I'm not above bribing for good results!
Yesterday when my girls rehearsed for the last time at Avant Garde studio, I'd promised them $50 shopping money each if they executed flawless routines during their Saturday's performances.
Which begged the question, posed by Paul, the girls' instructor, "Wait a minute, how would you know whether they had a flawless routine or not?" Well, I wasn't referring to a technically perfect routine per se, but one in which my untrained eyes can't spot an obvious blunder! I'm a mom, not a judge, and I'm not going to be apologetic about it... I've always had lenient standards when it came to my kids.
Money isn't a big motivator for Audrey at this point in her life, but Lauren did seem to perk up considerably after entertaining her possible windfall. Neither of the girls had the pressure of being a contestant on the show, so they haven't been exactly pumped up about the need to practice. We've languished along all summer and if Paul didn't call to cancel one week, then Audrey would the next. Only recently did the girls make an honest attempt to catch up with their missed lessons after skipping the entire month of August due to Paul's vacation. The good thing is, both Audrey and Lauren are looking forward to easier schedules scholastically and otherwise after their appearance in the show's finale on October 16.
In the previous installment of my blog, I've only covered half of the contestants in the You Can Dance semi-finals. The second batch's performances can be viewed on the official YCD website, with a brief wrap-up below.
Episode 11, Part I, featuring:
Lauren twirling around in the hotel lobby after Saturday's performance
Episode 11, Part I, featuring:
– Special appearance by celebrity performer Phi Khanh, a Vietnamese singer who had the longest blurb of all the performers on the show's website.
– Vuong Tran, a graceful grandma, dancing the Slow Waltz with her instructor CJ (Chongpisut Jetphukthai). CJ seemed to be the favorite of the older female contestants (he'd also choreographed Linda Tong's routine and a few other sponsoring performers'). Although he'd initially complained about the language barrier (CJ was a Thai native who didn't speak Vietnamese, and Mrs. Tran spoke little English) that hindered his teaching, the rapport between him and his students noticeably improved as the show progressed and he seemed genuinely moved while speaking about Linda Tong's overwhelming pressure of continuing in the semi-finals while coping with her husband's health crisis.
Episode 11, Part II, featuring:
– Denise Vo, a legal processing specialist, working the Tango with her instructor Sasha (Alexander Andreev). She was rather stiff. Judge Bryan Nguyen, a lawyer by profession, didn't show his fellow law grad any mercy, concurring with Judge Thuy Van in his critique of the contestant's performance. Among other faults that were pointed out, Thuy Van deemed the dance style indeterminate – it wasn't the Smooth Tango it aspired to be, but not quite an Argentine Tango either.
– Dr. Christopher Bui (Bui Xuan Duong) frolicking in a cheeky Cha Cha routine with his sexy instructor, Petra Chovancova. Petra looked smoking hot and Dr. Bui appeared a bit flustered by the heat. Nevertheless, he garnered the distinction of earning the first perfect 10 of the season (from Judge Tran Trung Thanh). Added to two 8's from the other judges, Dr. Bui's score placed him in the running for a spot on the You Can Dance finals.
I was (pleasantly) surprised by the judges' frankness. I've always found Vietnamese judges to be way too soft and exceedingly politically correct. As a rule, we Vietnamese are notorious for being politically correct in public, but quite the opposite in private! For that reason, I didn't think a Vietnamese reality show could prove to be a viable concept, knowing our cultural penchant to keep proper appearances and avoid conflicts at all costs.
There was one YCD episode on which the contestants were divided into two opposing teams and the people comprising each team were forced to expose and eliminate "the weak link" in their group and cite the reasons behind their decisions. That segment revealed a bit of the backstage politics and drama that made the show more interesting and unorthodox than I had expected. It did not remotely approach a catfight level as ridiculous as what you would observe on Survivor or Bravo's Housewives series, but as far as Vietnamese standards go, proved to be a lot more intense than I would've anticipated. One of the older contestants was mildly apologetic about her decision to cut one of her teammates, citing contest rules that specifically forbade the ouster of oneself to explain that her hand was forced, so to speak. The funniest bit was contestant Vu Khanh's opinion of his elimination choice. I could not have expected the teammate he described as "bossy and aggressive" to be 14 year-old Kevin Phan!
