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Woochifer
08-04-2006, 07:14 PM
Man, talk about a guy from the old neighborhood making it into the big time! I normally don't watch reality TV, but a friend of mine told me that she saw my former salsa dance instructor on So You Think You Can Dance, the dance competition series on Fox.

I looked it up on BitTorrent and there was good ole' Alex Da Silva preparing two of the contestants for a tango routine! He is apparently one of the Latin dance choreographers on the show and was one of the regulars last season as well. (Now, I'll need to download last season as well!) It was really funny watching the routine, because so many of those patterns include things that he teaches in his regular dance classes. This show seems a lot more interesting than some of the other dance/talent reality shows because it pairs the couples up at random, and the style of dance that they have to prepare for is also a random draw.

Being on a top 10 rated TV show is quite a far cry from the old days when a small group of us would meet up at Alex's home studio in San Francisco for weekly salsa lessons! That was my regular Wednesday night routine for three years until Alex moved down to L.A. in search of fame, fortune, and more chicks (not necessarily in that order). I would periodically see him on a TV commercial or a Spanish-language music video, but now he's on the network. Talk about trippy! :cornut:

For people in the L.A. area, he still teaches seven days a week, and his drop-in classes are a blast.

http://www.alexdasilva.com

JohnMichael
08-05-2006, 06:28 AM
...or sing. I can play the stereo. Wooch I bet that was exciting seeing him on the show. This season I began watching the show and I have enjoyed it more than any other show in a long time. What talent has emerged from the dancers. I hear the dancers are going on tour and I hope to catch it. It was interesting to see the choreographers work with the dancers and how important they are. Now of course we will be expecting you to try out.

Woochifer
08-06-2006, 01:11 PM
...or sing. I can play the stereo. Wooch I bet that was exciting seeing him on the show. This season I began watching the show and I have enjoyed it more than any other show in a long time. What talent has emerged from the dancers. I hear the dancers are going on tour and I hope to catch it. It was interesting to see the choreographers work with the dancers and how important they are. Now of course we will be expecting you to try out.

I'd seen Alex on TV commercials before, and he's appeared on Spanish-language TV a few times either as a featured performer or as a music video choreographer. But, this was quite a surprise seeing him on a top 10 rated TV show!

Ordinarily I don't watch these dance shows because I'm not really into competitions that judge choreographed routines. So You Think You Can Dance seems more interesting than others I've seen because the partners are paired up by random draw and the style that they have to perform might not be in their area of expertise. In general, the dance competitions that I like watching are the "Jack & Jill" contests where partners get randomly paired up, and they have to perform a completely unrehearsed routine, potentially with a piece of music that they've never heard before.

IMO, anyone can sell a dance routine that they've rehearsed hundreds of times, but to me, the great dancers are the ones that can make a completely improvised routine look like second nature. Rehearsed or not, to get to that level requires many hours of practice, and a lot of work with a good instructor!

Alex has won several salsa competitions, and almost all of the elements in his choreographed routines have been taught in his classes at some point. What makes him a champion is in how he links everything together and transitions from one pattern to another, and sells the routine with some style points mixed in. He's taught me a lot of patterns, but no way I can even come close to his skill at moving from one to another! So, you won't see me on TV anytime soon!