Group dance? Maybe in quarter finals. Ben couldn't even get his arms raised in time with the rest in the Bkackpool opening number...

If it's only for one week there's not much risk, and maybe they'd find the viewing figures would increase. In fact the reaction to KFG and Susanna's paso shows there would be little risk at all. I'd love to see a classical theme week rather than halloween or love week.

I wouldn't mind it my self, but im thinking back to the old days and why they came up with the more up to date version in the first place?

It's funny that Los Toreadors is seen as "traditional" when it's the most generic Paso music you can get.

DWTS is a lot more dynamic when it comes to music. There is far more traditional music on that show than ours. Latin rhythms 99.9% of people wouldn't have heard of accompanying Salsa and Samba's, (instead of the Copacabana x 10) proper authentic flamenco and Spanish music on Tango's, Paso's, AT's etc.

This maybe down to the heavy South American influence the show as though.

Their producers are light years ahead of our and I would like to see things like Classical week etc but not sure the production team have the tools or knowledge on how to implement it and pull it off with the slickness DWTS do.

But do they do much *dancing* on DWTS? Haven't watched the show but have watched quite a few clips/dances now, and they all seem extremely showdance-like (ie even more faffing and less traditional dance content) than most of SCD. Happy to be corrected if my impression is wrong.

I like the traditional week idea, though like others above I'd rather reverse it and have a non-traditional week somewhere in a more traditional series! There is so much good music out there, which makes it hard to accept some of the tripe we have to sit through... The pros must hate it if it's true they don't get much choice.

I think it would be difficult to find suitable pieces without distorting them to fit ballroom style. The Viennese waltz would be easy enough, but what about the modern waltz? Perhaps they could use the Blue Danube and play it at half speed?

And that fact that it worked on DWTS doesn't impress me as they seem to have very different ideas about dancing - in fact I don't think they do International style at all. I remember that hideous parody of a foxtrot that Nicole Scherzinger and her partner did.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGRO05WcNDk

http://www.classicfm.com/shop/cds/waltzing-classics/

On a late night mooch, I've just found the whole stack of things. We'll share, if that's all right, cos I love your stack too.

Thanks HW.

I bet Dave Arch and the Wonderfuls would be relieved and ecstatic to escape from endless repetitions of Bon Jovi, Whitesnake and Duran Duran too... You can feel the relish that comes out of that group when they get some Proper Music

A classical week would be bliss!

Fingers crossed.

That's how I remember it, too. Occasionally they did a proper dance, but it was mostly showdance hybrids. I remember a Viennese Waltz where they spent maybe 20% in hold and doing the usual are-we-together-are-we-not stuff the rest of the time

My opinion is based on watching a few YT clips of DWTS rather than knowing anything substantial about the show, but I'm sure I read somewhere that the ratings for DWTS in the USA have fallen dramatically, whereas Strictly is trouncing X Factor in terms of viewer numbers. This does rather point to Strictly already getting it right in terms of what viewers want to see (as opposed to what dance aficionados want to see, but that's a discussion for another thread).

I'm not a fan of theme weeks, because I feel too many dances are shoehorned into the format, rather than the chosen music being appropriate for what the pro dancer is trying to achieve in terms of choreography. I think that, by and large, the producers get the balance right - traditional music goes hand in hand with more outré stuff, so there's something for everybody to enjoy.

I agree that Los Toreadors worked brilliantly for Susannah and Kevin, but I think it was as much for its novelty value as anything else. Similarly, the Black Swan routine Artem choreographed for Holly worked well because it was so unusual - I doubt it would have had the same impact if it had been just one of a whole programme's worth of classical themes.

That was terrible
I don't see DWTS and after watching that I'm glad

Isn't it just? Katherine looks like she managed the rumba walks and hip movenents beautifully, but that Romanesque rumba just look... tacky?

There' a clear distinction between classical and classy. And that dance is a textbook example in showcasing this distinction.

Those might have been typos and sorry to be pedantic but ....

We should call the piece "Les Toreadors" or translate it into English as "The Toreadors" or even Spanish "Los Toreadores".

"Les Toreadors" was written by a French bloke. Bizet called it "Carmen Suite No 1 - Les Toreadors" as an orchestral piece and it was also part of the French opera Carmen's Overture cum Prelude to Act 1 and the entry of the bullfighters in act 4,

You're quite right, Henry. My bad. Not sure your nit-picking about the correct spelling of French and Spanish definite articles actually adds to the conversation but *shrugs*

I don't dance VW or ballroom waltz but I do dance Vals which is an Argentine Tango waltz. The way that copes with a fast tempo is to dance on the first beat of each bar or if you want a bit of pizazz here and there, the first and third beats.

Now look at that you have peeved Peeve. You are a bad boy Henry - Go to my room!

I think a classical/traditional theme week would be a great idea. Certainly better than some of their other theme weeks - the 'love' one was cringingly bad.

I've been advocating this for years but now accept that it won't happen.

As it happens, Peeve, I am a self-certified grammar pedant , but I have usually refrained from indulging in such pedantry here.

My point, which clearly I failed to make, is that the piece is French not Spanish. So it is a foreigner's pastiche interpretation of Spanish bull-ring music and not the real thing.

Worse than you can possibly imagine. On my way. Put the keys under the carpet ... :


My adeptness and speed in uncovering things is legendary.

Frisson?

They are doing it twice a year, maybe that's why.

Indeed... then friction!