Dancing With The Stars Power Ranking – The FADS Edition: Week 8

As I mentioned in last week's Power Rankings, Romeo held on in Week 7 only due to Kendra's presence and subsequent elimination. With her out of the way, Romeo was the next weakest link in the DWTS competitive chain.

Something told me, even as I watched the drama of the "in jeopardy" showdown between Romeo and Ralph Macchio, that Romeo's time had come. Ralph's fan base, I'm beginning to think, is much larger than we might have first imagined it to be when the season first began. His combination of personal charm and dancing prowess has obviously won over hundreds of thousands of admirers as the competition has gone on.

That being said, could next week bring an end to Ralph's challenge for the much-prized Mirror Ball trophy?

DWTS POWER RANKING - WEEK EIGHT

#1 - Chelsea Kane
Chelsea Kane finally steals 1st Place from Hines Ward after several weeks of having to look at his back. She would have (should have) been here sooner if not for Hines's huge and imposing fan base. This week the couples again had to dance two dances - one a rehearsed dance and the other an "Instant Dance" where the couples learned of the song they were to perform to only 30 minutes before having to do it. Both of Chelsea's Week 8 dances were again exceptional (though the first, rehearsed dance much more so). Her pro partner, Mark Ballas, must be beside himself at having been paired with such a terrific talent this season. The only possible spoiler in this fairy tale coupling could be Chelsea's fan base, which is probably much smaller at this point than either Hines Ward's or Kirstie Alley's.

#2 - Hines Ward
Hines Ward's smile is his biggest asset in this competition. DWTS judge Bruno Tonioli gave him a "10" for his rehearsed Foxtrot this week, which I thought was a bit of a reach. Regardless, Hines continues with his charmed life in front of the judging panel - all of whom, in my opinion, have consistently over-graded him throughout the course of the season. He is destined for the Final Three - his fan base alone will get him there at this point in the competition.

#3 - Kirstie Alley
Kirstie did a really good job with her Argentine Tango in Week 8. Her follow-up "Instant Dance" (a Salsa) was less inspiring, but still garnered her 25 points. I see next week as a contest between her and Ralph Macchio possibly getting the boot. That being said, though, her loyal fan base could very throw everything completely out of whack.

#4 - Ralph Macchio
Courage, Ralph. Courage. That's just what he showed this week after battling a ruptured cyst behind his knee that made even the simplest of movements very painful for him. Back in Week 6, the dashing Ralph came to his pro partner, Karina Smirnoff's, rescue. In Week 8, Karina returned the favor by quick-coaching Ralph (the couple only had about 9 hours of practice time due to Ralph's injury) to a 25-point Vienna Waltz and a survivable 21 points for their "Instant Dance" Cha-Cha. Both dances brought grimaces of pain from Ralph, but he finished them anyway. He noticeably limped, though, as he stepped over to the judges panel. Ralph's fan base made his last-place finish on Monday night irrelevant as he was able to beat out Romeo on Tuesday's Results show. But with his injury a lingering factor, could next week be Ralph's final curtain call on DWTS?

#5 Romeo
Well, it's the last spot on the DWTS Power Rankings, and that means it's Romeo's turn to say farewell. In what is looking to be somewhat of a trend on this season's DWTS, Romeo had one of his finest performances on Monday night before being ousted by the voters on Tuesday. The young rapper-movie star looked sharp and really focused in his Tango with pro partner Cheslie Hightower. It was a routine worthy of the triple 9s he received from the judges. (I actually thought he danced better than Hines Ward, who received a 10 to go along with a pair of 9s.)

Romeo was a perfect gentleman in defeat. He thanked everyone, from his fans and his pro partner, Cheslie, to the DWTS judges. He said DWTS helped him overcome his life-long fear of dancing and that he had the best time of his life on the show.

"This show has changed my life forever," the upbeat Romeo said to host Tom Bergeron. "I think I showed kids anything is possible if you try."

Well said, Romeo. And well done!

*
So now it's down to four couples competing to take home the Mirror Ball trophy. Last week I figured Kirstie would be one the final three "in jeopardy" celebrities, but instead Chelsea once again found herself there - although this time it was only by default: because there were only five couples to begin with, after Kirstie and Hines were declared safe earlier in the show, that left only three couples remaining.

Next week, look for Hines to once again be declared safe (ugh). If the judges scores happen to somewhat even out the fan scoring, then, we should see either Ralph or Kirstie going home. It would be a shame, though, to see Chelsea walk before it comes down to the Final Three.

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Dancing with the Stars - Week 8 Commentary

[NOTE: This is a re-posting of a post published last week that was evidently removed from Blogger.]

Season 12 of Dancing with the Stars is finally upon us. Each week Syracuse, NY FADS co-owner and award-winning ballroom dancer Natasha Oreshkina will be sharing her thoughts on the competition and giving us her take on which celebrities had the best week on the dance floor and which ones should be getting ready to pack their bags.


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WEEK EIGHT

[Natasha] This week was "Instant Dance" week on Dancing with the Stars. Each couple had to dance a rehearsed routine plus a second routine where they didn't know the music until 30 minutes before they had to perform.

1st Place - Chelsea Kane/Mark Ballas (W1:21 + W2:18 + W3:23 + W4:26 + W5:26 + W6:28 + W7:34/G30 + W8:29/26 = 261 total) [Overall position: 2nd.]
Chelsea and Mark performed the Slow Walz for their first dance. This was a great performance and the first time a couple received two 10s this season. It was very elegant, very flowing. The past few weeks they've been doing a really great job.

Their second dance was the Salsa. The judges were surprised Chelsea and Mark were able to do such a good job in such a short amount of time. Like Carrie Ann, though, I felt the dance didn't connect to the music.

2nd Place - Hines Ward/Kym Johnson (W1:21 + W2:23 + W3:25 + W4:25 + W5:27 + W6:27 + W7:36/G30 + W8:28/26 = 268 total) [Overall position: 1st.]
Hines and Kym performed the Foxtrot for their first dance. They have a really good connection with each other. It was elegant and fun to watch. Hines's footwork was not so good this time, though, which is surprising because he's usually good.

For their second dance they performed the Jive. The Jive is not an easy dance to do. You need to move your legs and really pick up your feet. Hines didn't do a good job with that.

3rd Place - Kirstie Alley/Maksim Chmerkovskiy (W1:23 + W2:20 + W3:21 + W4:21 + W5:23 + W6:26 + W7:30/G30 + W:28/25 = 247) [Overall position: 5th.]
Kirstie and Maks did the Argentine Tango first. This was a very hot and very passionate performance. When you watch Kirstie dance you can see her footwork was very good and she looked like she was dancing very well.

For their Instant Dance, they did the Salsa. Kirstie showed good movement, and, as usual, did a good job with her footwork and also showed good hip action.

T-5th Place - Romeo/Chelsie Hightower (W1:19 + W2:23 + W3:20 + W4:23 + W5:26 + W6:28 + W7:30/G30 + W:27/25 = 251) [Overall position: 3rd.]
Romeo and Chelsie performed the Tango for their first dance. You can see that Romeo has really improved a lot and has a lot of confidence. He was a little stiff in this dance, however, and the footwork was a little off.

This couple performed the Salsa for the second dance. not much to say about this routine. It was fun, but I could tell it was nothing special.

T-1st Place - Ralph Macchio/Karina Smirnoff (W1:24 + W2:21 + W3:21 + W4:25 + W5:22 + W6:24 + W7:36/G30 + W8:25/21 = 249) [Overall position: 4th.]
Drama, drama, drama! Ralph had a knee injury during the week and so he and Karina only had about nine hours to practice. Ralph's footwork for their Viennese Waltz was not good, but he did well with the upper body movement. He seemed a bit stiff - probably because of the pain he was in from his knee.

Ralph and Karina's second dance was the Cha-Cha. You could see he was very uncomfortable and he looked stiff, with no hip action. Again, though, his knee injury was obviously affecting him.

*
Okay, so this week we saw Romeo get voted off of the show. If we had gone by last week's (Week 7) performance, then he should have gone home. But this week, I'm not so sure. As for Ralph Macchio, I think next week he will be eliminated if he can't show his leg doesn't bother him so much.

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Dancing With The Stars Power Ranking – The FADS Edition: Week 7

It took Kendra Wilkinson 6 weeks to get excited about competing on Dancing With The Stars. On Week 7, she was voted off.

The outcome that so many have been waiting to see has finally happened. On Tuesday night, at the end of Week 7 of Dancing With The Stars, Kendra Wilkinson's name was the last one called out by host Tom Bergeron - and on DWTS, that meant the competition was over for her.

