Highlights of my Thanksgiving week

I had a particularly fun holiday week this year. Here are some of my highlights:

1. Missouri Contemporary Ballet's choreographic installation. I think Renewal was a collective off night or something for the company. They definitely were a lot better tonight. The atmosphere and ambiance outside the studio were nice, just a little slow between a couple of the numbers. I particularly liked Claire Nicole Magee's Waiting For Superman and Christopher Benjamin's piece which I can't remember the exact title of at the moment (of course, I forgot to grab a program on the way out).
2. Eating macaroni and cheese on Thanksgiving. I don't know what it is, but my family has some sort of mac-n-cheese secret that is AMAZING.
3. Shopping on Black Friday. I didn't brave the crowds at 4AM, but I definitely got some shopping in later in the day.
4. Catching up with my ballet teacher that moved away before this dance season. It's still sort of funny seeing dance teachers outside of the studio, though. Kinda like seeing school teachers at the mall as a little kid.
5. Seeing the Paul Taylor world premiere last Friday (I know this is way late to talk about this). It was an awesome experience just seeing him onstage for curtain call and listening to the Speaking of Dance panel before the show. This was my first time seeing the company, and definitely something I very mush enjoyed.
   

So, that's pretty much all I did this week. It doesn't look like much, but I've felt super busy (hence the lack of recent posts).

Stay on your toes,

Selly

DWTS7 winner is...

Brooke Burke!

Now, admittedly, this is a really hard topic for me to write about. I almost never watch Dancing With The Stars, and when I do, I hate it. Disregarding my discontent with the show itself, I really like what Tonya Plank said about Brooke's win:

Personally, I love that Brooke Burke won. Overall she had by far the best technique of all of the contestants, yet she has no known movement background (either from musical / performance training or athletics), she was probably the least well-known coming into the show, and, of the remaining three, she was the least flamboyant. Meaning, America really voted for the best technical dancer. And meaning, America connects to great dancing, even over big personality.

Lance Bass and Warren Sapp were the other two finalists in the running for the DWTS title and that big sparkly disco ball. The finale featured dances from various eliminated couples, a la SYTYCD, and musical guests Miley Cyrus and Alicia Keys.

Congratulations to Brooke Burke (and partner, Derek Hough) for the big win!

Stay on your toes,

Selly

Dance Flick Trailer

This looks really horrible, yet at the same time about at the same level of stupidity as most dance movies have been in the past 5 years.

Stay on your toes,

Selly

The Freedom Exchange- performing arts festival for human rights

I was recently told about a new performing arts festival to be held in Ontario, Canada in 2009. The Freedom Exchange is a new event that was "born out of intolerance for injustice and a desire for change" and "aim[s] to support non-profit organizations that are also confronting these issues".

TFE founder, Roshanak Jaberi (http://www.roshanakjaberi.com) says:

This is a project that I'm very excited about which will be presented for the first time in 2009. It's a festival that's dedicated to bringing together socially conscious artists as well as the general community to raise awareness and create dialogue for various human rights issues. All the pieces that will be presented will have a relevant story and message. There will also be guest speakers from various organizations. The event is at an inception stage at the moment, but feel free to check our page for updates as the project develops over the course of the next few months. I hope to make this an annual event, especially because there's nothing like it in Toronto at the moment. We hope that it will be received well, so we can use all the help possible in generating interest and getting support from the community.

Artists interested in participating in the 2009 festival can email TFE at info@roshanakjaberi.com to receive an application packet.

Stay on your toes,

Selly

Dance St. Louis Presents Paul Taylor Dance Company

Dance St. Louis artistic director Michael Uthoff with dancemaker Paul Taylor

This weekend, Dance St. Louis will present Paul Taylor Dance Company performing the world premiere of a new piece called Beloved Renegade (which Paul Taylor himself will be present for!), Esplanade, Changes, and Scudorama. Although Beloved Renegade will be performed at all of the shows, the program varies from night to night, so if there is a certain piece you are particularly keen on seeing, make sure you check the Dance St. Louis website for the dances scheduled each time. It's pretty exciting for the organization to have such a legend attend a performance. The DStL website says:

St. Louis scores a Super-Bowl-size touchdown by legendary dancemaker Paul Taylor—the world premiere of his newest work! The 78-year-old choreographer is making a rare foray out of New York to come to our city himself to direct this epochal event. The program will also feature Esplanade, Taylor’s exuberant J.S. Bach classic from 1975, and other masterworks from the astounding career that has led Time magazine to hail Taylor as "the reigning master of modern dance."

