I got same impression too Kellie seems like she could be his best partner yet of course will depend on the latin too

I got the same impression of Kellie as well so that's 3 good partners Kevin has had in a row now.

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I think Daniel's lesson looks like a typical beginner's lesson with Kristina teaching basics and Daniel paying good attention. They seem friendly but businesslike. I do think he has the makings of a good posture.

Kellie looks surprisingly advanced for a first lesson. Kevin has obviously decided to go through the choreography first and then brush up technique, but some of the concepts she is dealing with are quite difficult. She must either be a very natural dancer or have some stage school background.

Kellie is looking really good . A very focused and determined lassie , probably a perfectionist .
I hope she does well . She looks exhausted though , bless her .

yes, she does doesnt she!

the learning curve is only going to get steeper - I hope Eastenders give her some time off or lighten her work load!

If that's Kellie's early training then I can genuinely see a 9 or two being trotted out if she keeps polishing her Tango.

Kellie & Kevin is going to be an interesting couple - 'ringer' status might count against her, but the EastEnders vote is a big plus, and Kevin is a popular pro but seems to be something of a Marmite figure around these parts, and possibly in danger of overexposure with a third good partner on the trot.

Kellie says at the end of the video that that was just her first day of training - which is why it is so scary.

...at least 33/40, followed by a 40/40 when it's reprised in the Final, calling it.

The thing is that a contestant can look amazing in training and then it all goes wrong on the live show . Nerves must play a huge part . Anyone used to dealing with people and crowds up close and watching every move is at an advantage . Those less used to that might find live nights intimidating .If Kellie is only used to Eastenders type filming then she might panic a bit and fluff her steps . But I hope not .

Kellie is one of the ringahs this series. She went to Sylvia Young together with Emma Bunton.

Ballroom is a whole different ball game to other styles of dance though so I don't think previous training counts for toooo much (obviously helps with body awareness and musicality and possibly flexibility.) It's like taking a brazilian samba dancer and then teaching them how to dance ballet in a couple of weeks. Yeah it's going to look a bit better than someone who's never danced before but they're not going to be able to do particularly advanced stuff compared to someone who is similar to them in fitness but with no dance training. Partner dancing is totally different full stop, but ballroom in particular I think has a whole other set of rules and techniques you need to learn and refine. Unless they are specifically taught how to dance ballroom at sylvia young I don't think it will put her at too much of an unfair advantage. There was a pretty accomplished contemporary dancer working as a pro on (I think) the australian version of dancing with the stars and his ballroom was horrendous, for example!

She does look great so far though! And I like how seriously her and kevin both seem to be taking training. If they can also work on her shaping and top line (it's her first day so they have plenty of time!) then it could be a ten from len.

I actually do love ringers in the program, as it makes for exciting dances, but it is annoying when people dismiss the amount of training these people have had. If you look at the syllabus of places like Italia Conti and Sylvia Young, it's hard not to see why people get angry about the subject. Most learn Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Modern and sometimes Contemporary. These will all provide strong skills needed to excel in many other kinds of dance. You learn to place feet correctly, maintain good posture, follow choreography, pick up on rhythm and nuances in music, correctly move your body and isolate areas of it. I did gymnastics once a week ten years ago, and can still do handstands, cartwheels and have a strong general agility from it. You don't lose that kind of ability once it's been drilled into you.

yes but Kellie was in a long running tv series from 13 so would imagine dancing went on back burner for acting

In her "meet Kellie" video she was quite open that she adored dancing as a child, but she started acting at 10 and it took a back seat, though she continued dancing at school till she was 16.

I was expecting Kellie to be good but I have to admit I'm pleasantly surprised by just how good! I can easily see her tango being one of the best dances of week 1

I'm doing some teacher training in ballroom. There were certain things in her video which made me think she may have experience in partner dancing rather than just stage school. Maybe just self discipline and experience in the learning process. However, whatever the explanation, it's only a head start. Doesn't necessarily mean she will be better in the long run.

My point is that there are a whole other set of skills used in ballroom dancing that you wouldn't learn from doing ballet, tap, jazz and modern. None of those are partner dances (aside from some ballet and I doubt that do much of that at stage school.) If you have danced ballet then you need to unlearn a lot of what you already know... a very basic example is that there are heel leads in ballroom which you just wouldn't have in ballet. The way you connect to your partner, follow their lead and form your topline will all be brand new. I'm not saying that it's not a bit of a leg up to have done a different style of dance previously in terms of musicality, but it is definitely not the huge advantage people on here make it out to be.

Here is the contemporary dancer on DWTS australia as a pro dancing foxtrot. I'd honestly say that simon webbe's foxtrot is better than this.

EDIT: just pre-emptively - I'd also like to say that I don't consider one style of dance superior to another. I think ballroom dancers wouldn't be automatically great at contemporary. My point is that all styles of dance have their own technique and all require large amounts of training before they start looking "right." That's part of why I love dance, tbh!

She's done a fair bit of theatre I think, so will be at least used to live audiences.

...I've only trained in Ballroom to an amateur level (a total of 48 hours on all 10 dances, with an extra 6 on Samba), and even I'd be better at the basic Foxtrot in that routine. I wholeheartedly agree that training in one dance style is only of help in terms of musicality - before I started Ballroom, I trained a little in Charleston at college (again, very basic), and was cocky when I started Ballroom that it'd be a leg up... it wasn't even that helpful in Quickstep, and was actively unhelpful in some dances (Rumba, I'm looking at you).

I do understand what you mean, and I'd agree that if someone had studied only ballet, they'd have to unlearn a lot of things - similar to what a gymnast would need to do in order to dance. But the pupils at these dance-intensive stage schools learn those various forms of dance which give a variety of skills and sets you up to succeed in a range of dance performances.

I'd say that despite there being different techniques involved for ballroom/Latin, people who have done these kinds of courses will adapt very quickly and be able to understand and accurately perform the moves required.

As for the Australian dancer, I don't know how he ever got hired.

A few people on DWTS US have had non-ballroom backgrounds, but still succeed in performing and choreographing lovely ballroom dances (eg. Allison Holker)

Only thing is, Charleston is a very unique dance with unusual movements, and it's hard to transfer those skills over. Dances like Ballet, a Tap and Jazz provide excellent bases that make learning other styles *much* easier. Ballet teaches posture, balance, flexibility, grace, lines, spins, spotting...Tap teaches intricate footwork and rhythm...and Jazz is great for general ease of movement and flow of the dance. Doing a combination of these will put you miles ahead of novices studying a ballroom dance.

I've drawn Kellie and Kevin in an office sweepstake so I'm pleased to see she has talent. I might win some money! Of course she is older than some contestants and has a busy filming schedule so I worry she may end up like Scott Maslen in terms of exhaustion or like Ashley Taylor Dawson with insufficient time for learning her routines. We'll see.

I'd like to add that I warmed to Daniel O'D after seeing his training video and I think he'll be a good contestant for Kristina this year bringing out her training ability.

Roll on couple 3's training vid!

To me that is a bad example as her last partner had more experience in ballroom than she did and she has never been given a less capable partner. She also gets help choreographing. She is a fantastic contemporary dancer and she personally can perform anything but she is not a ballroom dancer.

Well, she looked so much better than the Aussie dancer, anyway.