S24: Heather Morris - Dancing Her Way To The Mirrorball?

[Beatrice]

Aside from all the technicalities and differences of opinion, this is exactly what the show wanted casting her. Every single dance, every single SM post has this same debate over and over. The show gets to have all this attention and online activity and with her not winning they get away not getting the ultimate backlash. Pretty smart. Sucks for Heather the show giving her middle placement every week, getting jazz you know that will be made a bid deal. It's certainly interesting to see how the show is playing this.

It's weird to me that Nancy and Heather are getting such similar treatment though. I don't get why they are doing it to Nancy.

[shantown]

42 minutes ago, RedFiat said:

Interesting that she quit dance since she was very happy to dance on that show, and the Glee choreographer gave her bits and pieces to choreograph on the show. I do not believe for a second she ever quit dancing.

You can stop doing something as a job without stopping the activity forever. 

Does Heather Morris have more dance experience than the majority of DWTS contestants? Yes. Does this give her an advantage on the show? In some ways, yes. In other ways it puts her at a disadvantage. This isn't 100% a dance competition, it's also a popularity contest. Not sucking at dancing helps, but you've also gotta be able to produce an image that endears people to you and keeps them tuning in, and also have a large enough fanbase that will actually vote for you. ABC isn't looking for a strictly dancing competition. They're looking for ratings and money. They're also manipulating the dances and the scores and elements of the show to create ratings and make more money.

Some viewers are acting like putting Heather Morris on this show is violating some sort of federal dance law and it just ain't that serious.

[Venee]

On 4/14/2017 at 11:09 AM, RedFiat said:

To insist Heather is  simply a natural talent is to negate all her training, and this isn't SYTYCD which celebrates as much training as you can get, its DWTS which celebrates popularity despite any training. SYTYCD tries to ferret out the naturals and give them an easier ride, but eventually their lack of training betrays them and they never win. Nigel has tried to get these so called naturals a win, the so called LeRoys from Fame the guys from out of nowhere the opportunity to win the whole enchilada, but you find out later that phenoms like Russell or Joshua  have been training dance styles for years, but since there was a rawness to their dancing it was considered no prior training. But here, on DWTS Rashad is popular not only because of his sport, although as a free agent he does not have an organized fan base like David, he's demonstrated a natural ability and talent that Emma could never teach. The audience gets to see this first hand, his lack of technical ballroom and latin training but they also see his ability.  And there are those with simply talent and not much of any prior training who have won this show.  We can not measure Heather by that standard because she has been training dance for pretty much her entire life.  We assume there is natural ability there because of all the jobs in professional dance she has done. Any professional dancer who makes their living dancing must have dance talent.  It is like David having natural baseball talent. To use a baseball analogy she has not been plucked up from the Dominican Republic as a 16 year old with a helluva pitching arm. She is far from being a raw talent. Her dance movement has been carefully crafted over years of training. 

I didn't specify Heather. I'm pointing out the erroneous idea in my opinion and experience)  that all trained dancers are great because they're trained. I'm not so hot on Rashad like others.  He has the dance skills of many of the guys you see in clubs who have rhythm and swag. He's the best of these men, but I find James (from last season) to be in another league, and what I would consider a definite natural.

Edited April 18, 2017 by Venee
spelling error

[RedFiat]

4 hours ago, shantown said:

You can stop doing something as a job without stopping the activity forever. 

Does Heather Morris have more dance experience than the majority of DWTS contestants? Yes. Does this give her an advantage on the show? In some ways, yes. In other ways it puts her at a disadvantage. This isn't 100% a dance competition, it's also a popularity contest. Not sucking at dancing helps, but you've also gotta be able to produce an image that endears people to you and keeps them tuning in, and also have a large enough fanbase that will actually vote for you. ABC isn't looking for a strictly dancing competition. They're looking for ratings and money. They're also manipulating the dances and the scores and elements of the show to create ratings and make more money.

Some viewers are acting like putting Heather Morris on this show is violating some sort of federal dance law and it just ain't that serious.

