Eddie: Thank you for the comment. We were literally JUST talking about how we are going to this year's celebration to get new photos because we have run this shot the past several years. Suffice it to say, we will have new photos from the event after this weekend.
Jay: We are working on getting a definitive answer on that. The Chow Hound went by yesterday at lunch and all lights were off, nobody was inside, but no sign was on the door indicating that it was out of business. The phone number is disconnected. The weird thing is, we spoke to the restaurant as recently as December 16, and there was no mention of any trouble. We will keep our readers updated as we find out more information.
Rene, I completely agree. I thought the concert overall was good -- very impressed by Skylar Grey and Joe Jonas (shockingly), and thought Patrick Stump was clearly talented but marred by bad sound mixing. But I thought it was really unfortunate/unconscionable that the promoters allowed that show to run as long as it did, on a school night, when a huge chunk of the crowd were kids under 10 waiting for Big Time Rush to take the stage. I understand that their hands were partially tied, since BTR was the headliner, and contractually probably had to go last. But the fact that 20-30 minutes passed between each act with basically nothing happening on stage -- not even set up/tear down that we could see -- and the fact that there were five or six acts...someone should have had the brains to realize that this was going to be a problem. My niece had been waiting very patiently all night for Big Time Rush. The only band she wanted to see (though she enjoyed several others). By the time they got on stage she was falling asleep in her seat. We had to take her out while BTR was still performing, just shy of 10:30 p.m., because the poor thing was totally out of it. I'm so disappointed for her. Really poor planning on the part of the promoters.
Katherine and Alex: Not to worry, City is not abandoning its commitment to serious food criticism. This was a one-off cover story -- something totally different that follows a different facet of food and dining in Rochester -- but our Dining section will continue to feature food and restaurant news in the Chow Hound columns as well as restaurant reviews by James Leach. In fact, one appeared in the very same issue as the food-challenges piece. You can find that review here: www.rochestercitynewspaper.com/restaurants/articles/2011/11/RESTAURANT-REVIEW-Istanbul-Market/
Anonymous: You're entitled to your opinion, but I need to make clear that there is no bias involved with these reviews. There is absolutely no money changing hands, and I can say with total honesty that I don't know anyone involved with this production on a personal level. I enjoyed the show, that's all. I found it charming and filled with lovely performances.
Chris: There are no shenanigans. I'll clarify this again, since there always seems to be confusion about this. The readers' poll results are determined exclusively by popular vote. City Newspaper has zero say in the matter. The Final 4 choices were determined by the open-ended Primary Ballot, which ran online in September and received thousands of responses; people could write in whatever they pleased in the 100 categories. The top local choices from the Primary Ballot became the Final Ballot, which ran in print and online during most of October and received more than double the number of votes as the Primary Ballot. All we do is tally up the votes, and we watch for ballot stuffing and suspect ballots very closely.
City realizes that people don't always agree with some of the decisions (frankly, WE don't always agree with them). But this is simply how the people who took the survey voted. I'm glad that people are taking the opportunity to put their thoughts on the best of Rochester in the comments on these articles. But please do not allege some kind of conspiracy or shenanigans. We work very hard to make sure the balloting is as ethical as possible.
Chris: There are no shenanigans. I'll clarify this again, since there always seems to be confusion about this. The readers' poll results are determined exclusively by popular vote. City Newspaper has zero say in the matter. The Final 4 choices were determined by the open-ended Primary Ballot, which ran online in September and received thousands of responses; people could write in whatever they pleased in the 100 categories. The top local choices from the Primary Ballot became the Final Ballot, which ran in print and online during most of October and received more than double the number of votes as the Primary Ballot. All we do is tally up the votes, and we watch for ballot stuffing and suspect ballots very closely.
City realizes that people don't always agree with some of the decisions (frankly, WE don't always agree with them). But this is simply how the people who took the survey voted. I'm glad that people are taking the opportunity to put their thoughts on the best of Rochester in the comments on these articles. But please do not allege some kind of conspiracy or shenanigans. We work very hard to make sure the balloting is as ethical as possible.
Tim: There is absolutely no favortism showed to anyone during the Best Of readers' poll. We take this very seriously -- what you see are the results of the readers votes, and we watch for ballot stuffing and discount any suspect ballots. We do not share actual voting numbers because, frankly, we do not think that's fair to the third- and fourth-place finishers. There's no conspiracy here. This is how the people vote, plain and simple.
Note to Mr. Teeter and Dr. Brownstein: While we appreciate you taking the time to comment on this article, we do not want the thread devolve into a he-said-she-said dialogue between two parties. If you want to make points regarding the article itself, feel free (keeping in mind our standards for libel and harassment). But if you're merely responding to each other's arguments, we would ask that you do so directly.
Beth: The ballot is working fine. I just tried it. You get that message if someone using your computer/IP address has already completed the survey. If you think that is in error, I encourage you to take the print version of the ballot that ran in this week's paper. Either way of voting counts.
EDITOR'S NOTE ON COMMENTS: We understand that this article covers a controversial topic that has sparked very strong reactions in people. City Newspaper is glad to provide this forum for discussion of the issue, but we will not approve any comments that include insults, threats, or other antagonistic language.
