miliosr

The Week Four performances episode finished fifth for the week with 18.4 million viewers. The results show finished seventh for the week with 17.5 million viewers. Meanwhile, I am taking to my bed as a result of last night's unjust ouster -- boo, boo, BOO!!!

I just finished rereading Patti Smith's Early Work: 1970-79. As the name implies, this volume is a collection of her writings from the 1970s, when she rose to prominence as punk rock's "poet laureate". Since its release in 1994, I've returned to this book every so often to see if the writings contained within it have become more accessible in the intervening years. Sorry to say that they haven't -- much of her 70s output is still very difficult even for someone like me who is familar with her recorded output. I think many of these pieces only work in performance -- hearing Smith perform them in that ultra-distinctive South Jersey drawl of hers is a more rewarding experience than trying to read them on the printed page.

The Miliosr Report - Week Four General Thoughts I noticed something telling this week -- the absence of standing ovations this season. Last season, the audience jumped to their feet at the slightest sign of excellence. This season, the audience remains firmly rooted in their seats. You tell me . . . It was nice to see reigning champion Drew Lachey in the audience this week. Where have you gone Drew Lachey? Dancing with the Stars nation turns its lonely eyes to you! Scores from the Judges 01 29 pts. Mario/Karina (paso doble) 02 28 pts. Willa/Maksim (waltz) 03 27 pts. Joey/Edyta (waltz) 04 24 pts. Emmitt/Cheryl (paso doble) 04 24 pts. Monique/Louis (waltz) 04 24 pts. Vivica/Nick (paso doble) 07 22 pts. Jerry/Kym (waltz) 08 20 pts. Sara/Tony (paso doble) Miliosr's Top Three (. . . er . . . Top Two . . . er . . . Top One) This week was a first for me -- there was only one performance that I liked and that was the performance by Willa and Maks. I thought there was much to commend in this performance -- their rise and fall was very good, they made use of the entire dancefloor, they told a nice story and there was a lovely "glow" to the whole thing. Willa and Maks appear to be making some headway with the audience but it's unclear to be how much headway they are actually making. The true test for them will come if they have an off week with the judges and they have to rely on the audience to see them through . . . or not. Until then, though, hopefully we'll get more shots of Maks walking around with no shirt on! The Big Blah Middle I would put Emmitt/Cheryl, Joey/Edyta and Mario/Karina in this group. Emmitt/Cheryl and Joey/Edyta were adequate technically but lacked magic. I thought the judges overscored Mario and Karina. To me, the performance was frenetic in a bad way. Karina's choreography was too fast for Mario so he often looked like he was "behind" the steps and the music. Also, I thought his posture was erratic -- his upper body was altogether too forward for this dance. The Bottom Three (. . . er . . . Bottom Four) I would put Monique/Louis, Sara/Tony, Jerry/Kym and Vivica/Nick in this group. Monique and Louis would have been OK but for the unnecessary addition of four separate splits in their routine. The splits totally killed the effect of the dance and made their waltz seem like something other than a waltz. Vivica and Nick's dance didn't seem very fluid to me -- there was too much stomping around (and not in a good way.) Also, Vivica's demeanor, while suitable for this dance, is the same expression she utilized in every other dance so it was hard to distinguish this dance from what came before it. Jerry and Kym were very sweet in their waltz. That being said, the actual dancing was flawed in the extreme. Jerry didn't really rise and fall and he basically walked his way through the dance. I like Jerry as much as the next person but I can't say it enough -- he can't dance!!! Sara and Tony were just terrible. Sara looked very stiff and uncomfortable and, like Vivica and Nick, this pair did too much stomping around. Let me say it again -- terrible!!! The Actual Bottom Two Monique/Louis and Vivica/Nick were the bottom two for this week (with Vivica/Nick leaving.) I don't think this was the right boot as I would have put Jerry/Kym and Sara/Tony in the bottom two (with Sara/Tony leaving.) All that being said, I wasn't surprised to see Vivica and Nick go. As I surmised last week, Vivica had no fan base at the start and she and Nick didn't attract a new fan base as the competition progressed. I thought they were one of the better pairs in the competition but I think Vivica's diva demeanor killed them. This should be a lesson to the producers for future seasons -- that "fierce diva" type just does not work on a show like this one where the audience wants pairs that they can fall in love with. Predictions What happened to Monique and Louis this week? The audience was awfully quiet when it was announced that they were in the bottom two. Do they even have a core voting audience? I'm curious as to how Joey and Edyta will progress in this competition. Can the show sustain two former teen idols (Joey and Mario) over the long haul? I think not -- and Joey and Edyta may pay the price for that. See you after Week Five!