I could care less about Heather I just think it's pretty desperate that a professional has to dance against rank amateurs to feel relevant 

4 hours ago, Venee said:

I didn't specify Heather. I'm pointing out the erroneous idea in my opinion and experience)  that all trained dancers are great because their trained. I'm not so hot on Rashad like others.  He has the dance skills of many of the guys you see in clubs who have rhythm and swag. He's the best of these men, but I find James (from last season) to be in another league, and what I would consider a definite natural.

I loved James but his injury made him have limitations in terms of movement. He was an incredible dancer however. Hip action wasn't a strong suit, and lifts were leveraged.  Rashad is almost the mirror opporsite in terms of his movement hip action and strength are pretty spectacular but his foot placement and awareness is not in the same league as James. Both are naturals but in different aspects of dance 

[shantown]

40 minutes ago, RedFiat said:

I could care less about Heather I just think it's pretty desperate that a professional has to dance against rank amateurs to feel relevant 

I loved James but his injury made him have limitations in terms of movement. He was an incredible dancer however. Hip action wasn't a strong suit, and lifts were leveraged.  Rashad is almost the mirror opporsite in terms of his movement hip action and strength are pretty spectacular but his foot placement and awareness is not in the same league as James. Both are naturals but in different aspects of dance 

I'm guessing the producers asked her to be on, not the other way around. How is that desperate? 

[RedFiat]

Seriously. Lots of people have been asked.  Everyone from George Clooney to Bill Clinton. The vast majority  who have been asked don't do the show because they don't need to.  So if I was a professional dancer needing to do this show,  I would do it on a professional level, as a guest performer or a judge, not as a contestant.  

[shantown]

28 minutes ago, RedFiat said:

Seriously. Lots of people have been asked.  Everyone from George Clooney to Bill Clinton. The vast majority  who have been asked don't do the show because they don't need to.  So if I was a professional dancer needing to do this show,  I would do it on a professional level, as a guest performer or a judge, not as a contestant.  

If I was a famous person who got asked to do it, and it fit in my schedule I totally would. Why not? It's bound to be somewhat fun (Heather and Alan look like they're not miserable in social media posts, as do other participants) and you make money. Sometimes you do things because you want to, not because you need to.

[RedFiat]

7 minutes ago, shantown said:

If I was a famous person who got asked to do it, and it fit in my schedule I totally would. Why not? It's bound to be somewhat fun (Heather and Alan look like they're not miserable in social media posts, as do other participants) and you make money. Sometimes you do things because you want to, not because you need to.

You forgot to mention professional dancer.  She's not really that famous.  She needs this show more than the show needs her. 

Edited April 15, 2017 by RedFiat

[Beatrice]

58 minutes ago, RedFiat said:

You forgot to mention professional dancer.  She's not really that famous.  She needs this show more than the show needs her. 

That's true of 99% of the people on this show.

Edited April 15, 2017 by Beatrice

[calipiano81]

9 hours ago, shantown said:

Does Heather Morris have more dance experience than the majority of DWTS contestants? Yes. Does this give her an advantage on the show? In some ways, yes. In other ways it puts her at a disadvantage. This isn't 100% a dance competition, it's also a popularity contest. Not sucking at dancing helps, but you've also gotta be able to produce an image that endears people to you and keeps them tuning in, and also have a large enough fanbase that will actually vote for you. ABC isn't looking for a strictly dancing competition. They're looking for ratings and money. They're also manipulating the dances and the scores and elements of the show to create ratings and make more money.

I agree. All of the arguments and complaints for Heather being the biggest ringer in DWTS history seem moot to me because, these days, dancing is the least important element in winning the show. It ranks way behind things like personality/likeability, fanbase, inspirational story, and connection with the main DWTS demographic (older, conservative women). And in fact, the more dance experience a contestant has (and is made known), the more he/she has to compensate in those other areas

Edited April 15, 2017 by calipiano81

[crossover]

8 hours ago, RedFiat said:

Seriously. Lots of people have been asked.  Everyone from George Clooney to Bill Clinton. The vast majority  who have been asked don't do the show because they don't need to.  So if I was a professional dancer needing to do this show,  I would do it on a professional level, as a guest performer or a judge, not as a contestant.  

