Dancing With The Stars Announces Season 23 Cast

[calipiano81]

22 minutes ago, McManda said:

I don't doubt third or think it's not an art, but in the end if all I remember is the theme and not the dance itself ... does that make it a good dance?

But how do you separate the theme and the dancing when the dancing is part of what's actually creating/portraying the theme? So yes, I think if a dance had proper content, fit the music well, was memorable, and was enjoyed by many...it was a good dance. (I'm not saying all of Mark's dances successfully followed that criteria, but I feel like some people dismiss his work because he likes themes and costumes.)

For the same reasons, I can appreciate and call a dance good even if it wasn't executed as well as it could have (I use Alexa and Mark's foxtrot as an example).

[sinkwriter]

Oh man... I'm dreading Alison being back. WHYYYYYY? It was so nice to have a season without her frenetic choreography.

[Uke]

1 hour ago, calipiano81 said:

That's great news for Mark, katha. Though I personally wish we knew whether it came after or before DWTS decided not to have him this season.

A little google search for "Jersey Boys auditions" turned up an auditions notice posted 3/29/2016 for auditions to be held on 5/17/2016.  Mark actually performed at the Grammy Showcase in LA that day and was also in the final week of DWTS.  But this notice does give an idea of when this process likely began.  

[spanana]

I am trying not to get sucked into DWTS this season, but I think Laurie is the obvious winner on paper coming straight off the Olympics and she's just so enthusiastic and lovable.  I'm not sure how I think she looks with Val.  Yes, he's had a teenager before but that teenager was like 2x Laurie's size. 

Anyway, I say on paper because the concerns I have about Laurie are her schedule and well being.  I get strike while the iron is hot but timing wise this is a very weird decision on the part of her parents IMO.  Laurie is not a gymnast getting set to retire or taking a long break.  Unless the plans have changed, her coach very much intends for her to immediately go back into serious competition and do Worlds next year.  Weren't the Olympics her first international meet on the senior level?  That might not be the right terminology, but you get my point.  This is an athlete towards the beginning/prime of her career.

So we have a 16 year old girl, who is already working with limited hours due to labor laws, who is going to do DWTS and a full gymnastics tour at the same time (gymnastics on tour is not to competition level but still), not to mention school, press, meet & greets and travel.  I think it's fairly common for gymnasts to get injured on tour because their bodies are super tired from the increased training leading up to the Olympics, so she's putting extra stress on her body.   Which might be okay if she were going to rest post-DWTS, but she's turning around and going back into competition.  I hope it works out for her but that is a lot on an adult, let alone a kid.

We've had figure skaters do DWTS/tour before successfully but they were adults with no restrictions on hours and the nature of gymnastics is a bit different IMO.  We've had plenty of minors with limited work hours, but almost all of them were solely focused on DWTS at the time.  Plus the difference to me between Laurie and the other gymnasts that have done the show are that if she gets hurt here, she's potentially risking the rest of her gymnastics career for a silly mirrorball.  The other girls that have done the show were retired, contemplating retirement or taking long breaks from the sport.

[Dots And Stripes]

I agree, Laurie is the best celebrity on paper this season. She's extremely athletic, she's a performer, she's recently in the news, great personality and bubbly. Her schedule is a nightmare though. Aly did the show in the spring, so I'm guessing that was after any tour. She was also at least 18 and I'm also guessing done with high school. A tour, schooling, and this show is a lot. Laurie can probably handle it, but I agree she probably would have been better off waiting a couple of seasons. I very much dislike Val, so unfortunately I won't root for her no matter who she's against in the finale.

[Danseur]

When reading about why Charlie and Meryl didn't wait to do the show, the main reason for them was keeping their names in the news for the sake of endorsement contracts. But Laurie's situation, as has been pointed out, is different. Maybe her experience, quickness to learn routines and her adorability will offset the busyness/less time factors. 

As for the dreaded Rick Perry, while he's no Bill Engvall or Kellie Pickler, he does hail from that ever loyal neck of the woods where patriotic, military-admiring and southern middle aged women dwell. They cannot resist voting for one of their own.  Even if he dances like Master P, I don't think theres a snowballs chance in Hades he will go out first and I won't be surprised if he outlasts Jake, Lochte, and all the other potential first-outers. Being paired with Emma will probably add to the equation, since after all, she's Bill Engvall's adopted daughter and sweet to the bone. When a redneck is participating, ["not that there's anything wrong with that" ?] the same people who voted for Bill, Michael Waltrip, Kellie Pickler, Sadie Robertson, et al will come out of the woodwork to root for their admittedly ornery but "good ol boy." I would LOVE to be wrong but if past is prologue. . .those who are nauseated might have to endure a few weeks.

