Fame or Famine

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Lance Bass. Kellie Pickler. Lou Ferrigno. Warren Sapp. These are just a few of the names being rumored as the new contestants on Season 7 of Dancing with the Stars, which has a two-night premiere starting tomorrow on ABC. Some of these are hardly surprising – with the recent HULK movie, Lou Ferrigno seems a natural choice. Some rumors just seem too good to be true: Lance Bass may be performing with a male partner, for example.
One rumor I do not believe is the idea that Paula Abdul …read more

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This just in: Tango is useful to help people battle depression.
Apparently researchers in Australia’s University of New England are exploring whether tango can “boost people’s emotions.”
“While you’re doing tango you can only be in the present — you really have to focus, concentrate, and it doesn’t allow your thoughts to drive into your mind,” says Rosa Pinniger, who is heading up the research. “If people can have a break from their negative thoughts for three minutes, which is the time of the tango, they can realize that… this is what it is, nothing else. So all their problems and their …read more

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Believe it or not, I do have a personal connection to this. You see, I’m not the only dancer in my family. My little sister Ti is a fantastic choreographer and dancer and, like me, a Star Wars geek (yes, our parents raised us well). So for one of her pieces she choreographed a ballet for storm troopers and Darth Vader (in black fishnets, of course). So I’m sure that she would love this bit. Watch it at least to the third dance. If you can do it without spitting out your coffee, I give you credit for immense self …read more

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We all know and love Julianne Hough, the champion of Dancing with the Stars twice over. You probably are also aware that she has dipped her toes in the waters of recording stardom, with a debut album with tracks like

That Song in my Head
Jimmy Ray McGee
Hide Your Matches

You can hear excerpts and learn more over at JulianneSings.com .
But Wait, There’s More!
Because I love you all so much, and because I visited my friends over at Fred Astaire Dance recently, I can share with you a coupon code that you can use for a free download at Julianne’s site. It …read more

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I only know a few small facts about Sharon Osborne. I’ve heard some disturbing things about the way she managed her famous husband Ozzy’s record label; I’ve heard (but never watched) how entertaining she is on the reality show they did with their kids.
A Twisted Road to Dance
However, I’m going to probably be hearing and learning a lot more about her in the near future, as she is apparently in the running to be in the upcoming Dancing with the Stars – well, the UK counterpart, that is, Strictly Come Dancing. She was supposed to be in the U.S. version …read more

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Well, I didn’t follow the Dancing With the Stars competition as closely as I’d like – got sidetracked into dancing myself for a month. But I’m not surprised that Kristi Yamaguchi is the clear winner. As I said at the beginning of the season, it almost seems to be an unfair advantage – the goal of the show is to get people who may not be normally dancers to dance well. An Olympic Gold Medalist in figure skating is going to have a pretty good idea of how to move her body, I think.
Still, the purpose is entertainment, and she …read more

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For the past month I’ve been working as a ballroom dance instructor for the Fred Astaire Dance Studio in Madison, WI. One of the pleasures of working there was the opportunity to work with Ms. Rita for a couple of hours while she was in town visiting. Here is her account of the experience:
Marlee Matlin is gone from Dancing with the Stars, but that didn’t stop me from signing up for a ballroom dance lesson with Gray during a recent trip to Madison, WI. Before we started, we talked about my particular needs, since there are a variety …read more

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Forget the idea of websurfing on your phone – that’s so last millenium. No, THQ is a company that has launched “Dancing with the Stars” for online download and mobile phones.
Choose Wisely, Dance Wildly
Apparently the game is something along the lines of you picking out your celebrity, your costumes, and then dancing before virtual judges for a simulated eight-week competition. I would imagine that the higher your score, the more costumes become available, and perhaps it runs like several popular snow- & skateboarding games where you get new moves available the better you do.
Tiny Dancer in my Hand
The problem I …read more

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It always bugs me, as a professional dance instructor, when people walk up to me and say they can’t dance. In my opinion, dance is nothing but intentional movement; the level of intent and the focus determine the skill of the dance. This is why watching an 80 year old Merce Cunningham is more interesting than watching an 18 year old novice dancer – Merce has spent his life learning to move.
What about Mario Lopez?
Oh, that quote? It’s what he said about himself in response to a question about his singing and dancing in the role of Zach in A …read more

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“For an Englishman, he has pretty nice teeth.“- BuddyTV on musician James Blunt
Because of job duties, I’m no longer able to do live, in-the-moment reports on the Dancing with the Stars shows. But I’m very grateful to the bloggers who do – little quotes like the one above make the experience of re-watching it on YouTube all the more fun, like watching it with friends would be. Now, if only I had some friends…
I’m not really surprised to see Priscilla Presley go – in the times I saw her dance, she seemed detached from the performance, and I didn’t see …read more

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