4266 replies to this topic

[legion]

Cool, collected and condescending. I love it. Others may disagree.....

[JenTG]

I love it too. I'm tired of all these "Oh! You love me! I so don't deserve your love!" phonies. Give me cool, collected, and condescending any day. I like the dancing I've seen of him because it's subtle. Not-Oh looke how much the music inspires me crap. It just goes easy with the music. I don't care if that mentally diminished Shane thinks he's "whack" (does Shane know any other word besides that). I'm all for Danny, I'm not sure how long he'll still around, but I LOVE his attitude and "vibe".

[kbchase]

I love what clips I've seen of Danny, and I'm looking forward to seeing him more than any other contestant.
I watch this show because I love to watch dancing.
I don't care who's the nicest dancer, who has the biggest sob story, who does or doesnt have ego.
Its irrelevant - I just want to see someone who dances well, and right now, Danny looks like he fits the bill.

[Southern_Belle]

I like Danny and hope he can overcome the editing and make it into at least the top 10. Arrogance or not, based on the youtube videos I've seen, he's an awesome dancer and cute to boot. That's really all I ask of my favorite dancers on this show.

[BlueMouse]

Well, I'll be the first (and I hope not only! Eep!) voice of dissension. I thought he was way too arrogant and it really turned me off. Yeah, he's an incredibly talented dancer, and he's easy on the eyes to boot, but his snooty behaviour is just silly. He may have more dance training and background than a lot of the kids there, but he is NOT the only uber-talented dancer there, and he needs to remember that.
But hey, that's just me. YMMV. ;o)

[shalia17]

I care about whether a dancer's personality is cool or not because even though this show is about dance it's also about making me like them. I trust that Shane got a "vibe" from him but now that I've thought about it more, I think Shane could still be wrong about him. His percieved arrogance may just be how he seems not who he is. I'm looking forward to seeing alot more of him. My crush will not die in one episode I swear!

[Hyper Critical]

I'll never understand the edit last night. If he did something "on the tapes that we reviewed" why weren't we, the audience that was being spoken to as well, shown the evidence? Why - would Mia make the remark she did, that there's nothing there or some such, when I'm pretty sure she at least knew him on a professional level since she's been interviewed and featured in his magazine? We see Mia critique him after what is edited to look like her choreo round, but was that really the right round? They can edit things to look like anything. Lord knows, Tyce did a whole choreo round of Musical Theatre that I think we only small snippets of thrown in with the drama-group-choreo round. What day was Tyce's chore round on?

His only sin was being collected when they put him through, after they just got done raking him over the coals. Oh, and he said "I can win this competition" well, I hope all the kids put through to the Top 20 believe that, or there wouldn't be any heart in their dancing.

I'm anxious to see what he does with hip-hop and ballroom choreography and until I see a pissy package of him learning choreo with his partner, I'll reserve judgment about any arrogance. I know he can do contemporary beautifully, so know I'm excited to see everything else.

[shalia17]

Honestly I think they are conjuring up some sort of storyline for him and not nec. the villain. I predict he will have his BREAKTHROUGH in a few weeks and emerge as frontrunner and favorite. I dunno I keep going back and forth on my opinion about the edit but I don't think they did it purposely to keep him down at least not for the long haul, especially if he does awesome in other styles.

Edited by shalia17, Jun 8, 2007 @ 9:09 PM.

[Bookwormrach]

His only sin was being collected when they put him through, after they just got done raking him over the coals. Oh, and he said "I can win this competition" well, I hope all the kids put through to the Top 20 believe that, or there wouldn't be any heart in their dancing.

Exactly. Danny was probably asked, "So, Do You Think You Can Win?" What was he supposed to say..."No?" I like directness, and I appreciate that some people don't respond to good news in an "on-camera!!" kind of a way (because, of course, that's what I do, hee.)