A lot of people (myself included) were beginning to wonder if she was going to be this year's Bristol Palin - a bad dancer, but with a fan base large enough to boost her into the Finals. That turned out to not be the case, as the spunky - yet oddly unenthusiastic - former Playboy bunny was ousted on the heels of what was ironically one of her better performances (albeit still wanting).

I have to admit it, though: Kendra was really starting to get on my nerves. I don't think she took the competition seriously until it was too late for her to catch up. Even then, her sass talk was a turn-off for me. She was the anti-Petra Nemcova on the show - and that's probably what kept her in the competition longer than the adorable Czech supermodel: Sass beats sweetness in the ratings game (and apparently the voting booth) every time.

Oh well. The last of the really bad dancers has departed DWTS, and so now we have only the most popular and most talented celebrities remaining.

DWTS POWER RANKING - WEEK SEVEN

#1 - Hines Ward
Hines has been ranked #1 since the FADS Power Rankings began in Week 4. I think as long as he doesn't take a fall or do something terrible in a routine, he's probably a lock for the Final Three. His combination of consistency and high judges scores, plus his large following of Steelers fans, makes him a formidable competitor unlikely to lose out until perhaps the very end. (Oddly, Hines is also the most "under the radar" contestant remaining. Even as the likes of Kirstie, Ralph, Kendra and even Cheslea have grabbed the lions' share of the gossip headlines, Hines has gone through the season with barely a mention.)

#2 - Chelsea Kane
Even though Chelsea did find herself "in jeopardy" this past week, I think that was just part of the ruse to heighten the drama of the moment. It didn't really work for me, though, as there was no way Kendra was going to be out either Chelsea or Kirstie Alley. Chelsea's dancing prowess is remarkable, and I honestly believe she's won over thousands of fans who previously had never heard of her before (myself included). Will that translate into her making it into the Final Three grouping? I certainly hope it will. But there is one potential fly in the ointment for her: Pro partner Mark Ballas. Mark has repeatedly placed Chelsea in an unfriendly light before the judges with his "youthful" choreography. In his defense, Mark has been amazed at Chelsea's dancing ability and is seeking to capitalize on that talent by crafting admittedly risky routines that he feels will best show off her skills - which he knows she can handle. But the judges - particularly Len Goodman - have had issues with his creative license on some of the more traditional dances. This past week was a prime example of that dislike after Len told Chelsea that he thought she was "too aggressive" in her Paso Doble. (My reaction to that remark was identical to Mark's own shocked response.) Was that an honest critique of Chelsea's dance by Len, or was he just searching for a problem where there was none because he didn't like the choreography?

#3 Ralph Macchio
A huge performance by Ralph in Week 7. After pro partner Karina Smirnoff's fall last week, he really needed this dance to make things right again. Ralph's body (particularly his knees) are beginning to wear down on him, but once he hits the dance floor he always seems to find the energy to get the job done. At this point in the competition, Ralph's fan base may even be bigger than - dare I say? - Kirstie Alley's.

#4 - Kirstie Alley
This was not one of Kirstie's better performances - although, oddly enough, guest judge Donnie Burns gave her a 9 (what was with that?). Kirstie did manage to out-dance Romeo this week, though, so she captures the #4 spot in the Power Rankings. As a side note, I honestly did not know what to make of her purple ballet tutu outfit.

#5 - Romeo
Romeo survived Week 7 only because Kendra was there to stop his fall. The young star seemed convinced he was on his way out as he hurriedly plugged his new album during an interview segment on the show. His dance in Week 7 was part "good" and part "wooden." As FADS pro dancer Natasha Oreshkina noted in her commentary this week, Romeo seemed to get lost midway through the routine as his pro partner, Cheslie Hightower, danced all around him. Another weak performance like this one and Romeo may find himself with plenty of free time to plug his album. As an aside, Romeo's fawning over Chelsie is becoming more and more noticeable as the weeks go by - and it's not just when they're on the stage: In "behind the stage" video clips he's also been constantly hugging her and draping his arm around her. Maybe they are an item, and maybe not. But Cheslie herself doesn't appear to be reciprocating his advances - kind of more like she enduring them.

#6 - Kenrda Wilkinson
And so the "late blooming flower" has left the celebraquarium for the final time. Kendra's stay on the show was a bit long - there was no way she was a better dancer than either Petra Nemcova or Chris Jericho. But I guess that's why they have viewer voting, aye? In the end, though, even that wasn't enough to save the Playboy bunny and reality show star.

*

Week 7 of Dancing With The Stars brought us this season's first judging controversy after guest judge Donnie Burns inexplicably held up his "8" paddle and called out "Eight!" for a performance by Romeo and Chelsie Hightower - only to have us learn just afterwards that he actually marked down a "7" as his official score. Whaaat? He sheepishly held up a "7" paddle and apologized for his gaffe. Cheslie was not amused.

Next week the show will be down to five couples who will again have to dance twice (sorry, Ralph). Last week I was only off by one person in my final three "in jeopardy" predictions (Cheslea replaced my predicted Romeo), and so for my Week 8 predictions I see, once again, Romeo and Kirstie, joined by Ralph Macchio. If, however, Cheslea Kane is again in this mix, I believe it may sadly be her time to go.

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Dancing with the Stars - Week 7 Commentary & Scores

Season 12 of Dancing with the Stars is finally upon us. Each week Syracuse, NY FADS co-owner and award-winning ballroom dancer Natasha Oreshkina will be sharing her thoughts on the competition and giving us her take on which celebrities had the best week on the dance floor and which ones should be getting ready to pack their bags.


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WEEK SEVEN

[Natasha] This week the couples were separated into two groups to perform team dances (the cha cha for both teams) before each celebrity performed their own individual dances. We also saw guest judge Donnie Burns added to the field of Bruno, Len and Carrie Ann to bring the total possible individual high score to 40.

The teams competing on Monday consisted of Chelsea Kane, Ralph Macchio and Romeo on one side and Kirstie Alley, Hines Ward and Kendra Wilkinson on the other. Team Chelsea danced to a Lady Gaga song ("Born This Way"). I thought it was a hot dance routine, very high energy, and everybody put in their best effort. I liked this one a little bit more than Team Hines's routine, which represented the older group of celebrities - although Team Hines also tried hard to dance well as a team. Both teams scored 30 out of 40 with the judges, and so each celebrity got to add 30 points to their individual scores.

T-1st Place - Ralph Macchio/Karina Smirnoff (W1:24 + W2:21 + W3:21 + W4:25 + W5:22 + W6:24 + W7:36/G30 = 203) [Overall position: 3rd.]
Ralph and Karina danced the Quickstep this week. Ralph had a lot of fun with this dance, and the people in the audience really liked his performance, too. Very energetic and a good job. He got the highest score of the night with a 36.

T-1st Place - Hines Ward/Kym Johnson (W1:21 + W2:23 + W3:25 + W4:25 + W5:27 + W6:27 + W7:36/G30 = 214 total) [Overall position: 1st.]
Hines and Kym danced the Tango. This was a very sharp and romantic dance, and it seemed like the judges really liked it, too. He tied Ralph for the highest score of the night with another 36.

3rd Place - Chelsea Kane/Mark Ballas (W1:21 + W2:18 + W3:23 + W4:26 + W5:26 + W6:28 + W7:34/G30 = 206 total) [Overall position: 2nd.]
Chelsea and Mark performed the Paso Doble this week, scoring a 34. That was some interesting choreography that Mark came up with. It was a good dance and I liked what they did - Mark puts a lot of creativity into his choreography, which sometimes the judges don't like. Len Goodman is very conservative and likes to see traditional routines, but I like to see different interpretations, so I think it's good that Mark puts them in.

4th Place - Kendra Wilkinson/Louis van Amstel (W1:18 + W2:19 + W3:23 + W4:18 + W5:22 + W6:25 + W7:31/G30 = 186) [Overall position: 6th.]
Kendra and Louis danced the Tango. I thought this wasn't her best dance. She was stiff and she seemed frustrated after the routine. Even so, she got a 31, which wasn't the lowest score of the week. This would be her last dance on the show, however, as she was eliminated on Tuesday.

T-5th Place - Kirstie Alley/Maksim Chmerkovskiy (W1:23 + W2:20 + W3:21 + W4:21 + W5:23 + W6:26 + W7:30/G30 = 194) [Overall position: 5th.]
Kirstie and Maks danced the Jive. It seemed like they worked very hard for this dance. Kirstie again showed good footwork and it was very entertaining, but she only scored a 30.

T-5th Place - Romeo/Chelsie Hightower (W1:19 + W2:23 + W3:20 + W4:23 + W5:26 + W6:28 + W7:30/G30 = 199) [Overall position: 4th.]
Romeo and Cheslie performed the Samba. I thought his dance was good - very high energy, but he seemed to get lost along the way and the judges ended up giving him only a 30, matching Kirstie Alley's score.