Call me materialistic but I would do whichever pay the most.  I'm assuming a contestant who stays 4-6 weeks (low end for a ringer), would earn more than a guest judge or guest performer.  They would probably guest for a week or two.  Besides, they are not or no longer prominent in the entertainment industry.  So TPTB aren't "waving" money in their face to appear on the show.

[RedFiat]

That's not the point. Either you have integrity or you don't.  David or Rashad wouldn't play pee wee football and baseball,  Simone and Nancy wouldn't compete against novices in skating or gymnastics... there is no reason why a pro dancer should get a by .  

Edited April 15, 2017 by RedFiat

[Beatrice]

She's not a professional ballroom dancer though. It's like Rashad going to try and play baseball. Since he's an athlete it would help but he's still not a baseball player. There have been so many contestants with dance experience and a couple that even had ballroom experience. I don't get the continuing talk about Heather. I guess because it's clear she so good. She's not going to win anyway so that should help some people out.

[shantown]

Oh geeze, it's a reality TV show set around C-list celebrities dancing. It's meant to be fun. Who cares which celebrities they ask or why? You talk about integrity like this is a show to decide the fate of someone's life and someone will literally die if a former professional dancer participates. It ain't that serious.

[RedFiat]

2 minutes ago, Beatrice said:

She's not a professional ballroom dancer though. It's like Rashad going to try and play baseball. Since he's an athlete it would help but he's still not a baseball player. There have been so many contestants with dance experience and a couple that even had ballroom experience. I don't get the continuing talk about Heather. I guess because it's clear she so good. She's not going to win anyway so that should help some people out.

No it's not like Rashad going to play baseball,  it's more like Canadian football rules vs. Us football rules.  It takes a bit of time for American players to get the hang of it, but when they do they absolutely blow the competition away. And I don't want to talk about Heather  People just keep saying stupid stuff like she's not a "ballroom" dancer. As if that suddenly absolves her from any professional training.    

[Toonces464]

23 minutes ago, Beatrice said:

There have been so many contestants with dance experience and a couple that even had ballroom experience. 

There is a huge difference between having dance experience and being a professional dancer. I don't know why people keep making excuses for Heather by saying others have had dance experience or she's not trained in ballroom to justify her being on the show. She danced backup for Beyonce and got paid for it. She's a professional dancer. She should not be on the show as a contestant. The end.

[RedFiat]

5 minutes ago, Toonces464 said:

She should not be on the show as a contestant. The end.

Agree. Imagine if Travis Wall came on the show as a "contestant"  But then again he's an Emmy award winning choreographer. He doesn't need to compete against people who are not in his league.

[shantown]

Well, the producers of the show asked her to be on (as a participant, not a judge or a coach or a backup dancer or anything), so they're obviously not as worried about it. I'm rooting for Heather because I like her. And Simone Biles. Even though Heather was a dancer and Simone won a gold medal for an event that is based on rhythmic movements set to music. It's fun entertainment.

Also, I'd still watch David Ross participate in some sort of Celebrity Home Run Derby with a variety of other non-baseball celebrities even though he played baseball (as a catcher) because it's to watch celebrities doing some sort activity together, not to actually decide who is the best amateur home run hitter.

[RedFiat]

That's a whole lotta bullshit.  People would watch professionals against professionals, and call bullshit when it's pros against amateurs.

22 minutes ago, shantown said:

Also, I'd still watch David Ross participate in some sort of Celebrity Home Run Derby with a variety of other non-baseball celebrities even though he played baseball (as a catcher) because it's to watch celebrities doing some sort activity together, not to actually decide who is the best amateur home run hitter.

23 minutes ago, shantown said:

Well, the producers of the show asked her to be on (as a participant, not a judge or a coach or a backup dancer or anything), so they're obviously not as worried about it.

