There has been a lot of talk about the celebrities going on “a journey” and I’ve been wondering what this means to you and what different people understand by “journey“.

I may be wrong but I believe that this angle started with Darren Gough and his amazing success in SCD3. However I always believed that it was the emotional connection he made that captured people’s hearts. Darren fell in love with dance and dancing with Lilia; his delicate footwork was a joy to watch because it was obviously such a joy to him; he became almost evangelical about and is still connected with dance today. I was delighted to hear that he will be on the Christmas Special with Lilia and am looking forward to seeing his ballroom again.

In SCD4 it was Mark Ramprakash who, for me, went on this “journey”. To see this shy, quiet, easily embarrassed man produce by turns fun, cheeky, sexy, and always entertaining latin dances, and in the AT a dominating yet sensual performance that I still remember to this day, was a revelation. In my opinion there has not been one male celebrity this year who has produced a latin dance of the calibre of Mark’s - an honourable exception being Kenny who at least evoked the spirit of the Rumba.

Like Darren, Mark fell in love with dance, especially latin, and his close relationship and obvious chemistry with Karen created a fantastic and enduring partnership.

Fast forward to SCDV, my bank balance and my redial finger are both fully recovered, my heartbeat is back to normal and I settled down to watch, certain that this year I could be objective - not a chance!

I always knew that I would like Alesha, I felt she would be good, simply undisciplined and untrained and, like Mark the year before, would excel at the latin dances. I was not prepared for Alesha’s journey and her joy and emotional connection with ballroom. I have always loved latin dances; I could appreciate and enjoy ballroom dances but preferred latin however Alesha’s performances have made me fall in love with ballroom because she so obviously does. Again it is the joy of the performer that creates the joy of the performance. I actually hold my breath when watching her and Matthew, to me their dances create a scene or a story that makes the rest of the world fall away, they are not merely dancing in a studio.

I guess that for me it is the love of dance and its power to create emotion that represents the journey of a celebrity for me, and not necessarily a technically correct performance.

What do you think?

Hello PP, great post .

I'll come back with a reply later. For now I agree with what you say , there, is more to the SCD journey than being technically the best dancer .

( I also think Mark's ballroom was underrated .The only really weak one was the Foxtrot nd that was partly music and routine .I loved the waltz and VW . )

Hello Arddie darling , how are you?

Thank you, this has been buzzing around in my head for some time and I just had to get it all down

I am really interested in what other FMs think about this but didn't know where to post it so starting a new thread seemed the easiest option.

xxx

Paso Princess wrote: "I guess that for me it is the love of dance and its power to create emotion that represents the journey of a celebrity for me, and not necessarily a technically correct performance."

What a lovely post - a joy to read! I agree with the statement above!

For me, Gethin has been the pure delight of the series. The way that it suddenly clicked for him was a total joy to watch! I know people look down their noses at the J word - but they shouldn't.
Last edited by Wiz Net : 15-12-2007 at 09:59

I agree, that's why I was voting for Mark & Louisa last year and Alesha this year.

Enjoyed reading your post, pp. Personally, I wouldn't call Alesha's experience as a "journey" though. She's always been in love with dance and has seemed to be not only consistently good but consistently overjoyed at being in the competition. I don't remember major highs and lows.

I think the boys both appear to have been on a "journey" though. Both rather shy and reluctant at times and then both (but not in the same week! ) giving us rip-roaring Latin performances. Matt's journey has been more up and down, Gethin's journey has been slow build. I guess it depends how the audience emotionally connects with the dancer as well as the dance.

What do I think? I think you have written a really beautiful and moving post which was absolutely adorable.

the highlighted bits I especially agree with........and the last part.........well.............this is exactly why I vote like absolute MAD for Matt and Alesha - they have the "stardust" factor and I am in love with both them and their dancing - they create a wonderful and magic story every time they dance.

thank you for this post - I really enjoyed it. x

Great Thread. I think anyone that can take their professional on a journey too is commendable. Colin Jackson opened up the stony Erin Boag, Alesha similarly has opened Matt C -we're seeing more of the professionals personalities, and he has come to like Ballroom, not his chosen discipline as his preference has been Latin. So yes, its more than technicalities. The partnership/chemistry is crucial....

