Amazing amazing amazing, adored this. I love Hanna so much, I saw them dance live and they are spell bounding. She also used to dance with Paul Killick before they retired from competitive latin....best couple in the world imo. It was so nice to see her dance again.

It takes a lot to impress me.

That couple certainly did!

Thankfully I recorded it and will re watch it.

Simply brilliant
Peter

Didn't like - no doubt very skilful, but acrobatics rather than dancing. Just a series of stunts.

That was a brilliant performance, but it wasn't really dancing it was mostly lifts and gymnastics.

Victor looked so good

If they wanted showdance, they should've asked Paul Richardson and Olga Rodionova to demonstrate, seeing as though they are the current British National South American Showdance champions.

Exhibition IS acrobatics and lifts, and not 'dancing'. It's like aerial ballet in that respect . . . the technique is still there yet there are no steps as such.

Hanna is my teacher and I have to say that yes, she is absolutely tiny! She is incredibly slim but pretty muscular, I doubt she weighs very much at all.

She is all round an extremely talented dancer. Reaching number one in the world in Latin, being the world champion at Exhibition and also being a great ballerina as well.

She is so versatile and flexible, she really can do anything. That's exactly why I idolise her so much.

It was very very clever, but I didn't enjoy it at all.

Didn't like it one bit. Thought it was more a circus act than a dance. Thought he looked more like a adult movie star than a dancer and she like a drag queen. He did not move very much did he, just threw her in the air one hundred times. And the outfits... please. I appreciate it's really hard to do but it's definitely not my cup of tea. This was worse than the pro-boys with Girls Aloud! Sorry to be so negative, but it gave me the creeps.
Last edited by noviomagia : 17-12-2006 at 02:43

Just out of interest, have the majority of those here ever seen Exhibition before?

I get the feeling from some comments that quite a lot of people (not all) don't completely understand what it's about, how it works, or what it should be like.

Just in case anyone hasn't, I will post a few videos so that you have a guide of what it should be like, and can compare Victor and Hanna's performance with some others.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7y_ASqdBKjk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LU6LDpfgowQ

As you can see, within their field, Victor and Hanna are extremely established competitiors.

There is a huge difference between Exhibition and Showdance and that most definitely was not portrayed on the show.
Last edited by * Becca * : 17-12-2006 at 02:54

I don't debate whether V and H are good at what they do - it's quite obvious that she is very flexible, very strong, and immensely controlled, and although I guess it's not as obvious (besides the strength) I imagine he must have the same qualities, plus they must both have a sense of rhythm and be able to feel the music, plus be able to make good lines and shapes. I imagine that to be champs they must be very good and their dance must be a good example of what's expected of them......

... but still it does nothing for me.

I'm not saying that it should do anything for anyone . . . all I'm saying is that it isn't right for Exhibition to be compared to Latin, or South American Showdance as the concepts are completely different.

I'm thinking of getting one for my work's chirstmas do ..

ermm second thoughts ~ if it adds 10lbs I best not

Blimey that Hannah is extremley flexible

Amazing as Hannah and Vincent's performance was, I'm afraid there was'nt enough dance element for me.

Dear God!!!!!!!!! I don't know who they were but they took my breath away. Fantastic! If I looked like that, and could move like that, I would be a very happy bunny!

I agree

fab tricks but it really didnt matter what music they " danced " to as the moves did not really inturptret the music

fab for what it was - a demonstration of skill

but not an artistic dance

didnt like it myself- but then dont like acro when done at stage dance comps either

but Hanna has fantastic cntrol of her body

having just watched the 2 clips I actually prefered them to last nights. There seemed to be more musicality to them, they seeed to feel the music more, to act it out , make you feel more involved ( mind you maybe my mind was just blown by the shee wow factor of the flexibilty and control of Hannahand Victor- I may need to watch it again to appreciate it) both clips on youtube seeed to inturpret the usic with moves linked to the words and dynamics of the phrasing of the music. The first one the wh;e package was right, musdc, costume, moves, facial expression the works. Ok the skill level maybe wasnt the same as Hanna and Victor

Those on youtube were in a comp setting and the couples would have practiced them over and over again and very recently we dont know how long H and V had been doing that routine

Like I said before it was impressive but not my cup of tea- oh well each to their own- the world would be boaring if we all liked the same things
Last edited by Georgi M : 17-12-2006 at 09:57

I certainly have. It's actually reasonably close to the kind of style I dance (though absolutely nowhere near the standard of any of the professional couples).