They put her on to cause controversy, nothing else.  

[shantown]

1 minute ago, RedFiat said:

That's a whole lotta bullshit.  People would watch professionals against professionals, and call bullshit when it's pros against amateurs.

Well 10.31 million people watched on Monday and it was the 2nd highest rated show of the night, so the majority seem to disagree with this point.
(source: TVbytheNumbers)

[RedFiat]

Only 10.31 million?  Man that's low.  When Emmitt Smith won they had almost 30 million viewers.  The show has really lost it's edge.  Bringing in  a pro dancer has done nothing to change that.

[Beatrice]

29 minutes ago, shantown said:

Well, the producers of the show asked her to be on (as a participant, not a judge or a coach or a backup dancer or anything), so they're obviously not as worried about it. I'm rooting for Heather because I like her. And Simone Biles. Even though Heather was a dancer and Simone won a gold medal for an event that is based on rhythmic movements set to music. It's fun entertainment.

Also, I'd still watch David Ross participate in some sort of Celebrity Home Run Derby with a variety of other non-baseball celebrities even though he played baseball (as a catcher) because it's to watch celebrities doing some sort activity together, not to actually decide who is the best amateur home run hitter.

That's what the celebrity basketball game is during all star weekend. They have professional women's players, retired male players and celebrities play together. I think they do a celebrity softball game but I'm getting way OT.

I'm rooting for Heather as well, not to win I'm realistic about who's winning, but to just make it as far as possible. Also rooting for Nancy and really anyone who the show is not shoving down my throat.

[RedFiat]

9 minutes ago, RedFiat said:

I'd still watch David Ross participate in some sort of Celebrity Home Run Derby with a variety of other non-baseball celebrities even though he played baseball (as a catcher) because it's to watch celebrities doing some sort activity together, 

People would only watch this if David was doing it for charity.  Heather, obviously is not. 

1 minute ago, Beatrice said:

That's what the celebrity basketball game is during all star weekend. They have professional women's players, retired male players and celebrities play together. I think they do a celebrity softball game but I'm getting way OT.

For Charity.  Not for pay like Morris.

[Beatrice]

1 minute ago, RedFiat said:

People would only watch this if David was doing it for charity.  Heather, obviously is not. 

For Charity.  Not for pay like Morris.

I wasn't comparing the two. I was just responding to shantown that there are events like that.

[RedFiat]

4 minutes ago, Beatrice said:

I wasn't comparing the two. I was just responding to shantown that there are events like that.

Sure, but getting paid is a big reason why Morris is doing this show.  Otherwise I doubt she'd compete against novices.  David and Rashad for sure wouldn't. 

Edited April 15, 2017 by RedFiat

[shantown]

RedFiat, I'm genuinely curious as to why you care so much? The majority of your posts are about how much you hate Heather Morris and her being on this show. I'm assuming you're not being forced to watch the show, so why the obsession over it?

I admit I am new to this show within the last couple seasons. I didn't watch 11 years ago when Emmitt Smith won. I didn't watch in those early few seasons when it was apparently focused much more on being a strictly ballroom-based dance competition versus now (based on discussions with other posters). But it's reality TV, and you seem incredibly affronted by the show. Just wondering why.

ETA: Getting paid is a big reason why they're all doing it. David and Rashad included. 

Edited April 15, 2017 by shantown

[RedFiat]

I don't hate Heather, I am amused that you think you have to defend a pro dancer when she clearly should be on a show where pros compete against each other.  That's not hate, that's trying to be a bit fair in an unfair process.

Edited April 15, 2017 by RedFiat

[shantown]

1 minute ago, RedFiat said:

I don't hate Heather, I am amused that you think you have to defend a pro dancer when she clearly should be on a show where pros compete against each other. 

Okay, sure, I'm defending the show for asking Heather Morris, a former professional dancer, to participate and defending Heather herself from accepting the offer. It still doesn't answer my question why you've made 20+ posts in this thread alone rallying against that. 

