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"America's Ballroom Challenge No. 5"
- Author:
- Elizabeth Knoll, 2-time Ohio Star Ball Champion
- Date Published:
- March 13, 2007
Week Five: Conclusion. The Champions: Critique and Congratulations
At last we are at the conclusion of the Ohio Star Ball's television presentation by WGBH/Boston as "America's Ballroom Challenge." Did I like the shows? Overall, YES! Do I think this represents the best of what we ballroom dancers have to offer? NO, until this last show. Am I a groupie who loves to see people she knows on TV and can't wait until the next show? YES!!!!!
This last article will offer brief critiques on the show itself, commentary on the dancing, and a little bit of history.
First, the last show. I thought this was the best overall exhibition of dancing, mostly because we were not distracted by the STUPID camera work. Because the couples were presented as individuals, we actually got to see real dancing. This is why ice skating works as a television sport, and ballroom dancing will have to undergo a huge overhaul to even be considered for Olympics or other commercially displayed sporting events. I loved seeing the championship couples given the opportunity to show their best dancing, and not compete against the other couples. Were the four couples who won their divisions the best exponents of their styles? With one possible exception (Latin), yes they were. These were the Ohio Star and current US Champions (despite the commentator's INANE comment that Jonathan Wilkins and Katusha Demidova were "former" US champions...they are the reigning champions, and have been for years.). In my professional and personal opinion, each couple deserved to be there, unequivocally. And even though the show pitted apples against oranges, kumquats against passion fruit, the show was great fun! I loved every second!
In order of competition result:
1. Jonathan Wilkins and Katusha Demidova (Standard) Presenting first a Quickstep and then a terrific Foxtrot to a French version of the classic "Autumn Leaves," Jonathan and Katusha didn't try to do anything stupid or different. They went out there with their world-class dancing and did what they do best. There is no doubt in my mind that Katusha is one of the best lady dancers in the world, and Jonathan needs to count himself fortunate that she is there to make him look good. I think there are some basic structural flaws in his dancing that prevent them from breaking through their glass ceiling, but they are a great couple and represent the US well. Both are proud to live and work here, and carry the banner of American dancing high. Congratulations to the Standard dancers for FINALLY breaking through the barrier of the showier Latin dances to capture the TV title of "America's Best."
2. Tony Dovolani and Elena Grinenko (Rhythm) How on earth did they place this high? No doubt they are terrific dancers, and I know that in real life they look more commanding than they do on TV, but one of the rules of the competition was that the first program the couples presented be representative of the style in which they dance. When did Argentine Tango become a part of competition dancing? Maybe it was a good number. I thought it was OK...you can see better and more passionate tango dancing in local bars and clubs. But it didn't show them off to their best. The inane commentary noted a Bolero basic. WHAT?? I saw Elena do a back rock with level changes while Tony did a spin. NOT a basic, no matter how you look at it. And I hated her costume for their second number, a Cha Cha; made her look thick, which she is not. Not their best presentations.
3. Andre Gavriline and Elena Kruchkova (Latin) Whether we agree that they should have been the Latin representatives or not, they represented the style well. Again, costuming was an issue (was that a deflated inner tube Elena was wearing for their Cha Cha? And was that a costume malfunction at the end?), but they showed great choreography and mastery of their style, terrific characterizations and technique, and they are good champions. In my opinion, they should have challenged for the top slot.
4. Ben and Shalene Ermis (Smooth) Well danced for both numbers, Waltz and a weird "hip" motorcycle Foxtrot with Cha Cha embellishments. As accomplished as these dancers are, this was the correct placement. In my mind, American Style cannot compete well with International Style. As exciting as the dancing is, the basic quality of International and demands of technical prowess outweigh the flash of American Style. Ben and Shalene retired at the Ohio Star Ball, not shown on TV, to concentrate on other aspects of the business, their studio, and their personal lives. On an individual note, I congratulate Ben and Shalene on a great career, and know they can make the next permutation of their lives successful.