Honestly I think they are conjuring up some sort of storyline for him and not nec. the villain. I predict he will have his BREAKTHROUGH in a few weeks and emerge as frontrunner and favorite. I dunno I keep going back and forth on my opinion about the edit but I don't think they did it purposely to keep him down at least not for the long haul, especially if he does awesome in other styles.

Yeah, there's something up with this Villain Edit. (Especially since people have pointed out the Mia/Danny connection; she works with him, if not 'for' him, so the whole thing's a bit sketchy.) Perhaps TPTB just need a 'Villain' for their story, and his introverted ways and amassed dance experience make him an easier victim. I don't know. I won't hate him until I see him kicking puppies on-screen.

And, lastly, Dude is really pretty. And I can't wait to see his solos.

Edited by Bookwormrach, Jun 8, 2007 @ 9:44 PM.

[JenTG]

I just wanted to add, I don't trust Shane at all. He's the same retard that put a mask on Donyelle. Maybe he feels threatened by Danny or some kind of BS.

[Mmm... Free Goo]

I feel really ashamed about this, but I hadn't watched any of the YouTube videos beforehand but remember his name bandied about as Travis' brother, and when they showed him I was wondering who the brother was because I was surprised he was black. Then I remembered he was adopted.

I do get a bit of an arrogant vibe off him, which could hurt him on the show no matter how good of a dancer and experienced he is (see Blake S1). But it's just a feeling and there isn't anything to back it up so far for me, because they didn't show what Mia and Shane hated so much.

[kudorider]

After he got finger pointed at, talk down to and scolded at like a nine-year-old child, I am glad he maintained his cool, smiled and walk away. If he had jumped up and down like an idiot in front of them, I would had lost a bit of respect in him. To me, he is the super cool, nothing fazed him type of person. For some reason if they are trying to my opinion based on last night show, they aren't doing a real good job.

[pique arabesque]

I don't like that he's in this competition. The man is already a star in the dance world. I had heard of him long ago. He doesn't need this to get jobs or further training... I mean, when you've already been part of the top freaking ballet company in America, you shouldn't be in a competition for undiscovered talent. ugh. I just feel like he took the spot of someone who HASN'T yet broken through.

[ReiaLee]

That's a really good point, pique arabesque. I never thought about it that way. Now it seems like he's just in it for the money and fame, which is terrible.

[Southern_Belle]

But is this competition really for undiscovered talent? Cat keeps harping about this being a competition to find America's favorite dancer. From what I've heard about Lacey, Heidi, and Benji, they are also at the top of their fields, and Blake was a professional dancer before coming on the show. I'm didn't hold it against them, so I'll give Danny the same benefit.

That's a really good point, pique arabesque. I never thought about it that way. Now it seems like he's just in it for the money and fame, which is terrible.

I would bet that many of the dancer are on this show for the fame and money, not to mention using this as a stepping stone into another field such as acting.

[hypertwink]

I agree with Southern Belle. Why join a contest when you can be auditioning and working on "legit" sets and stages? It's because probably everyone will be elevated to a level where they have (1) exposure, (2) fame, and yes, (3) money. If you accuse Danny of that, then you should throw that accusation at everybody who auditioned. They're not really doing this just for the love of dance.

Edited by hypertwink, Jun 9, 2007 @ 7:45 AM.

[lmg2004]

I've speculated that Danny has ambitions to choreograph or start up his own company in the future. My guess is that he's using the show as a means to get a wider audience interested in him so they'll pay for a ticket to see him later on in life. If that's right, he is doing the show for his art in a very business savvy way.

Oh, and for the money.

(But it is a lot of money, even for a professional who is getting plenty of work. I'd estimate Danny earned about $35,000/year at ABT based on a $950/week salary for a 36-week season... And from that, he had to pay to live in New York City and probably for additional health insurance -- important for a dancer! -- during the 16 weeks of the year he wasn't on salary with the company.)

[Andreanne]

Why join a contest when you can be auditioning and working on "legit" sets and stages?

Summer is the slow season for professional dancers.

