LATIN FEVER!

Ok so as mentioned I was a litttllllleee bit shall we say, excited, about going to see Latin Fever. Why wouldn't I be ... Darren and Lilia are my Idols. Excitement totally justified!


Obviously I've seen them dance before, on SCD, and on the live tour. But this was simply in a league of its own. As a unit, and as solo performers ( both of which demonstrated through out the show) they are simply mesmerising, their skill and talent captivated the audience and coupled with exciting rhythms, music and costume created one hell of a show!


We start of in the carnivals of Brazil. Samba time. Fast feet, and even faster beats. This truly is party time.
The stage is graced with 4 other couples as the show begins. You can sence the anticipation lacing the crowd, hundreds of eyes scanning the stage until finally, the moment everyone has been waiting for .... Darren and Lilia take to the floor.Their precence is captivating, I could honestly say that the rest of the dancers could have been on stage naked and I wouldn't have noticed! Thats not to say that the others were not worth watching of course!

From the Brazillian carnival, its cha cha cha. Arguably the most simple of the Latin Dances with regards to timing etc. This is supposed to be a fun cheeky dance, and that it was. Bum wiggling and flirty looks laced this perfomance, it was so lively and exciting to watch, all of the dancers, not just Darren and Lilia, created such a party atmosphere with those dances, im telling you it was tempting to get up and join in! ( I didnt of course, that would likely get me removed!)

 So next we head to Buenos Aires, for the Argentine Tango. This dance has to be one of my personal favourites. The amount of passion and drama conveyed by this dance was truley stunning. The connection was so intense, and the storyline throughout allowed the audience to fully understand the style and mood of the dance. People sat in silence, totally mesmorised by what they were seeing.

Following this ... Swing time!!! This section of the show was so bright, so vibrant ... and that was just Darrens trousers! It really was massively exciting to watch, energy seemed to flow from every fibre of those on stage, everyone was so animated, it was just WOW! Mentioning Darrens 'subtle, understated' trousers! ... the costumes in the show were magnificent, there were beads and feathers, ruffles and frills. All designed by Lilia ( who herself had no less than 9 costume changes!!) The outfits really added to the dynamic of the show and we simply stunning to admire!

Throughout the show, the singers had their chance to take the stage for themselves and perform for the crowd, and I must say they were fantastic! They really got the crowd going, and aided in setting the mood for the dances to come. Perfoming a mixture of Latin inspired songs, such as Quizas, Quizaz, Quizas, Besame Mucho, and Livin La Vida Loca, the band and singers really created an atmosphere for the dancers to develop and maintain.

Now, within the show I had two ultimate favourite dances. Firstly the Paso Doble. I adore this dance, so was so so excited when I found out this dance was included in the show. Just like the Argintine Tango, the drama was intense. The cape work displayed by the men was so amazing ( and yes im now running out adjectives!!!) and Lilia's solo spot was just ... again WOW!

Secondly the rumba. I challenge anyone not to be moved by that dance. It was beautiful. So tenderly danced, wonderfully romantic . . . a true love story. This was another dance where the audience sat in silence, captivated by the beauty and mood of it all. Just gorgeous.

And and and ... there was audience participation! ahhhaaaa loved it! Everybody "Hey mambo ... mambo Italiano!" This really got the crowd going ( and made everyone a little bit excited, becasue D&L were talking!!) crazed clapping and singing along, just what you need! :)

Basically ... it was with out a doubt the most exciting thing I have ever seen. The talent was unbelievable, the music, the costumes and most importantly the dancing ... Fantastic.

( aanddd I as lucky enough to meet Darren and Lilia after the show ( whom were both so lovely)  very very exciting indeed!)

Best Day Ever ...

:) Actually made my year ....


review of Latin Fever to follow ... could basically sum it up now. AMAZING.

Over Excited.

Tomorrow may quite possibly be one of the BEST days of my life ... as tomorrow is LATIN FEVER day!

I have never seen a solo Darren and Lilia show before ... so am unbelivably excited.

They are my Idols. So seeing them do what they do best astounds me.

Roll on tomorrow!

One final Waltz.

Ten years is a long time to be doing the same thing. Thats how long I've been at my current dance class. Ten years. Today was medal presentation day, and to me ... the end of an era.  As I am off to uni in September today marks my last presentation day for a good three years. It was emotional to say the least.

Things went smoothly, everyone danced, recieved their medals ... the usual. Just before the ballroom section of the presentation I was called to the floor. It was announced to all the friends/family of pupils that I would soon be leaving. So I stood there, with my teacher who said to me as he saw the look on my face "It hurts me just as much as it does you" , this left me laughing awkwardly ... trying so hard not to cry. I thought that was that. done.

However.

The presentation continued. The ballroom section danced. All exept one person who as overlooked when the waltz was danced. Me. I took it as a mistake, let it go. The awards were given out, I was last on the list. Just as I was about to get mine, my teacher took to the floor again, walked over to me hand outstreched. Declaring that I had to work for mine. This was followed by me being led to the floor. He turned to the crowd, me following ( at this point so nervous as I had no clue what was going on) and said " As you are leaving us soon ... I get this last dance....."

"One final waltz."
After that line, I just wanted to stand there and cry. It really hit me.

And it was my first complete solo. To the most beautiful song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXnZNMpcqqM

I was petrified. So afraid of messing up. But. I did it. The dance went so perfectly, and got an amazing ( and totally unexpected) response. 

