I really like B/A and would not like to see them being passed by the up & commers like D/W. That being said, what do B/A need to do to get back into top form for next year. A coaching change, choreography change? I think both - someone to give them "wow" programs and someone to help them achieve the skills needed for that change. Any ideas?
What do Tanith & Ben need to do now?
- Thread starter jozmen01
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Well, first of all, Tanith needs to stop tripping in the CD. (OK, that was a low blow, but ya know, it does help your score....)
Actually, I think this season, in the FD anyway (I'm not a huge fan of their OD), this WAS the closest they have come in the "Wow program" category. They need to continue in this sort of vein; if they need help in any particular category, I would say it would be in their highlights. They just don't grab you the way that Khoklova & Novitski, or Delobel & Schoenfelder do in this area. Also, tho this has improved a lot over the last couple of seasons, I still think that Ben is the better skater of the two and here and there in their programs it becomes obvious, unlike with Davis & White, and Virtue & Moir, who are unbeleivably well-matched and equal in ability.
They could also probably stand a little more speed, especially when compared with Davis & White. It seems to me that overall they were faster a couple of years ago. However, I find speed a little overrated in Dance; some of these couples are racing around out there like they're double parked and it can often detract from the effect they're trying to create.
Actually, I think this season, in the FD anyway (I'm not a huge fan of their OD), this WAS the closest they have come in the "Wow program" category. They need to continue in this sort of vein; if they need help in any particular category, I would say it would be in their highlights. They just don't grab you the way that Khoklova & Novitski, or Delobel & Schoenfelder do in this area. Also, tho this has improved a lot over the last couple of seasons, I still think that Ben is the better skater of the two and here and there in their programs it becomes obvious, unlike with Davis & White, and Virtue & Moir, who are unbeleivably well-matched and equal in ability.
They could also probably stand a little more speed, especially when compared with Davis & White. It seems to me that overall they were faster a couple of years ago. However, I find speed a little overrated in Dance; some of these couples are racing around out there like they're double parked and it can often detract from the effect they're trying to create.
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- Jun 27, 2003
I loved their FD this year, at nationals it went by so seamlessly that it did not feel even CLOSE to four minutes long (and I wasn't the only one in the group to think so)
it's not like they had a crappy season. They just had a bad CD at worlds and were docked for it in all three events (IMHO) - granted they were stiff in the OD, but over all they were better than what the judges' numbers said.
it's not like they had a crappy season. They just had a bad CD at worlds and were docked for it in all three events (IMHO) - granted they were stiff in the OD, but over all they were better than what the judges' numbers said.
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Besides what already has been stated (better music and choreo). To be truthful, I have never felt Tanith's passion.. It always seems forced to me.. Like she is being forced to skate with her brother kinda feeling.. There connection just seems fake.. When I think of the past "top" dance teams even though they were not a couple off the ice....you felt a certain "passion or drama"... B & A have never gave me those vibes..
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- Jul 26, 2003
If not for the fall, they would have medalled. I know they just edged out of the bronze. I don't recall the difference in points between Silver and Bronze - so, I don't know if they could have gotten silver without the fall in the CD (and without factoring in the probability that they would have been less cautious during the OD after the fall.)
I thought this year's FD was one of their best.
Susie Wynn said that their mis-steps last year really allowed a lot of the other teams to catch up. I agree that their lifts, etc need a bit more wow to them. If anything, these 2 years were the ones to 'relax' during - the next 2 ones are much more critical and they need to work hard to make sure they are considered contenders for the Olympics instead of just America's best. I think they will definitely start pulling out the stops next year.
I thought this year's FD was one of their best.
Susie Wynn said that their mis-steps last year really allowed a lot of the other teams to catch up. I agree that their lifts, etc need a bit more wow to them. If anything, these 2 years were the ones to 'relax' during - the next 2 ones are much more critical and they need to work hard to make sure they are considered contenders for the Olympics instead of just America's best. I think they will definitely start pulling out the stops next year.
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- Jun 27, 2003
on a little bit related note... I noticed this year just how much of a GREAT dance partner Ben is... he is just fantastic. I mean I know he gets that said a lot, but it was INCREDIBLY noticeable this season... I want to say he's almost flawless... he's just... wow...
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- Feb 4, 2008
B&A have loads of charisma, enthousiasm and presence. However I do have one criticism to form: They can have very beautiful FDs, but there needs to be more structure, more "sense". For now, it's just dancing to pretty music. They really could do something great, because they have everything for them and they know how to reach out to the public, but their FDs should have more meaning.
GET A CHOREOGRAPHER. Period.
Get someone to teach them that perky isn't the only way. (Well this one is for Tanith anyway).
Learn what you want to do to make the ice dance move forward and not backward ....
Get more understanding of the projection you want to share with the audiences.
They used to get me so enthousiastic back in the old days with their free dances of Elvis or the one before that. But after that, it's been one disappointment after the other. They didn't bring anything to the world of ice dance.Going the easy way is not what makes you remembered.