Nice clips! You might enjoy this one if you haven't seen it (not from exhibition dance - but good): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fab9CNbBvMM

Looking at your clips, personally, I think Tommye and Gregory's performance is better than Victor and Hanna's in pretty much every respect. It's pretty obvious Victor is physically stronger, but Gregory makes up for it with better technique (I've never seen Victor really reach full extension in his overhead lifts, so he's holding Hanna with bent arms - which requires a lot more strength than if you take the weight with your bone structure).

Obviously Victor and Hanna did more lifts - but at least in my eyes, the length and quality of lifts by Tommye and Gregory more than make up for it. As I've said elsewhere, however, I'm not particularly keen on tempo moves, so I may be being a little harsh here.

Victor and Hanna's liftwork was certainly more demanding than the content from Remco and Charissa. But I'm suspecting most people here would prefer the latter routine - more dancing with a clear theme etc.

On the other hand, I'm expecting Victor and Hanna had to adapt a routine to what the BBC wanted at very short notice. Exhibition couples usually spend months working out the details of a routine.

At the end of the day, I've never seen any kind of real marking scheme for professional exhibition dance, or even any definition of "correct" technique, so it will always be more about personal opinion than many other areas of dance.
Last edited by SCD_Dave : 17-12-2006 at 09:57

Yes I have, and it does nothing for me. I personally thought it was a waste of a slot last night.

Gregory and Tommye were world champions for years and years, and are possibly the best Exhibition couple that there has ever been. I agree, I adore their dancing and think that the video there is a better performance than Victor and Hanna's.

Victor has never been the most technical dancer and has come under a fair amount of criticism for this. Recently his development as a dancer has been much greater since he has started taking Ballet.

I seriously don't think that the routine that Victor and Hanna performed last night was their best . . . they have a number that Hanna dances almost entirely en pointe - I don't think anybody would criticise that for not showing enough talent or not featuring enough dancing.

Whether Exhibition is a style of dance that you favour or not, I don't see why you can't look at two talented exponents and be able to appreciate what they can do. I for example, hate breakdancing, but when I have watched performances by established breakdancers, I understand and appreciate the talent that they have within their discipline.

Sure the routine was technically brilliant, but so are the Aussies in the test series or whatever it is their winning at the moment - I can appreciate they are great but it still bores me to death. Different strokes etc..

The thing I like about G/T is that they are not the stereotypical Gorilla/Flea adagio couple. It shows how far technique can take you over brute force. As my wife and I are also far from having a Gorilla/Flea weight ratio, it gives us hope!

For controlled lifts, I think David Howland and Vivienne Ramsey are the best I've ever seen. They make it look so easy, and he always has amazing extension in the overheads.

The one time I've seen the Savoys, I thought they were completely breathtaking. And for them to have stayed at the top for 20 years just blows my mind.


Hey - 4x World Exhibition Champion, he can't be doing that badly. I do find it baffling that he scores so well given the lack of extension in the lifts, however. I would have thought that would be the kind of thing the judges would really mark down, but what do I know?

I do wonder if partnering with Hanna, who is obviously a far better dancer than you typically see in exhibition, is making Victor's weaknesses a lot more obvious. He definitely came across as the stronger dancer when partnered with Natalie.


I'm sure you're right. The BBC doesn't really give exhibition dancers a lot of time (or choice of music) to show themselves at their best.

It's a pity there's so little footage of exhibition dancing readily available.

You are not alone. I thought it was a fantastic display of muscle control and gymnastics - but not a dance. On the other hand I loved Vincent and Flavia's beautiful dance.

I completely agree, I love the Savoys too! I see David is dancing with a new partner now, I wonder why he and Sharon no longer compete together? They were so fantastic.

Yes, true, Hanna is a much better dancer than most girls in Exhibition so she is at a great advantage. I was never a fan of Natalie, there didn't ever seem to be much to her, no personality came across which with Hanna is an absolutely enormous factor, with her you can see how much she is loving to dance as the passion that she has for it. With Natalie, I just saw her moving from line to line and there was simply no more to it than that.

I also think the obvious sexual chemistry between Victor and Hanna makes their dancing spectacular. Granted, I am biased when it comes to Hanna, but she really is by far the most fantastic lady in the field today. Her previous experience in Latin means there is so much more to her than others, and I believe it makes her unique as a performer and artist and really makes her stand out from the crowd.

I also agree that the majority of viewers will not have been familiar with Exhibition and therefore may have not known how to interpret last night's performance.
Last edited by * Becca * : 17-12-2006 at 11:52

Enough dance or not enough dance - doesn't matter! It was absolutely amazing - didn't want it to end! Just wish I could do that!! don't think it would be very pretty!!

Someone posted a link ages ago to this dance, as they did it also on the US Dancing with the Stars (either the same routine or a very very similar one) and I didn't like it either. I mean it is very very impressive and all that, but it comes across as more of a circus act than a dance, IMO.