Nancy: You do not need to answer all the questions. We ask that responders fill out 40 or so just to avoid ballot stuffing -- people going in and voting for only one business/person -- but you certainly do not need to vote in all of them. The instructions on the first page should explain that.
Steve: The Final 4 that appear on this ballot were culled from the four biggest vote getters in each category from our primary ballot, which ran through the month of September. We received thousands of votes in the primary, in which anyone could write in the name of whatever answers they wished. Unfortunately WRUR did not make the Final Ballot this year.
Thanks for commenting, folks. Just a reminder: you have to actually click the link and take the survey for your votes to count. We do not count comments left on this article when it comes to determining the Best Of winners.
Andy! So good to hear from you. After much soul-searching I've decided to skip blogging "X Factor" -- at least until they get to the judges' house rounds. This is my busy season at work and I just don't have four-plus hours a week to throw into blogging another show, at least not until things settle down a bit in mid- to late October. I haven't even gotten today's "Top Model" blog up yet!
Jimmy: I think that's a great point. I meant to include this in my review, but it was already too long. My guess is that DC assumed that the general public's awareness of Green Lantern, Hal Jordan, Sinestro, and the Guardians would be very high based on this summer's big movie. Of course, that didn't quite work out so well, and I think that might have hurt them. I think Johns did a good job this issue establishing the histories and subplots as generally as possible without going into every little detail, but it did occur to me that DC probably should have put out some free sampler kind of thing that brought readers up to speed with these characters so that new readers were ready to hit the ground running with the No. 1s. I understand not wanting to bog down the new books with tons of exposition right from the start (I would point you to Swamp Thing's first issue, which did just that and was a total snooze), and I think the great majority of the new No. 1s have successfully balanced introduction and momentum. But I can absolutely see where new readers would read "GL" No. 1 and say, "Wait, we're already in the middle of the story?"
Lila: That's a really interesting point. For the purposes of this survey, we're defining Rochester as Greater Rochester -- basically the city and all of Monroe County. A Best Of strictly adhering to the city limits sure is an interesting idea, though...
Just a note from City: We're so thrilled to see all the comments coming in, and people talking about their favorites. But please do not use this as a forum to trash other businesses that you don't care for. That's not the spirit of Best Of. It's about elevating the things that make Rochester great, not tearing down what you don't like.
Great comments, everyone. Just a remember: you actually have to take the survey by clicking the link at the top of the article. Comments left here will not count toward vote totals.
Alicia: Sincere apologies if you were offended by the lack of an Abbott's mention in the article. My larger point was this round-up was intended to highlight some of the smaller ice-cream stands in the area. Certainly City Newspaper has nothing against Abbott's, and I apologize if that's how the article was perceived. That was never the intention.
Alicia: Thanks for the comment. Abbott's is obviously a local mainstay when it comes to frozen treats. We wanted to give our readers some other options to consider, because there are actually quite a few great, smaller ice-cream stands out there, many of which are only open seasonally. That was the point of this article.
Vicki: Your first step would probably be to reach out to the City of Rochester's Clerks Office to look into permits and codes.
Some very good points in these comments! I would just like to add a few of my thoughts now that the season has come to a close.
1. I hope they stick with the merged Top 20/All-Stars format going forward. I thought it worked really well this time out, giving us truly the best of both worlds.
2. I realized this morning that, aside from Mitchell's weird elbow issue in Week 1, no serious injuries this season! What a remarkable change from last season, when it seemed like every week someone was being eliminated because they were physically incapable of continuing. I wonder if the dancers had it easier (doubt it), they were doing more rigorous stretching (possibly), or what, but I will admit that I was holding my breath for the first few weeks, waiting to see who would be the first DQ.
3. I am glad that Mary Murphy was back on the panel full time, even if she was nowhere near as sharp as I remember her being. I am glad that Shankman was removed from the panel; I did not miss him at all. I like that the rotating choreographer judge is back. But I do not understand the celebrity guest judges they had this season. While a couple of them were entertaining (Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Christina Applegate, Debbie Reynolds), most of them were unable to give any kind of substantive critiques, and thus were pointless (I'm looking directly at Katie Holmes and Carmen Electra). My guess is that the show somehow thought these people would boost ratings or something, but I can't imagine that was actually the case. (The possible exception being Lady Gaga, and she an be around all the time as far as I'm concerned, because she is crackers and does shit like hurl giant shoes at dancers.)
4. The choreography this season seemed even more inconsistent than usual. I worried about the absence of Mia Michaels, but Travis and Tyce really stepped up their games on the contemporary side (Mandy and Stacy did some great work, too), while Sonya delivered some very memorable routines in the jazz arena. NappyTabs gave us a couple solid lyrical hip-hop numbers, but we really need some better hip-hop choreographers next season, especially some hard-hitting numbers. Lil C's finale routine was the hardest of the season, and it was pretty forgettable. There were a couple new choreographers this season that showed some promise, but the hip-hop desperately needs boosting.