Edited by Andreanne, Jun 9, 2007 @ 8:21 AM.

[megs]

When he went on stage to find out if he was in the top twenty, Nigel asked "How are you?" and Danny answered "Everything." Can someone who recorded the show confirm if there was an edit there because that just didn't make any sense unless they are toying with us - trying to *prove* how arrogant he is.

[provencal]

Now that I've thought about it, his answer makes sense: nervous, happy, excited, scared. If he elaborated, it would have made sense.

[HZAnita]

I'm no dance afficianado, but I think he dances brilliantly and I don't care about his personality.

After watching some of his performances on youtube, I can see why Shane and Mia wouldn't necessarily appreciate him. I think both Mia and Shane prefer raw, gritty, emotional, earthy, passionate dancers.

While Travis had that ability to ground himself, Danny Tidwell *seems* to be a very refined, fluid, ethereal dancer. It's beautiful, but it's like he's floating above the stage. It will be interesting watching him adjust to the different choreographer's expectations.

He may not win, but I believe he'll be on the show a good while. He's just too objectively fantastic to be cut early by the voting public, IMO.

[shalia17]

I'm no dance afficianado, but I think he dances brilliantly and I don't care about his personality.

See I'm one of those people who has to like a dancer's personality. If someone's personality leaves me cold then their dancing tends to as well. I not just saying they have to be nice and bubbly (from what I've seen of Blake, I like him) but they have to have *something* that makes me care about them besides technique. Personality is a big part of connection between their dancing and myself. This pretty much only goes for this competition though since if I'm watching something on youtube I'm not caring all that much either way.

ETA: I'm not saying anything about Danny's personality. I'm still in the wait and see mode right now. I've seen those youtube vids and think he's brilliant as well so I'm just going to see if he makes me care about him actually succeeding.

Edited by shalia17, Jun 9, 2007 @ 10:06 AM.

[Shelshka]

I'm reserving judgment on whether or not he's actually the arrogant prick the edit tried to convince us. I would expect someone of his caliber to be confident of his skills; he may simply be too professional to do the happy bouncy teary-eyed freak-out in front of the judges when they put him through; he might be an introvert and not an extrovert. Besides, as I've said elsewhere, it's 19E. I'm taking all their edited-in drama with a shaker of salt.

[Nomirat]

pique arabesque: I mean, when you've already been part of the top freaking ballet company in America, you shouldn't be in a competition for undiscovered talent.

I can see how it might offend some, but I don't remember any statements to the effect that the show is about discovering undiscovered talent. It's always been "America's favorite dancer" to my knowledge. Have they said otherwise? Why can't that include dancers who are already at the top of the dance world? It seems unlikely that "America" as a whole knew he even existed before this show, just those who are heavily into dance and those who read message boards. ;)

lmg2004: I've speculated that Danny has ambitions to choreograph or start up his own company in the future. My guess is that he's using the show as a means to get a wider audience interested in him so they'll pay for a ticket to see him later on in life. If that's right, he is doing the show for his art in a very business savvy way.

This theory makes a lot of sense to me.

Outside of the year I took in ballet, tap, and gymnastics at age five (and even then only because my mom wanted me to be more graceful), I've never had any dance training, but I love watching people dance. All I can judge is how aesthetically appealing the dancing is to my untrained eye. When it comes to that, I haven't seen anyone surpass Danny in what he does. I'd pay to see him and I'd probably pay to see any company of his.

provencal:Now that I've thought about it, his answer makes sense: nervous, happy, excited, scared. If he elaborated, it would have made sense.

When I was watching the show live, this was exactly how I interpreted it.

As for his supposed arrogance or attitude problems, if he didn't have the ability to be confident and poised, I doubt he would be as success as he is. Then there's the fact that Mia does write for his magazine, so would she really want to talk trash about him? (What she and Shane said was about his personality and character and not very professional, in my opinion. I lost respect for both of them at that moment.) I think the show is setting up some kind of arc for him, but I'm just not sure at this point if it's the villain/diva (divo?) arc or the redemptive arc.

