DWTS 16 Finale: Kellie Pickler the winner

Season 16 of “Dancing with the Stars” didn’t break the pattern set over the last eight years. Since the show began in 2005, no African American woman has won and no Disney kid has won. This season was close and the scores for instant dances had little effect since it was a three-way tie between the three remaining couples. It was the voters who decided the winner: Kellie Pickler and Derek Hough.

Although Alexandra Raisman and her partner Mark Ballas had scored well and second on the judges leader board at the end of Monday night, they were eliminated based on the fan votes. Due to website problems, all votes from the ABC website were eliminated.

Pickler and Hough actually had a slightly better average than Zendaya and Val Chmerkovskiy who had topped the leader board Monday night.

Hough is one of the more popular dancers and Tuesday night was his fourth mirrorball. His first was earned with Brooke Burke during season 7. He then won again during season 10 with singer Nicole Scherzinger and the next season with actress Jennifer Grey.

Hough reached the semi-finals season 5 with Jennie Garth and season 9 with Playboy covergirl Joanna Krupa and during season 15 with TV personality Maria Menounos. With actress Ricki Lake, he finished third. Last season, during the All-Stars, he finished second with Shawn Johnson.

Val Chmerkovskiy has only been a competitor for 4 seasons.  He was first partnered with Italian actress Elisabetta Canalis, but finished 11 (second elimination) during season 13. The next season, he finished 10th with comedienne and talk show host Sherri Shepherd (third elimination). Season 15, he did better. Paired with season 1 winner, Kelly Monaco, he finished third.  Prior to being one of the professional dancers paired with a star, he had appeared in a dance routine during season 10 with his brother and Edyta Sliwinska and Snejana Petrova. He again appeared during season 11 for a dance duel against Mark Ballas.

While he hasn’t exactly been the ballroom’s bad boy like his brother, Val has already established himself in our minds with a bit of heroism. Injured and a bit bloody after a rehearsal on Monday night, Val still went on to perform with an injury above his right eye that later required stitches.

Val’s brother, Maksim, finished second with singer Mel B. during season 5 (behind winner race car driver Hélio Castroneves and Julianne Hough) and with actress Kirstie Alley during season 12 (behind football player Hines Ward and Kym Johnson).  Maksim finished third during season 4 with Laila Ali and season 10 with sports newscaster Erin Andrews. It was Maksim and Andrews who performed that bedroom contemporary number for their freestyle.  Apolo Anton Ohno with Julianne Hough won season 4 and Nicole Scherzinger and Derek Hough won season 10.

While black men have won the mirrorball trophy such as retired football star Emmitt Smith with Cheryl Burke (season 3),  football player Hines Ward with Kym Johnson (season 12), J.R. Martin with Karina Smirnoff (13) and football player Donald Driver with Peta Murgatroyd (14), no African American woman has  been able to win despite high scores from the judges.

Stars from the Disney channel often do not have the support of fans to take the mirrorball trophy. Disney star Kyle Massey with Lacey Schwimmer finished second like Zendaya and Val. Chelsea Kane and Mark Ballas finished third behind Kirstie Alley and Maksim.

Monday evening ended with Pickler and Hough (30 + 4 + 30) with 64 points and in second place, just in front of Alexandra Raisman and Mark Ballas (28 + 3 + 30 = 61). Zendaya and Val Chmerkovskiy had 65 having earned two perfect scores and an extra five points from winning the cha cha cha relay.

With the scores for the two individual dances and the cha cha cha relay on Monday and the instant dance on Tuesday, the total scores for the finalists were very close with Zendaya and Val Chmerkovskiy only one point ahead of Pickler and Hough.

