Dancing or Playing

On every episode of Dancing with the Stars celebrities and their professional dance partners all take the stage and grace the audience with a short dance.  The actual dance is frequently nothing at all to do with the actual scores that are handed out by the judges.  However, it is also extremely important to realize that while the judges do play a large part of determining who wins the show, and even who goes home each week there are several instances where the viewers themselves will have a much larger impact on how the show proceeds.

In general terms it is typically widely accepted that the show is based heavily upon appearances.  Both the appearance of the celebrity and also the appearance of the professional dancer.  It is very seldom that anyone actually makes it through the competition by looking sloppy, uncoordinated and even badly organized.  If you are looking to ensure that you are well pulled together and are actually appropriately scored then it is critical that the contestants actually look the parts that they are trying to play.  For many this means stepping out of their comfort zone and wearing clothing that they normally would never wear.

In order to actually put together the true package needed to win the show it is very much necessary to take the time to pull together a great routine that is complete with perfect timing, great dancing skills, audience draw and even a great costume.  Someone is just not going to look as pulled together if they select the wrong costume.  There is no denying this at all, but if you do not take the time to actually select a good costume you could quickly find yourself leaving the show simply because the costume took too much attention away from the actual dancing.

In order to really move past the small details and determine if the judges really do decide the show based on actual dancing skills it is important to watch a season from start to finish.  There has been speculation for a very long time that the judges are not very concerned with the actual dancing.  This has been further proven by the lack of fairness that judge Mary Ann Inaba often shows to contestants.  However, while the show continues to plug along, there are times when it is noticeable that the actual dancing is the primary concern of the judges.

For most viewers it is extremely frustrating only having a partial impact on which contestants stay and which go.  The judges having at least some impact on which contestants are permitted to stay is intended to ensure that the competition stays focused on dancing skills, however it does still occasionally fall to the side in the event that some contestants are more favored by the judges and even the viewers than others who are more talented.  While the show has struggled to ensure that it is fairly judged there is still an uncertainness whether the actual dancing or the whim of the judges makes a greater difference in who will actually win.

Pulling your favorite star out of the crowd and giving them the boost needed to win is not just based on actual votes.  It is still required that contestants at least attempt to completely master the dances that they are trying to compete with.  This goes a long way towards helping contestants be absolutely certain that they are winning based upon their actual dancing skills, rather than just popularity but as many arguments have occurred, it is still undetermined just how effective this actually is.  Many feel that the dancers whom are actually more talented are actually penalized by the judges in terms of a contestant that is more favored, such as the case with Melanie Brown and her partner on five.  However, while the debates continue to rage on, there are still several theories that are discussed and the show marches on for a new season after each one ends, further increasing the popularity.