Fame or Famine

June 29th, 2008

Depressed? Try a Tango!

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 […]

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June 20th, 2008

When Culture Icons Collide: Dancing with the Star Wars Stars

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 […]

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June 19th, 2008

Free Music from Julianne Hough of Dancing With the Stars

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 […]

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June 10th, 2008

Sharon Osborne, Strictly Come Dancing

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 […]

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May 21st, 2008

Congrats, Ms. Yamaguchi!

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 […]

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May 1st, 2008

Ms. Rita, a Deaf Dance Student

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 […]

By Gray -- 1 comment

April 21st, 2008

Dancing with the Stars on your Mobile Phone?

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 […]

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April 20th, 2008

Mario Lopez: “…an actor who can move”

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 […]

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April 16th, 2008

Dancing with the Stars: Priscilla Goes Back Home

“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 […]

By Gray -- 0 comments

April 8th, 2008

Adam Carolla & Marlee Matlin on DWTS: Contrasts in Grace

I will give Adam Carolla props for, well, his props. It’s great to see some circus arts on Dancing With the Stars (come to think of it, anyone remember “Circus of the Stars”? Not as good a concept, apparently).
Still, his actual dancing is clunky, stilted, and you never get the idea that he’s actually doing […]

By Gray -- 0 comments