I've survived a string of performances this weekend, with varied results. Momentum at Republic Polytechnic went well. We restaged Four Short Stories about Boys and Girls from last year's The Next Wave. It was fun summoning my inner Joo Teng with attendant kooky faces. My stamina was always awful in the last minute of the item; I'd either hack like an old man in Zhining's face or whoop multiple times at Rachel. Since there was no water hanging around the stage, swallowing my own saliva mid-item did the trick on the last night. The concert was 16 items long, and my two favourites were from SAJC, with strong dude dancers and beautiful, genius blocking by Zaki, and RP Hip Hop, led by Gin and Larry Liu, with the forest-of-freezes opening, the rocking Focus Pon Me reggae segment, and the explosive Touch Me conclusion.
The morning after was the Circle Line show at Bishan. We were under-rehearsed, especially with the new blocking for the stage whose strange dimensions we should have known before-hand. But still it was great fun with the guys, and I wish I could have stayed on. After a final rehearsal with Qitang and Xu Zi at AS7, I collected Clement's speakers from his room and lugged it all about Holland Village and Orchard Road. Because they were in a plastic bag with a broken handle, I felt like Frank McCourt carrying the pig's head in Angela's Ashes, only with less humour and a lot more impatience. I got a linen-jute bag in replacement; hope it lasts! The haphazard trek from Dhoby Ghaut was draining, and so the air-conditioning of UE Square was great relief. I hid out in the third storey to cool, change, wash, write and sort, before heading down to the party. Ellen looked stunning as usual. The surprise performance was quite successful, numerous screw-ups notwithstanding. A couple of runs right before would have helped, but I still wouldn't be prepared for the proximity and the distractions of the audience. I'm really grateful Xu Zi got us to be a part of the item. I loved his choreo, and thoroughly enjoyed dancing it. I'd missed funk so much, and lapped up every last bit.
I thought I would be freer after Momentum, but the rehearsal schedule for Samsara just came out and it's pretty intensive. No pain, no Prague. Worst of all, it seems I won't be able to go for the Blast sharing sessions on Saturday mornings. Lina...! But I still have a few weeknights. I shall be going for Xuehui on Mondays, Trinity/Fredy/An An/Platform on Wednesdays, Kate/Derrick/Pat on Fridays.
On Idol
Most nights after rehearsals these past couple of weeks I would check up on Twitter and watch the numerous post-Idol interviews, which somehow sometimes take up to hours. Michael Slezak's Idolatry interviews are especially long. But it's all good stuff. On a side-note, Ace Young is such a dunce on American Idol Extra. Jillian Reynolds often looks like she wants to throttle him. At least I do. I've never followed Idol to such an extent before, but Kris, Adam, Allison and Matt are a lot of fun to watch. Adam in particular is probably the most incredible person to ever be on Idol. He is brave, poised, gracious, sagacious, and very eloquent. He's a noble rocker, which makes him intriguing and oxymoronic at the same time. Still I'm not a fan of his music. The show has surprisingly produced two awesome winners in a row. Gone are the days of the Rubens, the Fantasias, the Taylors, and the Jordins, hopefully.
This year's finale featured clunkers such as Lionel Richie and Rod Stewart. The inclusion of Queen Latifah was strange (she is neither contemporary nor legendary), although I absolutely loved the back-up choreography. David Cook returned to perform Permanent, a song co-written by Chantal Kreviazuk. It is about his brother Adam's battle with cancer, and is all the more poignant sung after his recent death. The song didn't quite hit me until I re-listened to it, and then I bawled my eyes out. I especially love the lines:
When all you know seems so far away
And everything is temporary
Rest your head
I'm permanent
For me, the song quite perfectly encapsulates David Cook--he is the quietest, most sensitive soul, yet his emotions are unleashed in the loudest, most powerful voice.
There has been much talk of judges staying or leaving. The judge that comes closest to indispensable is Simon, but even he has lost his edge this season. I don't know why the press and public have been so harsh on Kara though. She's a great songwriter, a great singer, and quite a good judge. I love this mash-up of Kara and Celine Dion singing Taking Chances. If there are any changes to judging, I sure wish there will be far less prophesying and haughty finale predictions, and no more of absurd artist comparisons. Kris Allen is Jason Mraz... huh?! Matt Giraud is Justin Timberlake... double huh?!
In defence of Nigel
I started out wanting to jump onto the bandwagon of bloggers who have derided Nigel Lythgoe for homophobia. I re-watched the segment on So You Think You Can Dance which featured Misha and Mitchel's audition, and now I think the issue is a little blown out of proportion. I also think that however inherently evil he has to be as a show business man, Nigel's apologies have been sincere.
@dizzyfeet I am very sad the word 'homophobe' is being used. That is someone who hates homosexuals. I dislike effeminate dancing! Wake up and listen! 1:06 AM May 23rd from web
Nigel is right. Homophobia is misused as an umbrella term, to denounce the marginalization of anything vaguely to do with sexual identity. What Nigel, and probably a great number of non-homophobes have, is an aversion towards the breaking of gender norms, as opposed to sexual norms. That is distinction number one. Distinction number two is that it is more of a discomfort than an outright hatred. Is the dislike of effeminacy any less unjust than the fear of homosexuals? Probably not.
@dizzyfeet I believe overtly effeminate dancing destroys the opportunity for many male dancers to be supported. Being gay doesn't mean effeminate. 1:13 AM May 23rd from web
@dizzyfeet I am passionate about dancers and dancing. I am not interested in their sexual preferences only their dancing and performances. Offstage ?? 2:21 AM May 23rd from TwitterFon
Keeping effeminate dancing underground or out-of-sight in order to legitimize male dancing is reinforcing the wrong beliefs. I'm often against drag or sissy performances done solely for laughs, because the meaning of the laugh, the ideas it supports, are questionable. Case in point: Travis Wall's fake audition to It's Raining Men last season was good fun while it lasted, and then quickly shoved back into the shadows once it was all over.
I think people are entitled to personal biases and comfort zones. Only the actions which follow may be judged. Prejudice, hate, violence are choices. Just as Miss California favoured opposite marriage, Nigel voiced his honest preferences, and I believe he remained respectful and generous to Misha and Mitchel. At one point he actually says 'thank you for sharing a first with us'. I don't think it is unreasonable to be disconcerted by the tampering of ballroom traditions. A little reaction time is not too much to ask for. While the ideal is an infinitely open mind to behaviour that bucks social trends and resists social constructs, there must be a certain tolerance of phobias insofar as they are discomforts and not hatreds. I am often intolerant of intolerance, and it can be a hypocrisy. What is awful is the blind condemnation of political incorrectness. Castigating a Holocaust denier is easy, but most do so on the basis of fourth-hand information and a feeling of righteous indignation.
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