Edited by Nomirat, Jun 9, 2007 @ 11:07 AM.

[provencal]

The Danny's results clip is on youtube now. I watched it a few times to see exactly what was going on. It was a HUGE editing job, that I can say. Good or bad, I don't know. I think it's deliberate that they didn't show us any of his dancing, but rather the judges comments. When they did comment on his reputation (Mia says, "You have a reputation for brilliance, you're not living up to it"), it's followed by a negative comment on his motivation. It's like they don't want the general non-dance audience to know just how accomplished he is. Right before Nigel's ego comment, he says, You have a problem. Then it's an edit. I'm guessing what wasn't shown was Nigel commenting on Danny's brilliance, reputation and stardom in the dance world. Then he tells Danny the ego has to go, which is shown.Their main problem seems to be, they think he's doing this just for the $ or exposure and is going to coast through. He's a ringer, but they can't disqualify him just because of his over-ability.
Much of this has been said before, but I wanted to see it for myself based on the video.

[Andreanne]

they think he's doing this just for the $ or exposure

Aren't all the other dancers doing the show for these same reasons? Why is Tidwell being singled out with a non-dancing, villain edit?

[shimi]

First, I think that even if some of the dancers have made ( positive and negative) impressions on me during the audition rounds, I'm inclined to start with a blank slate when the first comp. episode starts, because we all know how heavily edited those shows are. So no one is starting off as a villain or hero with me, no matter what I may think TPTB at Fox might want.

Having seen just the videos of Danny online, I think his challenge will be to clearly communicate passion/emotion/joy and not just float on transcendently with his ballet skills. I think that he may join Ryan and Jessica in the class of "brilliant ballet technician who can't emote"; which is a stereotype that the show promotes even as it claims to want to undo ( by expressing concern about it).

He's talented, but he's not earth-shattering, and he's still young enough that he has things to learn about his trade. So I look forward to seeing what he can pull out for as long as he stays on the show.

Edited by shimi, Jun 9, 2007 @ 3:42 PM.

[Bookwormrach]

Now it seems like he's just in it for the money and fame, which is terrible.

Just keeping it real (like Shane, y'know), but I think every single dancer in the Top 20 tried out for the show partly/mostly(?) because of the fame and money. I can't speculate on everybody's motivations, of course, but being an amazing dancer doesn't easily pay all the bills (especially if you aren't naturally affluent and you have NYC living costs.) Being a well-known dancer would help you get infinitely better gigs (benefits that Benji is probably currently reaping.)

I just don't see what's so different with Danny compared the other accomplished dancers. Besides, the show has "come clean" (although TPTB have certainly gone overboard in their Villain Edit) about D's accomplishments. Much as groan when I feel American Idol has ringer contestants, I realized this season that on talent shows like this, you can't draw an easy line for what constitutes "professional" dancer and "talented amateur."

Honestly, my real Danny concern is that he might not be able to connect with the types of routines that dancers like Heidi, Donyelle, and Benji really succeeded in: flashy, big numbers that really rely on selling your personality to the viewers. However, Danny could definitely surprise us in regards to this, so I think it could go either way.

Edited by Bookwormrach, Jun 9, 2007 @ 4:09 PM.

[Moldspore]

So does anybody know why he left ABT in the first place?

On an only tangentially related topic, his mom, Denise Wall, has a myspace and I think it's really sweet. She talks a lot about her sons and their accomplishments (and yeah, she refers to Danny as her son, not her "adopted" son). Apparently, she has five sons, although obviously she doesn't specify how many are biological. She has links to Travis and Danny's youtube performances and talks up the work all of her kids are doing. It's quite cute. If she was a contestant, she'd get my vote! :)

[alvin etler]

Apparently, she has five sons, although obviously she doesn't specify how many are biological.

Only two of them are Walls, Travis and Tyler.