*
Okay, so now Kendra is out of the competition - I was not surprised to see that happen. Next week we'll have two dances again, with one of them being an "Instant Dance" where the celebrities won't know the music they're dancing to until 30 minutes before they have to perform it.

See you next week!

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Dancing With The Stars Power Ranking – The FADS Edition: Week 6

What is it with the pros this season? First Maksim Chmerkovskiy has a muscle pull and drops Kirstie Alley, and now Karina Smirnoff trips over partner Ralph Macchio's coat tails. Mak's mishap didn't appear to cost Kirstie any points (perhaps because it was injury-related?), but Karina's spill probably dropped Ralph's score by a couple of points, at least. Let's get it together, pros!

On with this week's Power Ranking...

DWTS POWER RANKING - WEEK SIX

#1 Hines Ward:
Hines didn't get to shake it up as much as he has in earlier dances, but he still did a respectable job with his Viennese Waltz. Hines provided a very good example of what careful execution and a relaxed mindset can achieve. Celebrities should be enjoying their dances, not rehearsing them in their heads as they're performing them (something that Chris Jericho seemed to be doing this week). That being said, I thought triple-9s for Hines was a bit of a reach considering the routine.

#2 Chelsea Kane:
Chelsea and Mark's Quickstep was definitely their nerdiest performance together this season - complete with prep school costumes, dark-rimmed glasses and prudish facial expressions. They carried it off really well, too. Judge Bruno Tonioli said he noticed a bit of a wobble towards the end from Chelsea, but judge Carrie Anna Inaba disagreed and ended up scoring her a 10 accordingly. Chelsea continues to impress me with her dancing prowess. Mark mentioned in his USA Today blog that he discovered early on how talented Chelsea was (after studying her jive performance in Week 2) and decided then and there "to drastically raise my expectations of her." The only reason this couple isn't in the #1 position at this point is because I think Hines's fan base is much higher than Chelsea's.

#3 Romeo:
I said last week if Romeo continues to impress he'll eventually climb into a top-three position in the FADS Power Rankings. He managed to do just that this week, with an assist from Chris Jericho, who slipped in the rankings himself this week. I thought Romeo's 10 by judge Carrie Ann was a bit high - he still seemed to be getting led around by pro partner Chelsie Hightower - but even so, he did very well.

#4 Kirstie Alley:
Kirstie climbs from #6 to #4 this week. She had a strong performance with no major slip-ups - though it looked as if she had to hustle to catch up to Maks at their rendezvous point at the top of the stage after she flirted with the audience a few seconds too long. I'm not sure the two 9s she received from Len and Bruno were deserved - was she really one point away from a perfect dance in their eyes? (Come on, Len, be as demanding with Kirstie as you have been with Chris!)

#5 Ralph Macchio:
This was a fast-paced and well executed dance for Ralph. Unfortunately for him, pro partner Karina Smirnoff tripped over his coattails about 30 seconds into the routine, basically crushing any hope of a high-end score. Karina seemed pretty shaken up emotionally after the fall, but Ralph was very quick to pick her up - I thought he performed excellent damage control. I'm not really comfortable with the three 8s that Ralph received from the judges, though. His dance, minus Karina's trip, was better than Hines's in my opinion. I thought his performance warranted at least one 9. (The judges should be judging his dancing performance, not his pro partner's.)

#6 Kendra Wilkinson:
Kendra looked sexy and exotic as she danced her Samba. She also looked genuinely happy to be on the dance floor - and emotion missing in many of her past performances. She also didn't have to worry about being "elegant" again for the second straight week, which surely must have relaxed her even more. Stepping onto the judges' table and shaking it up for Len Goodman on his birthday was an added plus.

#7 Chris Jericho:
Alas, it's time to say goodbye to Chris Jericho. Chris appeared a bit rigid in his Tango (even for a Tango) this past week. He seemed to be concentrating too much on the moves of the dance rather than just performing it. The judges were mostly unforgiving (although, oddly enough, the usually frugal Len Goodman gave Chris an 8 for the second week in a row). Carrie Ann said she felt the pressure might have gotten to him this week, and she may have been right. Len said it "lacked a bit of intensity," and it certainly did. Chris was not the worst of the remaining dancers - he simply had a bad week. Unfortunately, though, that's all it's going to take as the field whittles down each week.

*

So the field of competitors is now down to six. Of the six, the only weak dancer is Kendra Wilkinson, whose fans have managed to keep her on the show despite some pretty disappointing performances. Like pro dancer Natasha Oreshkina mentioned in her commentary this week, Kendra is turning out to be this season's Bristol Palin - the poor dancer who keeps staying alive because of a loyal (and actively voting) fan base. We'll see if that will be enough to keep her in the competition in the following weeks, but don't be surprised if she makes it all the way to the Finals. (There, I said it! )

Next week's predicted "in jeopardy" threesome: Kendra Wilkinson, Romeo, and Kirstie Alley.

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Dancing with the Stars - Week 6 Commentary

Season 12 of Dancing with the Stars is finally upon us. Each week Syracuse, NY FADS co-owner and award-winning ballroom dancer Natasha Oreshkina will be sharing her thoughts on the competition and giving us her take on which celebrities had the best week on the dance floor and which ones should be getting ready to pack their bags.


*
WEEK SIX

[Natasha] Well, once again there's still no clear leader in the competition this week. It's so interesting this season that so many couples are having good weeks. Romeo and Chelsea scored 28s, and Ralph Macchio should be on top except for Karina's fall.

Even though we don't have a consistent leader yet, we do know who's the worst. I think Kendra is a lot like Bristol Palin was last season. Bristol wasn't a good dancer, but she had a lot of votes so she made it to the finals.

Okay, then. Let's go over tonight's scores.

T-1st Place - Romeo/Chelsie Hightower (W1:19 + W2:23 + W3:20 + W4:23 + W5:26 + W6:28 = 139) [Overall position: 3rd.]
Romeo and Chelsie Hightower did the Waltz this week. It was a good dance, very romantic - one of his best performances. He's getting better each week. It was very nice.

T-1st Place - Chelsea Kane/Mark Ballas (W1:21 + W2:18 + W3:23 + W4:26 + W5:26 W6:28 = 142 total) [Overall position: 2nd.]
Chelsea and Mark did the Quickstep. Each time I watch Chelsea I see more and more. It was a very light and breezy dance, high-energy and a lot of moving around. She did a good job.

3rd Place - Hines Ward/Kym Johnson (W1:21 + W2:23 + W3:25 + W4:25 + W5:27 + W6:27 = 148 total) [Overall position: 1st.]
Hines and Kym performed the Viennese Waltz this week. I liked their movements across the dance floor, I like his lines. He did very good - well, not bad [laughs].

4th Place - Kirstie Alley/Maksim Chmerkovskiy (W1:23 + W2:20 + W3:21 + W4:21 + W5:23 + W6:26 = 134) [Overall position: T-5th.]
Kirstie and Maks did the Samba this week. I think she dances Latin better than Standard ballroom. She showed good footwork and good rhythm. Very strong legs and feet and she moved around well.

5th Place - Kendra Wilkinson/Louis van Amstel (W1:18 + W2:19 + W3:23 + W4:18 + W5:22 + W6:25 = 125) [Overall position: 7th.]
Kendra and Louis also danced the Samba this week. You know, she's not one of my favorite dancers. This week was better than last week, and she had a lot of shaking [her stuff]. She's just not consistent, though - sometimes she does a good job, then sometimes a very bad job.

6th Place - Ralph Macchio/Karina Smirnoff (W1:24 + W2:21 + W3:21 + W4:25 + W5:22 + W6:24 = 137) [Overall position: 4th.]
Ralph and Karina performed the Paso Doble. I think the reason they came in 6th tonight was because of Karina's fall. I don't know what it is, but it seems like this season the pros are on the floor a lot. Usually with pros that doesn't happen.

7th Place - Chris Jericho/Cheryl Burke (W1:19 + W2:23 + W3:21 + W4:23 + W5:26 W6:22 = 134) [Overall position: T-5th.]
Chris and Cheryl danced the Tango this week and they were eliminated on Tuesday. Maybe this wasn't his best dance... it wasn't my cup of tea. Chris looked nervous to me. I would still say he's a better dancer than Kendra, but not this week, and he's also not consistent.

*

I still think Kendra should be out of the competition - I say that every week. But I don't think the worst dancers should keep getting the "Safes" over the better ones. So maybe this coming week, we'll see. Usually I can predict who's in the lead at this point, but the competition is very good this year and the top couple keeps changing. I think the three couples who might be in jeopardy next Tuesday will be Kendra (as always), Hines Ward (perhaps), and Ralph Macchio.