Question: Even though Marilu is a Pro dancer who can remember everything and whose heart Derek has already "Eddie Haskelled his way into" ?, did anyone else watch her on the Apprentice? IIRC, she was hyper talkative, stayed in her head too much and was excessively worried about details. She also asked way too many questions.  Does anyone else think these traits might easily and quickly irritate OCD Derek? She was sweet, high energy, creative, hard-working and tons of fun until. . .she began to grate on the laid-back, easygoing nerves of Lil Jon and Trace Adkins. Maybe it won't be an issue but from the first minute I heard about the pairing, I wondered if it would be. I adore her, by the way. But working 24/7 with someone like that could be quite a challenge. 

[iMonrey]

I'm not sure Rick Perry still has a strong following even among conservative voters after his two unsuccessful runs for the presidential nomination. So I don't think he can rely on the same kind of fanbase Bristol Palin had, and I don't think there's any equivalent to Bill Engvall's fans either. He may not be the very first to go but he'll be one of the first for sure, unless he's a surprisingly good dancer.

[spanana]

7 hours ago, Dots And Stripes said:

I agree, Laurie is the best celebrity on paper this season. She's extremely athletic, she's a performer, she's recently in the news, great personality and bubbly. Her schedule is a nightmare though. Aly did the show in the spring, so I'm guessing that was after any tour. She was also at least 18 and I'm also guessing done with high school. A tour, schooling, and this show is a lot. Laurie can probably handle it, but I agree she probably would have been better off waiting a couple of seasons. I very much dislike Val, so unfortunately I won't root for her no matter who she's against in the finale.

Aly did the spring season, so yes, post-tour.  She also didn't immediately go back to gymnastics afterwards.  She was in a position where she was contemplating whether to retire or whether to return to training, but took a nice long break.  Also Aly was 18 and had graduated high school and was much further along in her career. Even Simone Biles said she wanted to do next season because she had tour/press this season and she's planning to take at least a full year off from the sport, and she is 19 and not a minor/in school. I think I'm less concerned with Laurie keeping up with her schedule as opposed to Laurie winding up injured due to the extreme wear and tear on her body.

I don't really remember Marilu on the Apprentice, but I don't think she will have a problem with Derek.  Plus I think this is more in her wheelhouse than something like the Apprentice.  She knows how to perform. 

I actually think Amber/Maks could be funny and she probably will be pretty good, besides for her boobs maybe getting in the way.  I honestly don't really mind her and I like when Maks has partners that would call him on his crap if need be.

Jakes seems....off?  He was a cute kid on Wizards but I don't know what has happened to him.  It's like he says all the right things but he's kind of flat and dead behind the eyes.  All the promo pics of him and Jenna are hilarious because she's giving about 1000 in the energy department and he's giving about a 5.  There is a total mismatch there.

Edited September 3, 2016 by spanana

[Squirrely]

I don't know that Vanilla Ice just fits in the "rapper" category. He was on the mainstream pop stations an awful lot. People who don't have a clue who Master P is know who Vanilla Ice is. I know I wasn't the only kid who rushed to see Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 because he was in it! ;) Plus his  renovation show on DIY is pretty darned good. 

He, Laurie, and Maureen are the only reasons I'm tuning in this season. I'm honestly over this show and its stupid gimmicks, and stupid pros like Allison (poor Baby Face). But they've reeled me back in this season, and probably for the long for haul since I can't imagine Laurie going out quickly.

[Mittengirl]

If Laurie has been emancipated would that affect her allowable training time?  I have heard of child stars being emancipated to make it easier to work.

[PTVjones]

11 hours ago, Squirrely said:

I don't know that Vanilla Ice just fits in the "rapper" category. He was on the mainstream pop stations an awful lot. People who don't have a clue who Master P is know who Vanilla Ice is. I know I wasn't the only kid who rushed to see Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2 because he was in it! ;) Plus his  renovation show on DIY is pretty darned good. 