This performance is also the last chance for students in grades 6-12 to participate in the first round of Dance St. Louis's Student Reviewer Contest. Winners will be announced in January 2009.

Stay on your toes,

Selly

A Guide To Surviving Rehearsals

Rehearsals. They're something every dancer has to sit through, especially now, during Nutcracker season (thankfully our director only has us do Nut' every other year). Everyone either adores or loathes the long hours of sitting at the studio doing seemingly nothing while waiting for other people to learn choreography so you can dance. But how do you make the most of your rehearsal time?

Choreography/Blocking Rehearsals:
Choreography rehearsals usually take place in the studio. They are your time to learn the choreography for the piece you will be performing. Sometimes they go by very quickly, like when learning an ensemble piece where everyone is always onstage, and sometimes they drag on for what feels like days, like at rehearsals for classical ballets with lots of variations in different groups.

For long rehearsals with lots of downtime, it is wise to bring things to entertain yourself with (This is a great time to sew/glue/break in the pointe shoes you'll be using for your performance. Dance magazines/books and homework are good, too), light but energizing snacks, water bottles, and lots of movable and warm dance clothing to layer. You always want to stay warmed up so that when it's your time to dance, you can be ready immediately.

Choreography rehearsals can also be a great time to pick up extra choreography so that if anything ever happens and your director asks if someone knows the choreography (or the main gist of it) you can jump in. Another idea is to warm up, stretch, and run the pieces that you are in with other dancers in another studio if you are allowed to. This way, everyone can be sure they know the choreography so that time with the director/choreographer isn't wasted reviewing what you learned last week. These can be the most boring or the most useful rehearsals depending on how you use them.

Technical Rehearsals:
I do not know one person that enjoys tech rehearsals. Generally, they last about twice the time a show will, especially for concerts/recitals or ballets like The Nutcracker with lots of entrances and exits and blocking to learn and rearrange for stage. Technical rehearsals are usually the first time you rehearse on the stage you will be performing on. They are used to adjust sound, lights, and blocking for stage so that dress rehearsal and the performance will run smoothly.

Costumes and stage makeup are not used in most tech rehearsals, but sometimes one dancer will be asked to dance in costume so that lighting can changed to fit the costume for a certain piece if needed. These rehearsals have the most downtime. Every piece/scene is run and blocked onstage, sometimes with and without lighting and music, while the rest of the cast sits in the audience. If something goes wrong, the whole section is usually done over, once again with and without music if the problem is big.

Technical rehearsals are another time to bring lots of entertainment. iPods are usually a big hit at tech, considering no one wants to hear the music from the party scene in Nut' yet another time. Card games, books, and handheld games (GameBoys, and whatever the higher-tech equivalent of GameBoys are called) are great for tech, too, but sometimes its too dark in the theater for these.

Once again, bring clothes to layer. At my studio's technical rehearsals, most of us usually sit around in sweats and warmers until the last possible minute before we run the piece full out because it is always so cold at the theater. Tech is something everyone has to sit through for every show. It's never fun, per se, but tech doesn't have to be horrible either.

Dress Rehearsals:
Dress rehearsals always go by super super fast. They're almost always the first time the entire show is run straight through in costume, so therefore the first time you get to practice quick changes. In my opinion, they're also the most fun.

Dress rehearsals usually begin with a class/warm up onstage before everyone goes backstage, does their makeup and hair, and outs on their first costume. Then it's time to go go go and hope everything happens like it should. There normally isn't much downtime at dress rehearsals, and even if there is, you're usually confined to your dressing room when you're not dancing, so things to do aren't a major priority.

Sometimes dress rehearsals will be open to groups, usually from nursing homes or schools, for a discounted ticket price. These are a great opportunity for kids who wouldn't normally get to see a dance performance to be able to do so. Our director has opened our dress rehearsals to groups like this in the past and donated proceeds to local charities.

Dress rehearsals are probably my favorite of all the rehearsals that make up a production just because they're so fast paced and feel like the real performance, but it won't be the end of the world if you mess up a little (and honestly, it won't be if you make a faux pas during the performance either). One last note: if you don't know the choreography by dress rehearsal, well, that's bad.

