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The Greater New York Chapter of USA Dance
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Helio Castroneves takes DWTS 5!
Dec. 3, 2007 ed.
Greetings from the Greater NY Chapter of USA Dance!
Dec. 3, 2007 ed.
Greetings from the Greater NY Chapter of USA Dance!
Can it really be December already? It must be, with the wintry winds blowing and the snow covering the ground outside. Where is the time going? The days are just zipping by . . . gotta get some dancing in there.
![[img:sean_jen]](../../images/news/sean_jen1.jpg)
First off: Congratulations to the Columbia University Ballroom Team for organizing their first solo ballroom dance competition, the Big Apple DanceSport Challenge. As I took the podium Saturday morning, Dec. 1, starting at 8:00 am in Roone Arledge Auditorium, at Columbia University's Lerner Hall, I almost felt like I was starting the Saturday syllabus section at the MAC, which is heavily populated by collegiate competitors. I said "almost." In fact, almost immediately, I realized that it was not the MAC, because the surface similarities quickly faded away. To start with, the number of pre-bronze competitors was roughly twice what we get at the MAC. It was great to see newcomers to ballroom dance crowding the pre-bronze and bronze events, with the first rounds easily commanding four heats. The Big Apple DanceSport Challenge attracted hundreds of collegiate competitors from up and down the Northeast Corridor, drawing couples from Boston (Harvard, BU, Holy Cross) and as far down as DC (University of Maryland, Georgetown). The ballroom was packed from morning to evening, not just with competitors but with many spectators in the audience cheering them on throughout the day. As a collegiate comp, Columbia did not charge spectators for admission during the competitive sessions, and many spectators took advantage of that freebie to take in the numerous events. (Photo, r., Bill Sherman.)
The championship events were run on Saturday night, starting at around 7:45 pm. The highlight of the night was the first area appearance of the new powerhouse Professional Latin partnership of Riccardo Cocchi and Yulia Zagoruychenko. The show was sold out, but to allow as many people as possible to see Riccardo and Yulia, the Columbia team sold standing room tickets. Riccardo and Yulia did not disappoint, as they treated the audience to more than half an hour of fabulous dancing, demonstrating Cha Cha, Rumba, Flamenco/Paso Doble and Jive, along with a Showdance number called "MOVE." And that they did. In spades. This couple shows tremendous promise and potential. Riccardo announced to the audience that he and Yulia will be representing the USA in World Competition, so we hope to see many World Titles in Professional Latin to start going to a couple dancing for the USA. Go, Riccardo and Yulia!
The dancing in the championship divisions proved strong, and for those who stayed after Riccardo and Yulia's performance to watch the competition, they were not disappointed. Excellent dancing was evident particularly in the Open Standard, which boasted a solid semi-final.
The date for the second annual Big Apple DanceSport Challenge has already been set for Dec. 6, 2008, so save your dates and plan to be there. Hats off to Catherine Woo, the Competition Coordinator and the entire Columbia Ballroom Team for a job well done! Now get back to those books and prepare for finals!
![[img:helio_wins]](../../images/news/helio_wins1.jpg)
Congratulations to Helio Castroneves and Julianne Hough for taking the Ghastly Mirrorball Trophy in season 5 of DWTS! Down to the last moments, I was sure that Mel B. and Maks Chmerkovskiy would take the trophy, particularly because Mel and Maks did a great mambo that probably merited a 30 while Helio's and Julianne's quickstep probably did not merit a 30. The judging throughout the season has been wacky and obviously designed to build suspense rather than actually reflecting the quality of the dance performances, so they were a non-factor in the final results. With a 30-30 tie for the final dances, it all boiled down to the votes, and judging by the outcome, Helio and Julianne got the votes while Mel B. and Maks did not. I know many of you out there thought Mel B. and Maks should win, based on the dancing, but the truth is, from day 1 of this show, it has never been about the dancing -- it has always been about the votes. How else can you explain Sabrina Bryan getting kicked off before the semi-finals and Mario Lopez losing to Emmitt Smith? Mel B. and Maks fans, I feel your pain. At the same time, I am happy for Helio and Julianne, because -- well, I just liked them better as a dance couple. That's a wrap for season 5; we'll see what happens in season 6. And there surely will be one, because the final show drew in nearly 25 million viewers, so I doubt ABC will abandon this major ratings (and revenue) generator any time soon.
![[img:junior_mac]](../../images/news/juniors1.jpg)
A couple of MAC updates, and this one is for those of you who may be travelling from distant (and not so distant) places to join us at MAC 2008. First, we have made arrangements with the New Yorker Hotel, right around the corner from the Manhattan Center, the venue for MAC 2008, for special room rates. You must reserve before Jan. 2 to get the special rates. More details appear on this post. Second, for collegiate competitors, we do have Housing Coordinators to help you find local collegiate competitors to host you while you visit New York City to compete at MAC 2008. Check out those details here. If you would like to learn about other lodging options nearby the venue, check this post. In the meantime, please be reminded again that the registration deadline is Saturday, Dec. 29, a mere four weeks away. If you have any questions, send them to mac@nyusabda.org.
Finally, for those who enjoy latin dancing, Salsa Mondays continues at Taj lounge on West 21st, between 5th and 6th Ave., in the Flatiron District. Click here for the latest details (and links to photos). Club 56 continues on with Hot Latin Tuesdays in December, and Patti Panebianco will be teaching Bolero, so if you would like to learn that dance, and make some new friends, head out to Farmingdale on Dec. 4, for what will surely be a fun time. For other social dance suggestions, visit NJoyDancing News & Notes and Wayne's Dance Commentary.
