Last Saturday, Musicals week blessed our TV screens, and we were treated to a jam-packed evening featuring some of the nation’s favourite musicals. From an opening number to the iconic “Cabaret” by Liza Minnelli to a couple’s choice to “On My Own” from Les Misérables- they had it all.

On Saturday, TV Presenter Dan Walker and professional partner Nadiya Bychkova were the lowest scoring couple of the night after dancing the Charleston to, “Good Morning” from Singin’ In The Rain.

It appears that Dan and Nadiya’s Charleston has caused controversy amongst the Strictly fandom with mixed opinions being shared about the dance. Even though some were in agreement with the higher scoring from the judges, many thought it was overmarked and one critic even stated that Dan’s dances, “[were] getting repetitive and past their sell-by-date.”

Do you think the couple deserved their score or are you more in agreement with the critics? Let’s take a closer look…

The routine begins with both Dan and Nadiya setting the scene in true Musical style and after a few bars of music, they break into Charleston Swivels, Kicks, Washy Windows, and a brief Piggy-Back section- as a result they received lots of whoops and cheers from the audience. At 0:59, we see the couple throw themselves into a lift, which left one critic stating that, “[they] have never seen Dan so confident before now.” The routine then progresses, and we see the couple complete a series of Knee Slaps, a Box Step and what Dan called “Sofa-ography,” followed by another lift. The routine ended with a quick set of perfectly synchronised Runs before both Dan and Nadiya take their final position on the sofa.

The choreographer behind this musical masterpiece was Jenny Thomas (check out her Instagram here) and her assistant Sean Moon. The routine that the pair created for Dan and Nadiya was well suited to Dan’s dancing abilities and not only allowed him to show-off his newfound confidence, but also perfectly captured what Musicals week is all about- having fun!

For me, I’m not really sure what to think of this routine as a whole. The characterisation that Dan portrayed was brilliant-especially his facial expressions and he was clearly enjoying being able to channel his inner Gene Kelly which was a pleasure to witness. However, even though I cannot pinpoint what it was, I also felt there was something missing from their Charleston. For this reason, I felt it prevented the dance from encapsulating the audience into a fully immersive musical experience, which I thought was a factor at the forefront of many of the other dances throughout the evening. That being said, I still really enjoyed their Charleston and the fact that Dan is a non-dancer and yet is inspiring other men to dance is something that I have huge respect for.

As a result, there were mixed opinions from the Judges. Head Judge Shirley joyously stated that, “from week 1 to week 9 [he] has pushed that performing element” and despite the slight technical hitch that the studio suffered, she thought it was, “[his] best dance so far.” This alongside Anton Du Beke statement that it is, “such a thrill to watch someone grow in the way that [Dan] has” highlights the sheer dedication that Dan possesses when faced with a new challenge every week.

Despite these positive comments, Cynthia Erivo (a stand in judge for Craig Revel-Horwood whom has unfortunately tested positive for COVID-19), provided Dan with some constructive criticism, stating that he needs to, “finish those lines because you have a partner who finishes everything/make sure everything is elongated.”

Even though the couple ended the evening at the bottom of the leader-board with a score of 31, they managed to narrowly miss the dance off and are able to confidently swivel their way into week 10.

Scores:

Cynthia Erivo - 7

Motsi Mabuse – 7

Shirley Ballas – 9

Anton Du Beke – 8

MyCharleston – 7

By: Eleanor O'Donnell

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