Got any tips or advice for keeping yourself entertained and using time effectively at long rehearsals?

Stay on your toes,

Selly

Heart and Soul Apparel's New LoGotti Line

Heart and Soul Apparel, a new dancewear company, recently teamed up with SYTYCD3's Lauren Gottlieb to create their most recent line, LoGotti. Stephanie, a rep for the company, told me a little about the new line:

Heart and Soul Fashion is fairly new, but we have over 25 years of experience in the industry. Our goal is to fill the gap of fashionable apparel for dancers. We want dancers excited about our dancewear and proud to wear it.

We teamed up with Lauren Gottlieb from season 3 of SYTYCD because of her style and personality. She is so outgoing and is always working to achieve something more. We worked together to create a line called LoGotti. She wanted to create apparel that dancers would wear to conventions that is a little spunky and hip, but portrayed her own style. The line has been very well received, everyone is so excited about it!

We are always striving to be ahead of the curve. We are constantly bringing out new apparel, so make sure you check the website for updates. http://heartandsoulapparel.com/

Stay on your toes,

Selly

Shen Wei Dance Arts to Present Connect Transfer II At Historic Judson Memorial Church December 3rd, 5th, 6th, and 7th

Photo © David Massio studios

The following is a press release announcing a new performance choreographed by Shen Wei, the choreographer for the 2008 Beijing Olympics opening ceremony:

New York, November 10, 2008 – Shen Wei Dance Arts will offer New York audiences a first look at Connect Transfer II, a new version of the landmark dance that inspired Shen Wei’s contribution as lead choreographer to the ’08 Beijing Olympic Opening Ceremonies which will tour modern art museums internationally beginning in the Fall of 2009, it was announced today by Brett Egan, Executive Director of Shen Wei Dance Arts. Performances will be in the historic Meeting Room at Judson Memorial Church on December 3rd, 5th, 6th and 7th, set in-the-round to live music performed by New York favorites FLUX Quartet and pianist Stephen Gosling.

The opening night gala on December 3rd will honor lighting designer Jennifer Tipton and each performance will include a pre-show film about the Olympic creative process and a post-show silent auction of the evening’s painted canvas, with sections selected live by Shen Wei.

Connect Transfer I is arguably Shen Wei’s most recognizable work. Connect Transfer II is a concentrated 45-minute version of the original, which emphasizes connections between bodies — through joints, centers, momentum, and energy —and the transfer of that energy from one body to the next through continuous, often improvised movement. Using the backdrop of a rigorous four-hand piano score by Ligeti and Xenakis and Kevin Volans’ String Quartet Number 6, the movement literally connects music, dance and visual arts, as dancers immersed in multi-colored paint, transform the stage floor from blank canvas to textile art.

Connect Transfer I premiered in 2004 at Lincoln Center Festival and was hailed by Anna Kisselgoff of The New York Times as “An ingenious synthesis of dance, music and visual art”.

“The investigation of everyday movement that came out of Judson Dance Theater has informed countless dance-makers, including Shen Wei. With Connect Transfer II, we return to the heart of the original work to further explore its essential ideas in a raw environment, without elaborate lighting or theatrical effects. We present this new version as it would be found in a modern art gallery or museum, drawing focus to its integration of dance, visual art and music. With these performances in the historic Meeting Room, including an Opening Gala honoring our esteemed colleague Jennifer Tipton, we hope, in some small way, to contribute to an important dialogue which began at Judson and continues today,” says Brett Egan, Executive Director of Shen Wei Dance Arts.

“Judson’s remarkable history as a home to innovative, cross-disciplinary artists is humbling, and it is an honor to present our work to audiences there. With Connect Transfer II, I have tried to move the form in new directions, in dialogue with a community of artists in diverse fields,” adds Shen Wei.

Born in China at the end of the Cultural Revolution, Shen Wei is now an US citizen and NYC resident. A choreographer, painter and photographer, Shen Wei creates all the costumes and sets for the company’s repertoire — acclaimed for its idiosyncratic vocabulary and breathtaking scenic elements — which include Folding (2000), Near the Terrace (2000), Rite of Spring (2003), Map (2005), Re- (Part I) (2006), and Second Visit to the Empress (2007). Shen Wei is a 2007 MacArthur “Genius” and USA Prudential Fellow. He has also received the Guggenheim, New York Foundation for the Arts, Nijinsky (Monaco), and Etoiles de Ballet (Cannes) Awards. In 2008, National Public Radio named him a “Choreographer to watch”.