The Week Three performances episode finished fourth for the week with 17.9 million viewers. The results show finished 11th with 15.8 million viewers.

The Miliosr Report - Week Three General Thoughts Week Three has come and gone and the weird anti-chemistry persists. I don't know what else to say other than that this season appears to be badly miscast. In other developments, I didn't think it was possible for the show to get any camper than it already is but, boy, did the show prove me wrong on Wednesday night. Between the camper-than-camp Scissor Sisters and the big production number (which was a bizarre cross between opera, one of Martha Graham's "heavier" numbers and a Black Mass), this show tilted the camp meter into the red zone! Scores from the Judges 01 27pts. Vivica/Nick 01 27pts. Monique/Louis 03 25pts. Sara/Tony 04 22pts. Harry/Ashly 04 22pts. Joey/Edyta 04 22pts. Mario/Karina 04 22pts. Willa/Maksim 08 21pts. Jerry/Kym 09 19pts. Emmitt/Cheryl Miliosr's Top Three ( . . . er . . . Top Two) Once again, I really couldn't put together a Top Three. The only two performances that I thought were of a reasonably high standard were those by Vivica/Nick and Monique/Louis: Vivica/Nick To my eye, Vivica and Nick did the best pure tango on the night. Unfortunately, I thought the music killed the effect and made the dancing seem less significant than it really was. I like this couple and I would like to seem them go deep in the competition but I question how much they are actually registering with the audience. I'm concerned that Vivica's ultra-serious demeanor may work against them as the field narrows. It's all well and good having that intense look about you when you're duking it out with Uma Thurman in Kill Bill but I'm skeptical that that same look will be a big seller with the audience for this show. It will be interesting to see how they fare if they should have an off week with the judges -- I suspect the judges are keeping them alive at this point. All that being said, I enjoyed the footage of Vivica and Nick in ballet class. I could watch Nick at the barre forever! Monique/Louis At times, their performance reminded me of something you would have seen the Ikettes do in the old Ike & Tina Turner Revue. (At one point, I half-expected Ike, Tina and the rest of the Ikettes to come charging out from backstage.) Still, this was by far the best of the jive performances. Monique has great enthusiasm and, of all the celebrity amateurs, she appears to be the one who would best fit in with the much beloved cast from Season Two. My one criticism of her dancing is that she doesn't always appear to be in control of what she's doing. Still, she is showing progress -- which is more than I can say for some of her competitors. The Big Blah Middle I would put Emmitt/Cheryl, Willa/Maks, Sara/Tony and Joey/Edyta in this group. Emmitt/Cheryl and Joey/Edyta had off weeks -- they were neither disastrous nor spectacular. While I question whether what Sara and Tony performed was a jive or some mutant hybrid between a jive and country line dancing, her energy picked up this week so I guess that's a sign of improvement. I don't like how Maks is choreographing for Willa. I feel that his choreography exposes her weaknesses rather than hiding them. The choreography also makes her look like she's dancing at a different speed than he is. For those of you who remember vinyl records, it's as if one of them is dancing at 33 1/3 rpms and the other is dancing at 45 rpms. Miliosr's Bottom Three My bottom three for this week would be Mario/Karina, Harry/Ashly and Jerry/Kym. Mario is clearly a good dancer. So why are they screwing around and not doing the dances the way they should be done? He's too good to be eliminated at this stage in the competition but his "I'll do it my way" attitude is REALLY rubbing me the wrong way. Harry and Ashly's tango was very bad -- too basic, too slow, too static, etc. And they also made the cardinal sin of being unmemorable. If you're going to be bad in this competition, it's better to be memorably bad than forgettably bad. George Hamilton and Jerry Springer will certainly attest to that! As for Jerry and Kym, I don't even know what to say at this point. They're only getting by on Jerry's enthusiasm and even that isn't all that great. The Actual Bottom Two Harry/Ashly and Jerry/Kym were the actual bottom two and I didn't disagree with either selection. While I thought Jerry and Kym should have gone, I can't say that Harry and Ashly being booted was an unfair boot. This team had too many weaknesses to make it far in the competition. Specifically, Harry was too stiff and Ashly was the least able of the professional choreographers. An "A" for effort for Harry but "Team Rinna" has had its day and that day was Season Two. Predictions Probably the only person more surprised than me that Willa wasn't booted was Willa herself. Based on that shriek she let out when she found out she was safe, she thought she and Maks were going this week. They've obviously gained more traction with the audience than I thought they had but I'm not sure how much. In an otherwise disappointing season, one interesting development so far is that there is no clear front runner. Maybe this week will give us a clearer indication of who is going to make it over the long haul. See you after Week Four!