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Fred Astaire "Shadow Dance" Finds Place in Herzog Film

In his latest film-making endeavor, The Cave of Forgotten Dreams, German director Werner Herzog takes us back to the early Paleolithic era as he examines cave paintings and engravings found in the famed Chauvet Cave, located in France, which were first discovered in 1994. Herzog brings his unique talent of direction to a new level with this production as he delivers a 3-D presentation that draws the audience into the cave itself, there to see the artwork as its creators first intended so many tens of thousands of years ago.

What makes Herzog’s documentary really so special to Fred Astaire enthusiasts, though, was his use of Fred Astaire dancing footage from 1936’s Swing Time. Herzog wanted to show the audience what the prehistoric artists themselves would have seen as they created their works in the ancient cave.

"Arguably, for for me, the greatest single sequence in all of film history [is] Fred Astaire dancing with his own shadows,” said Herzog in a recent interview on National Public Radio. “And all of a sudden he stops and the shadows become independent and dance without him and he has to catch up with them. It's [such a] quintessential movie. It can't get more beautiful. It's actually from Swing Time. And when you look at the [Chauvet] cave and certain panels, there's evidence of some fires on the ground. They're not for cooking. They were used for illumination. You have to step in front of these fires to look at the images, and when you move, you must see your own shadow. And immediately, Fred Astaire comes to mind — who did something 32,000 years later which is essentially what we can imagine for early Paleolithic people."

Read the NPR story here.

See a clip of Fred dancing with his shadows in Swing Time here.

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Dancing With The Stars Power Ranking – The FADS Edition: Week 5

Well, wasn't Week 5 of DWTS an interesting one for everyone? We all got to listen to some patriotic songs and watch our favorite celebrities do their thing on the dance floor as best they could. Some of the dances fit in pretty well with their accompanying tunes, while others seemed a bit out of place. Regardless, there were some really good scores on Monday all the way around, with no one dipping below 22 points this week.

Unfortunately, while last week we saw the show lose its soul, if you will, with Sugar Ray Leonard's elimination, this week we watched it lose its heart as Czech darling Petra Nemcova was sent packing by the voters (or, more correctly, a lack thereof). Even though her judges' points were higher than fellow-contender Kendra Wilkinson (106 to 100, respectively), she just couldn't match Kendra's fan support. And so we bid farewell to perhaps the most pleasant and good-spirited contestant DWTS has had on its show in years.

On with the Power Rankings.

By sheer coincidence, this week's power rankings are identical to the week's scoring ranks. I didn't mean for that to happen, but that's the way things turned out. (The "Power Couple" doesn't necessarily have to be the highest scoring couple for that week, as was evidenced in last week's Power Ranking.)

DWTS POWER RANKING - WEEK FIVE

#1 Hines Ward:
Hines scored triple-nines from the judges in Week 5, but honestly, I'm just not seeing what they're marveling at. Yes, he did a great job. But did he really do better than Cheslea Kane? I don't think so. It looked to me like he did a whole lot of following around while pro partner Kym Johnson carried the dance. Even so, judge Carrie Ann Inaba seems positively smitten by the football star. Remember last week when I mentioned how worried I was that the judges were going to hand the Mirror Ball trophy to Kirstie Alley (that is, before the "incidents")? Well, I'm starting to get that feeling again with Hines.

#2 Chelsea Kane:
It's almost a given each week that pro partner Mark Ballas is going to dream up some kind of choreography that will highlight his own dancing skills (I think he's just as earnest in his pursuit of the show's "Design a Dance" competition, where two pros are selected to do a dance, as he is with getting his celebrity partner the MB trophy). But even so, he's very lucky in having the best dancer of the competition as his partner in Season 12. Chelsea Kane compliments Mark's moves like no other celebrity in Season 12 has been able to do with their own pro partners. While others are for the most part being led around the floor by their pros, Chelsea appears to easily keep up with Mark's choreographed antics. How she only ended up with an "8" from judge Len Goodman while Hines Ward snared a "9" from him is a mystery to me. But I'm beginning to wonder if Len isn't shaving a point off of her performance just to spite Ballas, who he's had issues with this season.

#3 Chris Jericho:
I thought Chris's dance this week was very flowing and well-balanced, if a bit flat-footed (as judge Len Goodman and our own Natasha Oreshkina mentioned). This week saw the second time Chris was placed in "jeopardy" and had to sweat out the final moments of the show. That's not really fair - he's clearly a superior dancer, and I would think that with the WWE's support (they promote his appearance on DWTS online), he'd be safe more often than not. So far, however, that hasn't been the case. But I think Chris is beginning to show the DWTS viewers that he's more than just a big bag of muscles, and as the field narrows and the choices become fewer, we'll hopefully see people making the right decisions with their votes.

#4 Ralph Macchio:
Oh, Ralph, gain some consistency, will you, please? Ralph's a great guy with a large fan base, but, sheesh, he just can't seem to put two solid weeks together. I've got him at #4 this week, which is a tumble from last week's #2 spot, but he can still go even lower as the upstart Romeo seems to be making a mid-season charge.

#5 Romeo:
Romeo goes from #6 last week to #5 this week, and with another good showing in upcoming Week 6, he could very well vault himself into the Top Three. Romeo got high praise from the judges this week, but, similar to Hines Ward, I saw a whole lot of being led around by his pro partner, Chelsie Hightower. I think the best highlight of the week from this couple, in fact, came on Tuesday's Results Show, during Mike Catherwood's "DWTS Exposed!" segment when a clip showed Cheslie's "wardrobe malfunction" as the couple practiced their routine. Funny stuff!

#6 Kirstie Alley:
I'm not really clear on why Kirstie persists in wearing those belly-revealing outfits, but this makes two weeks in a row. That being said, it may shock some of you to know that I think Kirstie's performance this week was more entertaining than Hines Ward's effort. In the end, though, she's clearly not the talented dancer many of her fans hoped she'd be early on in the competition.

#7 Kendra Wilkinson:
The former Playboy bunny had the distinction of dancing DWTS's 1,000 dance this week, and I have to say she made the most out of it. After a disastrous Week 4, she actually did pretty good this week - earning a respectable 22 points from the judges. She smiled a lot and got to dance to a fun "Yankee Doodle" song, something more in line with her "unelegant" personality.

#8 Petra Nemcova:
Sigh. The Queen of Nice on DWTS Season 12 has passed into the night. Unfortunately, we got more of the usual from Petra on the dance floor in Week 5, and it just wasn't enough. Dance pro Natasha Oreshkina said in her critique that Petra as never able to fix her posture (which Natasha blamed largely on her pro partner, Dmitri Chaplin, for not fixing). Even so, she was a better dancer than Kendra Wilkinson. Just not as popular with the viewers, I guess.

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Next week we'll have a narrowed-down field of seven couples to choose from. Out of the seven, Kendra Wilkinson is clearly the weakest dancer. But is she the weakest in viewer popularity? Possibly not. Look for next week's celebrity "in jeopardy" lineup to include: Kendra Wilkinson (always my first choice), Ralph Macchio and Chelsea Kane.

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Dancing with the Stars - Week 5 Commentary

Season 12 of Dancing with the Stars is finally upon us. Each week Syracuse, NY FADS co-owner and award-winning ballroom dancer Natasha Oreshkina will be sharing her thoughts on the competition and giving us her take on which celebrities had the best week on the dance floor and which ones should be getting ready to pack their bags.


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WEEK FIVE

[Natasha] This week was all about celebrating America, so the couples danced to songs with American themes. We had three couples tied at 22 for last place this week. As I mentioned before, because everyone goes up and down the leaderboard, we haven't really seen a clear leader for this season's competition.


Tonight's Scores:

1st Place - Hines Ward/Kym Johnson (W1:21 + W2:23 + W3:25 + W4:25 +W5:27 = 121 total) [Overall position: 1st.]
This week Hines and Kym did the Rumba. It was a very romantic dance. His technique was good and he did a solid job. As [DWTS judge] Carrie Ann mentioned on the show, he showed lots of hip action. So it was very good.

T-2nd Place - Chris Jericho/Cheryl Burke (W1:19 + W2:23 + W3:21 + W4:23 +W:26 = 112) [Overall position: 4th.]
Chris and Cheryl did the Viennese Waltz. I'm definitely seeing improvement in Chris. Their dance was very smooth and strong. Chris was a little flat-footed (as DWTS judge Len Goodman mentioned). We should see a foot-rise in the Viennese Waltz, and Chris looked like he was skating.