Said Lewis Segal of The Los Angeles Times “The big news about Connect Transfer concerns Shen Wei’s reinvention of the dance vocabulary: the way the movement impetus flows from any point in his dancers' bodies to any other, bypassing every convention of dance-as-steps or choreography as a predominantly vertical statement.”

Pianist Stephen Gosling enjoys a varied career as soloist and chamber musician with a focus on the music of our time. He earned his Bachelors, Masters and Doctoral degrees at the Juilliard School, during which time he was awarded the Mennin Prize for Outstanding Excellence and Leadership in Music and Sony Elevated Standards Fellowship, and was featured as concerto soloist an unprecedented four times.

Mr. Gosling is currently a member of the New York New Music Ensemble, Ensemble Sospeso, Manhattan Sinfonietta, American Modern Ensemble and Ne(x)tworks, and a frequent guest artist of many other groups, including the New York Philharmonic, Orpheus, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Bang on a Can, and Speculum Musicae. His work has garnered consistent critical acclaim, and he was profiled by the New York Times in October 2005.

Mr. Gosling has performed throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia, and made over 30 recordings.

Connect Transfer II is set in-the-round to live music performed by Stephen Gosling and Flux Quartet. Performances are on December 3rd (Gala Opening at 7:30 pm); December 5th at 7:30 pm; December 6th at 2:00 and 8:00 pm, and December 7th at 7:00 pm. Tickets which include both seated and standing viewing positions on four sides in a “gallery” style setting range from $18-$100 (Gala tickets at $250 and $500). Rush tickets are available one hour prior to curtain for $15. The evening includes a pre-performance film about the Olympic creative process and a post-performance silent auction of the evening’s painted canvas, with sections selected live by Shen Wei.

There will be a post-performance reception for VIP ticket holders on December 3rd and 5th and a Junior Gala Party for patrons 40 and under following the performance on December 6th in the Judson Gym. For more information call Shen Wei Dance Arts 212 962-1113, www.shenweidancearts.org. Tickets at www.SmartTix.com and 212 868-4444.

Stay on your toes,

Selly

Center Stage: Turn It Up: What other people are saying

I've had many reactions to my review of the new dance movie Center stage: Turn It Up, both extremely positive and angrily negative. It's only fair to acknowledge what other dancers and websites are saying about it.

From Star Magazine:

In this TV movie, a young street dancer (hot newcomer Rachele Brooke Smith) tries to make it in the demanding world of New York ballet. Naturally, she has to face numerous obstacles first, including a school administrator (Peter Gallagher) who doesn't believe she has the talent for the school - and a mean/rich girl ballerina who becomes her rival for the cutest straight male dancer in the school. It's her street cred - her passion and fire - that gets her over the hump. This is a TV sequel to a 2000 theatrical release, "Center Stage," and does have real-life ballet whiz Ethan Stiefel going for it, along with some very watchable dancing. Otherwise, it's pretty clichéd stuff about working hard to overcome adversity and nice (but tough) girls triumphing in the end.

2/5 stars

From the Herald Sun:

The world was not crying out for a sequel to the 2000 dance hit Centre Stage. But here it is anyway.

The fate awaiting this pedestrian low-budget affair in the States - bypassing cinemas altogether for a few special screenings on TV - would have been the better way to go here in Australia also.

In the first picture, the story was spread across a number of ambitious young dancers looking to make the most of their time at the prestigious American Ballet Academy in New York.

In Centre Stage 2, the principal setting remains unchanged, but all attention is mostly confined to just the one wannabe, Kate Parker (newcomer Rachele Brooke Smith).

Miss Parker is virtually exactly the same character as that played by Mary Elizabeth Winstead in the recent Make It Happen.

Kate is a girl from the sticks who finds it tough acclimatising to life in the big smoke.

Her car gets impounded. She stuffs up a crucial admission audition.

Finds waitressing work at the coolest club in town. Dominates the dance floor during her breaks.