5. I bitch and moan about this every year, but I think it was especially true this season: there has to be more diversity of styles represented in the Top 20. This year it was basically nothing but contemporary or hip-hop dancers. I understand that those are the most popular styles -- all of our winners, except for Benji, came from those backgrounds -- but I don't even feel like the show gives dancers from other styles a chance. I remember in Season 1, Nigel repeatedly saved ballroom dancer Snow from the Bottom 3 because he wanted ballroom represented on the show. This season Iveta -- a world champion in basically every ballroom style -- was cut FIRST. A tapper won the British version of the show. A tapper has never even made the Top 10 on the U.S. edition. Being a contemporary dancer should be a liability on this show because there are so many of them, and for the most part it's the same tricks once they get to the solos. We want to see different styles. We want to see something different. We're not going to get that if it's nothing but hip-hop guys and contempo queens in the finals.
6. I agree with many of the conspiracy theorists who said that Nigel all but orchestrated a girl victor this year. His comments to Marko and Tadd Wednesday were just the sprinkles on the sundae. I find it awfully hard to believe that the guys selected for the Top 20 really were the strongest male dancers that tried out for the competition this year. If so, that's a sad commentary on the current dance scene. Literally none of them had a shot at the title outside of Tadd and Marko, and that was clear by Week 2. I suspect that Nigel and Co. wanted to better balance the male-female winner ratio, and they also probably wanted to insulate against the cute-boy-biased voting that has taken over reality competitions in recent years. But the casting this year was egregiously stacked in the girls' favor, and it made things less fun to watch.
All that said, I think it was a successful season overall, and Melanie is a very deserving winner. I was so angry at the show at the beginning of the live episodes that I nearly quite halfway through. Glad I didn't. It truly is one of the best competitions on television, and the talent of the Final 4 was inspiring. Now I have to gird my loins for the coming onslaught of "Top Chef: Just Desserts" (August 24), "America's Next Top Model All-Star Edition" (September 14), and "The X-Factor" (September 21). Pray for me, and join us back at the City Entertainment Blog for continued consideration and bitchery.
chrmarhug: You may have a point there, and if that's the case, I think the piece worked a lot better. I still think the picket-fence props were unnecessary and bordered on silly.
Hey Andy, good to hear from you! "X-Factor" is set to debut September 21, and yes, I'll be blogging it. Hope you'll check in this week for the "Dance" finale.
Kathy: Yep, Heidi is definitely one of the producers. I actually appreciate her restraint in not ignoring the other judges' opinions (*cough*Tyra Banks*cough*), but after MondoGate last season I have serious reservations about Nina and Michael's decision-making abilities. Shit like this just makes me more wary. I get that fashion is subjective, and what one person loves someone else might hate. But I don't understand how you praise something that barely meets the purposes of the challenge (he took wool material and turned it into a sloppy top made from...wool material), easily adds 10-15 pounds to the model, and was the color of BORING.
Sabumashaelo: You can buy tickets through livenation.com. It handles all the Darien Lake concerts. Here's the link to this particular concert's ticket page: www.livenation.com/Lil-Wayne-tickets/artist/712214
Geoff: Thank you for pointing out our goof. We've fixed the article.
Linda: I have a feeling that Nigel -- who returned to exec produce the last "kinder, gentler" season of "American Idol" -- decided to carry that tone over to "Dance." But here's the problem: while Simon's nastiness was initially part of the appeal of "Idol," that was never the case on "Dance." What set this show apart were the informative, honest critiques from a range of judges. Even when they were being harsh (Mia, mostly), you could generally see where the judges were coming from, and what they were saying. This season I honestly feel the judges are doing a massive disservice to the dancers, the viewers, and the show itself, because i do not believe a word they say anymore. When everybody is amazing, nobody is amazing. And we do have some very good dancers this season (Melanie, Sasha). But when routines like the mediocre Caitlynn/Mitchell samba or the forgettable Miranda/Robert B'way numbers are given nothing but praise, the real stars of the show have a hard time standing out.
None of that explains why Miranda was sent home last night, despite delivering what was, to my mind, the only female solo of the night that was even remotely interesting or fresh. And I don't think Nigel even gave a reason for her elimination. Just that she was done. And then he further embarrassed himself by confusing Chris and Robert when it came to deliver the boys' axing. What a mess the judges are this season. What a turkey this show has turned out to be. So depressing...
Dear Kathy: You can find a complete list of the awards by visiting the following website: www.aact.org/aactfest/aactfest11.html
What a steaming pile of horseshit this season is turning out to be. I don't understand how you save Ryan and Ricky -- two of the vast contemporary glut we have this (and lately every) season -- and boot off two dancers of differing styles who performed beautifully in Week 1 and tried to keep up with a very challenging routine in Week 2. So much for any kind of diversity in the women's group. It is now nothing but contemporary/jazz dancers. Wow, THAT'S going to make for a really exciting season. And memo to all tap dancers out there: do not bother trying out for this show. Please. Every year that we have had tap dancers in the Top 20 they have been picked off one, two, three, like clockwork. Truly, I don't know why anyone would bother auditioning for this show unless they're a contemporary or hip-hop dancer.