Zendaya and Val Chmerkovskiy: 30

• Instant Jive
• “Rockin’ Robin“–Bobby Day
• TOTAL: 30 + 5 + 30 + 30 =95

Kellie Pickler and Derek Hough: 30

• Instant Jive
• “Keep A-Knockin’“–Little Richard
• TOTAL:  30 + 4 + 30 + 30 = 94

Jacoby Jones and Karina Smirnoff: 30

• Instant salsa
• “Aguanile”-Héctor Lavoe
• TOTAL: 27 + 2 + 27 + 30 = 86

Pickler and Hough had a slightly better season average than Zendaya and Val Chmerkovskiy, 27.4 compared to 27.3–with only the dances given a traditional 30-point scale from 15 dances. Raisman and Ballas would have had a 26.7 for 14 dances. Jones and Smirnoff had an average of 25. 6 for 15 dances.

Pickler and Zendaya will hopefully find projects that suit their talents. Maybe we’ll even see them on stage in a musical.

An Open Letter to DWTS

Dear Dancing with the Stars producers and executives:

May marks the beginning of free dance events, beginning with Downtown Dance at the Los Angeles Music Center. The Music Center is also the place where the newly invented “grass roots” event, National Dance Day” gets people together to promote dance, health and Nigel Lythgoe’s program “So You Think You Can Dance.”

“So You Think You Can Dance” began in 2005 and is going into its 10th season this summer. The program was discontinued in the U.K. (and Australia, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Israel, Lithuania, Malaysia, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Scandinavia, South Africa and Turkey) but has on-going incarnations in Armenia, Benelux, China, Finland, France, Poland, Vietnam and Ukraine as well as the U.S.

“Dancing with the Stars” is based on the British TV series “Strictly Come Dancing” and is, according to Wikipedia, licensed to over 42 territories as of last year.  Despite this wide reach and intent to promote dancing, I’m always surprised that I don’t see more “Dancing with the Stars” in Los Angeles.

The show is filmed in Burbank. Several of the professional dancers such as Cheryl Burke, Karina Smirnoff and Anna Trebunskaya have established dance studios in the Los Angeles area (Burke in Orange County which is south of Los Angeles).

Yet you don’t see the professional dancers of DWTS or DWTS promoting dance in Los Angeles like we see “So You Think You Can Dance” do for the so-called National Dance Day.

In May, beginning this year on 3 May with salsa/merengue, the Music Center hosts Downtown Dance. They have a dance floor and a place to check your bags. There’s usually a 30-minute lesson and then dancing to the tunes spun by a DJ or even a live band.

Last Friday, 17 May, was 90s night. Not sure what kind of dance that was. But I’ll be there for Argentine tango on the 31st when a live band will be playing. It’s all free and starts at 6:30 p.m. and goes until 10 p.m.

• May 31 – Argentine Tango
• June 14 – Line Dance & Two-Step
• June 28 – Bollywood/Bhangra
• July 12 – K-Pop NEW!
• July 26 – Cumbia
• August 9 – Disco
• August 23 – Ondo
• September 6 – 60s Night
• The Music Center Plaza
• And September 20 – Samba*
•     *special evening in Grand Park

Downtown Dance starts up just after National Dance Week. You won’t see any TV celebrities promoting National Dance Week at the Music Center though and no one has matched “Dancing with the Stars” with Downtown Dance even though it would seem a natural partnership, particularly when you consider what happens in July on National Dance Day–Lythgoe, some SYTYCD current or past competitors and a STYTCD choreographer show up at the Music Center and perform a dance flash mob.

After watching sixteen seasons of “Dancing with the Stars,” I can’t help but wonder why the producers at ABC and Disney don’t do more to support National Dance Week. With all the preparations for the semifinals and finals, you might think there isn’t time and that the celebrities really don’t go outside of their own schedules and the TV show. You could say, they don’t have time to make appearances, but that isn’t true. In the past the celebrities have had time to appear at Disneyland and on other shows such as “Extreme Home Makeover.” We’ve even seen former Playboy bunnies, Hugh Hefner girlfriends or former Playmates at the Playboy mansion. When you can juxtapose Playboy with a Disney product, you know that this is a weird and perhaps misguided attempt to appeal to all audiences.