Meets a cute guy. They kiss, break up and make up. Just in time for Kate’s last-ditch chance at grabbing hold of that elusive dream.

Despite these and many other uncanny similarities to Make It Happen - including the heroine’s conflicted allegiances to both freeform hip-hop moves and the rigid discipline of traditional dance - Centre Stage 2 turns out to be a marginally superior offering.

The only reason why is the obvious dancing abilities of the featured cast. Where Make It Happen would sneakily cut away so stand-ins could replace the actors, the CS2 gang are determined to do their own thing.

2/5 stars.

From the New York Times:

It’s always fun to mock the Oxygen network, which was created in 1998 with highfalutin airs and big-name backers (Oprah Winfrey was one) and is now bottom-feeding with shows like “The Bad Girls Club” and “Snapped.” But Oxygen does try to wedge in better programming where it can, and Saturday’s “Center Stage: Turn It Up” is a case in point: a sweaty, sexy movie that is centered on ballet dancers, not the lap kind.

It’s basically an updated version of “Flashdance,” mixing hip-hop with classical ballet. Kate Parker (Rachele Brooke Smith) is a talented but self-trained dancer from Detroit who loses a position at New York’s American Ballet Academy to a wealthy patron’s daughter (Suzanne Von Stroh). Kate finds work in a nightclub and tries to make her own way with the help of another dancer, a former hockey player and fellow have-not, Tommy Anderson (Kenny Wormald).

Peter Gallagher, who played the Academy’s artistic director in the first installment, “Center Stage,” in 2000, returns in the same role, as does Ethan Stiefel, a principal dancer with American Ballet Theater, who plays Cooper Nielson, a star of the academy.

Some of the acting is stilted in spots, but the dancing is fantastic. And the leitmotif of class resentment is an apt one for the times.

So there you have it. Still generally bad, but with some high points noticed by those reviewing it from a movie-goer's point of view, not a ballet dancer's.

Stay on your toes,

Selly

Schwimmer Sibs perform on DWTS

Benji and Lacey Schwimmer performed a WCS to "Ticks" last night on Dancing With The Stars.

They're definitely both awesome at what they do, but Every. Single. Time. they perform, I just get this totally creepy vibe from them and their choreography. Maybe its just me...

Stay on your toes,

Selly

Another one of those "I got new shoes" posts...

In the past 2 weeks, I've gotten two new pairs of dance shoes, custom color Miller and Ben Triple Threat tap shoes that I've waited forever and a day for (that's the problem with ordering the pretty pretty colors!) and Gamba 97 pointe shoes.

Miller and Ben Triple Threats:
I pretty much adore these shoes. They're gorgeous and shiny. I didn't realize how soft and dead and wimpy my old Jazz Tap Masters were until I put them on. They're pretty much perfection in a tap shoe. The triple stacked front sole gives them an amazing sound and prevents that annoying feeling like in the JTMs where you can feel the back edge of the front tap in the ball of your foot. They're breaking in really nicely, other than the one nasty blister they gave me on the back of my heel the first time I wore them. The trick to these is tights AND thin socks so they're comfy and don't rub before the leather softens up. A shoe horn helps for the first couple times you put them on.

Gamba 97s:
These were sort of tester shoes; I bought them without getting fitted on the principle that I liked the Gamba 93s and there is little-no difference between the two shoes other than the 3/4 shank in these. On top of that, they're the first pair of shoes I've ever Jet Glued (which gave me a killer headache). Although everything I see claims that they're a slightly lower profile than the 93s, it feels higher to me. I'm not a huge fan of the blunt cut 3/4 shank, more because it digs in to my foot a little than anything. I still roll over the box a little too far in these, but because of the Jet Glued platforms, nothing has caved in or died yet. They're not the world's greatest shoes; I still like the 93's better, but they'll do for now. They're comfortable for the most part, fit nicely, don't die in 45 minutes, and I'm able to work in them without being severly incapacitated by them.

Stay on your toes,

Selly

Cary Ballet’s 3D Jazz Company Wins Multiple Awards At Prestigious Arizona Jazz Dance Showcase

Cary Ballet Conservatory's jazz company, The 3D Project recently won multiple awards at the ARizona Jazz Dance Showcase last weekend. Here's the press release:

Cary, NC, November 5, 2008 - Cary Ballet Conservatory’s 3D Jazz Company took home multiple awards from the prestigious Arizona Jazz Dance Showcase at University of Arizona in Tucson over Halloween weekend. 16 dedicated dancers and teachers went out to Tucson, Arizona to show the rest of the country what they were all about and came away as big winners.