Which is so weird to me, because some of the most memorable dancers from this show are ballroom dancers. Lacy, Benji, Dmitri, Pasha, Anya, Chelsie, just to name a few. And yet ballroom kids have gotten short shrift the last few seasons -- despite the fact that there are at least a couple of ballroom styles featured in each week's show. I just cannot begin to fathom what Nigel was thinking with this elimination.
Ricky, whatever -- he's part of that block of guys this season who are totally interchangeable to me, and fail to excite me in any way. But Ryan is a real problem and absolutely deserved to go home this week. She is obviously a very talented dancer, but she is a terrible performer. Both weeks she had that goofy grin plastered all over her face. In Week 1 she was dancing about a break-up while she was BEAMING. In Week 2 she was supposed to be sexy. There was nothing sexy about that toothy grin of hers, unless you are a dentist. I'm sure she is a lovely lady. And she is obviously a very talented dancer. But both routines now her performance has taken me completely out of the moment. And yet they keep her.
It's not like the judges have really given her any notes on this. Or critiqued her, or hardly any of the other dancers this season, in any real fashion. I joked to my friends last night that it should be called "So You Think You Can Judge." If that was the case, both weeks so far the entire panel would have been sent packing (except you, Debbie Reynolds -- you stay right there!). DO YOUR JOBS, judges. Because you decided everyone was SO AWESOME in Week 1 -- which they were NOT -- you ended up sending home a couple that killed it the first time out and struggled, but did not fail, this week. Tell me, how is that fair? And by universally praising nearly every dancer out there (the only dancer in the bottom that got any criticism Wednesday was Wadi), you are doing the viewers a disservice.
So help me, I've just about had it with this season, and we're only on WEEK 2. If next week is a similar mess of poor judging and even dumber eliminations, I am ditching this bitch. There aren't even any hot guys this season! What the hell do I have to tune in for?
Cynicalgirl: Thank you for the correction! Frank had actually just called in to fix that mistake himself, so it has been changed in the copy to reflect the correct song title.
I admittedly missed the episode because I was covering the Jazz Fest, but I have to say: BULLLLLLLLSHIT! I was annoyed enough with the tongue baths the judges were handing out like candy Wednesday night, and then they decide to not cut anyone in WEEK 1 when there is plenty of chaff for the reaping. Uncle Nigel is painting himself into a corner this season already. What a stupid, stupid move.
I'll put dollars to donuts that Nigel will argue that it's unfair to cut any contestants on Week 1 since America hasn't really had a chance to know them yet. It's a very nice idea, but we DID get a chance to know them Wednesday. I felt very comfortable passing judgment on the routines I saw -- more comfortable than the judges themselves, apparently, since they totally failed to give any kind of criticism Wednesday night, and there was plenty waiting to go around. And they've cut people Week 1 every season, and no matter how much Nigel and the judges say (read: lie) otherwise, this group is absolutely nowhere near the cumulative talent level that we have seen in several earlier seasons.
Besides, in a way Nigel has screwed over two other dancers next week. Let's say we have another Bottom 6 again. Four of those dancers are going home. If someone had a great week this week, but a lousy week next week, and he or she dances even the second-best solo next Thursday night, they're gone. How is that any more fair than axing a couple Week 1?
The obvious logic is exactly what you said, Kathy: that Nigel and Co. were unhappy with who ended up in the bottom. But that makes me wonder who they would have preferred to be at risk. Certainly they cannot expect Miranda or Clarice to have any kind of shot at winning this. They are both forgettable. Iveta, Melanie, and Sasha are the early favorites -- they couldn't want any of those three in danger. That leaves Caitlynn, Ashley, Missy, and Ryan. I suspect Ryan's screwed. Caitlynn is filler. Ashley's a bit of a mess. Missy is allegedly this dancing "beast," but I saw none of that Wednesday night.
As for the guys, who cares? They're all so bland and interchangeable this season, except for Marko and tapping boy.
Anyway, all tonight's little "save" move did was screw over a second couple next week (whoever lands in the bottom three now has a 66 percent chance of going home instead of a 33 percent chance) and fuel the allegations of favortism and manipulation on this show. I know that stuff happens in every reality competition. I just don't expect it to be so blatant, and to rear its head so early in a season.
Very disappointed with this show right now. The judges need to start judging. They need to start making eliminations. And they need to stop making excuses and lying to us about how unbelievably talented this group is. WE HAVE EYES. We watched them. We have watched past seasons. There are some stars in the mix, but there is also a lot of space gas. Expel it.
Rob: If you're referring to the fiddle player, Casey Driessen, he is mentioned in the fourth paragraph of the review.
Dear Michael: Thanks for the note. We do publish a Fall Guide in September that has a calendar of major fall events, as well as Winter Guide in January with a list of major winter events.
Where to begin? I'll start with Megan Mullally as a guest judge. I adore her, and I actually didn't have a huge problem with her sitting in -- she certainly knows much more about dance than, say, Ellen DeGeneres. In addition to her ballerina days she also has done quite a bit of Broadway. So I was cool with it. My thought was: does this mean Shankman is no longer a fixture on panel? I would be delighted if that were the case.