He, Laurie, and Maureen are the only reasons I'm tuning in this season. I'm honestly over this show and its stupid gimmicks, and stupid pros like Allison (poor Baby Face). But they've reeled me back in this season, and probably for the long for haul since I can't imagine Laurie going out quickly.

Vanilla Ice has definitely been able to reinvent himself through reality tv. I haven't watched any of his home improvement shows but I've always heard good things about it. I did watch The Surreal Life back in the day when he was on w/ the likes of Ron Jeremy and Tammy Faye Baker so it was a bizarre show to say the least but really paved the way of celebrity reality TV. He had a fair amount of anger issues on that show so I'm glad to see he seems to have moved past that. 

In terms of his foundation of being famous, I'd definitely put him in the rapper category. I mean... him and MC Hammer, no matter how corny they were both thought to be after their hit singles, really had a big part in making hip hop mainstream and accessible. Not just the rapping aspect of hip hop, they also made hip hop dance more mainstream as well. Also, since sampling music was/is so big in hip hop music, I'm sure his case with the "Under Pressure" sample to make "Ice Ice Baby" set a legal precedent in the music industry for how sampling could be done. I'm sure that wasn't his attention as that, on top of his perceived corniness, was pretty much the death of his career but I'd venture to say that just because he has a hugely successful rapper, doesn't make him any less of a rapper.  

[truthaboutluv]

My favorite Vanilla Ice reality television moment is when he was on The Surreal Life and went off on Ron Jeremy. Never watched the show but the clip is legendary because Vanilla Ice is crashing things, all up in Ron Jeremy's face and Ron Jeremy is just calmly sitting on a stool, arms folded looking less than impressed. 

[spanana]

12 hours ago, Mittengirl said:

If Laurie has been emancipated would that affect her allowable training time?  I have heard of child stars being emancipated to make it easier to work.

I'm not sure but I don't believe Laurie is emancipated.  

[simplyme]

I believe it depends on the state. DWTS films in CA, right? One pamphlet on child labor laws for CA that I found online said: 

"Emancipated minors are subject to all California’s child labor laws, except that they may apply for a work permit without their parents’ permission. [FC 7050] (See Chapter 3 of this digest)."

Source:

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=http://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/childlaborlawpamphlet.pdf&ved=0ahUKEwj23IbT9PPOAhVJOSYKHZVUBWUQFggbMAA&usg=AFQjCNFrQ-wcS3KV61-warj39tx9CKKnsg&sig2=X7zzHVbDM0wWPjOFRS34kA

I wouldn't consider this a definitive answer though.

[tearbender]

On 9/2/2016 at 10:59 AM, spanana said:

I am trying not to get sucked into DWTS this season, but I think Laurie is the obvious winner on paper coming straight off the Olympics and she's just so enthusiastic and lovable.  I'm not sure how I think she looks with Val.  Yes, he's had a teenager before but that teenager was like 2x Laurie's size. 

Anyway, I say on paper because the concerns I have about Laurie are her schedule and well being.  I get strike while the iron is hot but timing wise this is a very weird decision on the part of her parents IMO.  Laurie is not a gymnast getting set to retire or taking a long break.  Unless the plans have changed, her coach very much intends for her to immediately go back into serious competition and do Worlds next year.  Weren't the Olympics her first international meet on the senior level?  That might not be the right terminology, but you get my point.  This is an athlete towards the beginning/prime of her career.

So we have a 16 year old girl, who is already working with limited hours due to labor laws, who is going to do DWTS and a full gymnastics tour at the same time (gymnastics on tour is not to competition level but still), not to mention school, press, meet & greets and travel.  I think it's fairly common for gymnasts to get injured on tour because their bodies are super tired from the increased training leading up to the Olympics, so she's putting extra stress on her body.   Which might be okay if she were going to rest post-DWTS, but she's turning around and going back into competition.  I hope it works out for her but that is a lot on an adult, let alone a kid.

We've had figure skaters do DWTS/tour before successfully but they were adults with no restrictions on hours and the nature of gymnastics is a bit different IMO.  We've had plenty of minors with limited work hours, but almost all of them were solely focused on DWTS at the time.  Plus the difference to me between Laurie and the other gymnasts that have done the show are that if she gets hurt here, she's potentially risking the rest of her gymnastics career for a silly mirrorball.  The other girls that have done the show were retired, contemplating retirement or taking long breaks from the sport.