“Dancing with the Stars” does bring on notable dancers and performers. With the money behind Disney and ABC, you’d think they could do better than Fox and “So You Think You Can Dance.” That show created a holiday to promote itself: National Dance Day. Because of this promotion, the real grassroots dance movements that have been struggling are struggling even more to now get out from under the long shadow cast by Lythgoe and his National Dance Day.

It’s no fluke that National Dance Day happens to occur just toward the end of the SYTYCD season. If Nigel Lythgoe was really sincere about dance and health, it would be better to do such a push while the public schools are in session instead of mid-summer when kids are on vacation. Think about it. This year’s National Dance Day, according to Lythgoe’s Dizzy Feet Foundation, is 27 July 2013.

Perhaps you think kids have more free time during the summer, but doing something during your freetime doesn’t make something into a habit or way of life. I remember learning dance when I was in elementary school (square dancing and Filipino folk dancing). My husband remembers learning hula in school in Hawaii. For dance to really influence one’s lifestyle it has to take hold in daily life, in those nine months when one has a regular schedule and not during a single month during what is to most people a vacation. For regular health benefits, dance can’t be like fishing–something done when one has a weekend to get away.

Imagine if SYTYCD had survived its maiden foray into the regular TV season (season six). National Dance Day might be in fall or spring. Instead of creating a whole new day, Lythgoe might have supported National Dance Week which began in 1981, long before “Dancing with the Stars” or SYTYCD. That’s the most positive outlook because his Dizzy Feet Foundation could also work during the SYTYCD off-season when the professionals and alums have more time and support National Dance week. They would also then support  International Dance Day (29 April) which is a UNESCO event first introduced in 1982.

Because both these events (National Dance Week and International Dance Day) lack network sponsorship, they have been overshadowed by National Dance Day. What National Dance Week and International Dance Day need is a sponsor who would give them a higher profile and DWTS could do it.

Eight of the sixteen seasons of DWTS coincide with National Dance Week and International Dance Day. Each year I wait and listen for DWTS to take part and promote these events as the dance community grows.

How hard would it be instead of attempting to come up with pre-shows and post-shows  and different dances, to attempt to address what’s already there? DWTS has various incarnations internationally and could easily pull together to support something that isn’t ABC-related but could possibly become Disney-related such as International Dance Day.

So I’m asking the DWTS production company to consider helping to make dance part of regular community life by encouraging public schools, from elementary to high school to promote dance. DWTS could begin during their fall season and culminate a product during their fall season.

Sincerely,

Jana J. Monji

Argentine tango and East Coast Swing dancer

DWTS 16 Finals: Can anyone stop Disney kid Zendaya?

Monday night’s dancing finished without much incident, but the ABC website went down, making voting only possible via Facebook. At the end of the evening, Disney kid Zendaya and her injured partner Val Chmerkovskiy were number one but only by one point.

Kellie Pickler and her partner Derek Hough were a close second with 64 points. In third was Olympic gold medal gymnast Alexandra Raisman and her partner Mark Ballas.

Football player and the only male contestant left in the competition, Jacoby Jones and his partner Karina Smirnoff were a distant fourth with 56 points.

Each couple performed three dances: two individual and one relay dance. In the relay  dance, the couples each danced the cha cha cha and were ranked. First place got a full five points while fourth place received only 2 points. This is what separated Pickler and Hough and Zendaya and Chmerkovskiy who would have otherwise been tied.

Final standings:

• Zendaya & Val Chmerkovskiy: 30+30+5 =65
• Kellie Pickler & Derek Hough: 30+30+4 =64
• Alexandra Raisman & Mark Ballas: 28+30+3=61
• Jacoby Jones & Karina Smirnoff : 27 + 27 + 2 = 56

Zendaya & Val Chmerkovskiy :

• 30 (10,10,10)
• Samba
• “Yerbatero“—Juanes
• 30 (10,10,10)
• Freestyle
• “Beauty and a Beat“—Justin Bieber ft. Nicki Minaj
• 5 points
• Cha-cha-cha Relay
• “Treasure“—Bruno Mars
• 1-800-868-3406