– Denise Vo, a legal processing specialist, working the Tango with her instructor Sasha (Alexander Andreev). She was rather stiff. Judge Bryan Nguyen, a lawyer by profession, didn't show his fellow law grad any mercy, concurring with Judge Thuy Van in his critique of the contestant's performance. Among other faults that were pointed out, Thuy Van deemed the dance style indeterminate – it wasn't the Smooth Tango it aspired to be, but not quite an Argentine Tango either.
– Dr. Christopher Bui (Bui Xuan Duong) frolicking in a cheeky Cha Cha routine with his sexy instructor, Petra Chovancova. Petra looked smoking hot and Dr. Bui appeared a bit flustered by the heat. Nevertheless, he garnered the distinction of earning the first perfect 10 of the season (from Judge Tran Trung Thanh). Added to two 8's from the other judges, Dr. Bui's score placed him in the running for a spot on the You Can Dance finals.
Orange County's favorite GI doc keeping the beat with his professional partner, Petra Chovancova
I was (pleasantly) surprised by the judges' frankness. I've always found Vietnamese judges to be way too soft and exceedingly politically correct. As a rule, we Vietnamese are notorious for being politically correct in public, but quite the opposite in private! For that reason, I didn't think a Vietnamese reality show could prove to be a viable concept, knowing our cultural penchant to keep proper appearances and avoid conflicts at all costs.
There was one YCD episode on which the contestants were divided into two opposing teams and the people comprising each team were forced to expose and eliminate "the weak link" in their group and cite the reasons behind their decisions. That segment revealed a bit of the backstage politics and drama that made the show more interesting and unorthodox than I had expected. It did not remotely approach a catfight level as ridiculous as what you would observe on Survivor or Bravo's Housewives series, but as far as Vietnamese standards go, proved to be a lot more intense than I would've anticipated. One of the older contestants was mildly apologetic about her decision to cut one of her teammates, citing contest rules that specifically forbade the ouster of oneself to explain that her hand was forced, so to speak. The funniest bit was contestant Vu Khanh's opinion of his elimination choice. I could not have expected the teammate he described as "bossy and aggressive" to be 14 year-old Kevin Phan!
Episode 11, Part III, featuring:
– Guest performer Jessica Nguyen, a 17 year-old high school student who hopes to regularly compete in Pro-Am Dance Sport events in the near future, dancing the Tango with her instructor CJ. Jessica has a super cute figure and a beautiful dance costume to match. Loved her outfit!
– Contestant Tony Ngo, burning the floor in an impassioned Paso Doble routine with his instructor, Melissa Cyr. I was disappointed by his relatively low scores in the semi-finals competition, which I thought didn't reflect his true ability. For whatever reasons, the judges tended to be tougher on the contestants who'd gone all out with more challenging performances, and noticeably softer on those who were less skillful. My favorite judge was Thuy-Van, IMO the fairest and most consistent scorer on the panel, which comprised a good mix of personalities and styles. Thuy-Van is a charmer who managed to be both diplomatic and instructive in her critiques. Thanh Trung Tran, the renegade judge, gave the best laughs with his offbeat commentaries and quirky reviews of the contestants' performances. However, his scoring was all over the place! He seemed to enjoy being the wildcard factor on the judging panel. Bryan Nguyen was the most benign and moderate judge among the three, always maintaining his supportive and encouraging tone while doling out constructive advice.