On the judging in general: so, so frustrating. I get Megan going light, since she herself cops to not being an expert, but Nigel and Mary are supposed to know this stuff, and they straight-up embarrassed themselves with the fawning they did tonight. Yes, there were some strong routines and some strong dancers. But there were also some clear clunkers in the mix. To hear them tell it this was the best show they've ever done, and that's bull. I actually think overall it's a fairly weak group of dancers.
Specifically, a weak group of guys. This was mentioned several times by the judges tonight, that it's a strong female field. True, in some cases (Melanie, Sasha, and Iveta are extraordinary, period). But I think that the women look so much more impressive compared to this dish-water crop of guys. Nick was a huge, wonderful surprise to me. Marko clearly has ability. I like Wadi but he did not wow me tonight save for the blackflip. I will begrudgingly agree that Jess is good in his style (more on that in a second), but the star wattage is the lowest among the guys than I have ever seen on this show.
Maybe that's because the majority of the guys on this show are so. Goddamned. Annoying. The woo dude made me want to punch myself in the face. The interchangeable ethnically ambiguous contemporary kids set my teeth on edge with their OMGROTFLBRB juvenile attitudes. And Jess is apocalyptically obnoxious already. After the first performance show! I get that they're teens, but sweet God, I'm not THAT much older than they are, and I was exhausted just listening to them speak for eight seconds. I weep for the future...
BTW: Way to totally rip off Madonna's "Human Nature" video for that Pandora's Box routine, Cheeseman. (That said, I loved the choreography for the ballroom numbers, Travis Wall's pieces, and the hip-hop numbers -- I just wish the dancing was stronger on the hip-hop pieces.)
As for danger, I don't get the love affair with Caitlynn at all. She barely caught my attention that entire routine. Ashley and Chris should be in danger -- she was off and he was unremarkable in his OWN STYLE. Missy and Wadi were forgettable. Ryan and Rickey may be in trouble due to the disconnect between the piece and emotion. (That was very stupid of Ryan to blather on there, by the way. She looked stuck-up, and I think she has a likability issue to start with.)
Lastly, I'm not a conspiracy theorist, but I do find it rather peculiar that the two most-pimped performers this season -- Sasha and Melanie -- got to dance in their own styles AND in very strong routines, and the same was true for Iveta. I'm just saying, the style selection didn't seem quite that random this time, if you catch my drift.
Wonderful blog, Kathy. Some thoughts on last night's episode:
I dearly love Natalia. I think she is gorgeous, filled with joy, and a great dancer. She should not advance to the Top 20 this year. As I mentioned in parenthesis in the blog, she was given at least three passes last night (duet for solo round, her mess of a group number given undeserved praise, not dancing contemporary at all), and I just don't think she is capable of handling this competition, this season. And this isn't an anti-big girls thing. Donyelle in Season 2 was probably even bigger than Natalia, and she had no problems. I am hopeful that Natalia's apparent diabetes diagnosis and proper management of that condition will help her get into the shape she needs to be in to come back in a future season. But I really hope she does not make the Top 20 tonight. That said: ADORE her sister.
Regarding Alexis, she is unquestionably talented, but I thought Nigel was dead-on in his critique. She's just not ready yet. I think Alexis herself is so firmly in the role of Jeanine's sister that she doesn't know who she is yet -- at least as a dancer. There was no honest emotion in her performance. She was trying, clearly, but it was all very forced. I really hope she comes back in a season or two, because I think she's lovely. But she's simply not ready yet, and it would do her a disservice to make it through this season.
The hardest part of the episode for me was watching the several dancers who have made it to Vegas Week season after season and keep getting cut. I'm glad to see a couple of them advance to the final round this season -- including Iveta, whose trampy solo totally made my night. But I really felt for Rebecca Hart and that Aleesa girl, who are stuck in some horrible "Groundhog's Day" scenario where they keep trying and trying and each year are told, "You're still not good enough." Meanwhile younger and cuter things just zip by. I can't even imagine how awful that must feel.
Is it just me or have they featured very few guys thus far? I like Wadi quite a bit, and Professor Lock seems like a decent guy. Beyond that I didn't feel like any guys got screentime besides DC, who at least gave us that wonderful moment where Debbie Allen snapped him out of his funk and said that if he's serious about dance, she'll pay for his lessons. (An aside: please put Debbie Allen on the panel permanently; she is so much better suited to it than Adam.) And then there's the notorious Jeremiah, who was so HOT in S4 but such an asshole, and has now come back as half the man he used to be. Literally: he has lost a LOT of muscle mass. Do we know if he was ill? Or if maybe he was doing some soul-searching phase? He certainly seems to be much more humble and centered, which is good. But he's barely recognizable from the uppity stud he was a few years back.
Sarah: Just called Penfield Rec. Admission to the event IS free, and if you want to taste the food, it's $1 per "flight," which includes 15-20 restaurants. Hope that helps.