That's it for now. Happy dancing, everyone!
Yang Chen
President
Greater NY
USA Dance
(NYUSABDA)
www.nyusabda.org
www.nyusabda.org/forums-df
yang.chen@nyusabda.org
First off: Congratulations to the Columbia University Ballroom Team for organizing their first solo ballroom dance competition, the Big Apple DanceSport Challenge. As I took the podium Saturday morning, Dec. 1, starting at 8:00 am in Roone Arledge Auditorium, at Columbia University's Lerner Hall, I almost felt like I was starting the Saturday syllabus section at the MAC, which is heavily populated by collegiate competitors. I said "almost." In fact, almost immediately, I realized that it was not the MAC, because the surface similarities quickly faded away. To start with, the number of pre-bronze competitors was roughly twice what we get at the MAC. It was great to see newcomers to ballroom dance crowding the pre-bronze and bronze events, with the first rounds easily commanding four heats. The Big Apple DanceSport Challenge attracted hundreds of collegiate competitors from up and down the Northeast Corridor, drawing couples from Boston (Harvard, BU, Holy Cross) and as far down as DC (University of Maryland, Georgetown). The ballroom was packed from morning to evening, not just with competitors but with many spectators in the audience cheering them on throughout the day. As a collegiate comp, Columbia did not charge spectators for admission during the competitive sessions, and many spectators took advantage of that freebie to take in the numerous events. (Photo, r., Bill Sherman.)
The championship events were run on Saturday night, starting at around 7:45 pm. The highlight of the night was the first area appearance of the new powerhouse Professional Latin partnership of Riccardo Cocchi and Yulia Zagoruychenko. The show was sold out, but to allow as many people as possible to see Riccardo and Yulia, the Columbia team sold standing room tickets. Riccardo and Yulia did not disappoint, as they treated the audience to more than half an hour of fabulous dancing, demonstrating Cha Cha, Rumba, Flamenco/Paso Doble and Jive, along with a Showdance number called "MOVE." And that they did. In spades. This couple shows tremendous promise and potential. Riccardo announced to the audience that he and Yulia will be representing the USA in World Competition, so we hope to see many World Titles in Professional Latin to start going to a couple dancing for the USA. Go, Riccardo and Yulia!
The dancing in the championship divisions proved strong, and for those who stayed after Riccardo and Yulia's performance to watch the competition, they were not disappointed. Excellent dancing was evident particularly in the Open Standard, which boasted a solid semi-final.
The date for the second annual Big Apple DanceSport Challenge has already been set for Dec. 6, 2008, so save your dates and plan to be there. Hats off to Catherine Woo, the Competition Coordinator and the entire Columbia Ballroom Team for a job well done! Now get back to those books and prepare for finals!
Congratulations to Helio Castroneves and Julianne Hough for taking the Ghastly Mirrorball Trophy in season 5 of DWTS! Down to the last moments, I was sure that Mel B. and Maks Chmerkovskiy would take the trophy, particularly because Mel and Maks did a great mambo that probably merited a 30 while Helio's and Julianne's quickstep probably did not merit a 30. The judging throughout the season has been wacky and obviously designed to build suspense rather than actually reflecting the quality of the dance performances, so they were a non-factor in the final results. With a 30-30 tie for the final dances, it all boiled down to the votes, and judging by the outcome, Helio and Julianne got the votes while Mel B. and Maks did not. I know many of you out there thought Mel B. and Maks should win, based on the dancing, but the truth is, from day 1 of this show, it has never been about the dancing -- it has always been about the votes. How else can you explain Sabrina Bryan getting kicked off before the semi-finals and Mario Lopez losing to Emmitt Smith? Mel B. and Maks fans, I feel your pain. At the same time, I am happy for Helio and Julianne, because -- well, I just liked them better as a dance couple. That's a wrap for season 5; we'll see what happens in season 6. And there surely will be one, because the final show drew in nearly 25 million viewers, so I doubt ABC will abandon this major ratings (and revenue) generator any time soon.
A couple of MAC updates, and this one is for those of you who may be travelling from distant (and not so distant) places to join us at MAC 2008. First, we have made arrangements with the New Yorker Hotel, right around the corner from the Manhattan Center, the venue for MAC 2008, for special room rates. You must reserve before Jan. 2 to get the special rates. More details appear on this post. Second, for collegiate competitors, we do have Housing Coordinators to help you find local collegiate competitors to host you while you visit New York City to compete at MAC 2008. Check out those details here. If you would like to learn about other lodging options nearby the venue, check this post. In the meantime, please be reminded again that the registration deadline is Saturday, Dec. 29, a mere four weeks away. If you have any questions, send them to mac@nyusabda.org.
Finally, for those who enjoy latin dancing, Salsa Mondays continues at Taj lounge on West 21st, between 5th and 6th Ave., in the Flatiron District. Click here for the latest details (and links to photos). Club 56 continues on with Hot Latin Tuesdays in December, and Patti Panebianco will be teaching Bolero, so if you would like to learn that dance, and make some new friends, head out to Farmingdale on Dec. 4, for what will surely be a fun time. For other social dance suggestions, visit NJoyDancing News & Notes and Wayne's Dance Commentary.
That's it for now. Happy dancing, everyone!
Yang Chen
President
Greater NY
USA Dance
(NYUSABDA)
www.nyusabda.org
www.nyusabda.org/forums-df
yang.chen@nyusabda.org