[McManda]

59 minutes ago, RedFiat said:

Only 10.31 million?  Man that's low.  When Emmitt Smith won they had almost 30 million viewers.  The show has really lost it's edge.  Bringing in  a pro dancer has done nothing to change that.

Let's not forget, Emmitt Smith did the show 10 years ago when it was relatively new and novel. Shows tend to decline with age. Not to mention, network tv as a whole is on the decline. (For reference, NCIS was the most watched show the week of April 3rd. It got 13.8 million viewers, according to Nielsen.)

There's more to it than just Heather or the show losing edge.

[Toonces464]

1 hour ago, shantown said:

RedFiat, I'm genuinely curious as to why you care so much? The majority of your posts are about how much you hate Heather Morris and her being on this show. I'm assuming you're not being forced to watch the show, so why the obsession over it?

I admit I am new to this show within the last couple seasons. I didn't watch 11 years ago when Emmitt Smith won. I didn't watch in those early few seasons when it was apparently focused much more on being a strictly ballroom-based dance competition versus now (based on discussions with other posters). But it's reality TV, and you seem incredibly affronted by the show. Just wondering why.

ETA: Getting paid is a big reason why they're all doing it. David and Rashad included. 

I think you'll find very few people who have watched the show longer than just the last couple seasons who are okay with a professional dancer being cast as a contestant. 

[Toonces464]

1 hour ago, RedFiat said:

They put her on to cause controversy, nothing else.  

I think they also put her on the get Maks back after he refused to travel with Normani. They needed a "sure thing" to get him back in order to play out the Chmerkovskiy fam storyline they wanted and it wasn't until after Maks accepted that they all realized this wasn't sitting well with the audience and, when added to Heather's personality and lack of connecting with the audience, she likely wasn't going to win.

[SnarkyTart]

15 minutes ago, Toonces464 said:

I think you'll find very few people who have watched the show longer than just the last couple seasons who are okay with a professional dancer being cast as a contestant. 

I've watched every season of DWTS, beginning with season 1.  I'm okay with Heather being on the show.  Especially since the show disclosed her professional dance background, and more than once via Len's pointed snarkiness. 

I did find it strange that the show never disclosed that Hough cousin, Ryker Lynch (season 20 contestant) had not only competed in championship ballroom dancing, but that he had competed against DWTS pros Lindsay and Witney.  I recall some online flack about him being a ringer, but not nearly as much as has been directed at Heather Morris.  BTW, I was okay with Ryker being a contestant on the show too.  I'm here for the entertainment value of the show, especially if it's derived from really good dancing. 

[realdancemom]

I watched a few episodes of Season 1 but I wasn't a regular viewer.  It's because the few dances that I did see were horrible.  I admit that I do watch for good dancing.  I became a regular viewer during Nicole's and Evan's season.  The reason why I tuned in was because of those two who were considered ringers.  

I also don't take this show too seriously.  It's an entertainment show more than a dance competition.  As others pointed out, there are so many reasons why people vote.  It's why I think David will last longer than Heather.

The change that I don't like are the pro dances that are just bump and grind stripper moves.  They are more talented than that and should be doing amazing ballroom routines.   Just go to any Zumba class and you can see plenty of people that can bump and grind.  It doesn't take too much talent to do that.

[RedFiat]

3 hours ago, SnarkyTart said:

I recall some online flack about him being a ringer, but not nearly as much as has been directed at Heather Morris. 

I wasn't happy about him not disclosing his ringerdom, but it wasn't widely known.  Morris is a celebrity because of her dancing, not despite it.  

[gimmeegimmeegim]

The dog in the back seat.

Trying to jump into the front, s.

Run, Heath

[Lady Calypso]

So, for me, Heather has no chance in winning. The fact is that people are going to want others to win over her, no matter if she's a professional dancer or not. There's a lot of excellent competition for her this season and at best, she'll get to fourth place. For me, she may have been a professional dancer, but I do think most people just associate her as that actress from Glee. I think that's part of why they brought her on as a contestant. It may still be unfair that she was cast as a contestant instead of a professional dancer, and I can see where the anger comes from, but I do think it eases things a bit when you realize she won't be winning. 