I think health-wise Laurie doing DWTS and the tour is ill advised, but career wise, I can see why her management (same as Shawn Johnson's) might encourage her to do both right away. Simone Biles has essentially committed to next season in the spring, so there's that chance gone for Laurie. Laurie's gone pro, and while she became a bit of a star on social media through these games, it's important that she keeps her name in the public eye and strike while the iron is hot for more potential endorsement deals.

What worries me is that the gymnastics tour just seems not very safe or well put together. I know Mckayla Maroney got injured on the tour in 2012, and I believe Aly did too. Like I think the gymnasts were landing on mats set on concrete. I hope USAG or whoever is in charge of the tour takes the gymnasts' safety into greater consideration this year. The one positive is that it seems the tour is a bit flexible and some athletes aren't required ore expected to perform in every city.

[spanana]

2 hours ago, tearbender said:

I think health-wise Laurie doing DWTS and the tour is ill advised, but career wise, I can see why her management (same as Shawn Johnson's) might encourage her to do both right away. Simone Biles has essentially committed to next season in the spring, so there's that chance gone for Laurie. Laurie's gone pro, and while she became a bit of a star on social media through these games, it's important that she keeps her name in the public eye and strike while the iron is hot for more potential endorsement deals.

What worries me is that the gymnastics tour just seems not very safe or well put together. I know Mckayla Maroney got injured on the tour in 2012, and I believe Aly did too. Like I think the gymnasts were landing on mats set on concrete. I hope USAG or whoever is in charge of the tour takes the gymnasts' safety into greater consideration this year. The one positive is that it seems the tour is a bit flexible and some athletes aren't required ore expected to perform in every city.

I agree with you.  It does make sense entertainment biz careerwise in terms of trying to get and keep her name out there post Olympics, but I guess I'm just thinking about what happens if injuries deter the rest her gymnastics career due to taking improper care of herself now.  I don't know that it makes sense gymnastics career wise.  But I have no idea what is or isn't important to Laurie and her family, so I'll wish her the best and leave it at that.  Also from what I read, she actually signed up for DWTS before the Rio Olympics (which is why she went pro right before the Olympics) so DWTS lucked out that she had a successful showing.

Aly didn't get injured on tour.  Both McKayla Maroney and Jordyn Wieber got injured on the 2012 tour, and yes, I think it's a combo of in some cases extreme exhaustion/already being somewhat injured and unsafe venues.  I don't remember what entirely happened with Jordyn, but I'm pretty sure McKayla was already injured to some extent at the Olympics and the unsafe tour environment just exacerbated her issues.  I also don't think it's entirely a co-incidence that the two girls that took a long break after the 2012 Olympics were the ones that were able to mount successful comebacks in the sport and the ones that didn't all basically burned out due to injury.

In terms of child labor laws, California has the toughest.  Unsurprisingly.

[legaleagle53]

1 hour ago, spanana said:

In terms of child labor laws, California has the toughest.  Unsurprisingly.

Of course it does.  Those laws were drafted and passed specifically with child performers in mind.

[iMonrey]

I don't know that doing the tour and DWTS at the same time is all that "dangerous" for Laurie. She's in peak physical condition (to say the least) and doesn't have to train as hard for the gymnastics tour as she did for the Olympics, or for the world championships. Training for DTWS has got to be a piece of cake for an Olympic gymnast. Plus kids that age have energy to spare. 

[ItsHelloPattiagain]

So  - a request for the mods - if/when we have a Laurie Hernandez thread - can you call her "the Human Emoji"?!??!

[Uke]

25 minutes ago, ItsHelloPattiagain said:

So  - a request for the mods - if/when we have a Laurie Hernandez thread - can you call her "the Human Emoji"?!??!

There already is a thread for Laurie:

"Laurie Hernandez - Balancing on her Toes"

You just need to scroll down a bit 

[ItsHelloPattiagain]

D'oh! I see it now! Thanks! 

[crossover]

On 8/31/2016 at 11:53 AM, simplyme said:

I don't really understand the "Sharna always gets winners" theory.

 

Well, it looks like James will be a good contestant.  Plus he's attractive.  I think Laurie will win.  But, as long as he continues his week 1 performance and he and Sharna get along, he should make the top 3.  I felt like if they gave him to Sharna, there must be something there.  TPTB are really transparent.

[OnceSane]

We don't do politics here, y'all.  Move on.