Kellie Pickler & Derek Hough :

• 30 (10,10,10)
• Quickstep
• “Peppy and George”–Ludovic Bource (OST. The Artist)
• 30 (10,10,10)
• Freestyle
• “Beneath Your Beautiful“—Labrinth feat. Emeli Sandé
• 4 points
• Cha-cha-cha Relay
• “Treasure“—Bruno Mars
• 1-800-868-3401

Alexandra Raisman & Mark Ballas:

• 28 (9,9,10)
• Samba
• “Hips Don’t Lie“—Shakira feat. Wyclef Jean
• 30 (10,10,10)
• Freestyle
• “Icarus“–Madeon
• 3 points
• Cha-cha-cha Relay
• “Treasure“—Bruno Mars
• 1-800-868-3408

Jacoby Jones & Karina Smirnoff:

• 27 (9,9,9)
• Jive
• “Shake It“—Metro Station
• 27 (9,9,9)
• Freestyle
• “Can’t Hold Us“—Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
• 2 points
• Cha-cha-cha Relay
• “Treasure“—Bruno Mars
• 1-800-868-3412

During the live shows, the judges will give each couple a score based on several factors, including technical execution. But the judges’ scores alone do not decide a couple’s fate.

• Vote online
• Vote on Facebook

Phone lines, text votes (AT&T customers only) and online voting will open at the top of each performance show so that viewers can vote for their favorites. Phone and text lines will stay open until 60 minutes after the end of the show in your local time zone. Online voting will remain open until 11 a.m. (Eastern Time)/ 8 a.m. (Pacific Time) the following day. Tuesday night, 21 May 2013, one of the four couples will be eliminated and three will compete for the mirrorball.

Bill Shatner, you and a rainbow

If you want a chance to be part of William Shatner’s new album, and you’re lucky enough to have a photo of yourself with a rainbow (not sure if it has to be a real rainbow), then send one in to William Shatner before 31 May 2013. See the message from Google+ below: 

William Shatner

4:18 PM  -  Public

Last call for rainbow photos.  I’m closing this as of May 31st.  The album will be out late summer/early fall.  Make sure that the images are big.  If they are too small we will not be able to use them. MBB

William Shatner originally shared this post:

So you may have heard that I’m doing a new album.  One song in particular I’m going to be doing a music video on.  I’d like to invite my fans to be a part of that video.  I’m looking for a photo of you with a rainbow.  Send me a digital copy of the photo in the highest resolution possible along with your name and the location of the photo.  This could be an old photo or a new photo – as long as it has you in the photo with the rainbow.  Send the file to ShatnersRainbow@gmail.com

Bill Shatner is looking for you!

William Shatner must be working on his next documentary because he just posted the following message on Facebook:

Friends,

I’m looking for true stories on how watching Star Trek (any series) affected your career decisions later in life. Did you go into a career in Science or Aviation or even become an Astronaut due to Star Trek and Science Fiction?

I want to hear your story. Please send me an email of your story on what about Star Trek made you choose your career path. Send a email with your story in the body of the email to: ShatnerScifi@gmail.com

My best, Bill

DWTS 16 Semi-finals ends with 17 tens

On Monday, during the semi-finals on DWTS 16, there were four perfect scores and 17 tens in all. Olympic gymnast Alexandra Raisman and Mark Balls were tied for first with football player Jacoby Jones and Karina Smirnoff with 59 points.

Jones and Smirnoff finally got a ten. They actually got three of them for a perfect score for their Argentine tango. Then he earned two more for his Lindy Hop for a 29.

In third place were Kellie Pickler and Derek Hough with a 58.  Pickler and Hough got their first perfect score for the Argentine tango. Zendaya and Val Chmerkovskiy fell to fourth place with 55. Their downfall was the quickstep.

At the bottom, were Ingo Rachmacher and Kym Johnson with 51. This couple will probably be eliminated.