I personally would rather a bunch of Heathers than a bunch of Chris Kattans or a bunch of Bonner Boltons. Those men may have the ability to show growth, but you can just tell that they'll remain subpar. Heather, on the other hand, still isn't perfect and she still has a lot of growth as a dancer. Her dances so far have not been as spectacular as Normani's or Rashad's. They're great, but not amazing where the anger toward her being a ringer is backed up.  

She also doesn't have as much spark as others like David, so the votes won't really go her way. She just doesn't have the fanbase so she'll most definitely go out in the middle of the pack. I think that they never wanted her to win; they just wanted a contestant who could scare the others into doing better. 

Plus, they have their star in Normani, as all I can see them doing is using her Fifth Harmony fame to boost their show.  

Also, it may not mean all that much, but Heather hasn't been dancing professionally since before Glee, so it's been eight years. So she may have become a celebrity through her dancing, but I do think she's mostly known for being an actress now. Also, it looks like she hasn't done any partner dancing in a professional setting, so I do think it also adds to why she deserves to be there as a contestant. 

[OnceSane]

This thread is for discussing Heather.  Take the ratings talk elsewhere, preferably here.

[Irlandesa]

11 hours ago, Toonces464 said:

I think you'll find very few people who have watched the show longer than just the last couple seasons who are okay with a professional dancer being cast as a contestant. 

While I haven't watched every season all the way through, I have watched this show since the beginning.  I think it has less to do with "purists" or "originalists" but rather differences in opinion.  As an early viewer, I liked when it was all ballroom.  I'm sure there are people who watched from the beginning that like the introduction of other dance styles.  I'm sure there are early viewers who wish we could go back to the days of bitching that former boy band member Drew Lachay had too much experience.  But again, as an early viewer, I'm fine with those with dance experience. I rooted for Nick, Meryl Davis, Alfonso Ribeiro (danced on Broadway), Marilu Henner (danced in her younger days and I believe choreographed), Valerie Harper (danced on Broadway)...etc.  I like to watch good dancing whether that means someone has experience in their past or just has rhythm.  I believe the fact that the winner is based on unpredictable external factors and the show does try to even things out with the more experienced dancers is the reason why.

In addition, if profession is being paid to dance, there are a tons more contestants who would fit into that description.  Heck, it'd fit all the contestants now that they're being paid...to dance.

12 hours ago, Beatrice said:

That's what the celebrity basketball game is during all star weekend. They have professional women's players, retired male players and celebrities play together. I think they do a celebrity softball game but I'm getting way OT.

There are also Pro Am golf tournaments. 

[RedFiat]

35 minutes ago, Irlandesa said:

While I haven't watched every season all the way through, I have watched this show since the beginning.  I think it has less to do with "purists" or "originalists" but rather differences in opinion.  As an early viewer, I liked when it was all ballroom.  I'm sure there are people who watched from the beginning that like the introduction of other dance styles.  I'm sure there are early viewers who wish we could go back to the days of bitching that former boy band member Drew Lachay had too much experience.  But again, as an early viewer, I'm fine with those with dance experience. I rooted for Nick, Meryl Davis, Alfonso Ribeiro (danced on Broadway), Marilu Henner (danced in her younger days and I believe choreographed), Valerie Harper (danced on Broadway)...etc.  I like to watch good dancing whether that means someone has experience in their past or just has rhythm.  I believe the fact that the winner is based on unpredictable external factors and the show does try to even things out with the more experienced dancers is the reason why.

In addition, if profession is being paid to dance, there are a tons more contestants who would fit into that description.  Heck, it'd fit all the contestants now that they're being paid...to dance.

There are also Pro Am golf tournaments. 

This isn't a Pro Am,  this is people with all sorts of ability on the same show going for the same mirrorball.  You've got Pro Pro and the rest are Amateurs.  I don't care if people have dance experience, there have been a number, but this person is a paid professional dancer. Huge difference. It was uncool when Corbin was teaching his teacher Karina jazz and it's uncool now. 