And now to the rest of the show: it was interesting to see the Theater Arts competition, although they did not announce the placements. If you check the Ohio Star Ball's website (www.ohiostarball.com), you will see the Professional Theater Arts Solo Exhibitions include a couple who were not on TV, and didn't include one of the couples who WAS on the TV show. Huh?????? And the placements in the competition simply were not logical. If the TV show was representing the competition, then absolutely I agree with the order shown. Eric Luna and Georgia Ambarian were phenomenal, showing real dancing, great lifts, and an interesting routine. Second out were Felipe and Carolina Telona, with their dramatic, engrossing and emotional love story. When I judged this number a couple of weeks ago, I forgot I was watching dancing! Look for Felipe and Carolina on the West Coast soon. Third to demonstrate were Gregory Day and Tommie Giacchino, former champions. I thought they'd retired! Apparently they put together this very short piece for TV. The showed flashes of brilliance, but sure looked like they haven't danced in a while. And fourth to perform were the actual second place winners in the competition (they beat the Telonas! Travesty!), former World Exhibition Champion David Savoy with his new partner Jenya Goremykina. Weird. A rhythmic gymnast dancing with a tree. Weird.
For me the highlight performance of the TV show was Garry and Rita Gekhman performing their "robot" segue. It's brilliant in every way, and keeps getting better. His isolations are phenomenal, they incorporated six rhythms (Tango, Foxtrot, Viennese Waltz, Quickstep, Cha Cha and Samba), her feet are great, the choreography was innovative and appropriate and their overall performance was fabulous. Anything else?
One of the things I think is missing from the competition is the recognition of those dancers who do 10- and 9-dance. While they might not be the best dancers in individual disciplines, these people hone their craft over more dances, and are worthy of being called "the best." Truly they are more well-rounded, and it would add lots of excitement to the event.
And finally, I thought the commentary was a huge disappointment. My expectations for the celebrity host were not high, except that she is supposed to be a media professional. One of the brilliant students at Ballroom Parkrose is in the media, and in his professional opinion, Marilu Henner was AWFUL! Looked like every line was read off the teleprompter, and there was no natural expression at all. Tony Meredith, although he loosened up as the shows progressed, was equally disappointing. You'd never know from his wooden delivery that he was a 10-dance champion, and actually knew his stuff! Next year I'd like to see someone like Gary McDonald: knowledgeable, personable, charismatic.
And now for a brief history of the Ohio Star Ball, and my participation in it.
This major competition started, as all comps do, as a small, showcase-oriented one-day event. And then it grew. Organized by Sam Sodano, the competition really took off in the late '80's when Sam forged a relationship with Aida Moreno (Rita's cousin) of WGBH, Boston's PBS affiliate. "Championship Ballroom Dancing" was hosted by Juliette Prowse, who had real dance training, and Terry Leone who was an Arthur Murray big-wig. Although Terry's television personality was pretty stiff, not unlike Tony Meredith's, he was able to offer enough insightful comments that paired well with Ms. Prowse. Anyone who remembers seeing those shows remembers seeing her dance. Boy, she had fun and was good! And she was a gracious lady. It was a real honor to talk to her and have her be a part of our world.
From those early days, Sam simply forged on. Adding days, events, categories, shows and judges over the years, the 2007 Ohio Star Ball featured over 15,000 entries. I kid you not, it's non-stop dancing for nearly a week, in multiple ballrooms. Mark Tabor of O2CM in Seattle is now handling part of the competition, too, with his online registration and electronic judging system. At this time, the Ohio Star Ball is the largest competition in the world, and as far as North America is concerned, the most prestigious competition available. I have always appreciated Sam's dedication to this world, promotion of only the best dancing and judging possible, and his complete commitment to all of us! He never forgets where he came from, and never forgets what the backbone of this business is: the students! If you go to the Ohio Star Ball, and sometime you should, you will be amazed at Sam. Here is this great dancer, who was world-renowned for his dancing achievements (much of what we do in Latin and Rhythm is attributable to Sam's revolutionary dancing), and he's available in the ballroom 100% of the time! He talks to everyone, remembers everyone's names, and if he doesn't know you he'll find out who you are! Assisted now by a team headed by Brenda Burger, Sam is actually able to relax and let the competition run on its own.