Lisa: Allow me to assure you, this is not a cynical attempt to increase web traffic. The staff here doesn't like the content of that comment any more than you do. But we're also not in the business of censorship. That comment is not libelous. It's not a direct personal attack (although it is certainly an oblique one against the entire LGBT community). It is not obscene. We are constantly reexamining our online comments policy, and while I personally find the content of that comment loathsome, I also don't love the idea of deleting something simply because I disagree with it.
Instead, I intend to craft a lengthy, passionate response to the comment and post it this evening. I personally believe that you fight words with words, and I encourage you to take up the same arms. If the commenter and the rest of his right-wing comrades think they can stifle this important legislation by yelling that kind of garbage, I say we all yell louder.
Rmiller: Funny thing about Haley -- after Lauren's vocal injury, some of the gossip sites were reporting on Tuesday that if she was unable to perform that night, Haley would have been brought back to sing in the finale. Can you even IMAGINE?! What a stunner that would have been. But at least she looked and sounded great in the finale.
Yep, we'll be blogging "Dance." My assistant Kathy Laluk will likely be handling the initial audition rounds, but I'll be chiming in with my thoughts and then taking over once we get to the live performance shows. Love that show dearly. I will also probably end up covering "X-Factor" when it launches this fall.
Maria: I did not see a kiss -- there was a lot of hugging -- but it was very hard hard to tell what was going. There was confetti, sparks showering, the camera was moving everywhere, a mass of people...hard to say.
T2: Here's a link to a blog with photos of all the girls: auntiefashion.wordpress.com/tag/all-stars/
Jesus, Vicki -- calm down. Read the blog. Clearly I have tons of respect for both Scotty and Lauren, and I am actually a country music FAN. I have plenty of it on my iPod. I lived in the South for years. It was a joke. Unclench.
Bill: Whether or not James was more consistent than Haley, I do not know how ANYBODY can argue that this season has somehow been rigged in Haley's favor, especially over James. James was relentlessly promoted by this program, from his very first audition up until his elimination. (I don't even remember seeing Haley until the end of Hollywood Week, and we saw James literally every step of the way.) The judges fawned all over him every week, repeatedly ignoring his pitch issues, while they -- up until this week -- have judged Haley more harshly than any other contestant this season. There is no question to me that the show wanted James in the finals (along with Scotty), and that the show's dismissive attitude toward Haley might have bitten it in the ass, because it fueled her fans' resolve to vote while James' fans got complacent.
Haley has fought her way through the live voting rounds every single week. She started out in the bottom and I don't think anyone expected her to have any kind of shot of making the finals. But she came back each week by picking interesting songs and pushing herself vocally, turning in surprising and sometimes astonishing vocals. She's had bobbles here and there, no question. But chalking her success on this show up to some conspiracy is not only offensive to her -- and I think more than a little sexist -- but it is stupid. James Durbin was given MORE than his fair share on this program. I don't know how any of his fans can suggest otherwise in good conscience. He simply got Daugherty'd. Accept it and move on, and don't take shots at some other contestant who has shown nothing but talent and nerve.
Susie: Camille is apparently 33. 33! And Shannon, though younger, is looking pretty weathered. She's like a poster girl for sun damage.
Hey Andy: Just put a blog on James's elimination. Hope you check it out.
BWong: That really is the final list. There were photos of the girls working the catwalk and everything. So, yeah -- LOTS of fights going on in that house given the roughly 50 percent crazy ratio.
I'd also like to add that I'm shocked that C4 Tiffany is not here. She was one of Tyra's favorites -- it's fairly common knowledge that she intended for her to win Cycle 4 before the infamous "ty-rant" happened. And I now this would never, ever happen, but I would love to see C8 Kathleen again. Yeah, she was eliminated first, but that girl was a riot. "Oh my gawd, Tyra, you're so pretty!" Laugh every time...
Andy: Just to address this, I don't believe Jacob has identified himself as gay (I believe he's actually suggested he is straight). It was just a silly joke. And for the record, I am a raging homosexual, so there was absolutely no offense intended.
Loriann: You have a point about Lauren. From my perspective, while Lauren is still not where she should be at this stage in the competition -- confidently showing us what she can do every time -- she's at least improving from week to week. In the early final rounds she was so nervous I feared that the girl would spontaneously combust while on stage. At least now she's coming out and attacking the songs, although she is still holding back some (very clear on "Unchained Melody," at least). So comparatively she is improving, although I agree that the "Tell me I'm good" thing is wearing very, very old with her. I was more annoyed a few weeks ago but I feel like she's starting to get it at this point. And the vocals are consistently at least good.
Datch: I knew when I wrote that I would get a comment along those lines. And while I am certainly no expert on human emotion, nor do I claim to be, I am entitled to my opinion -- as you are to yours -- about what the "Idol" contestants put out for public consumption on that stage. As we have learned time and again on this show, it is not just about singing. It is also about the visuals, the performance, and also how they appeal for votes. And so I think it is totally legitimate for me to critique James's emotional display during "WIthout You."
I'm sure many people saw a young man who has struggled through life and who is currently missing his family have an emotional "breakthrough" (or, more accurately, breakdown). But I saw a fairly calculated, borderline childish attempt at currying sympathy from the viewing audience. We may both be right, actually. But he has a long tradition -- going back to his very first audition -- of pandering to the cameras and to the audience for attention, and that whole display felt utterly rehearsed to me, down to his pat answers to Ryan at the end.