Final standings:

• Alexandra Raisman & Mark Ballas: 30+ 29=59/60
• Jacoby Jones & Karina Smirnoff : 30 + 29 = 59/60
• Kellie Pickler & Derek Hough: 30 + 28 = 58/60
• Zendaya & Val Chmerkovskiy: 25+30 =55
• Ingo Rademacher & Kym Johnson: 24+27 =51/60

Alexandra Raisman & Mark Ballas: 59/60

• 30 (10,10,10)
• Rumba
• “When I Was Your Man“—Bruno Mars
• 29 (10,9,10)
• Afro-Jazz
• “Azumba”—Gregor Salto
• 1-800-868-3408

Jacoby Jones & Karina Smirnoff: 59/60

• 30 (10,10,10)
• Argentine Tango
• “Concierto Para Quinteto”—Astor Piazolla
• 29 (10,9,10)
• Lindy Hop
• “Ding Dong Daddy of the D-Car Line”—Cherry Poppin’ Daddies
• 1-800-868-3412

Kellie Pickler & Derek Hough : 58/60

• 30 (10,10,10)
• Argentine Tango
• “Para Te”—A.P.P.A.R.T.
• 28 (9,10,9)
• Flamenco
• “The Pirate That Should Not Be”—Rodrigo y Gabriela
• 1-800-868-3401

Zendaya & Val Chmerkovskiy : 55/60

• 25 (8,8,9)
• Quickstep
• “Don’t Give Up”—Noisettes
• 30 (10,10,10)
• Hip-Hop
• “Fine China“—Chris Brown
• 1-800-868-3406

Ingo Rademacher & Kym Johnson:51/60

• 24 (8,8,8)
• Samba
• “One More Night“—Maroon 5
• 27 (9,9,9)
• Charleston
• “Fat Sam’s Grand Slam”—Bugsy Malone
• 1-800-868-3403

During the live shows, the judges will give each couple a score based on several factors, including technical execution. But the judges’ scores alone do not decide a couple’s fate.

• Vote online
• Vote on Facebook

Phone lines, text votes (AT&T customers only) and online voting will open at the top of each performance show so that viewers can vote for their favorites. Phone and text lines will stay open until 60 minutes after the end of the show in your local time zone. Online voting will remain open until 11 a.m. (Eastern Time)/ 8 a.m. (Pacific Time) the following day. Tuesday night, 14 May 2013, who will be eliminated during season 16 week 9 of “Dancing with the Stars.”

Derek Hough’s Gravity-defying dance

Derek Hough with Jaimie Goodwin.

How can you not love this?

DWTS 16 Week 8: Two dances and nine tens

For the first time on season 16 of “Dancing with the Stars,” the judges awarded a perfect score, but in all nine tens were awarded. This week the six remaining couples danced two dances, the second one being the a Trio Challenge.

At the end, it was really Len Goodman who had the deciding vote. With Zendaya’s first dance, a foxtrot, he gave her a ten. He gave her a ten again for her salsa routine during the Trio Challenge as she danced with her partner Val Chmerkovskiy and Gleb Savchenko.

In the case of Alexandra Raisman and Mark Ballas, he also awarded a ten for the Argentine tango routine. That would have  given Raisman the lead with a 29 until the Trio Challenge when Raisman received all nines.

Kellie Pickler and Derek Hough also received a 28 for their first dance, a Viennese waltz, but during the Trio Challenge, Len Goodman argued that the paso doble routine didn’t have enough content and awarded Pickler, Hough and Tristan MacManus a seven.

Final standings:

• Zendaya & Val Chmerkovskiy: 28+30 =58
• Alexandra Raisman & Mark Ballas: 29+ 27=56/60
• Kellie Pickler & Derek Hough: 28 + 27 = 55/60
• Jacoby Jones & Karina Smirnoff : 27 + 25 = 52/60
• Ingo Rademacher & Kym Johnson: 24+24 =48/60
• Sean Lowe & Peta Murgatroyd: 21 + 21 = 42/60

 

Relive the dances of 6 May 2013.