Edited April 16, 2017 by RedFiat

[dizzyizzy01]

This is a TV show first and foremost, and the producers are creating a cast they think will be compelling to different facets of the audience.  Heather fit the bill for a tv star that has decent name recognition that is also available/willing to appear on the show.  She just also happens to be a really good dancer with more dance experience than most.  This show is cast for entertainment purposes.  It isn't meant to be some pure contest of dance talent/skills.  

The talk of fair or not fair always seems bizarre to me cause it's not a real competition.  Otherwise we'd have real rules and consistent scoring.  Even if you exclude Heather from the conversation, I mean do people think a competition featuring 50 year old SNL star with a severe back injury and a 20 year-old pop star is fair? 

[McManda]

Then it's a good thing that dancing isn't a contact sport (like boxing) and that each contestant is judged against themselves and not each other.

[dirtydi]

I think Heather is on the show to get back on the entertainment radar.  I don't think she will be majorly upset when she doesn't win.

[RedFiat]

But the truth is when you have the same dance style you will be judged against the other team that has the same dance style. And since people aren't interested in what it takes to be a dancer , that's just a boring detail, they will just judge what looks good, and that will be the pro with 29 years of making Jazz look good. They will be better than the teacher and certainly better than the competition. Corbin made Karina and Whitney look like they didn't even belong on the show. And Whitney had jazz training. She looked pathetic He looked like the pro and the pros looked like why the hell is the show paying you? 

Edited April 16, 2017 by RedFiat

[shantown]

I'm wondering which part of the "For the First Time in Forever" song they'll use - there's a faster part and a slower part in the actual song and then at the end it's kind of a mashup with some of the lyrics from "Let it Go." Will be interesting to see what they go for. I'm just glad they're not actually using Let It Go.

[vibeology]

19 hours ago, dirtydi said:

I think Heather is on the show to get back on the entertainment radar.  I don't think she will be majorly upset when she doesn't win.

Agreed. She wants to act but is defined by Glee and hasn't really been working since because of her family commitments. This is a launching pad to get her back in the public eye and hopefully help get her work going forward. I would guess that's why she would have agreed to be on the show. The money is nice, but I don't honestly believe most celebrities on the show are there for the money. It's nice and people obviously want to get paid for their time, but the show seems to be more about raising your profile rather than making money. There are easier ways as a celebrity to make money than participating in a show like this where you have to put in work, learn new dances and perform for a judgy audience week after week. What the show is good for is getting a personable contestant the next big job.

So yes, Heather is clearly a trained dancer and this week she's been given a style she's trained to do. It's happened before on the show and it will happen again. (I gave up on the idea that this show was for amateurs when they pimped Nicole and Derek to the win. At this point I figure you know the show is happy to cast people who are trained dancers and either you go with it or you stop watching the show.) It's one week and I honestly don't think people vote just on the dances. People vote for who they like, they vote based on pros, they vote based on personal stories, they vote based on being impressed by the production or liking a dance style or song or many other reasons. I honestly don't think it matters that Heather is a dancer. That's hurt her with a section of the audience and it's probably helped her with another section. She's probably going to have a great week this week, but I also don't think that's going to come at the expense of anyone who shouldn't be going home anyhow. We are still looking at some weak dancers who don't seem to generate much positive online buzz like Erika, Nick and Bonner who seem more likely to go home than a few of the others.

19 hours ago, shantown said:

I'm wondering which part of the "For the First Time in Forever" song they'll use - there's a faster part and a slower part in the actual song and then at the end it's kind of a mashup with some of the lyrics from "Let it Go." Will be interesting to see what they go for. I'm just glad they're not actually using Let It Go.

I re-listened to For the First Time in Forever and it's actually a strange song so I too am curious to see how they work with it. It's very much a story song and I think getting it right and making it more than just a pantomime of the lyrics is going to be tough.