Out of over 800 dancers auditioning, 3D dancers received seven awards in the Friday auditions. Awards went to Tanya Haglund, Kayla Farish, Anna Gross, Hannah Ehrenzeller, Jenny Clise and Abby Mather. Gretchen Lawall received the highest honor which is a $5,000 fee waiver and early acceptance to The University of Arizona’s exclusive School of Dance. This is an incredible honor for Gretchen and a testament to how well trained the dancers are from 3D at Cary Ballet Conservatory.

Darra Gasper, the Creative Director of 3D @ CBC said “I am thrilled that we did so well at this incredible event. The dancers really performed well and it a tribute to Cary Ballet Conservatory and the well rounded staff and vision of CBC owner Suzanne Clark, that we get these opportunities and then are able to make the most of them. I am extremely proud of all of our dancers.”

Over the course of the weekend the dancers took master classes from some of the most renowned dancers and choreographers in the dance world including Nan Giordano, Susan Quinn, Richard Havey, Sherry Zunker, Sam Watson, Amy Ernst, Eddy Ocampo and Melissa Lowe. 3D dancers were singled out in every class and in Sam Watson's Lyrical class, he began randomly picking dancers that caught his eye to perform his combination. He unknowingly picked all CBC dancers, including 3D and CBC faculty member Gerren Mobley. In Nan Giordano's jazz class, 3D artistic director, Darra Gasper was asked to come onstage and demonstrate the Giordano technique for both of Nan's Saturday classes which was a tremendous honor as the late Gus Giordano was Gasper’s mentor and friend.

Saturday night the 3D @ CBC dancers performed brilliantly to a packed audience and wide acclaim. The faculty commented repeatedly on their artistry and the depth of their training. Opie's Opus opened the show and Kinetic performed in the second act. At the Faculty dinner following the showcase 3D @ CBC was personally invited by Nan Giordano to attend the Jazz World Congress.

By the end of the weekend the dancers had collected more awards and honors than any other company at the Jazz Dance Showcase. The unique program at CBC demonstrates how the highest quality ballet training is a solid base for the jazz dancer. While it is actually quite rare to have a school that offers such a high level program for both, Cary Ballet Conservatory manages to deliver world-class training in both areas and all under one roof.

Thanks to Johnathon for the heads up.

Stay on your toes,

Selly

Review: Center Stage 2: Turn It Up (I forced myself to watch it)

The first scene opens with Kate (Rachele Smith) encouraging her little sister, Bella, to teach herself pointe work by watching a video of Gillian Murphy perform a variation, because this is totally a safe way to learn ballet and will guarantee that you progress with amazing technique and no injury. *snorts*

Kate then travels to NYC from her home in Detroit to audition for American Ballet Academy. She shows up late wearing sweats and a tank top and has hair sloppily pulled back in to a ponytail. She appears to be completely unaware of the proper way to sew or tie her pointe shoes.

Cooper Nielson (Ethan Stiefel) and Johnathon Reeves give class and judge the dancers. Six boys and six girls will be accepted to the school that season. Cooper's company lost all of its funding so he had to come back to ABA because he can't get a job. Blah blah blah.

Johnathon wants to accept Suzanne, a mediocre dancer with the fakest blonde hair I have ever seen whose father funds the school, while Cooper is vying for Kate. He lists off different choreographers that were different and thought of as weird before they made it big (like Kate, I guess?) including Twyla Tharp and Bob Fosse NEITHER OF WHOM WERE KNOWN FOR CHOREOGRAPHING BALLET.

The cast list is posted and Kate is not accepted, yet she lies to everyone she knows and meets so that they can feel like there is some hope in the world for bad-mediocre self taught ballet/hip hop fusion dancers to get in to major ballet training facilities.

Then she meets Tommy (Kenny Wormland), a student at ABA, who used to be a hockey player but gave it up for ballet, his true passion. He reminds me of SYTYCD4's Gev. Tommy tries to fake a New York accent, but most of the time, it sounds East German and/or Ukrainian.

Kate's car has been impounded and will cost $300 for her to get back.