So its been a proud day for me. Massively emotional. Just re capping it makes me actually want to sob.

There may be trouble ahead???

According the the BBC website, the Strictly shake up has already begun, the latest announcement being that three new male dancers have been introduced for this years show. Alongide this follows the decision to reduce the number of competing couples from 16 to 14. This decision has lead to the elimination of one professional couple, and obviously three of our male proffesionals.


Listed in the line up as competing proffesionals for SCD 2010 -
Males -                                                               

• Artem Chigvintsev
• Jared Murillo
• Robin Windsor
• Anton Du Beke
• James Jordan
• Brendan Colle
• Vincent Simone 

Females -

• Ola Jordan
• Flavia Cacace
• Erin Boag
• Katya Virshilas
• Natalie Lowe
• Aliona Vilani
• Kristin Rhianoff

From this it is apparent that a few of the favourite names appear to be missing. To me the most dissapointing abscence being that of Darren Bennett and Lilia Kopylova. Also missing from the line up, having being replaced by the new professionals, are Matthew Cutler, Brian Fortuna and Ian Waite.


All is not lost however, as being newly introduced for this series in the SCD Proffesional Dance group. In which places have been offered to the 5 'eliminated' professionals . The concept behind this is to showcase more of the proffesional dancers alongside competing dancers with regards to the style of dance being performed.
As much as I am against the removal of Darren and Lilia from the competing element of the show, I think it will be, in terms of the viewing audience, a good move for the show if they decide to stay on. By them being in this 'dance group' will give the viewer an oppourtunity to see a lot more of them, especially considering their previous run thoughout the series in the show. HOWEVER. I aswell as many other viewers, tune in to see their favourite professionals compete, and are being increasingly more put off the show with the recent announcements.

It has been announced that unhappy with the occuring changes, Brian Fortuna has already declined his position in the show, and I would not be surprised if the other dancers decided to follow suit.

So why these dancers? My guess is as good as anyones. They wanted 14 couples to compete, so that meant the removal of one pro couple. So lets look at this logically.

 Ola - pretty much safe, she won last year - so back to defend her title. Thus securing a place for James.

Anton - comic value. They'd be low on gags if they deployed him, and would most likely spark an ageism row once more. Again - Erin, being the long standing female pro on the show, still in.

Brendan, has his bad boy rep, adds 'excitement' to the proceedings, Katya - tours with him, new girl. So safe.

Natalie and Aliona. New girls - quite popular, safe. Vincent and Flavia - Needed for Semi final week, dont want to risk them declining, as Argintine Tango can be done by none other. Kristina ... I dont know why. But she is safe.

Three men are out making way for the new boys. So that leaves Darren and Lilia. They've had pretty shocking partners, and early eliminations, so I guess the BBC are hoping that the viewing audience have forgotten about them! ... We have NOT. It has not been confirmed as to whether Darren and Lilia have accepted or declined the offer of dance group member, I hope they accept, but out of prinicple it is likely that Brian wont be the only one to walk.

So why Ian and Matthew? Matt - out week one. No longer seen as a competitor ... but FANTASTIC in pro dances. Obvious. Ian, had to withdraw from the competition, not an obvious choice to me, obviously all the female celebs will be short this year.

Very odd choices. 3 champions and 2 finalists. Yes. Good one BBC. These pros have obviously done something right to gain those positions. It is at the end of the day up to the viewer, and this particular one is not happy!

But what will be will be. Will this work? Im going with no. But we shall see.

As seen on Strictly.

Sticking with the theme of costumes, again courtesy of DSI ( my new favourite website ) I found Strictly gowns for sale!!

Heres just a few of the ones avaliable, a few pesonal favourites, and some genrally gorgeous dresses.

Ok.... I can honestly say I would give my right arm to own this one! ( ok maybe thats a little extreme but still!! )

This Latin piece was worn by Lilia Kopylova ( hence the whole right arm thing!) In I believe the "Ever fallen in love" Jive in series 7.

Sticking with the Lilia theme slightly, this dress was designed originally for her, however poor Richcard Dunwoody didnt quite make it far enough for her to wear it. So, with a few extra layers of fabric, creating more length and volume in the skirt, this dress was finally worn by Ali Bastian in her American Smooth. Im not really feeling the colour of this one, however the design sells it for me. I like how there are slight alterations in colour within the 'V' shapes forming the upper body of the dress. Breaks it up a little.

( I must also add, this dress looks suspiciuosly like the one worn by Laila Rouass in her Anerican smooth ... much prefer the colour of that one actually!)

 

Ok, so this has to be one of my personal favourites from the previous series of Strictly. Worn by Ola Jordan. Its massively simple in the actual design,with the asymetric shoulder and A - line skirt, which I think is what I love about it. The slight dropped waist allows for increased detailing on the bodice and as the skirt in itself is so simplistic, the pattern is able to be a little more irratic, without the risk of overpowering the dress overall.

The soft colours ( although I usually hate lilac) really work for this, in a stronger tone I feel the overall idea trying to be created by this dress would be lost.

I feel I have to mention this particular dress simply because of the 'up roar' shall we say, that it caused. Yes... Ola's rumba outfit. I actually really like this piece, it certainly a very clever piece of design, very typically rumba. Personally I prefer it in black and white when she and Chris made their debut, but still I have to admire her courage in wearing that!