The Week Two performances episode finished fourth for the week (behind Grey's Anatomy, Desperate Housewives and CSI) with 18.2 million viewers. The results show finished 17th for the week with 15.0 million viewers.

Helene makes an excellent point about how "seriously competitive" the contestants have gotten. The contestants from Seasons One and Two had (like Jerry Mouse in Anchors Aweigh) a "Look at me -- I'm dancing!" mentality that was fun to watch. In contrast, many of the Season Three contestants don't seem like they're much enjoying the experience. Is it that expectations have risen for contestants and they're feeling the pressure? Or have they seen what the show did for people like Kelly Monaco (made herself known to a non-daytime TV audience), Drew Lachey (moved out of his more famous brother's shadow) or Lisa Rinna (all over television at the moment) and are determined to reap the same rewards? One of the reasons I'm liking Emmitt so much is that he has nothing to gain career-wise from doing the show and his dancing reflects this. In the world of professional athletics, he is about as A-list as it is possible to get. I think that's why he seems so relaxed on the show -- he's doing it for the fun of doing it and because he's a competitive guy. The result is that his dancing is breezy and pleasing to the eye. I'll conclude by saying that Helene is absolutely right about Ashly. She is the weakest instructor of the professionals.

The Miliosr Report - Week Two General Thoughts Week Two has come and gone and I must confess that I'm not "feeling" this season yet. Is it lingering hangover from the high gear second season? I don't know if it was brilliant casting or just plain dumb luck on ABC's part but the Season Two cast (with the exception of Master P) was a joy to watch. There was a great camaraderie among the dancers and that camaraderie made for a very enjoyable viewing experience. In contrast, something about Season Three seems off to me. Is it the casting? For some reason, the celebrity amateurs don't seem like they're having as much fun this season. There's a certain tension emanating from some of the dancers and, as a result, the show as a whole seems riddled with tension. In other news, I nearly fell out of my chair when I heard the music to Harry and Ashly's dance -- "Lust for Life" by Iggy Pop! The fact that an Iggy Pop song is now deemed acceptable enough to be used on a mainstream entertainment show like Dancing with the Stars just confirms my belief that American popular culture can absorb just about anything, including someone whose career stood in marked opposition to that very same popular culture! Scores from the Judges 01 29pts. Joey/Edyta 02 26pts. Monique/Louis 03 24pts. Vivica/Nick 03 24pts. Emmitt/Cheryl 05 23pts. Willa/Maksim 06 22pts. Shanna/Jesse 07 21pts. Harry/Ashly 07 21pts. Mario/Karina 07 21pts. Sara/Tony 10 19pts. Jerry/Kym Miliosr's Top Three ( . . . er . . . Top Two) It's definitely saying something when I can only come up with two dances for a Top Three! 01 Joey/Edyta Joey and Edyta were tops with the judges and they were tops with me as well. I thought they were just splendid -- good holds, great posture, quick footwork, exciting chemistry and speed, speed, SPEED! Joey's leprechaun costume was unfortunate but his tap dance interlude was a fun embellishment that made up for it. 02 Emmitt/Cheryl How great did Emmitt look in his tux? I would have preferred a little more speed to this routine but I thought the footwork was very good, especially for such a big man. His posture was also better than I thought it would be given how he himself had pointed out that his entire professional athletic career was spent with his shoulders down and forward. The Big Blah Middle I would put Willa/Maksim, Harry/Ashly, Monique/Louis, Shanna/Jesse and Vivica/Nick in this category. Probably Monique and Louis were the best of a boring lot but, really, there was nothing in their routine that you couldn't see in any Beyonce video. Miliosr's Bottom Three My Bottom Three consisted of Mario/Karina, Jerry/Kym and Sara/Tony (with Jerry and Kym going.) The judges were right to rip Mario and Karina for their routine. Basically, they did a freestyle routine with only some elements of the quickstep incorporated into the mix. Unfortunately, only Len backed up his rhetoric by giving Mario and Karina a "6". I really disliked Sara and Tony's routine last week and this week only amped up my dislike. First of all, I hated, hated, HATED Sara's ridiculous Valley of the Dolls hair. As to the dancing, it was as slow as molasses and about as exciting. They can't go soon enough for me but, alas, I think her country music fan base will keep them in the competition for the time being. And then there was Jerry. Anyone who reads these reports on a regular basis knows that I'm not a fan of the novelty contestants and that's what Jerry is -- a novelty contestant. He really is terrible. Last week, I compared Jerry to George Hamilton from Season Two. In retrospect, I think the comparison was unfair to George. Although George was limited by age and injury, you could see the remnants of ability. Jerry has no ability and, to my mind, should have been booted on Wednesday night. The Actual Bottom Two As it happened, the Bottom Two consisted of Shanna/Jesse and Willa/Maksim with Shanna and Jesse going. I can't shed too many tears about their exit as Shanna didn't show much promise and she would have gone sooner rather than later anyway. Predictions Willa and Maksim managed to avoid elimination this week but -- again -- I think they are in real trouble going forward. Despite being popular with the judges, Willa and Maksim can't seem to gain any traction with the audience. This suggests to me that casting Willa was a mistake. At best, she is a minor former pop star who is unknown to most of the viewing audience. On a show like Dancing with the Stars, you don't have the luxury of waiting for the audience to warm to you. You have to come in with an existing fan base and then build on that base with charismatic and memorable dancing. Since Willa has no fan base and her dancing isn't particularly charismatic or memorable, she is in severe danger of going home next. See you after Week Three!

Dancing with the Stars was the top-rated program in the US last week with 20.2 million viewers. The Tuesday night premiere was also the third highest-rated episode in the show's history. Only the Season 1 and Season 2 finales have drawn more viewers. The Wednesday night results show finished fourth for the week with 16.3 million viewers.

