her having a motivated fan base who thought the judges were picking on her. With her departure from the show, I think there will be a bit of chaos until we get to the Final Two. My guess is that Emmitt/Cheryl and Mario/Karina are a lock for Final Four but I'm not so sure what will happen to the other three teams. By all rights, Jerry should go next but he appears to have nine lives so one of the two remaining teams could be in danger of going home. See you after Week Six -- if I survive Jerry doing a disco routine!

Interesting development . . . Sara Evans is quitting the show because she is divorcing her husband! According to the AP, she filed for divorce on Thursday. Her last appearance on the show will be on Tuesday. No word on whether or not Willa and Maks will be invited back to the show. There will be a lot to write about this weekend . . .