And they still lack in raw power.They still have problems in that area. And the level difference between Ben and Tanith has increased. He is so much better than she is.
Get someone to teach them that perky isn't the only way. (Well this one is for Tanith anyway).
Learn what you want to do to make the ice dance move forward and not backward ....
Get more understanding of the projection you want to share with the audiences.
They used to get me so enthousiastic back in the old days with their free dances of Elvis or the one before that. But after that, it's been one disappointment after the other. They didn't bring anything to the world of ice dance.Going the easy way is not what makes you remembered.
And they still lack in raw power.They still have problems in that area. And the level difference between Ben and Tanith has increased. He is so much better than she is.
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- Mar 12, 2007
And I think from his manner that he must be a great partner in a mental/psychological sense, too. He always seems so calm and confident before they take the ice. Not at all like he's indifferent, and not that he seems to think it's unimportant, but just a neat "let's-get-dancing-we-can-do-this" manner that I would think would be wonderfully inspiring in a partner.
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- Oct 27, 2006
Ok...I love Tanith and Ben! But.......jeez Tanith can you stick with one costume all season? How many times did she change her costume for the original dance? I counted at least 4 costume changes throughout the season and at least 2 for the free dance. What that has to do with skating I don't know but maybe if she spent less time on looking good and more time on skating good...........
I think that they need a program that just WOWS you. I loved thier program this year but it seems to me that since the 2006 Olympics they have lost some of that Wow factor and other teams have managed to pick that up and Tanith and Ben have lost some ground. Perhaps they need to use a different choreographer then they are using right now. Maybe they need to pick out some music that really draws the crowd in.....even doing something totally different and out of their comfort zone. Dare I say change coaches? I do know that they need to improve on thier comp dance as they have always been weak in that area.
I don't know really but they need to do something because the dance field is way to deep to be messing around.
I think that they need a program that just WOWS you. I loved thier program this year but it seems to me that since the 2006 Olympics they have lost some of that Wow factor and other teams have managed to pick that up and Tanith and Ben have lost some ground. Perhaps they need to use a different choreographer then they are using right now. Maybe they need to pick out some music that really draws the crowd in.....even doing something totally different and out of their comfort zone. Dare I say change coaches? I do know that they need to improve on thier comp dance as they have always been weak in that area.
I don't know really but they need to do something because the dance field is way to deep to be messing around.
A few things about Tanith and Ben - actually, more about Tanith.
This was the first year that I too really noticed how much better Ben is than Tanith. I've always seen it, but this year, it was very noticeable - almost to the point that you have to wonder why he continues with her other than she is considered by most, to complement the "look" they go for. I personally don't find her to be uber attractive but that's my taste. She sure isn't ugly.
Tanith needs to stand up more - stop bending/breaking at the waist. I noticed a lot of that this year. Part of it was correcting when they were skating too far apart but didnt' want to break the dance hold but she does this rather often.
Her free leg coming out of elements...not attractive at all. No extension, reac - nothing. Just a half-a$$ attempt. Think of a singles skater coming out of a jump and the nice ride-out they get with the extended free leg and bent knee. Tanith does not even remotely try to achieve this. I find it distracting and rather a silly mistake for such a seasoned team. This bothers me the most about their skating.
I often find that her attempt to relate to the music is neither authentic or attractive. If you don't feel the music, then dig deep and at least try and make it look as if you do. Her attempts remind me of bad acting.
I was totally disgusted with their exhibition dance at nationals. I know they're not judged for it but all that shuck'n and jiving, gyrating and sex is not attractive. I think it cheapens them and does nothing to create a air of sophistication for them as a team. Sure, have fun, create fun programs but don't make me watch a Maxim mag. cover in motion.
For, me the weekest dance all season was the OD - I did not like their choice of music at all. Granted, Folk is a challenge and I'd hate to have seen them try something as predictable as Russian Gypsies or Zorba the Greek but, plenty of other teams were able to find something creative. In stead of showing some maturity in their dance and music choice, it dumbed them down.
Appalachian music is hard to skate too and you either like it or not (I love it). I think Appalachian was fine but the songs they chose were a terrible reflection of the music - it was very stereotypical in a bad sense. There is a sense, wrongly I might add, that Appalachian is "silly" music and really not to be taken seriously. When you take a risky genre of music, choose some of the worst representations of it, choose costumes such as they did, then insert the type of choreography they did, not only does it do great disservice to the music genre, but greatly affects the overall frame of reference use to look at this team by. When I see them, I don't think of sophistication w/a splash of fun, I see cheesy, unoriginal and lacking real passion. Granted, there were some really poor choices of music, costumes and choreography this year but again, plenty of teams were able to rise above the cheeseyness.
Just my few cents worth.