The Miliosr Report - Week One General Thoughts Some things in life never change. The sun will always rise in the East, death will always be the end result of life and Dancing With the Stars will always feature bad singing, atrocious camera work and inane chit chat! Week One was about what I expected dance-wise. A few good performances set off by a flood tide of mediocre-to-bad performances. Overall, I was more impressed with the men than the women this week. I thought the general ability of the men (with one or two exceptions) seemed more advanced at this stage in the competition and the guys displayed more personality than the women. With the exception of Vivica A. Fox, the women were curiously bland -- not a good sign for the women as the competition progresses. I was shocked to see child star Joey Lawrence all grown up. This may sound cruel but I thought he looked like an ex-con with the shaved head and the bulging biceps! So nice to see Tom Jones as the musical guest on the results show -- he looks great! I am of the punk/New Wave generation that thought Tom Jones was square and Muzaky but several years ago I came into possession of a tape of Janis Joplin concert and TV performances and I came to see him in a whole new light. One of the performances was from his TV show in 1969 where Jones joined musical guest Joplin and her band for a version of "Raise Your Hand". He definitely held his own against Joplin -- no mean feat! But I digress . . . Scores from the Judges The men did the cha cha this week while the women did the fox trot. Here's how the judges ranked the pairs: 01 26pts. Mario/Karina 02 24pts. Emmitt/Cheryl 03 22pts. Vivica/Nick 03 22pts. Willa/Maksim 05 21pts. Joey/Edyta 06 19pts. Monique/Louis 07 18pts. Shanna/Jesse 08 17pts. Harry/Ashly 09 16pts. Jerry/Kym 10 15pts. Sara/Tony 11 12pts. Tucker/Elena Miliosr's Top Three Until the herd gets culled some more, I'm going to concentrate on the Top Three/Bottom Three for the time being. Frankly, so many of the pairs were blah this week that I don't have much to say one way or the other about them! Here is my Top Three: 01 Mario/Karina They were the clear winners on the night. While there is much speculation on the various discussion boards about just how much dance training Mario has had, it was clear that he was completely at ease on the dancefloor. His movements were fully articulated, he was the most "turned out" looking and Karina didn't look like she was dancing down to him. At this point in the competition, Mario is the obvious frontrunner. However, as John O'Hurley found out in Season 1 and Stacy Keebler found out in Season 2, being the frontrunner from the outset does not always result in holding the disco ball trophy in your hands at the end of the competition. 02 Vivica/Nick 03 Emmitt/Cheryl Originally, I had ranked these two teams in reverse order but on rewatching all of the performances I switched my rankings. While I thought Emmitt moved very well for a big man and he displayed a breezy charm on the dancefloor, I came to think that maybe he was a tad too breezy on the night. In comparison, Nick and Vivica were more dynamic and, to my mind, more appropriately intense on the night. Nick did a good job with Vivica because, while she has a killer body, it's not necessarily a born dancer's body. (I did have to