2018 Europeans Short Dance

[auser]

Im making my own kahlua You wanna a recipe? It is much better taste than the one you can buy tho

Would be very interested in your recipe :yes: :cool2:.

 

[Skater Boy]

i protest!russian diva ekataterina b. deserved better!4th:eekn: what were the judges thinking?
c/l were cute as always,s/b i will never understand this team but their k&c expressions...that i understand and love
p/c had their small wobbles(i expected 79-80 to be honest)but still they re going straight to ogm
the spanish team surprised me pleasantly...i enjoyed them very much
off for the free now and i wont forgive another injustice...katia during your blind looks on the free give the judges some evil stares to remind them who is russia no1!

I totally agree - p/c going straight to ogm. Its 2014 D/W versus the Canadians- it just seems so predetermined though p/c fans will say it is destiny. Again I like their fd over VM but scoring wise V/M deserve higher if they skate decently but it seems pointless like it is already deemed ogmf for the French. But you can hate a program Ie T/M but if they do it well just because you hate the music and costumes it might deservedly earn high points.

 

[Giselle]

Bla bla bla cha cha cha...same old.

I predict V/M will win the SD by some way at the olympics. They've got L4 on all NtMiSt this season but at the GPF when P/C got L4 only at 1 GP. I doubt Tessa will make the same mistake in the rhumba. I think people forget that it's not P/C that overperformed their SD at the GPF but V/M that underperformed.

At NHK Scott stepped out of the 3rd twizzle and they got L3 but positive GOE on it. 1 judge even gave them a +3 IIRC. So it's not just P/C that are held to a higher standard, it's both of the top teams.

 

[Lester]

Agree. My husband and I are Ballroom/Latin dancers. P/C's choice of using Ed Sheeran for both Samba & Rhumba is just utterly dreadful. There are so many wonderful music choices for Samba & Rhumba. Ed Sheeran's 'Shape of You' is what our dance teacher uses for his 'beginner' Samba class, that gives you an idea of the slow timing. P/C's hips and shoulders are not always in sync, that 's what really bothers me with their marks on the SD. The Shibs brother & sister are super in sync in all their moves and really should be ahead of P/C in the SD back in the GPF. The FD is an entirely different story of course.

My complaint was more in the lines of you'd expect something better than slowed down Shape of You with "latin" beats drowning it out for a SD poised to win the Olympics. I mean even if you happen to think that Ed Sheeran doesn't suck and is the pinnacle of taste, save him for the exhibition, why attempt to mold the song into something that it decidedly isn't, when there are so many other compositions that would fit the requirement. Same with spanish guitar Chandelier, although that one at least doesn't give me a vertigo because the production is a little cleaner.

 

[icekiwi]

It's so good to finally hear from professionals. The pushback some of us got for our complaints about Sheeran was that in ballroom dancing this is the kind of music being used by competitors. I'm so happy to know that is not the case.

Also good to hear the Shibutani get props. There is something about their cleanliness and quick turns that totally works in latin for me and helps me overlook that they don't quite have the power and depth of edge of the top two teams.

Could you tell us what you think about V/M as well (I'm not trying to compare them to P/C, just getting your expertise)? Do you have a top 5 of folks who are doing it right in the short dance this season?

Thank you for your kind words. I really appreciate them. Sorry it had taken awhile to get back to you, my husband and I actually had a ballroom /latin dance function to attend last night.

My top 5 for SD this season and my reasons -

1. Virtue /Moir - head and shoulders above the rest, without a doubt. I would personally mark them 5 points above the rest. They move to every beat of the music, there is no 'rest' moments in the program. Every single beat of the music is choreographed to the T. They have the most recognizable Samba, Rhumba content of all the couples. They did a Samba body roll straight off the bat, Hubbell /Donohue attempted the same move too but not so well and slightly losing hold. That Samba rhythm was super fast and they executed the Samba contents quick, smooth and sharp. They manage to fit in so much actual dance content in such short brackets of time (3 dance brackets, Samba, Rhumba, Cha Cha) with such precision and ease. They are crazily good.
2. Shibutanis - They have perfect timing, right on the beat with every move. They are super in sync with each other. Shoulders and hips matching, their bodies aligning with each other. Sharp, clean moves, ie. No elbows or sometimes knees sticking out or hands waving everywhere for no reason.
3. Hubbell /Donohue - I am tempted to put them in no.2 with the Shibutanis. They have the best Rhumba of all the couples, so smooth and smouldering. Really nice lines and body shaping with the Rhumba. They understood the body bounce with Samba moves and have incorporated them very wel too.
4. Weaver /Poge - The last performance of their SD was at the Canadian Championships. Even though there was an unfortunate mistake with the twizzle, I was shocked at how good the rest of the program were. They looked so polished, especially for Andrew, I used to complain that he has 'banana' hands. But no more! Also, their body lines have so improved. Lovely Latin body bounce, so in sync with each other, great timing with the steps.

Sorry, I do not have a no.5.

 

[Rossig]

^^^^
You may not like P/C SD, but if you really don't believe it belongs to TOP5, it's diffucult to take your opinions too seriously.

 

[bramweld]

^^^^
You may not like P/C SD, but if you really don't believe it belongs to TOP5, it's diffucult to take your opinions too seriously.

I on the other hand get the comment. P/C are gifted skaters and their FD is a beauty but as to why they're getting those sort of marks for the SD, especially the PCS is baffling. They should be right in the mix with everyone in the SD, by virtue of their skating skills but V/M should be way ahead in terms of PCS. It just goes to show you the incompetence of the judges with respect to PCS. I believe a separate panel should judge PCS and this panel should appreciate the intricacies of the type of DANCE being assessed.

 

[GGFan]

whole post

Thank you again! You not only listed teams but gave us examples and explained. I learned something too because I had been ragging on Kaitlyn's latin dancing.

 

[GGFan]

^^^^
You may not like P/C SD, but if you really don't believe it belongs to TOP5, it's diffucult to take your opinions too seriously.

I really hope that this post is not used as some universal case against P/C. For me it was just another data point. I for example have seen artists and musicians explain why they are completely enraptured by P/C. I love to hear the reasons why experts make these kinds of assessments and there are often good reasons and the descriptions very useful.

However, it's still figure skating and I can see why the judges want to reward P/C: 1. Their buttery smoothness is one of the most beautiful things we've ever seen in ice dance and is a true achievement in the sport. 2. They can reach people on a very visceral level--to the point where they say "screw some of the little things because the overall expression is spellbinding and what they are doing is on another level than other teams." (this doesn't mean they do little things badly).

I'm sure there are ballroom dancers who think P/C's SD is the best out there because they take the latin inspiration and create something unique on ice with it. This is partly what we want in ice dance: influence from the field of ballroom and others but the creation of something distinct.

I say this as someone who likes to see great hip hop dancing, but if that is what I was expecting from figure skaters I would have given everyone a 5 or 6 in PCS.

 

[icetigger]

I think that P/C's output is best appreciated by those who approach what is presented in front of them with an open mind. So I understand why what they do in the free and the short is not for everyone.