After a year long wait, Strictly Come Dancing has finally returned to our screens for their 20th Series and last Saturday we were treated to not one but two Charleston routines! Both dances have received mixed opinions from both the audience and the judges, but which was your favourite?
In Week 2, Football Manager Tony Adams and his dance partner, Katya Jones were the lowest scoring couple of the night after dancing the Charleston to, ‘My Old Man’s a Dustman’ by Foster & Allen.
It appears Tony and Katya’s Cockney dustman themed Charleston has sparked a slight controversy amongst the Strictly fandom with mixed opinions being shared about their dance. Even though some were in agreement with the scoring from the judges, many thought it should have been lower which led to one viewer stating that there was, “too much fun and not enough dancing.”
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, choreographed by Jenny Thomas, opens with the couple setting the scene with a comedic sketch outside of a Pie and Mash Shop (not something that is typically associated with traditional 1920s) and after a few bars of music Katya pops up out of a dustbin and the dance begins. At 0:24, we see the first use of the basic Charleston step, subsequently followed by a series of swivel walks and skipping. Later on, at 0:51, Katya dives headfirst into the dustbin, which is shortly followed by a series of lifts, side-to-side Charleston, kicks, pushes and the basic Charleston step.
Unfortunately, Tony does not manage to complete his final lift, however he does recover well- so much so, the judges do not even mention this mistake.
For me, I’m not really sure what to think of this routine as a whole. The characterisation and facial expressions that both Tony and Katya portrayed were brilliant and really did encapsulate that cheeky Charleston vibe. His timing with the sound effects was also excellent as he did not miss a beat which led to one critic stating that, ‘[the pair] made this dance look like a Beano comic come to life.’ However, with only a few basic Charleston steps scattered throughout the routine in its entirety, I felt it lacked the original Charleston flare and is not what I would define as being, ‘jam-packed’ with Charleston moves. Despite this, the level of choreography appears to suit Tony’s dancing abilities as a complete novice, and he is very clearly enjoying himself.
As a result of this, there were mixed opinions from the Judges. Anton Du Beke was ecstatic commenting that the routine was, “The best” alongside Motsi Mabuse who complimented Tony saying how she thought could see, “Vast improvement’ in his dancing abilities.
Despite these positive comments, Craig Revel Horwood, on the other hand stated that, “He was very stompy” and his body and swivels were, “Stiff stiff stiff.” Whilst I do agree with Craig to some extent, the routine in its entirety was very entertaining to watch which is exactly what the Charleston is all about-fun!!
Despite their low score of 22, the pair managed to successfully avoid the dance off leaving Tony and his flat cap safe for another week.
Scores:
Craig Revel Horwood - 4
Motsi Mabuse – 6
Shirley Ballas – 6
Anton Du Beke – 6
MyCharleston – 5
Next up we have Loose Women presenter Kaye Adams and her professional partner Kai Widdrington who danced the second Charleston of the night to the jazzy tune, ‘Music! Music! Music!’ by Dorothy Provine.
With Kaye and Kai both dressed in their finery, they delivered a fun and cheeky Charleston which was full of 1920s flare with an abundance of comedic components. However, their final outcome has also caused an uproar across the Strictly fandom as they were the first couple to leave the competition; despite receiving the same score as Tony.
Do you think the couple deserved to be the first to leave or would you have picked someone else? Let’s have a further look into their routine to find out…
From just the first few opening bars of music, it was clear that this routine is going full of the cheekiness of a traditional 1920s Charleston. After a few moments of setting the scene and Kaye slotting a coin into a music machine, the pair spring into action with sidewalks, quickly followed by a brief section in hold: therefore, igniting a series of heel flicks and the basic Charleston step. This routine was also choreographed by Jenny Thomas.
Later on, after coming into hold once again, at 0:49 the audience is greeted with the first lift, followed by kicks, silly runs and ‘Piano-ography’ which Kaye completed with immense gusto.
Further on in the routine, we are once again treated with a sequence of classic Charleston moves consisting of, Suzy Qs, Bunny Hops, and a lifted Cartwheel, leaving the audience spellbound as the pair made their final series of complex lifts appear effortless.
As a result, the comments from the judges were overall quite positive. Head Judge Shirley stated how there, “[were] some lovely moves’ and it was, “so lovely to see [her] out there enjoying [herself].” Anton Du Beke, on the other hand, thought, “[she] had great characterisation, however [he] does get a twitch every time [he] watches [her] timing.”
Due to these comments and a low voting score from the public, Kaye and Kai were unfortunately the first couple to leave the show on Sunday night after fighting for their place in the Dance Off against Matt Goss and Nadiya Bychkova.
Scores:
Craig Revel Horwood - 4
Motsi Mabuse – 6
Shirley Ballas – 6
Anton Du Beke – 6
MyCharleston – 6
By: Eleanor O’Donnell