Much has been made of fact that Lisa and Robin may not be doing lifts during their AS. Frankly, I'm not bothered as I think a lot of lifts look pretty ugly no matter who is doing them.

What do you think of lifts?

I think some small lifts can be interesting to add a little height to the routine, but i am not keen on the over the shoulder, hefting a sack of coal lifts.
They can disrupt a smooth routine and getting in a out of the lift can look a struggle.

Denise and James did a beautiful lyrical AS to Imagine, but the final spinning shoulder lift, altough doubtless tricky, looked clumsy and out of place in such a gentle routine.

Should their be a "no higher than waist" rule for lifts?

I'd be interested to hear the views of others.

I know what you mean.
Sometimes lifts really don't look right in a dance and are just done for the WOW factor and to get the crowd cheering (wish they wouldn't, and just applaud at the end (humbug))

No, I think she can easily lift him

I really don't like this year's popular Latin lift.
Man lifts woman up on his shoulder. She points one foot at ceiling, other at the judges. We get a lovely view of her pants.
Please stop it.

Please don't.

I have only one word about lifts for this thread hope it doesn't give anyone nightmares BACOFOIL.

Vincent didn't do any lifts with Natalie Cassidy.

I call it The Kristina . .......................

Yay for me. It's usually quicker than using the stairs.

If the dance needs them, then I'm not too fussed. But when they get in the way of the actual dancing, and end up being a gymnastics (and knickers) display, that's when I'm fussed. And yes, Natalie and Vincent didn't have any lifts in their AS, although they had quite a few in their Rock & Roll a few weeks later.

*was going to say something about taking the escalator but was beaten to it*

I agree with you entirely mimi, I think it's also why the showdances are so shit.

But for some reason, everyone on the show thinks the lifts are what we want to see more than anything else.

I don't mind some lifts though I hate those legs wide open ones where we just see the woman's pants Think they look really ugly. Some small lifts can be very attractive though.

I didn't like D&J's shoulder spin either.

My least fave lift is that one where the woman jumps up on the man's shoulders from the front so she's got her crotch in his face! We've seen it a few times this series and I think it's just really ugly though no doubt difficult to do.

BIB - This is the rule in Ice Dancing as opposed to Figure Skating, and I think that it should be this way in an AS smooth too.

Looking at the definitive AS expert Fred Astaire, I don't recall him ever throwing any of his partners over his shoulders in such an ungainly fashion. It was always waist high elegant lifts.

Yes SheShe, that's a dreadful one too.

Some of these lifts make the man look like he is being attacked by an octopus!

Good guide to what makes a nice lift, is the sound that accompanies it.

good-
Hup!
Wheeeeee!

Bad-
HNNNGGRRHHH!

That's great. Yes, the sound effects describe it perfectly.

I think people make too much of lifts, particularly in show dances. It's always a disappointment if the show dance is more lifts than dance. For me, if it looks romantic it's great - so it really feels like the man is sweeping the woman into their arms with joy - or something so graceful and light it's as if the music is making them almost fly. If it looks like weightlifting or wrestling or the woman trying to strangle the man with her legs, not so much.

(I did love the Dirty Dancing lift, hackneyed predictable thing that I am.)

The mindset is such that lifts are expected.

The crowd applaud them.

Last year Karen Hardy,who is clearly seen as some kind of authority by SCD,was talking about showdances and the need for those WOW lifts

Given the need to whore for votes,I can't see many pros deliberately excluding them for purely artistic reasons.

Nay!!!!

A woman is not a bag of washing!!!! I loath the bury me in a Y shaped coffin lifts!!! I loath show dances that do this!!! Its not dancing its hefting!!!! ggrrrrrr

One of the best descriptions ever of a bad lift.
Lisa Snowdon and Brendan's showdance

I like seeing the lifts in the dances.

I didn't like the big lift in Dani and Vincent's dance.
The first part was ok, but when he tipped her on to her back and she pointed her leg straight up....

Ugly ugly... and the rest of the dance was very pretty

On the whole I don't care for them, but on balance they are better than massive floor dumps!!!!

I'm not keen on any lift where the woman's legs are around the man's neck - it's just ugly. But there are some lifts above the waist that look great.

The lift I like the most is the one where the man hold the woman in his arms, but she's quite flat and got a leg stuck out to the side so her dress flares out. I've probably not described it properly, so I hope you know what I mean!

I wonder why.

Dani seems to go in for these quite a bit, and it doesn't look good, especially with her short legs.