I don't think James is a bad guy. I think he's playing the game, and that's cool. But I am going to call him out when I think he tries to pull one over on the audience, because the judges have demonstrated week after week that they are utterly incapable or uninterested of giving the guy even a shred of criticism. I'll call him out every time for his off-key singing, and I'll also call him out for his melodrama.
Andy: Thank you for the clarification. I apologize if I misreported that -- I didn't think it was clearly explained by Ryan. But I appreciate you pointing that out.
That's interesting, Cathy. I hadn't noticed any disinterest on Steven's part for James or Casey's solo performances -- he seemed to be raving over Casey -- but he was clearly irritated with James and Jacob's duet. It was certainly one of the cheesiest, most forced moments of the season thus far, and I think part of him was appalled by it (while the rest of us just accept that level of banality as par for the course for this show).
If Steven is growing weary of either of them, Jennifer and Randy seem to be gaining respect for James, at the very least. I do wonder if Steven has noticed that the viewer attention/adoration has shifted more to Jennifer since finals began, when he was getting the lion's share of the praise when the season started. He was the media darling during initial auditions but has been basically useless since we got to Top 13, a critique that has been fairly consistent for weeks now. That could be souring him a bit. And I suspect that, like most of us, he's ready for this season to be over. Just one more month to go, Steven!
Andy: You are totally right about me needing a TiVo. I've thought about it, and may invest in one. I just did not expect to miss last night's episode at all. Blame the near-hour-long wait for dinner at the restaurant. But yes, it's unacceptable to keep missing so many results shows.
RMiller: Great points. It may actually hearten you to know that the longer Haley survives, the more her chances may actually improve. Consider that now that Stefano is gone, there's a good chance that the people who were voting for him will now give their votes to someone else. (They could easily just stop voting altogether, but some of them will no doubt continue to vote.) They may go toward Haley. I think she's probably benefited from the surprise Pia boot and reaped some of Pia's voters. Haley is a curious case, and her continued presence in the competition is one of the more fascinating parts of this season.
As for this season versus others, I think that you're right that it's terrible compared to S8 (I personally think that was the strongest group of contestants this show has ever had), and even S6, which had several extremely likable contestants. But count yourself fortunate that you did not watch Season 9. The talent level was almost comically low (aside from Crystal Bowersox), and even Simon was on auto-pilot by that point. Compared to S9, this season is a HUGE improvement.
But it is still a long way off from earlier seasons of this, say S5-S8, and I put most of that blame squarely on the judges. Love Lopez -- she's a better "nice" judge than Paula ever was, with some legitimately decent advice -- and Randy is more engaged than he has been previously. But he's still a waste of a seat, and Steven Tyler is bringing nothing to the panel but platitudes at this point. What's really missing here is growth. At this point in the competition in years past we have seen some professional-level performances. Carrie Underwood's "Alone" comes to mind. So do Adam Lambert's "Mad World," Kat McPhee's "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree," and Fantasia's "Summertime" (those may be post-F6 but you get my meaning). Those were star-making moments, and nobody this season has come close to that. I realized that at this point, I'm pleased if Lauren makes it through a song without crying. Jacob hasn't brought anything new in weeks. Scotty and James have basically been doing the same thing the entire time (James always has a new shtick, but it's still just a shtick). Casey and Haley at least keep things interesting. But nobody's really growing because the judges are not challenging them, or giving them any real guidance. And that's a shame. I hope Nigel Lythgoe is really breathing down the judges' necks (Tyler especially) because intentionally or not, they are hurting the chances of these contestants' long-term success.
Arnold: The reason the "Paris Letter" review did not appear in the paper is that I was not originally intending on reviewing it. I knew I would have no space in this week's issue. (I only have space for two full arts features per week -- I wish that I had room for more.) But I went to the show because I wanted to check it out personally. I even brought a friend. I enjoyed the show and decided to put a review online because I wanted to support the show and the troupe.
As for why I "held" it until Friday, I didn't. That was the first opportunity I had to write the review and the instant I finished I put it up. I work well over 40 hours per week for this newspaper, and the theater reviews I write for it are on TOP of that. I need you to trust me when I say that that was the earliest I was able to get the review done.
Sorry that you feel the piece is buried. Not only is it in a featured space on our homepage, but we also Tweeted it and posted it to the City Newspaper Facebook page. Most of our theater reviews don't get that kind of social media push.
As for treating Bread & Water "on an even playing field" with the other theaters in town, I have personally reviewed two B&W productions in the last several years, and this paper has published multiple preview pieces promoting its work. I can think of at least a dozen other local theater organizations who haven't gotten that much coverage from us, some we've never reviewed at all. (To them I would say: we are coming. Would that I could clone myself and my other theater critic, Michael Lasser, and that we had 40 more pages per week.)