T-2nd Place - Romeo/Chelsie Hightower (W1:19 + W2:23 + W3:20 + W4:23 +W4:26 = 111) [Overall position: 5th.]
Romeo and Cheslie did the Foxtrot to New York, New York - one of my favorite songs. It's a powerful song and Romeo showed lots of energy dancing to it. It was one of his best dances.


T-2nd Place - Chelsea Kane/Mark Ballas (W1:21 + W2:18 + W3:23 + W4:26 +W5:26 = 114 total) [Overall position: 2nd.]
Chelsea and Mark did the Samba this week. This couple, I liked what they did. They were confident and showed good technique. I think this couple can be the leaders. I like Chelsea's technique, her personality and her confidence. I think she's ready to compete for the top spot.


5th Place - Kirstie Alley/Maksim Chmerkovskiy (W1:23 + W2:20 + W3:21 + W4:21 + W5:23 = 108) [Overall position: 6th.]
Kirstie and Maks did the Foxtrot, and I don't think this was the best dance they did [this season]. I think Maks should concentrate on helping his partner look good on the dance floor. He should pay more attention to Kirstie and not so much on himself. But they both had good attitudes and presentation in the dance.

T-6th Place - Ralph Macchio/Karina Smirnoff (W1:24 + W2:21 + W3:21 + W4:25 + W5:22 = 113) [Overall position: 3rd.]
Ralph and Karina did the Samba this week. It's very interesting this season how the leaders keep changing - one week they have a good week, the next week, not so much. This week Ralph's dance was too loose - he didn't look so well-controlled. He's just not consistent in his dances week-to-week.

T-6th Place - Petra Nemcova/Dmitry Chaplin (W1:18 + W2:18 + W3:25 + W4:23 + W5:22 = 106) [Overall position: 7th.]
Petra and Dmitry danced the Quickstep. This would be their last dance before being voted off on Tuesday. For once, I'm surprised by the elimination because two weeks ago Petra was at the top of the leaderboard. But I just didn't see any improvement in her posture at all. She doesn't look graceful and doesn't look correct, which probably gives her problems with her balance. She also made several mis-steps in this week's dance.


You know, I think if Petra danced with someone else she might have done better. Petra is a beautiful woman, and when she danced on her own she was nice. But when she and Dmitry danced together, her position was terrible. The pro should be fixing her problems with position and posture, but she had the same problem every week.

T-6th Place - Kendra Wilkinson/Louis van Amstel (W1:18 + W2:19 + W3:23 + W4:18 + W5:22 = 100) [Overall position: 8th.]
Kendra and Louis danced the Foxtrot to Yankee Doodle. I think this couple should have been the one eliminated before Petra. But the judges votes are only a part of it,and Petra doesn't have as many fans as Kendra.

Kendra's not the strongest dancer, and this week she was still a little weak. Last week was terrible, though, so it was better. I thought her dance was entertaining and it was fun music, but she was a little stiff in her movements.

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So now we're halfway through the season and we still don't have a strong leader. My prediction for next week, though, is that Kendra should be the one eliminated and Chelsea should be on top.

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Dancing with the Stars - Week 4 Commentary

Season 12 of Dancing with the Stars is finally upon us. Each week Syracuse, NY FADS co-owner and award-winning ballroom dancer Natasha Oreshkina will be sharing her thoughts on the competition and giving us her take on which celebrities had the best week on the dance floor and which ones should be getting ready to pack their bags.


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WEEK FOUR

[Natasha] This week was Classic Music night, and I thought there were some very nice songs and nice dances, mostly the Viennese Waltz, Paso Doble and slow Waltz. It's very interesting because each week the leaders are changing as couples improve and switching positions on their scores.

Tonight's Scores:

1st Place - Chelsea Kane/Mark Ballas (W1:21 + W2:18 + W3:23 + W4:26 = 88 total)
Chelsea and Mark danced the Viennese Waltz. I was really impressed - it was very, very nice. They chose the Harry Potter theme, and their technique was incredible. For a moment I thought Mark was dancing with a professional partner. Chelsea wants to be pushed, she said, because she's tired of coming in third place. It was really good choreography, beautiful costumes, and they had a good connection. I'm really glad for Chelsea and Mark.

T-2nd Place - Hines Ward/Kym Johnson (W1:21 + W2:23 + W3:25 + W4:25 = 94 total)
Hines and Kym did the Paso Doble this week. Hines felt like he was challenged this week. he said he didn't understand Classical music. But the dance was strong and aggressive and he did a good job.

T-2nd Place - Ralph Macchio/Karina Smirnoff (W1:24 + W2:21 + W3:21 + W4:25 = 91)
Ralph and Karina did the slow Waltz. That was a very difficult dance - and it was to Romeo and Juliet, my favorite song. The choreography was nice. They're still in a higher place with their overall score, and I think their ready to compete with the other top couples.

T-4th Place - Romeo/Chelsie Hightower (W1:19 + W2:23 + W3:20 + W4:23 = 85)
Romeo and Chelsie danced the Paso Doble. He's definitely improved his footwork. You could tell he was excited and he loved the dance. He did a good job. They did very well.

T-4th Place - Chris Jericho/Cheryl Burke (W1:19 + W2:23 + W3:21 + W4:23 = 86)
Chris and Cheryl also did the Paso Doble. Chris has his wrestling [acting] skills and he used them well in the dance. Cheryl used very good choreography for them.

T-4th Place - Petra Nemcova/Dmitry Chaplin (W1:18 + W2:18 + W3:25 + W4:23 = 84)
Petra and Dmitry performed the Paso Doble. She wore red, which was the character of the dance. Each week I say the same thing: she's a beautiful lady but sometimes her movements look so stiff. She should look aggressive - that's the Paso - but still should have smooth movements.

7th Place - Kirstie Alley/Maksim Chmerkovskiy (W1:23 + W2:20 + W3:21 + W4:21 = 85)
Kirstie and Maks did the Viennese Waltz. I though their dance was very elegant. [laughs] I think her score now with Maks is 1-to-1 with her shoes falling off. She did manage to get the shoe back on and continue with the dance, but I hope everything with the costumes and such goes better for them so they can just concentrate on dancing.

8th Place - Sugar Ray Leonard/Anna Trebunsakaya (W1:17 + W2:17 + W3:20 + W4:21 = 81)
Sugar Ray and Anna danced the Viennese Waltz to Tchaikovsky’s Waltz of the Flowers. I loved the song - a traditional Russian piece. Unfortunately, this is the couple that was eliminated this week, so we've seen the last of them performing. Sugar Ray seemed a little nervous. He's the oldest guy in the competition, but he seemed like he really enjoyed being on the show. He talked about how much he liked tha dancing and how much the show inspired him, but unfortunately there were much stronger couples.

9th Place - Kendra Wilkinson/Louis van Amstel (W1:18 + W2:19 + W3:23 + W4:18 = 78)
Kendra and Louis did the Viennese Waltz, sung by guest soprano Katherine Jenkins. Kendra was very disappointed in her dance. She made some mistakes and she was nervous. You could see how she messed up the choreography. She knew was was making mistakes and that threw her off even more.

*

So we have eight couples remaining for next week's competition, and we'll see what happens with them.

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Dancing with the Stars - Week 3 Commentary

Season 12 of Dancing with the Stars is finally upon us. Each week Syracuse, NY FADS co-owner and award-winning ballroom dancer Natasha Oreshkina will be sharing her thoughts on the competition and giving us her take on which celebrities had the best week on the dance floor and which ones should be getting ready to pack their bags.


There were 10 dancers on this third week of Dancing with the Stars, and this week the stars selected songs to dance to that were near and dear to their hearts. It was difficult to judge their performance because all the dances were emotional and had a lot of feeling in them. They were mostly slow dances, the Rumba, and also a cha-cha, and paso doble.

1st Place - Hines Ward/Kym Johnson (W1:21 + W2:23 + W3:25 = 69)
Hines did the Samba, which he dedicated to his mother. I think it was interesting, good choreography, with a lot of energy and good bounce. I thought he danced the way it [Samba] should be danced.

2nd Place - Ralph Macchio/Karina Smirnoff (W1:24 + W2:21 + W3:21 = 66)
Ralph danced the Rumba. He chose a song that he and his wife danced to on their wedding day, and his dance was dedicated to his wife. I thought the choreography was very good. There were interesting lines and movements. Karina did a nice job and Ralph looked good dancing with her. I liked what they did.

3rd Place - Kirstie Alley/Maksim Chmerkovskiy (W1:23 + W2:20 + W3:21 = 64)
Kirstie danced the Rumba to "Over the Rainbow." She had lost her mom, and almost her dad, in a car accident many years ago and her dance was dedicated to her parents. Maks lost his balance and they fell down during the dance. I think if they had kept balance their scores would have been much higher. She looked great.

