Why is the strictly standard so low?

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Poppysinbloom

18-10-2013

Originally Posted by fridgesoup:
“To all those suggesting there's no place for good (celeb) dancing on Strictly and if we want to see good dancing we should go to ballroom and latin comps, do you not think you're being just a tad ... well, there are lots of things I could say, but let's leave it at unrealistic? .

I go to see live dance at the theatre whenever I can (which is a fairly limited option here in the sticks) and do, as it happens, occasionally cast around the internet to find 'proper' dancing but the quality and presentation is generally dire and it's a pretty soulless and solitary endeavour.

I'd love to see more dance on TV, but telly peeps don't seem to see any demand, which more or less leaves us with Strictly. Trying to be all things to all viewers is an impossible task - and I'm not confused about it being a real dance contest - but, for entertainment sake, I want to see the whole gamut on the show from the triers and duds to the talented and fabulous.”

I don't think the issue is wanting only triers and duds. Everyone wants good dancing and choreography. It's more a matter of how we get the good dancing. I think it's easier for a trier who succeeds to win than a good dancer because the contrast between the trier in week one and the semi-final is stronger and more exciting. The good dancer will get better too but I don't think the contrast is as strong.

An Thropologist

18-10-2013

Originally Posted by kittles:
“I think that's how a lot of people feel about SCD which is why people having a "journey" is more popular than people who already dance/have danced.

Watching someone like Mark Ramprakash for example open up his whole personality through dancing is brilliant to watch. On the floor confident & outgoing, off the dance floor he became his normal shy self. Other people like Chelsee Healey went the other way and felt able to reveal vulnerability & weaknesses when initially pretty much everyone saw a hard faced, plastic breasted loud mouth. Most people ended up loving her.

I love to watch good dancing but watching people becoming good is all part of the show otherwise as others have said, I'd just watch pro competition”

Hear Hear Kittles.

An Thropologist

18-10-2013

I wonder if anyone who is contributing to this thread is old enough to remember Come Dancing when it was on TV. If so what did you think of that show?

fridgesoup

18-10-2013

Originally Posted by Poppysinbloom:
“I don't think the issue is wanting only triers and duds. Everyone wants good dancing and choreography. It's more a matter of how we get the good dancing. I think it's easier for a trier who succeeds to win than a good dancer because the contrast between the trier in week one and the semi-final is stronger and more exciting. The good dancer will get better too but I don't think the contrast is as strong.”

BIB - apparently not, if you read back

NYBrit

18-10-2013

Originally Posted by An Thropologist:
“I wonder if anyone who is contributing to this thread is old enough to remember Come Dancing when it was on TV. If so what did you think of that show?”

I remember Come Dancing

Here it is in all its glory, look out for Ian Waite 2.20 minutes in and Anton du beke.

3.25 minutes in

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeRxCS0tl-Q

Doktor Dances

18-10-2013

Or to put it another way - how things used to be

http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1889191

fridgesoup

18-10-2013

Originally Posted by An Thropologist:
“I wonder if anyone who is contributing to this thread is old enough to remember Come Dancing when it was on TV. If so what did you think of that show?”

Well, it ran from 1949 until 1998 (with some breaks) so most people here must be old enough...

I remember watching it in the 1970s (I think) and loved the ridiculous frocks and the formation dancing. Later on, I found the whole thing utterly toe curling.

An Thropologist

18-10-2013

Originally Posted by NYBrit:
“I remember Come Dancing

Here it is in all its glory, look out for Ian Waite 2.20 minutes in and Anton du beke. 3.25 minutes in

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EeRxCS0tl-Q”

LOL "Joyce made her own dress" - No comment.

Spin turn

18-10-2013

But aren't the pro demo dances supposed to supply the '"good dancing"? Sadly though, the pro dancers collectively are not as good as they used to be and also they don't seem to gel.

I actually don't mind if the celebs are good or bad. What I want is for their journeys to be put in perspective and be seen in a positive light. By that I mean not using one celeb's natural ability and advantages to knock back another celeb's efforts, and by setting more challenging targets for the more capable celebs. So if Natalies's waltz were followed or preceded by a top professional couple's waltz we would get a clearer idea of the journey she needs to make.

Fridgesoup, We're not all trotting off to competitions all the time. I use youtube to view top dancers and still enjoy them (yes sometimes the quality of the video is frustratingly bad and it is a bit solitary, but then that wouldn't be so much the case if people wanted to discuss these on here, but they don't; tried that in the past).

.

fridgesoup

18-10-2013

Originally Posted by Spin turn:
“Fridgesoup, We're not all trotting off to competitions all the time. I use youtube to view top dancers and still enjoy them (yes sometimes the quality of the video is frustratingly bad and it is a bit solitary, but then that wouldn't be so much the case if people wanted to discuss these on here, but they don't; tried that in the past).

.”

I think it's a near impossible task to have a community discussion about YT clips....

It's a bit disappointing that no one in TV thinks they could make a decent, viewer friendly show out of some of the comps. I know there's some coverage somewhere, but not on free to air, as far as I know

echad

18-10-2013

Doesn't have to be an either/or situation. I'm enjoying watching people improve from whatever level they started out at.

The show would be poorer if we lost either type of celebrity. I think the good ones get a bit of a grace period because they can usually get through on judges marks alone without being amazing, because there's others that are never gonna top the leaderboard. I'd hate to see them all stress from day one, which they would if it was all good dancers to begin with - it would be overly competitive.

But equally, I want to see stand-out dancing as well, so I probably wouldn't watch if all the celebrities were complete novices and had no natural talent. For people talking about watching pro dancers, I actually prefer strictly. The reason being that sometimes people get the most creative when they have to work around limitations like choreographing for an amateur partner who has particular technical flaws that you need to disguise.

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