This was the first year that I too really noticed how much better Ben is than Tanith. I've always seen it, but this year, it was very noticeable - almost to the point that you have to wonder why he continues with her other than she is considered by most, to complement the "look" they go for. I personally don't find her to be uber attractive but that's my taste. She sure isn't ugly.
Tanith needs to stand up more - stop bending/breaking at the waist. I noticed a lot of that this year. Part of it was correcting when they were skating too far apart but didnt' want to break the dance hold but she does this rather often.
Her free leg coming out of elements...not attractive at all. No extension, reac - nothing. Just a half-a$$ attempt. Think of a singles skater coming out of a jump and the nice ride-out they get with the extended free leg and bent knee. Tanith does not even remotely try to achieve this. I find it distracting and rather a silly mistake for such a seasoned team. This bothers me the most about their skating.
I often find that her attempt to relate to the music is neither authentic or attractive. If you don't feel the music, then dig deep and at least try and make it look as if you do. Her attempts remind me of bad acting.
I was totally disgusted with their exhibition dance at nationals. I know they're not judged for it but all that shuck'n and jiving, gyrating and sex is not attractive. I think it cheapens them and does nothing to create a air of sophistication for them as a team. Sure, have fun, create fun programs but don't make me watch a Maxim mag. cover in motion.
For, me the weekest dance all season was the OD - I did not like their choice of music at all. Granted, Folk is a challenge and I'd hate to have seen them try something as predictable as Russian Gypsies or Zorba the Greek but, plenty of other teams were able to find something creative. In stead of showing some maturity in their dance and music choice, it dumbed them down.
Appalachian music is hard to skate too and you either like it or not (I love it). I think Appalachian was fine but the songs they chose were a terrible reflection of the music - it was very stereotypical in a bad sense. There is a sense, wrongly I might add, that Appalachian is "silly" music and really not to be taken seriously. When you take a risky genre of music, choose some of the worst representations of it, choose costumes such as they did, then insert the type of choreography they did, not only does it do great disservice to the music genre, but greatly affects the overall frame of reference use to look at this team by. When I see them, I don't think of sophistication w/a splash of fun, I see cheesy, unoriginal and lacking real passion. Granted, there were some really poor choices of music, costumes and choreography this year but again, plenty of teams were able to rise above the cheeseyness.
Just my few cents worth.
Disgusted, what a word you are using. Sorry, but I think it is rather offensive to say that a skating program loved by many people is disgusting. They didn't skate naked after all.
What I find disgusting is what happened to Nancy Kerrigan, or the Salt Lake City corruption, or coaches abusing girls, certainly not a skating program.
We may not like a program, but I think we all have to respect the work done by skaters.
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I'm entitled to be disgusted (as well as use the word) and offended by their overtly distasteful sexual moves just as you are entitled to be disgusted by what happened to Kerrigan. We do agree on being disgusted about coaches abusing girls etc. Perhaps it is a cultural difference between you and I - I say this only because you are posted from Italy which leads me to believe you're Italian and not American. Both are fine countries.
I stand by my statement regardless of how many people loved the program.
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- Dec 7, 2005
B/A can improve but they are pretty darn good. There is a lot of talent in ice dancing right now and it is not just B/A that will have to stay sharp. As far as I am concerned they have just as much talent as the next team and they have the medals to back it up. As for Ben being a better skater than Taninth is that constructive criticism. Should he get a new partner because of that.
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- Feb 17, 2006
I think what Tanith and Ben are lacking is authenticity. I agree with dwiggin in that they did a Wal-Mart rendition of American folk music in their OD which was sort of embarrassing. It reminded me a lot of a discussion I had a while back with a teen member of our local rabbit club. She was wearing a John Deere t-shirt, and I teased her that she was supporting the wrong kind of tractor (my husband restores antique Farmalls) and she replied with, "I don't care about tractors". Then why the heck are you wearing a John Deere t-shirt? Because it's trendy? Yuck. That's the sense that I'm getting. Tanith and Ben are wearing John Deere t-shirts and they don't even like tractors. They need to find music that they actually love and skate to it, whether they think it's what the judges want or not. I don't think they've done a program they've loved in a couple of years.
??? Costumes are extremely important in skating. The entire mood and/or message you are trying to convey can be destroyed by the wrong choice of costume. Tanith's costume changes in the OD were prompted by feedback from judges. The European judges said that they weren't "getting" the message with the original costumes, and so they went with something more stereotypically country-western. As I remember it, she only changed costumes three times -- the first costume (which the judges didn't get), the second time she wore her Yankee Polka outfit (probably because her "western" outfit wasn't finished yet), and then her red western outfit. As for the FD, all she did was change from a white to black outfit. I didn't really care for either dress, but some commentators said that the black one showed their lines off better.
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- Dec 16, 2006
I think their FD and OD are fine. What they need to do is give a CD specialist a call and work with them for a month--someone like Natalia Dubova. Platov once said that she is the best CD coach around--something about a "Dubova" edge.
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