– Contestant Samantha Nguyen, gyrating seductively in a red-hot Samba number with her instructor, Yiri Kosydar. By and large, I agreed with the judges' critiques of Samantha's performance. Thuy-Van praised the pair's chemistry, but noted that Samantha needed to pay more attention to her footwork. Thanh Tran concurred that Samantha's routine lacked bounce action, an important element for samba. Bryan Nguyen's commentary was along the line of... Your total package looked flashy, but lacked substance! Samantha, with her "Brazilian body befitting a Brazilian dance" (as described by the Dancesation emcee), was clearly the audience's favorite, and tied with Dr. Bui and Gillian (Hang-Ny) Nguyen for the People's Choice Award based on her Clap-o-meter register at the show's finale held at the Anaheim Marriott Suites. Ultimately, Hang-Ny triumphed after several good-natured games of rock-paper-scissors to determine the popular vote winner.
http://www.youcandance.tv/you-can-dance/semi-finals-episode-11-part-iii/
You Can Dance contestants congratulating Hang-Ny on her win
Episode 11, Part IV, featuring:
Jessica Nguyen and her instructor, Yiri Kosydar, at the YCD finale
– Contestant Tony Ngo, burning the floor in an impassioned Paso Doble routine with his instructor, Melissa Cyr. I was disappointed by his relatively low scores in the semi-finals competition, which I thought didn't reflect his true ability. For whatever reasons, the judges tended to be tougher on the contestants who'd gone all out with more challenging performances, and noticeably softer on those who were less skillful. My favorite judge was Thuy-Van, IMO the fairest and most consistent scorer on the panel, which comprised a good mix of personalities and styles. Thuy-Van is a charmer who managed to be both diplomatic and instructive in her critiques. Thanh Trung Tran, the renegade judge, gave the best laughs with his offbeat commentaries and quirky reviews of the contestants' performances. However, his scoring was all over the place! He seemed to enjoy being the wildcard factor on the judging panel. Bryan Nguyen was the most benign and moderate judge among the three, always maintaining his supportive and encouraging tone while doling out constructive advice.
– Contestant Samantha Nguyen, gyrating seductively in a red-hot Samba number with her instructor, Yiri Kosydar. By and large, I agreed with the judges' critiques of Samantha's performance. Thuy-Van praised the pair's chemistry, but noted that Samantha needed to pay more attention to her footwork. Thanh Tran concurred that Samantha's routine lacked bounce action, an important element for samba. Bryan Nguyen's commentary was along the line of... Your total package looked flashy, but lacked substance! Samantha, with her "Brazilian body befitting a Brazilian dance" (as described by the Dancesation emcee), was clearly the audience's favorite, and tied with Dr. Bui and Gillian (Hang-Ny) Nguyen for the People's Choice Award based on her Clap-o-meter register at the show's finale held at the Anaheim Marriott Suites. Ultimately, Hang-Ny triumphed after several good-natured games of rock-paper-scissors to determine the popular vote winner.
http://www.youcandance.tv/you-can-dance/semi-finals-episode-11-part-iii/
Hang-Ny exulting after defeating Samantha in the final game of rock-paper-scissors
Episode 11, Part IV, featuring:
– Dancesation dancers Quoc Viet and Loan Nguyen performing a romantic Slow Waltz. Loanne was also the show's organizer and my new acquaintance. She made me feel totally inadequate! We both have lots of children (hers are younger), but she managed to cut a beautiful figure on stage dancing whereas I can't even maintain a lame exercise schedule consisting of 30-minute daily walks around my neighborhood.
– Mai Tran, a manicurist (in my opinion the best overall dancer in the competition), smoldering in a sultry Rumba with her instructor, Erik Cyr. Erik's been rooting for his student to win at the studio where I took my girls to practice, and I'd promised him I would vote for her, but ended up splitting my votes (a total of four was allowed per call-in phone number) between her and Dr. Chris Bui, with the majority vote going to Dr. Bui (can anyone do the math?). After all, what are friends for? Right, anh Duong??
http://www.youcandance.tv/you-can-dance/semi-finals-episode-11-part-iv/
Mai Tran and her instructor, Erik Cyr, at the YCD finale
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