4th Place - Chris Jericho/Cheryl Burke (W1:19 + W2:23 + W3:21 = 63)
Chris did the Rumba, dedicated to his mom. He did a great job, a very emotional dance. You could read the story through their dance. He needs to work on his arms better - he needs to be more fluid.

When you dance, you need to control your feelings and learn to relax. If you have too much control, you lose feeling, but if you have too much feeling, you lose control of the dance.

T-5th Place - Chelsea Kane/Mark Ballas (W1:21 + W2:18 + W3:23 = 62)
Chelsea did the cha-cha, and she dedicated her dance to her first love. She did a good job had a lot of rotations. I would have liked to have seen better footwork and hip action, which hopefully we'll see in the future.

T-5th Place - Romeo/Chelsie Hightower (W1:19 + W2:23 + W3:20 = 62)
Also a sad story here - Romeo lost two cousins. In dedication to them, he danced the Rumba to "I'll Be There." It was very sweet and sentimental. He finished by holding Chelsie and looking up to blow a kiss to the sky. He still needs to work on his footwork - it's very important that he gets better at that.

7th Place - Petra Nemcova/Dmitry Chaplin (W1:18 + W2:18 + W3:25 = 61)
Petra did the slow waltz which she dedicated to hope after tragedy. I loved the music - a beautiful song. The dance was very graceful, flowing and elegant. I would have liked to see a little bit better movement on the floor and better posture from her.

8th Place - Kendra Wilkinson/Louis van Amstel (W1:18 + W2:19 + W3:23 = 60)
Kendra danced the Rumba to "You and Me," which she dedicated to her husband and son. The dance looked very romantic, she showed good footwork and the choreography was very good.

9th Place - Sugar Ray Leonard/Anna Trebunsakaya (W1:17 + W2:17 + W3:20 = 60)
Sugar Ray danced the Paso Doble, which he dedicated to beating the odds - nobody thought he could ever win a boxing championship, and he was trying to beat the odds on Dancing with the Stars. He came out on the floor wearing boxing gloves and a robe. He looked very good - an improvement over the other weeks. I thought he did a good job.

10th Place - Wendy Williams/Tony Dovolani (W1:14 + W2:17 + W3:15 = 46)
Wendy did the foxtrot in dedication to her start in show business. She looked like she had a lot of fun, but the footwork was not good and her dancing was off.

Wendy was voted off the competition this week. Again, it was hard to judge because these were all emotional dances for the stars to perform. We'll see what happens next week.

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Dancing With The Stars - Week 2 Commentary

Season 12 of Dancing with the Stars is finally upon us. Each week Syracuse, NY FADS co-owner and award-winning ballroom dancer Natasha Oreshkina will be sharing her thoughts on the competition and giving us her take on which celebrities had the best week on the dance floor and which ones should be getting ready to pack their bags.


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WEEK TWO

[Natasha] Because there was no elimination last week, this week still had eleven couples dancing in the competition. The two dances the teams could choose from were the quickstep and the jive, and it was interesting to look at the couples compete.

1st Place - Ralph Macchio (W1:24 + W2:21 = 45 points)
Ralph and Karina Smirnoff danced the jive. They didn't have the same energy as they had in their first dance, but it was still a high-energy performance. Sometimes Ralph's kicks weren't as sharp as they should be. Still, it was fun to watch.

2ndt Place - Hines Ward (W1:21 + W2:23 = 44 points)
Hines Ward moved into second place with his quickstep performance with partner Kym Johnson. Hines really stepped up this week. Very good choreography and a well done routine. He needs to improve his frame and position, however.

3rd Place - Kirstie Alley (W1:23 + W2:20 = 43 points)
I really loved so much what Kirstie and partner Maksim Chmerkovskiy did last week. This week wasn't as enjoyable as last week. Most of the dance was very light on the floor, but she lost energy at the end of the routine. Still, it was high energy, and I also like the connection between Kirstie and Maks.

T-4th Place - Chris Jericho (W1:19 + W2:23 = 42 points)
Chris and his partner Cheryl Burke tied for 4th place with their quickstep. It was an easy and beautiful dance. Chris was smooth, elegant, charming and had a nice smile throughout the performance. Even judge Len Goodman complimented him, which is a hard thing to get from him.


T-4th Place - Romeo (W1:19 + W2:23 = 42 points)
Romeo danced the quickstep with partner Chelsie Hightower. Romeo had a... interesting style. He needs to be more formal. He was a little flat-footed and needs work there. He also lost some energy towards the end of the dance.

6th Place - Chelsea Kane (W1:21 + W2:18 = 39 points)
Chelsea Kane danced the jive with partner Mark Ballas. I cannot say that this was my favorite. There was not much jive in this jive routine. The choreography did not work for her in this performance.

7th Place - Kendra Wilkinson (W1:18 + W2:19 = 37 points)
Kendra Wilkinson and her partner Louis van Amstel danced the quickstep. The biggest thing about this dance was that Kendra messed up her footwork. She couldn't keep up with the choreography. Kendra doesn't have enough confidence in the routine to perform it well.

8th Place - Petra Nemcova (W1:18 + W2:18 = 36 points)
Petra danced the jive with pro partner Dmitry Chaplin. I thought it was a good performance. Petra had some good kicks and flicks. She needs to work on her body position. She's a beautiful lady and I'm always looking for her to do more.

9th Place - Sugar Ray Leonard (W1:17 + W2:17 = 34 points)
Sugar Ray danced the jive with partner Anna Trebunsakaya. [Laughing] He definitely looked like he was boxing out there. The routine was high on energy and low on dancing. He needs better footwork - what he's doing is not good enough.

10th Place - Wendy Williams (W1:14 + W2:17 = 31 points)
Wendy danced the quickstep with partner Tony Dovolani. She was definitely in a better emotional place this time around. She showed more personality in this dance and there was good choreography, but she still needs better movement. Even so, it's a step in the right direction.

11th Place - Mike Catherwood (W1:13 + W2:17 = 30 points)
Mike danced the jive with partner Lacey Schwimmer. Sometimes he looked good, but mostly it did not look nice. He had said earlier it was either "jive time or die time," and he turned out to be correct.

After two weeks one couple was eliminated out of the original eleven, and that was Mike Catherwood. Ralph and Karina are still in first place with their 45 points out of a possible 60. There were some interesting results and they're getting more experience, now, so we'll see what happens next week.

- Natasha Oreshkina

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Tonight's Dance Selections on DWTS

The website Zap2it.com has a listing of the dances that each couple competing on Dancing With The Stars has selected to perform on tonight's episode. (They got the listing by following the celebs & pros comments on Twitter.) According to the site, they are:

Quickstep:
Wendy Williams & Tony Dovolani
Chris Jericho & Cheryl Burke
Kendra Wilkinson & Louis Van Amstel
Kirstie Alley & Maks Chmerkovskiy
Romeo & Chelsie Hightower
Hines Ward & Kym Johnson

Jive:
Sugar Ray & Anna Trebunskaya
Ralph Macchio & Karina Smirnoff
Petra Nemcova & Dmitri Chaplin
Chelsea Kane & Mark Ballas
Mike Catherwood & Lacey Schwimmer

"Both of these dances require dancers to be light on their feet," reports Zap2it, "and because the footwork must be clean and neat, expect the judges to make foot placement and technique a focus of their commentaries."

Zap2it reports that Cheslea Kane and her partner, Mark Ballas, should do well in their jive performance, as it's one of Mark's favorites. But, they report, celebrity Mike Catherwood might have trouble keeping up with his light-on-her feet pro partner, Lacey Schwimmer.

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Dancing With The Stars - Twitter Updates

There's a lot going on now that Dancing With The Stars has finally fired up its 12th season. Beyond the usual storylines and online news blurbs, there's also a fair amount of chatter going back and forth over on Twitter - and its coming from the stars and pro dancer themselves.

Below is a listing of Twitter comments made from celebrities and their pro dance partners going back to DWTS's premier night, last Monday, March 21.

March 21 (Premier Night)

Chris Jericho
Checkin out my costume and psyching up w some Tenacious D b4 the show. The competition is lookin STIFF!

Karina Smirnoff (Celebrity partner: Ralph Macchio)
This is it, guys! 15 min away! So nervous and equally excited! Can't wait! We r dancing 8th!

March 22
Kirstie Alley
GOOD MORNING!!! ONLY four hours sleep...yikes...I need to go back to sleep...I'm such an early bird..I should marry a farmer...a HOT farmer

Kirstie Alley
gonna get some more sleep...in five hours I am at the MERCY of @MaksimC...and speaking of MERCY...GOD have some for me today in M's arms..xo

Ralph Macchio
What at night! Thanks for all the support. I felt every one of you out there. Back in rehearsal tomorrow!

