Glamour Girl
Glamour Girl, like half of the USA, it seems, is riveted to the blockbuster show So You Think You Can Dance. The caliber of dancing—in all genres—is stupendous, and the beauty and vigor of the young contestants sheer joy to watch. Well, maybe not sheer. It’s also a nail-biting, tear-inducing, yelling-at-the-television experience, especially when GG’s favorite dancers are voted off by an audience that sometimes just doesn’t get it.
Case in point: Jordan Casanova, who is ten times the dancer Caitlyn Lawson is, but who was booted off last week because . . . .
Because Jordan isn’t conventionally beautiful, isn’t conventionally dancer-shaped, isn’t conventional anything. She’s “odd”-looking by American standards, and she’s got the teeniest-tiniest, itty-bitty bit of a teensy poof at her tummy, which I can just imagine caused some voters in our insane thin-obsessed culture to call her “fat.” I have no proof of this, of course, I’m just going on the votes every week, which consistently put her at the bottom of the heap, to the point that Nigel Lythgoe, the majordomo of the proceedings, chastised the audience more than once for not appreciating the talent bursting out of this girl. (Something similar happened last year, when Nigel, et. al. changed the rules of the show mid-season because the audience was too clueless to keep in the competition the most dazzling dancer of all, Lauren Froderman, who went on to win, thanks to the wisdom of the judges.)
Jordan’s line is simply unequalled (except perhaps by Melanie Moore, the wholesome, corn-fed stunner who deserves to win, maybe in a tie with Sasha Mallory), her power, athleticism, and acting ability breathtaking.
I predicted that Jordan would be voted off, and she was. I cursed the TV and cursed the voting audience. No matter—we’ll be seeing Jordan Casanova’s name in lights one day, I’m sure.
But this is supposed to be a fashion column, after all, and fashion there is aplenty every week, from the dancers’ costumes to the outfits worn by host Cat Deeley and judge Mary Murphy.
I don’t know who the show’s stylist is, but whoever it is, he/she is wacky. The clothes are all over the map. Deeley is bubbly and charming. She sometimes shows up in sophisticated frocks and sometimes in sartorial train wrecks. Here’s an example of the former, thanks to Lanvin:
But here’s an example of the latter—and sorry the pic is so small, but you can get a better look at it here. It’s by Warehouse:
Not only was Deeley’s hair smashed into a Heidi-esque bundle, but her breasts were smushed into that top, and the skirt was ridiculously short, looking more like something a 10-year-old would wear instead of a grown woman. This is a problem with a lot of the clothes they put Deeley in, like this dress by Catherine Malandrino:
Yes, the print is lovely, but the dress is too short, the knobby knees (with no hose, of course, because a few years ago designers started inexplicably dissing hosiery in favor of a bare-legged look that 98% of women can’t pull off) unflattering. And the towering shoes, a hallmark of Deeley’s look on the show, often appear ungainly and out of proportion.
Here, though, is a sophisticated number by French Connection:
Here’s another that’s just silly short:
And again in the yellow vein, a sophisticated, elegant length, if too little-girly on top:
On to Mary Murphy, who has a voice that could peel paint, but whose commentary is consistently enlightening and often eloquent. Murphy is partial to the Bigger-is-Better school of fashion—big hair, big makeup, big earrings, big necklaces, and lots of bling. It’s all too much. But we forgive her because she’s so damn good at dance critiques.
Okay, this has gone on a bit long, but the show is so much fun to watch, and the level of dancing, as I said earlier, so high. If you haven’t seen it, you have one more chance next week (Wednesday, August 10th), the finale. If the last dancer standing isn’t Melanie or Sasha, don’t be alarmed when you hear a howl of less-than-PG language reverberating throughout the city.
Posted by .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) on 08/04/11 at 09:16 PM