laugh, though, when Nick asked Vivica if she had ever danced before and she said that she had played a stripper in Independence Day. I don't think that was the kind of dancing he had in mind!) I'm liking this team so far and I'm glad Nick got a better partner for Season 3. (I was impressed with the footage showing Vivica falling in rehearsal and how she didn't display the typical reality TV tears and hysteria but instead got up and got back to work.) Miliosr's Bottom Three There were many candidates for this but I would go with Tucker/Elena, Sara/Tony and Jerry/Kym. Jerry is clearly the 'George' of this season and while he's fairly hopeless as a dancer he should go far in the competition based on his self-deprecating flair. I really hated the Sara/Tony performance. It was so painfully sloooooow and lifeless. And someone needs to explain to Tony that posing Sara's legs won't work for her the way it did for Stacy. Sara doesn't have the killer body that Stacy had (and has) and, besides, one of the big criticisms of Stacy and Tony from Season 2 was that they did too much posing. Sara's country fan base may keep her around for a while but, really, this was very bad. All that being said, Tucker and Elena were terrible. When the celebrity amateur spends 1/3 of the dance in a chair, you know there's a major problem. Tucker displayed a good attitude about the whole thing but he and Elena were a very deserving boot. Predictions I think Willa is in real trouble going forward. She finished tied for third with the judges but wound up in the bottom three on the results show. This tells me she has no fan base to speak of and her dancing wasn't strong enough or charismatic enough to attract a new fan base in short order. She could well go home next week as a result. See you after Week 2!

Just a reminder -- the 2-hour season season premiere is Tuesday night at 8/7c. Here are the 11 teams: Tucker Carlson (news pundit)/Elena Grinenko Monique Coleman (actress-singer)/Louis Van Amstel Sara Evans (country singer)/Tony Dovolani Willa Ford (pop star)/Maksim Chmerkovsky Vivica A. Fox (actress)/Nick Kosovich Harry Hamlin (actor)/Ashly DelGrosso Joey Lawrence (actor)/Edyta Sliwinska Mario Lopez (actor)/Karina Smirnoff Shanna Moakler (Playmate)/Jesse DeSoto Emmitt Smith (NFL great)/Cheryl Burke Jerry Springer (talk show host)/Kym Johnson

I just finished reading Pushkin's narrative poem The Gypsies. Massine based his ballet Aleko on this poem and, since the ballet appears to be lost, I was curious as to what the source material was like. Now that I've read it, I can't see how you could make a ballet out of this poem except in the most superficial sense (i.e. plenty of atmospheric gypsy dances.) The complicated point that Pushkin makes in his poem -- that the refugee from civilization (Aleko) wants freedom for himself but not for anyone else -- seems beyond the ability of dance to convey. Still, it would be interesting to see the ballet (although it's probably unrevivable at this point.)

I voted for Emeralds for the same reasons Helene cited -- the principals and the costumes. ("It's a Lacroix, sweetie!") I would be curious to know if any of the other voters are like me -- this was my first exposure to Jewels in any capacity and I thought the whole thing was pretty darn swell. (I just happened to like Emeralds the best.)