I turned professional at the end of 1985, and went to the Ohio Star Ball for the first time in 1988. The OSB is held the weekend before Thanksgiving, and my ex-husband and I were always really busy with organizing the California Star Ball, which is ON Thanksgiving weekend. In the years before I started going to Ohio, we were exceedingly busy moving to Seattle and juggling the organizational duties. One of the other CSB organizers, John Morton, was the emcee of the OSB at the time, and all of us were reluctant to have all of us go to Ohio! Well, as soon as the competition made its mark on TV, we changed our minds! Never once did any of us regret that decision. Just meant that we scheduled our time so that everything was finished in LA, we'd fly to OH for the comp, then dash back west to do the CSB. It was a grueling couple of weeks for us, but BOY! those were exciting times.
In those days, the show was set up to feature the Standard and Latin finals, sometimes showing clips of the semis, and then the finalists would all do solo numbers that were not judged, but were presented on the TV show as part of the competition. The solos were just that: we went out and basically did our competition numbers, sometimes with a short entrance. We didn't have any of the thrilling show dances you see today.
One year we were asked to do 30 seconds of syllabus dancing before we went into our fancy routines. That was a great idea! They should do that again. Some years were better than others. One year we all thought Rick Valenzuela did a fabulous Jive. (He was not known for his Jive. Couldn't count it to save his life!) He was so springy and energetic! Turns out on his first step he broke his foot! He was jumping around trying to keep his foot off the floor. If you have that tape (can't remember what year it was), you'll see Rick and Melissa (Dexter) in the competition, but not featured in the solos.
The first year we won, we did a Tango solo. We were not generally known for our good Tango. But in this solo, we had a couple of special "embellishments" that made us famous (private lessons are available). Amazingly after that, we started getting good marks in the Tango! Normally professionals only receive checks, but Sam always awarded trophies also. Looks good on TV. That year our trophy was huge. In fact it was so tall that when we flew home the flight attendant put it in a first class seat and Stephen and I had to sit in coach! Everyone walked by it and asked about it. During the California Star Ball, the trophy lived at my parents house. My mother named it "Sophie the Trophy." The second year we won, we came out for our bows, Stephen rolled me out to curtsey to the audience, and I turned around and he was kissing the floor. Ew.
I have always had a great time at the Ohio Star Ball, and look forward to many more years of attending and judging it. Sam Sodano and his fantastic team promote the best of ballroom dancing in North America, and it's great to see it on TV. I hope this event and its effects go on for decades.
Thanks for bearing with me for the last five articles. You've been very patient!
Now let's have more fun with Dancing with the Stars, which starts March 19. I've already heard from several of the pros, and it sounds like it's going to be great fun.
Get out, get dancing, and have a ball!!!!
Beth Knoll
1991 US National Professional Standard Champion
5-time US Representative to World competition
2-time Ohio Star Ball Champion
2-time Texas Challenge Champion
8-time undefeated International Grand Champion
World-class Adjudicator NDCA and WDC
Championship Level Adjudicator, NDCA and USA Dance
International Standard, International Latin, American Rhythm,
American Smooth, Theater ArtsMember: North American Dance Teachers' Association, Terpsichore
2001 US Top Teacher, Challenge of Champions events: 2nd place
Former studio owner: Washington Dance Club, DanceSport International
Former competition organizer: California Star Ball and Galaxy Dance Festival
Former Dance Director: Imperial Academy, Inc.