Highlight reel.

 

Alexandra Raisman & Mark Ballas:

• 29 (9,10,10)
• Argentine Tango
• “Reflejo de Luna”—El Alacran
• 27 (9,9,9)
• Jive (Henry Byalikov)
• “Hit the Road Jack“—Ray Charles
• 1-800-868-3408

Zendaya & Val Chmerkovskiy :

• 28 (9,10,9)
• Foxtrot
• “Don’t Worry, Be Happy“—Bobby McFerrin
• 30 (10,10,10)
• Salsa (Gleb Savchenko)
• “Dança Molengo”—Bonde do Rolê feat. Rizzle Kicks
• 1-800-868-3406

Kellie Pickler & Derek Hough :

• 28 (9,9,10)
• Viennese Waltz
• “Fade Into You“—Mazzy Star
• 27 (10,7,10)
• Paso Doble (Tristan MacManus)
• “Unstoppable”—E.S. Posthumus
• 1-800-868-3401

Jacoby Jones & Karina Smirnoff:

• 27 (9,9,9)
• Viennese Waltz
• “It’s a Man’s, Man’s, Man’s World“—James Brown
• 25 (8,9,8)
• Paso Doble (Cheryl Burke)
• “La Virgen de la Macarena”—Canadian Brass
• 1-800-868-3412

Sean Lowe & Peta Murgatroyd :

• 21 (7,7,7)
• Tango
• “Hot n Cold“—Katy Perry
• 21 (7,7,7)
• Jazz (Sharna Burgess)
• “Magic” —B.O.B
• 1-800-868-3407

Ingo Rademacher & Kym Johnson:

• 24 (8,8,8)
• Foxtrot
• “You Make Me Feel So Young“—Michael Bublé
• 24 (8,8,8)
• Jive (Lindsay Arnold)
• “Dance With Me Tonight“—Olly Murs
• 1-800-868-3403

During the live shows, the judges will give each couple a score based on several factors, including technical execution. But the judges’ scores alone do not decide a couple’s fate.

• Vote online
• Vote on Facebook

Phone lines, text votes (AT&T customers only) and online voting will open at the top of each performance show so that viewers can vote for their favorites. Phone and text lines will stay open until 60 minutes after the end of the show in your local time zone. Online voting will remain open until 11 a.m. (Eastern Time)/ 8 a.m. (Pacific Time) the following day. Tuesday night, 7 May 2013, who will be eliminated during season 16 week 8 of “Dancing with the Stars.”

Press release: Celebrate the Celtic Roots at the Gamble House!

THE GAMBLE HOUSE CELEBRATES
“CELTIC ROOTS AT THE GAMBLE HOUSE”

Sunday, June 2, 2013, 4:00 – 7:00 p.m.

A Family Fun-Filled Afternoon at Pasadena’s Iconic Greene & Greene House
Featuring the Premier Celtic Violinist Jamie Laval,
Pasadena Scottish Pipes & Drums, Highland Dancing,
Celtic Food & Marketplace,
Activities for Children & Tours of the House

The Gamble House celebrates the Celtic roots of the Gamble family with an afternoon of Celtic festivities including a performance with Jamie Laval, one of the premier Celtic violinists on the international music scene today, musical entertainment from the Pasadena Scottish Pipes & Drums, Highland dancing, a Celtic marketplace, food and beverages, fun and games, complimentary Celtic food tastings, local brewers and craft beer tastings, and tours of The Gamble House on Sunday, June 2, 2013 from 4:00 – 7:00 p.m. on the grounds of the iconic Gamble House located at 4 Westmoreland Place, Pasadena, CA 91103, to celebrate the Celtic Roots of the Gamble family.

The Gamble House is an outstanding example of American Arts and Crafts style architecture. The house and furnishings were designed by Charles and Henry Greene in 1908 for David and Mary Gamble of the Procter & Gamble Company. The house, a National Historic Landmark, is owned by the City of Pasadena and operated by the University of Southern California and is open for public tours.