Do we have a complete list of the departures? The departures of Julio Bocca, Erica Cornejo and Eric Underwood have been discussed on this board. Who else has departed?

I have to disagree with you zerbinetta. Footage of the classic cast (Limon, Lucas Hoving, Pauline Koner and Betty Jones) shows that Limon (as Othello) and Hoving (as Iago) were both very tall. In fact, Hoving looks like he may have been taller than Limon. When Hoving hangs on to Limon's back and Limon drags him across the floor, it works beautifully precisely because Limon looks like he has the weight of the world on his shoulders. Just my two cents worth!

Based on this additional piece of information from carbro, I'll rephrase: I think another villainous role would expand David Hallberg's horizons even further.

I second the motion to revive The Moor's Pavane -- maybe for the centenary of Jose Limon's birth in 2008? I also agree wholeheartedly with carbro's suggestion to stage this as a vehicle for Marcelo Gomes. I would also suggest (creative anti-casting here) David Hallberg as Iago. I know everyone and their brother wants to see him in the princely roles but I think a villainous role would expand his horizons a little bit. No clue as to who to cast as Emilia and Desdemona. Maybe Stella Abrera as Emilia and an up-and-comer from the corp as Desdemona?

And the contestants for Season 3 are: 01 Tucker Carlson -- MSNBC news anchor 02 Monique Coleman -- teen idol (High School Musical) 03 Sara Evans -- Country & Western singer 04 Willa Ford -- pop singer 05 Vivica A. Fox -- actress 06 Harry Hamlin -- actor 07 Joe Lawrence -- actor/former teen idol (Gimme a Break) 08 Mario Lopez -- actor/former teen idol (Saved By the Bell) 09 Shanna Moakler -- beauty queen/reality tv star 10 Emmitt Smith -- former NFL player 11 Jerry Springer -- talk show host Season 3 starts on September 12th. I am taking myself off to the spa for a month to get myself in shape for the miliosr reports! :blush:

Interesting . . . many more than I imagined. A list like that would make a good subject for a book!

Speaking of Catherine Zeta-Jones, there are certain scenes in ABT's filmed version of Giselle where Carla Fracci bears a striking resemblance to Catherine Zeta-Jones. The resemblance doesn't show up consistently -- mostly when Fracci has her back toward the camera and turns toward it. (The scene where Ted Kivitt is holding Fracci in his arms and then she turns away from him comes to mind.)

The contestants for Season 3 will be announced on Good Morning America on August 15th. There will be 11 (!!!) contestants for Season 3. No word yet on when Season 3 will premiere. Hopefully it won't be until Project Runway finishes so I won't have to watch/record three hours of reality TV on Wednesday nights.

Recently, I was reading an issue of Dance Magazine from the 1960s and I came across a feature story about a Jacques d'Amboise ballet based on Othello. The ballet was titled Prologue and was designed as a prequel of sorts to the events in Shakespeare's play. Having never heard of this ballet before, I got curious as to how many "ballet" ballets and "modern dance" ballets there are out there based on Othello. Here is the short list I came up with: The Moor's Pavane (1949) choreographer: Jose Limon originating company: Jose Limon Dance Company Prologue (1967) choreographer: Jacques d'Amboise originating company: New York City Ballet Othello (1976) choreographer: John Butler originating company: La Scala Ballet Othello (1997) choreographer: Lar Lubovitch originating companies: American Ballet Theatre/San Francisco Ballet Are there others?

Polanski's MacBeth was considered violent at the time but given what was to come in the 1970s (i.e. Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Dawn Of the Dead, etc.) it now looks quiet tame. And given how things are today, where studio-sanctioned exploitation films like Saw and Hostel push the violence to the absolute limit, MacBeth looks positively chaste.

I would put in a good word for Roman Polanski's MacBeth. (I didn't see this film mentioned on the prior five discussion pages.) At times, it plays more like a horror movie than a dramatic film which is probably why horror fans regard it so highly. (The Passion of the Christ is another such dramatic film that found favor with gore hounds.)

Another source I stumbled across also mentions 22 preserved Limon dances. But this source also states that, "parts of eight others remain on silent film."