So You Think You Can Dance?

by Julie Coulter Bellon

When I was a student at BYU I had to take a dance class for PE credit. One of the tests was performing a cha-cha in front of the teacher, so I asked a guy in my student ward if he would be my cha-cha partner. Of course, he was a really good looking guy, who was an amazing dancer, and, yeah, he had some great hip action. *sigh*

Of course he later became my husband. And we can still do a mean cha-cha.

Which is part of the reason why I love to watch the reality television show, "Dancing With the Stars." I like watching celebrities learn new dances, compete, and be judged. Most of the time you can really see the improvement. Even those that don’t improve (hello, Master P!) you can at least applaud them for trying something totally out of their comfort zone.

I was really excited for this season, not only because of the celebrities, but because I knew there would be three LDS people competing on the show. Marie Osmond, of course, and the professional dancers, Julianne Hough, and Derek Hough. I think Julianne is incredibly talented, evidenced by the fact that she was the champion last season, and I was anxious to see how her brother would be as well. I was also interested to see what kind of ballroom dancer Marie Osmond would be and if her personality would come out.

So far this season has been chock-full of mishaps and missteps, but it’s been entertaining to watch in a rubbernecking-a-traffic-accident sort of way. First we had Derek Hough, (who is partnered with Jennie Garth this season), stepping on Jennie's dress during a performance which caused a fall that was replayed in slo-mo several times and brought Jennie to tears. I thought Derek handled it well, though, and was compassionate toward his partner and professional in the aftermath.

Then, at the results show two weeks ago, right before they announced the first "safe" couple of the night, you can clearly hear someone whispering something that sounds like a swear word into a mike that is on but not shown. It’s true! I rewound it a few times to make sure. Although my daughter thought it could be someone saying, "Mitch!" as if they were calling a cameraman or something. But I didn’t think so.

Last Monday was the most shocking of all when Marie Osmond fainted after she performed her dance number. She was all happy and smiling, then suddenly dropped like a rock. Her partner who was standing right behind her with his arms around her, didn’t even catch her! It was a scary moment, though, as they went to commercial so medical personnel could help Marie. Thankfully she was fine and is continuing in the contest.

It’s generally not like that. There hasn’t been a whole lot of drama since the first season when John O’Hurley acted like a sore loser and insisted on a dance-off because Kelly Monaco won and he didn’t. But the show did get better from there and I’ve enjoyed it. Oh, I know, some of the "costumes" aren’t modest, but other than that, it’s been a fun show to watch. I like the charm of Helio with Julianne, seeing them work together on the dances behind the scenes and how happy of a person he seems to be. I like Marie’s little jokes about how she’s going to win because there’s 25 million people watching and 22 million of them are Osmonds. I also like seeing LDS people getting out there and sharing their talents, helping others, and having a great time doing it.

Perhaps it will inspire me to break out my cha-cha again. I know I will never be a great dancer like the ones I see on the show (have you SEEN Jane Seymour? She’s 56 and looks incredible! She’s a good dancer, too.) And I know I will NEVER fit into any one of those costumes they’ve had on the show, but I do have a secret weapon.

I still have the greatest partner at my disposal—my good looking husband, who’s an amazing dancer, with great hip action. :)

1-2-3 cha cha cha . . .