[Beatrice]

On 4/15/2017 at 5:29 PM, Lady Calypso said:

So, for me, Heather has no chance in winning. The fact is that people are going to want others to win over her, no matter if she's a professional dancer or not. There's a lot of excellent competition for her this season and at best, she'll get to fourth place. For me, she may have been a professional dancer, but I do think most people just associate her as that actress from Glee. I think that's part of why they brought her on as a contestant. It may still be unfair that she was cast as a contestant instead of a professional dancer, and I can see where the anger comes from, but I do think it eases things a bit when you realize she won't be winning.

I hope she makes it to fourth place at least. She is for sure not winning. After this week I'm worried for every week after she'll get eliminated. I just need to see her free style. I'm ok with Maks sitting out her free style if she makes it that far. :) Give us a solo, maybe some of her friends backing her up.

[realdancemom]

1 hour ago, Beatrice said:

I hope she makes it to fourth place at least. She is for sure not winning. After this week I'm worried for every week after she'll get eliminated. I just need to see her free style. I'm ok with Maks sitting out her free style if she makes it that far. :) Give us a solo, maybe some of her friends backing her up.

I'm actually guessing she'll be in fifth or sixth.  As I previously mentioned, I think the top four will be Normani, Simone, David and Rashad.   I think Heather and Nancy will be fighting for fifth and sixth position.  Heather has her Glee fans while Nancy fits the DWTS demographic which tends to be older.  It's too bad because I would love to see freestyles from both Heather and Nancy.  OTOH, sometimes the freestyles are not as special because the regular dances can also be big productions.  For example, I like Ryker's Jack Sparrow dance more than his freestyle.  I was disappointed in Nick's BSB freestyle because he already did a BSB dance.  I could give a lot of other examples. 

[Beatrice]

2 minutes ago, realdancemom said:

I'm actually guessing she'll be in fifth or sixth.  As I previously mentioned, I think the top four will be Normani, Simone, David and Rashad.   I think Heather and Nancy will be fighting for fifth and sixth position.  Heather has her Glee fans while Nancy fits the DWTS demographic which tends to be older.  It's too bad because I would love to see freestyles from both Heather and Nancy.  OTOH, sometimes the freestyles are not as special because the regular dances can also be big productions.  For example, I like Ryker's Jack Sparrow dance more than his freestyle.  I was disappointed in Nick's BSB freestyle because he already did a BSB dance.  I could give a lot of other examples. 

I'm disappointed because my favorites and Heather and Nancy. I'm hoping David somehow falls out and one of them can sneak in. The other three are complete locks.

[vibeology]

6 minutes ago, realdancemom said:

I'm actually guessing she'll be in fifth or sixth.  As I previously mentioned, I think the top four will be Normani, Simone, David and Rashad.   I think Heather and Nancy will be fighting for fifth and sixth position.  Heather has her Glee fans while Nancy fits the DWTS demographic which tends to be older.  It's too bad because I would love to see freestyles from both Heather and Nancy.  OTOH, sometimes the freestyles are not as special because the regular dances can also be big productions.  For example, I like Ryker's Jack Sparrow dance more than his freestyle.  I was disappointed in Nick's BSB freestyle because he already did a BSB dance.  I could give a lot of other examples. 

I'm consoling myself with the hope that if Heather doesn't make the finale and do a freestyle, she probably will get to do some other dance on the finale results night without being held back by Maks' poor freestyle choreography. Just put her with the troupe and let her hip-hop to whatever song they want! They have to fill those two hours somehow! I feel like not making it means we're going to see Heather cut loose and do what she does best.

[Beatrice]

Just now, vibeology said:

I'm consoling myself with the hope that if Heather doesn't make the finale and do a freestyle, she probably will get to do some other dance on the finale results night without being held back by Maks' poor freestyle choreography. Just put her with the troupe and let her hip-hop to whatever song they want! They have to fill those two hours somehow! I feel like not making it means we're going to see Heather cut loose and do what she does best.

Yes please! They are bound to have musical guests, let her dance during those performances. I laugh that we are already talking like she is eliminated. This show is nothing if not predictable.