Louis Van Amstel
Thank u for all your sweet tweets. I'm very proud of @KendraWilkinson I gave her a full on routine, because she can do it. She delivered!!!!

Lacey Schwimmer (Celebrity partner: Mike Catherwood)
errand errands errands. then getting @mcatherwood JIVIN hard core!

Louis Van Amstel (Celebrity partner: Kendra Wilkinson)
Off to the gym....chest n triceps....gotta look good next to @KendraWilkinson

Lacey Schwimmer
Thank you to my @ctgnyla family for the flowers http://twitpic.com/4c7fbg

Lacey Schwimmer
Omgomg! @MCatherwood got me flowers too! http://twitpic.com/4c7hid

Maksim Chmerkovskiy (Celebrity partner: Kirstie Alley)
Quicksteping with @kirstiealley is going great! Trying to get M to 'haul ass in ONE trip'.....LOL

Kirstie Alley
WOW..what a difference a DAY makes. Last night so happy feeling like Cinderella..today, started quickstep..feeling like smashing pumpkins.

March 23
Chelsie Hightower (Celebrity partner: Romeo)
Good rehearsal today, quickstep is coming along! Gonna be a super fun dance!!

Louis Van Amstel
Kendra is so cute. Check out this article from people magazine where she talks about how nervous she was. But... http://fb.me/TjvyeWS7

Maksim Chmerkovskiy
Ola Twitterverse! Let's get 'quick and steppy'! Oh, wait....I need my M for that....LOL. Where r u @kirstiealley ???

Dmitry Chaplin (Celebrity partner: Petra Nemcova)
Done with our rehearsal, @pnemcova did great and learned all the steps for our jive! Time for the pro number

Louis Van Amstel
Just finished fitting my suit now off to see @KendraWilkinson for rehearsal...quicka di quickstep!!!

Dmitry Chaplin
@pnemcova drew her first blood! [foot] Who said that dancing is not dangerous!

Chelsie Hightower
Good rehearsal today, quickstep is coming along! Gonna be a super fun dance!!

Romeo Miller
@ChelsieKayH trying to turn me into a real ballroom dancer Haha

March 24
Louis Van Amstel
Had a great rehearsal today with @KendraWilkinson! Already looking forward to next week to show those judges a thing or two ;-)!

Chelsie Hightower
Hit a pot hole and got two flat tires...

Kirstie Alley
I talked to Maks.... He's IN!!! We will "Flap" you on DWTS during bumpers!!! To acknowledge u as our Twittter Friends.. WOO HOO.. Watch 4 it

Chelsie Hightower
Man things get so much more difficult without a car haha

Cheryl Burke (Celebrity partner: Chris Jericho)
Our quickstep is coming along....violently! Already scratched @IAmJericho's shoulder. And he loves whining about it too! ;)

Chris Jericho
Had a great rehearsal today but @cherylburke scratched me! She has sharp nails and It really hurts! WahWahWah...

Maksim Chmerkovskiy
My brother (@iamValC) and I grew up in Jewish dad/Christian mom family. My best friend (@TonyDovolani) is Muslim. THAT'S how I'm blessed!

Kirstie Alley
@MaksimC Ya tebya lublyu.....Mozhete na menya raschityvat....:)

Lacey Schwimmer
Rehearsal with @MCatherwood jive time baby!

Maksim Chmerkovskiy
Stop fishing for compliments M! You look fantastic :) RT @kirstiealley: getting hair and make up for LENO.....thank God for hair and make up

Lacey Schwimmer
Off to bed loooong day tomorrow! Fitting rehearsal w/ @MCatherwood interview and then rehearsal with @dmitry_ch for a special number! Xo

March 25
Louis Van Amstel
Having a little too much fun w @CherylBurke and @LaceySchwimmer in rehearsal w @MaksimC

Kirstie Alley by iluvssw
@MaksimC You can ACCIDENTLY end up at practice tomorrow morning on time........sorta like me calling the kettle black...hehe

Ralph Macchio
Body soreness has reached a new level this morning. Working on wk 2 and 3 dances. Drawing off ur energy to deliver another strong perf Mon!

Kirstie Alley
It always makes me laugh to see who's team people are on.. We are creatures of competition... Myself included

Louis Van Amstel
Can u believe it at one point we had 37.000.000 million viewers monday night!!!wooohooooo.....w an average of 23.000.000


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DWTS returns with its 2nd performance episode on Monday, March 28, and its first elimination episode on the following night, Tuesday, March 29.

Dancing With The Stars - Week 1 Commentary

Season 12 of Dancing with the Stars is finally upon us. Each week Syracuse, NY FADS co-owner and award-winning ballroom dancer Natasha Oreshkina will be sharing her thoughts on the competition and giving us her take on which celebrities had the best week on the dance floor and which ones should be getting ready to pack their bags.


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WEEK ONE

[Natasha] On the premiere episode of Dancing with the Stars we had 11 different celebrity couples coming from many different areas – from athletes and talk show hosts to models and even a Disney star. Having seen them dance only once, it’s difficult at this stage of the competition to give an accurate prognosis. But here’s a brief list of what I saw from the first show.

1st Place – Ralph Macchio (24 points)
Ralph Macchio danced with pro partner Karina Smirnoff. They danced the foxtrot, and I thought he had the best routine of the night. His dance was very smooth and elegant with nice lines, and the judges saw that, too. It was a very good performance.

2nd Place – Kirstie Alley (23 points)
Kirstie Alley danced the cha-cha with professional Maksim Chmerkovskiy, and they finished one point behind Macchio. I was surprised by Kirstie’s performance – I didn’t think she would dance so well. Before she danced, I was asking myself, “How is she going to move? How is she going to keep up with Maksim?” On the first night, celebrities usually don’t have good technique. But she was very balanced and her timing was very good. Maksim is a very experienced professional, and he picked a routine that was not too complicated and enough to make his partner look good. She has a lot of chances to win the competition.

T-3rd Place – Chelsea Kane (21 points)
Chelsea danced with professional Mark Ballas and they did the foxtrot. I thought Chelsea also looked good. Her routine was progressive and flowing, with good movement. She needs to work on her footwork, but she’s got good potential.

T-3rd Place – Hines Ward (21 points)
Hines Ward danced the cha-cha with dance pro Kym Johnson. It was a very nice dance. His lines and balance were very good for a first dance. I look forward to seeing what they can do in the future.

T-4th Place – Chris Jericho (19 points)
Chris Jericho danced the cha-cha with pro partner Cheryl Burke. I always like to watch Cheryl’s choreography and I had a lot of fun watching their routine. Their cha-cha showed a lot of energy – I liked the leather and Chris tearing off his sleeves! He needs to concentrate more on posture, though, and there was too much bending of his legs. Perhaps because of his wrestler training, he was also too tight in the shoulders.

T-4th Place – Romeo (19 points)
Romeo danced with professional Chelsie Hightower and they also did the cha-cha. I thought it was… okay – not so much fun and excitement as [fellow 4th Place finisher] Chris. You could see he was not ballroom dancing. Chelsie had a hard time with him – he doesn’t feel comfortable dancing ballroom style, so we’ll see how he does. He needs work.

T-5th Place – Petra Nemcova (18 points)
Petra Nemcova danced the foxtrot with pro partner Dmitry Chaplin. I was expecting a little more from Petra. As a model, I thought she would be a little more graceful on the floor. She was a little too closed – she needs to dance more openly and show her personality. She can do better than her first dance.

*On the question of whether or not Petra’s pelvic injury will affect her ability to compete: It might happen – especially the Latin dances might bother her. But it’s also a good opportunity for her to develop her body [through therapy] and pick up her self-confidence.

T-5th Place – Kendra Wilkinson (18 points)
Kendra Wilkinson danced the cha-cha with professional dancer Louis van Amstel. She was not bad, but I can’t say she was one of my favorites. Her footwork was not so good. The dance showed a lot of energy, but she looked a little too nervous in all of the excitement. When someone is dancing a routine, the audience should not have to worry or think about trips or falls. The dancers should be having fun and enjoy what they’re doing, and so that way the audience can enjoy it, too.

9th Place – Sugar Ray Leonard (17 points)
Sugar Ray Leonard did the foxtrot with pro partner Anna Trebunsakaya. What Sugar Ray did didn’t look like the foxtrot. The foxtrot should be smooth, elegant, with nice lines. He was so messy I couldn’t tell what it was.

10th Place – Wendy Williams (14 points)
Wendy Williams danced with professional Tony Dovolani and they did the cha-cha. [deep sigh] Very sad. Tony’s such a good teacher, we always hope he gets a good celebrity, but again this year not so. They didn’t look good. But Tony’s good, so hopefully he can straighten her out.

