Strictly Review: AJ Odudu and Kai Widdrington

We are now halfway through the Strictly Come Dancing competition for 2021 and last Saturday, TV Presenter AJ Odudu and professional dancer Kai Widdrington were the highest scoring performers of the night after dancing the Charleston to, “Don’t Bring Lulu” by Dorothy Provine, Pinky, The Girls.

However, despite the couple swivelling their way to the top of the leader board, there has been an uproar across the Strictly fandom over their score from Craig Revel Horwood. Even though the other three judges whipped out their 10 paddles, Craig decided not to put his to good use.

Do you think the couple deserved the 10s or are you more in agreement with Craig? Let’s take a closer look as to why many felt they deserved top marks.

The routine opens with both AJ and Kai setting the scene with a throwback to the 1920s. After a few bars of music, the audience are immediately greeted with Charleston swivels, a Lift, Kicks and Cakewalks. At 0:42, we see the pair jump straight into a series of complicated lifts which further wowed the audience and leaving one viewer feeling as though, “[they] were living a 1920s Flapper girl dream.” The routine then progresses into a perfectly synchronised 30s Charleston, a sequence of Suzy Qs followed by a Waterfall, Knocky Knees, Helicopters and Truckin’. The routine ended with a quick shimmy before Kai lifts AJ into their final position.

The choreographer behind this amazing dance was Jenny Thomas and her assistant Sean Moon. The routine that they created for AJ and Kai really captured the authenticity of the Charleston and included a great mixture of classic Charleston steps and trick moves; overall producing a brilliant 1920s routine of which was extremely fun to watch. I would also recommend checking out Jenny’s Instagram to find out about her work.

For me, I thoroughly enjoyed watching this routine and, like many others, was shocked by the fact they did not get a perfect score. AJ’s energy and characterisation could not be faulted as she kept it up and gave 100% right through to the very end. The synchronisation was just absolute perfection and left one critic stating, “It felt like [they were] watching something out of the Great Gatsby.”

As a result of their great performance, the Judges’ comments were full of praise and admiration for the pair. Head Judge Shirley Ballas, “did not have a paddle big enough” as she thought the couple’s Charleston was, “absolutely off the charts,” this, alongside the fact that Motsi, “loved it, loved it, loved it, loved it” induced AJ to happy tears. Furthermore, Anton Du Beke compared AJ to, “Josephine Baker” which could just be the highest compliment a Charleston Dancer could ever receive.

Despite AJ saying she was, “losing confidence” and the Charleston was, “physically challenging” the couple swivelled their way to success with their leader board topping score of 39; therefore, securing them a spot in week 8.

Scores:

Craig Revel Horwood – 9

Motsi Mabuse – 10

Shirley Ballas – 10

Anton Du Beke – 10

MyCharleston – 10

 By Eleanor O’Donnell