I think you have said it brilliantly.
Mark had that 'j' word but it was a little pushed aside by Matt's journy.
For me, the journey isn't going from bad to good, its performing that one amazing dance no matter how you've done in previous weeks or what your like off the dancefloor.
*hint hint* Maren's AT's
That's why I think Alesha should win this.

I agree with this. For me this year, it was Kenny and Ola, because Ola became far more comfortable to talk and was less shy than before, and I think they had a great connections. I also was blown away by his improvement and his joy for the routines (he just threw himself into it). I know that many people will disagree with me, but they were the couple on a real journey IMO.

She was pritty low the week of the foxtrot and she was extremely nervous going into the American Smooth.
In a way shes the opposite of Gethin. He has always been great at the ballroom and its his latin he feared whereas Alesha came into the competition fearing the ballroom. I wouldnt say Gethins technical ability was bad before its the same as is now its just he has become a performer now.
I think because Alesha has always been such a great performer and has also LOVED dancing from the start its harder to see her journey but IMO she has still been on one.

Definitely - there's so much to what makes up an enjoyable performance.

I've enjoyed Alesha falling in love with the Ballroom (her surprise in (I think) waltz week when she said "do you know, I think I actually prefer the ballroom...") - Kenny finding a sense of rhythm, and actually managing to act a rumba even if the steps were lacking a bit... and I never expected to see such a nice foxtrot from him, either - Letitia discovering her confidence, and allowing her actress side to really come onto the dancefloor...

And each person will be touched and moved by a different combination of things.

Hello pp Beautifully put.

Hello little Crow and thank you

Ah, thank you tango queen <hug> and to everyone else who has replied with their own thoughts/contributions so far.

I can only log on very briefly today as I am busy nursing a very poorly pussy cat so I am not ignoring anybody's posts, just a bit distracted this afternoon!

Paso xxx

OK - no excuses for resurrecting this thread, other than a few people have already started to mention the "j" word!

For me Jodie is the celebrity who this year most clearly epitomises the spirit of SCD. Whilst others around her are jostling for positions on the leader board she is quietly improving all the time, has a great relationship with her partner, takes on board any criticism (no matter if it is perceived to be harsh or fair) levelled at her by the judges and is starting to creates terrific performances. In my view Jodie is the one contestant who is genuinely falling in love with dance and it is very endearing to see.

I agree with you 100%. She and Ian are fast becoming my favourite couple. I think Austin is a great dancer but I find him less interesting because he has been good from day one.

Thank you - I think Austin is great but its the obvious improvement and joy of Jodie that keep me re-watching Jodie and Ian's waltz and that has happened for many dances in this series

Lovely to re-read those earlier posts. I also applaud Jodie's application and Ian's immense skill in presenting their partnership in a way which will appeal to the SDC audience. But I don't think she is the only one to 'fall in love' with the dance. Austin's 'journey' is far less visible because he is technically so good so quickly and he has a business like partner in Erin who doesn't really go for the smaltz, but he plainly adores dancing, from the way he is joining in all the steps behind the scenes and his attitude in the training rooms. I would also say that Christine is loving what she is learning and just beavering away at trying to do better. Like Jodie, neither of these two have a dance background to build on and plainly all have pre conceived ideas about dancing and their potential lack of abilities, which their experiences have dispelled.

Hope your cat is okay now.

I agree, Jodie is the only one who seems to be growing and learning and loving dance more every week. She does not suffer from the naked ambition of some, or the naked competition of others...in fact, her and John are the only ones who are really keeping my interest going.

I really enjoyed Jodie's dance last night. She has improved loads since the start. She has impressed me and I have warmed to her through the series. I was pretty much against her at the beginning for reasons which seem a bit stupid

I am rooting for both her and John too. Although there are others I feel for too, Rachel after the comments from Len last night. And Heather who I feel is being undermarked somewhat. Maybe I just like to support the underdog.

[quote=artlesschaos;28497216]Hope your cat is okay now.

Yes, thank you, it's very sweet of you to ask QUOTE]

Yes, really good points about Austin and Christine

I don't think there is a partnership that I don't like in this year's SCD - just that for me Jodie's growth in confidence and ability has been really charming and inspiring.

I agree about Jodie.
I think John too is falling in love with dancing but unfortunately hes more a Kate Garraway then a Alesha Dixon