Descended from Scottish and Irish ancestors, David Berry Gamble was a second-generation member of the Procter & Gamble Company in Cincinnati, and had retired from active work in 1895. With his wife, Mary Huggins Gamble, they began to spend winters in Pasadena, residing in the area’s resort hotels. By 1907, the couple had decided to build a permanent home in Pasadena. In June of that year, they bought a lot on the short, private street, Westmoreland Place, passing up the more fashionable addresses on Orange Grove, known at that time as “Millionaires’ Row.” The house remained in the Gamble family until 1966, when it was deeded to the city of Pasadena in a joint agreement with the University of Southern California School of Architecture.

TICKET PRICES:

General admission: $50.00 – includes entertainment, touring of The Gamble House, and food & drink “tastings” (craft brews for those over 21, artisan sodas for the younger set);
VIP Tickets: $75.00 – includes the above, plus preferred parking, a meal selection, two pints of craft brew, and a special look at areas of The Gamble House not open to general admission;
Kids 12 and under (accompanied): $25 – includes general admission privileges;
Family of Four (two kids 12 and under): $125; VIP Family of Four: $225

Paul Taylor Dance Company in Paris on PBS tonight

If you weren’t able to go to the City of Light to see Paul Taylor Dance Company perform last year at the Théâtre National de Chaillot at the Festival Les Étes de la Danse 2012 on the 50th anniversary of the company’s first appearance there in 1962, then watching this special is the next best thing.

The company performs “Brandenburgs”  and”Beloved Renegade.” The company first performed “Brandenbergs” in 1988. The piece is set to music from Johann Sebastian Bach’s (1685-1750) Brandenburg concertos #3 and #6 ((1721). As a lover of both classical music and modern dance (or at least Paul Taylor), I could watch this piece forever. Men and ladies dressed in what appears to be dark velvet with gold trim dance in elegant formations. Taylor gives us the gallantry of men as the court playful women with cool formality.

“Beloved Renegade” uses Francis Poulenc’s “Gloria” was is inspired by the works of the 19th Century American writer Walt Whitman (1819-1892), specifically a line from his “Leaves of Grass”: “I am the poet of the body and I am the poet of the soul.” “Leaves of Grass” was a poetry collection that Whitman re-edited throughout his life. It was first published in 1855 and was considered a bit racy because the narrator looks with delight at the sensual pleasures of life.

• Leaves of Grass online at the Gutenberg Project

“Beloved Renegade” looks at man’s journey toward death and the man is led by the dark angel of death who is neither dark nor frightening. The dancers are dresses in light colors. The man bid farewell to all of his friends. Yet the feeling is both solemn and joyful.

Performing in “Brandenburgs” are Michael Trusnovec, Amy Young, Parisa Khobdeh, Eran Bugge, Robert Kleinendorst, James Samson, Sean Mahoney, Michael Apuzzo and Michael Novack.

For “Beloved Renegade,” Michael Trusnovec, Amy Young, Robert Kleinendorst, James Samson, Laura Halzack, Michelle Fleet, Parisa Khobdeh, Sean Mahoney, Jeffrey Smith, Eran Bugge, Francisco Graciano, Jamie Rae Walker, Michael Apuzzo, Aileen Roehl and Heather McGinley.

Costumes are by Santo Loquasto and lighting by Jennifer Tipton.

After seeing this “Great Performances” production which uses various camera angles but always keeps the dancer in mind you might consider purchasing the DVD.

Paul Taylor (born 29 July 1930) is now 82 and is one of the last living members of the second generation of modern dance. Martha Graham called him the “naughty boy” of dance and he still choreographs two new pieces of work each year according to PBS.

If you haven’t had the chance to see the Paul Taylor Company in person, don’t miss this presentation.  ”Great Performances: Paul Taylor Company in Paris” airs on Friday, 3 May 2013 at 9 p.m. (check local listings).