Kate finally admits to Tommy that she was not really accepted in to American Ballet Academy. They then dance hip hop badly at Tommy's friend's bar. Tommy's friend then offers Kate a job. She plans to start working there the next night.

The next day in class, Cooper takes a liking to Suzanne and Tommy, who he has partnered together for pas de deux class. He decides to help Tommy out since he has had little to no ballet training but is somehow in a ballet school. (How many times has this plot been used? At least 15, right?)

Tommy asks Kate to coach him in PDD because he has had no previous training, yet dances better than anyone else in the movie, not counting Ethan Stiefel. They practice during the day in their friend's club since Kate has a key. Kate keeps calling it "pas de duh" and they call danseur nobles "ballerhinos" (as in rhinosaurus). Kate flaps her arms about repeatedly.

That night, Kate starts working at the bar. She is a bartender and dances excitedly to get people to dace and be excited. She isn't' even that good at hip hop. The next morning, she takes the money she made working and goes apartment. She decides to rent the first apartment she finds, which is HUGE and she can somehow afford on one night's tips. She presumably has her car back now. I would like to know where she has been sleeping the last two nights before she had money for an apartment/hotel or to get her car...?

Suzanne has worn the same leotard every single time they have shown her dancing. It seems like that would get very smelly very fast when you dance for long hours every day. She invites Tommy to go out that night, but he can't because he's doing something with Kate. Suzanne and her friends show up at the bar where Kate and Tommy work. The dialogue in this show is horrible, as is the plot. I also think they created intentionally bad hip hop/dance music for them to dance to so they didn't have to pay music licensing fees. I also think that people are having the exact same conversations with each other characters that people did in the first movie.

Kate and Tommy appear to suddenly be Latin ballroom dance and perform some sort of salsa. They go back to Kate's apartment. The next morning Tommy wakes up in Kate's bed and realizes that he missed the previous night's dorm curfew and that he is going to be late for his first class.

He arrives late to class. Instead of being told to sit out or warm up, he simply jumps right in and starts dancing full out. He drops Suzanne, but they are both uninjured. Meanwhile, Kate practices pointe work on a rug on her concrete floor in her apartment.

I just love how this movie encourages and exemplifies safe and realistic training methods used by ballet dancers.

Honestly, I don't even want to finish writing about this. In short, Kate thinks Tommy and Suzanne are dating, Tommy thinks Cooper and Kate are dating, love square, blah blah blah. Bella shows up and all her dreams of becoming a self taught ballerina are crushed when she realizes that Kate did not actually get in to ABA. Bella encourages Kate to audition for a ballet called The Glass slipper. Kate is scolded for not having a resume, but tells her sob story about her dead ballerina mother and how she taught herself pointe work and all the judges fall in love with her. She and Tommy get the leading roles in the ballet and Suzanne is cast as an ugly stepsister. Johnathon gives Kate a sappy speech.They all live happily ever after.

This is probably one of the worst dance movies I have ever seen. Not only is 97% of the dancing horrible, most of the actors are actually professional dancers that are not actors, and the dialogue and storyline were dreadfully bad. And I predicted the ending almost entirely accurately after about 10 minute of the show. Overall, it is not at all worth watching. It isn't nearly as good as the first Center Stage, which is at least mildly realistic and showcases great dancers, and is pretty much the same as every other ballet vs. hip hop/untrained dancer makes it in to ballet school movie. Don't let Center Stage 2: Turn It Up steal away 2 hours of your life that you will never get back; it isn't even worth watching.

Stay on your toes,

Selly

Center Stage: Turn It Up premiere

Center Stage: Turn It Up premiered on Oxygen tonight. Did anyone see it? Was it as bad as I thought it would be? Here is the synopsis from the Oxygen website:

A self taught ballerina leaves her Detroit home to audition for the American Ballet Academy in New York, but is rejected in favor of a more classical ballerina. Another talented dancer from the academy helps Kate get a job and eventually convinces her to audition for a city-wide casting call. Starring Peter Gallagher and Ethan Stiefel.

The movie airs again tomorrow afternoon and on Wednesday and Thursday evening. I'll probably watch it and try to ignore the whole "self taught ballerina" plot line. More information on the film can be found at the Oxygen website, or on IMBD.

Stay on your toes,

Selly