11th Place – Mike Catherwood (13 points)
Mike Catherwood danced the foxtrot with pro dancer Lacey Schwimmer. That was for sure the worst dance. Messy dance, posture not good – his shoulders were up, he looked nervous. The foxtrot should be a smooth dance, and he was awkward and stiff. I didn’t get the feeling they enjoyed dancing together. But I am looking forward to seeing what they can do in the future.

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This season should be a very good season. There were three ties this week – so that’s good competition. Again, it’s hard to tell so early on how each celebrity will do, but after next week (the first elimination round) we’ll get a better idea of where they are.

- Natasha Oreshkina
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Key Dates for Season 12 of "Dancing With The Stars"

Dancing With The Stars premieres tonight at 8:00pm EST on ABC. Below are key dates that fans might want to take note of as the season unfolds. (Dates provided by TVGrapevine.com and may be subject to change.)

- "Dancing with the Stars'" two-hour season premiere performance show, MONDAY, MARCH 21 (8:00-10:01 p.m., ET).

- "Dancing with the Stars the Results Show" one-hour season premiere, TUESDAY, MARCH 29 (9:00-10:01 p.m., ET).

- "Dancing with the Stars'" 1000th Competitive Dance, MONDAY, APRIL 18 (8:00-9:31 p.m., ET)

- "Dancing with the Stars'" final performance show, MONDAY, MAY 23 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET)

- "Dancing with the Stars'" season finale, TUESDAY, MAY 24 (9:00-11:00 p.m., ET)

DWTS Celebrities Prepare for Showdown on the Dance Floor

As Season 12 of Dancing with the Stars gets ready to kick off this March 21, celebrity contestants are prepping their moves and hoping that what they’ve got will be enough to take home the much-coveted Mirror Ball Trophy.

Contestant and former Playboy model Kendra Wilkinson was quoted as saying she’s really just a freestyler and that other contestants such as Sugar Ray Leonard, Chris Jericho and Ralph Macchio might have an edge on her because "they’ve done choreography before."

From the entertainment website Gather, blogger Matt Clark quotes Kendra: "I'm all about freestyle and shaking my butt! That's all I got! And I think Kirstie Alley wins the popularity vote; she has the most fans, I think."

Meanwhile, contestant Sugar Ray Leonard says he’s "in it to win it, baby!" and BleacherReport.com has their own "Ten Reasons He’ll Succeed" list posted on their website:
10.) He had to deal with Don King
9.) He knows how to deal with adversity
8.) TV cameras love him
7.) He knows a thing or two about footwork
6.) He gives a great interview
5.) It’s just another comeback for him’
4.) He’s a reality TV veteran (hosted The Contender)
3.) He looks the part (whatever that means)
2.) He’s got the competitive edge
1.) He could make boxing look graceful

Outside of the boxing ring, actress Kirstie Alley says she’s probably been asked to appear on DWTS "every year" before finally agreeing to go on for Season 12. She told Zap2it.com she changed her mind this year because, "It's sort of like a guy who keeps asking you out on a date. You say, 'No, no, no, no,' but then you think, 'He's so tenacious. All right, OK…."

As far as her first rehearsal went, Kirstie admitted to being unprepared for the workout: "I literally thought I was going to die," she told Zap2it. "I was dehydrated. You've got to drink a lot of water."

"Dancing with the Stars" Pro Lineup Announced

The entire lineup of professional dancers set to appear on Season 12 of Dancing With The Stars is listed below. (The pros are in bold, their celebrity partners are to their right.) The season starts on Monday, March 21st!

Tony Dovolani --- Wendy Williams
Anna Trebunskaya --- Sugar Ray Leonard
Chelsie Hightower --- Romeo
Cheryl Burke --- Chris Jericho
Dmitry Chaplin --- Petra Nemcova
Karina Smirnoff --- Ralph Macchio
Kym Johnson --- Hines Ward
Lacey Schwimmer --- Mike Catherwood
Louis Van Amstel --- Kendra Wilkinson
Maksim Chmerkovskiy --- Kirstie Alley
Mark Ballas --- Chelsea Kane

Check out all their bios at the DWTS website, here.

Also check out the bios of the celebrity dancers, here.

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Dancing with the Stars: Seeason 12 Celebrities Announced

Last night Dancing with the Stars announced its celebrity cast of competitors for Season 12. This season's Dancing Stars are:
Men
- Rapper Lil' Romeo
- Retired boxer Sugar Ray Leonard
- The original "Karate Kid," Ralph Macchio
- Wrestler Chris Jericho
- Football player Hines Ward
- "Loveline" host Mike Catherwood

Women
- Disney actress Chelsea Kane
- Model Petra Nemcova
- Reality star Kendra Wilkinson
- Talk show host Wendy Williams
- Actress Kirstie Alley

Meet the entire cast on ABC's website, here.

"Live to Dance" Steps onto the National Dance Stage

The world of dance has greatly benefited from such television hits as Dancing With The Stars and So You Think You Can Dance, and this year dancing fans everywhere have been given yet another treat to satisfy their craving for high-energy dance competition.

Live to Dance premiered on January 4, 2011 with a diverse assortment of acts and with a judging format that gave the viewing audience considerable say in which acts moved forward through the competition. Produced by former American Idol judge Paula Abdul, who also acts as one of three judges (called “experts” on this show) in addition to her role as being a coach and “mentor” to the competitors, the show is derived from the successful British series, Got to Dance. In the 2-hour premiere episode of the American spin-off, 17 acts were chosen by the judges (Abdul and co-judges Travis Payne and Kimberly Wyatt) and one act was chosen by the voting audience to participate in the series’ semi-finals. The semi-finalists were then divided into three groups of six to appear in three semi-final episodes which aired January 12, 19, and 26. In each of those episodes, two acts were chosen – one by the judges and the other by the voting audience – to advance onto the finals. Beginning in February, then, the six remaining finalists performed in front of the audience for the last time before voting began for the show’s Grand Finale episode, which aired on February 9th, and in which the contestants were whittled down first to three finalists and then to two before the winner of the competition was announced.

Live to Dance has a no-age-limit, no-style-limit format which many viewers may have found difficult to judge the various acts by after years of watching episodes of Dancing With The Stars or even the more diverse So You Think You Can Dance. (The acts on Live can range from solos and couples to large ensembles of dancers, and can consist of anything from a Lindy Hop presentation to a Broadway-style show.)

The contestants on Live to Dance compete for a $500,000 prize, which certainly makes all their preparation, practice and performances worthwhile for them. Unfortunately, the new series didn't get the best of reviews from a number of media sources, who were critical of both the show's format and its talent, so its unclear how long of a run the show will enjoy. Still, while it lasts, Live to Dance offers yet another outlet for aspiring dancers to show off their talents on the national stage while providing yet another showcase for the dance profession itself. And for that we can only wish them the best and hope that the televised dance craze that started out with DWTS and SYTYCD can continue on with this latest incarnation.

Oh yeah, and the winner of this year’s Live to Dance competition? Congratulations to ballroom dancers D’Angelo & Amanda!

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Karen Hauer Compares Performing on TV versus Stage

In the latest issue of Dance Beat, writer Andrew Pueschel interviews professional dancer Karen Hauer.

Hauer and her husband & partner, Matt, are currently ranked #6 in the USA in NDCA American Rhythm and captured 2nd place in Mambo at the 2007 NDC Championships, according to Hauer's Facebook page. Hauer has also danced with partners Kevin Hunte (Cha-Cha) and Victor Smalley (Tango, hip-hop) on TV's So You Think You Can Dance.

Hauer is out of the SYTYCD competition these days. She started touring with the theatrical show "Burn the Floor" last year (actually late December of 2009). In the interview, Pueschel asks Hauer about the difference between performing on television and performing on stage.

"It's totally different," Hauer responds. "[On TV] you only have ONE chance to create a character that the audience will either get behind or turn their backs on." She said that in contrast to television, the stage allows a performer to develop their character. "My character grows throughout the show and I can be more myself - who Karen really is."

Pueschel then asked Hauer how she thinks experienced ballroom dancers will view "Burn the Floor."

"Those who know more about the techniques seem to appreciate not only the difficulty and clarity of the routines, but [also] relate to the insanely high level of energy - the acting, the development of each character and the telling of each individual story throughout the evening," she explained. "It really is something that dancers of all levels can be inspired by!"

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Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow...

This past January has been a snowy one for us here at FADS Corporate. In one week's time we had about three feet of snow dumped on us as two storms came by, one after the other (click on the photo above for a larger view). Now it's snowing again today, and local forecasts are calling for another foot-plus to fall by Wednesday.

Happy days!