I would like nothing better to review every show going on in town every time. Unfortunately that is not practical for the size of our staff and our newspaper. We really are doing the best we can, and my policy from the beginning of my tenure at City has been to be a strong advocate for community theater, like Bread & Water. I'm sorry that you feel slighted by the fact that the review did not appear in print. There was no slight intended. It was actually quite the opposite -- I put this review online to make sure our readers (who use this website in droves, I assure you) knew about a solid local production.
Andy, you make some great points about the shifting demographics of this show's viewership -- or at least who is doing the voting. There's no question that the teen vote is no longer a real factor in this competition. Our past three winners have all been Sensitive Guys with Guitars, and two of them -- Kris Allen and David Cook -- were up against contestants that were much more teen-friendly. The general consensus is that middle-aged housewives are now driving the votership truck, and it's bizarre that the show continues to act like it needs to cater to the youth market when the reality is that their average viewer is probably skewing 40 or older.
I think your guess for Final 3 is probably right. The only one that I think might not make it is Lauren. The current voting bloc obviously has no love of female contestants (jealousy? Can't just be the cute-boy factor, as not all of the guys are exactly lookers, and pretty-boy Stefano is repeatedly in danger), and Lauren is getting the Southern vote. But I'm not sure how far that will take her unless she really starts pushing through. She's getting better, but she has yet to deliver a truly killer performance on this show and I fear the sands of time are running out for her. Imagine what will happen to her confidence the minute she ends up in B3. She was sobbing again last night...
I think the producers are pretty clearly pushing James for the win, and have been since his initial audition. I will be stunned if he's not Final 3, and I would be a lot happier about that if I felt like he was actually trying instead of just waiting for the applause to start. Like it or not, he's going to be compared to Adam Lambert. And if you measure James's performances against Adam's, even at this stage in the competition, he is a pale, pale imitation, and getting weaker by the week. A trip to the B3 might do him a world of good at this point.
But from everything I've seen, Scotty is dominating the votes. I guess I shouldn't be surprised by that. He's like a perfect storm for what snarkers call The Frauen of America: cute, charming, Southern, sexually nonthreatening, country. Remember how far Casey James got last year with precious little vocal talent? There's no doubt that Scotty has a great country voice, but I feel more and more that he's becoming a novelty act. There is no growth, no attempt to develop as an artist. He's just singing note-for-note covers of songs with a series of goofy, smarmy faces. People love his shtick on this show, but like Taylor Hicks before him, I can't imagine it'll translate into something commercially viable once the show and tour wrap and he is out of sight, out of mind.
Ken: Thanks for the comment. You can find a printed version of the guide in every copy of this week's City Newspaper. We're also trying to post the .pdf of the guide to this article but are experiencing some weird technical glitches.
Andy and Anthony: I have no problem with metal. I grew up the younger brother to a full-blown metalhead, and had Metallica, Leppard, and every hair-band in existence blasting through my bedroom wall. I can totally appreciate that kind of music, and I loved it when James did Judas Priest earlier in the season. I would love it if he actually pulled off a performance that did metal's intensity proud. But that's not what he's doing. I think James is getting weaker every week. If you actually listen to his vocal from last night it was incredibly wishy-washy -- he committed to nothing. He gets so distracted trying to look cool and throwing out his poseur moves that he's not even trying to focus on the actual singing, and instead sounds like a teenager warbling his way through a SingStar karaoke track.
As for his song choice for last night, it WAS just noise -- although I never said metal as a genre is. I think James has huge potential. I just need him to focus and achieve it. I recognize he has some personal issues that make that difficult, but we're rapidly approaching Top 6, and I don't feel like anyone is pushing these contestants -- certainly the judges are not -- and ultimately everyone suffers for that. Because none of them are turning in the kinds of performances on this show that will ensure them a post-"AI" career. If we want to act like his watered-down performances the last few weeks are the stuff of legend, that's not doing him any favors in the long run. Because that ain't going to cut it once he's trying to make it as a legitimate modern-day metal artist.
Don't feel bad about thinking about taking vacation days for "Idol," Cathy. I routinely have to reschedule my personal life around it since I don't currently have a DVR...
RMiller: I absolutely got the parallel with Lambert, and I nearly mentioned it. I think James (or the show) has been deliberately marketing James as the straight Adam Lambert, given how Lambert connected with the home audiences in his season. I thought with this performance that comparison was even more obvious, and that James measured up to Adam rather poorly in both the vocal and the performance. I keep waiting for the judges to give him any kind of criticism, because I think he's actually getting weaker as the show progresses.
Izzy: I'm trying to find more information on the straight jocks. Once I know more, you will. I neglected to add that Manila's partner, Matt, ALSO won a gay cruise as a challenge winner. That dude is going to have a line outside his cabin door, I tell you what.
Cathy, you will not find a bigger fan of Fantasia's "American Idol" performances than me. That was the season I started watching the show and I became totally obsessed with her as the season progressed. Such a dynamic voice, powerful backstory, so vivacious -- I thought she was consistently amazing. I went out and bought her first CD the day it was released and, my god, it was so bad. NOTHING like what she did on the show, which tended to be more upbeat, Motown-influenced music. Instead it was dreary R&B wailing. There is a market for that kind of music, but it is extremely limited and also overcrowded with very talented women.
Of all the "Idol" winners, hers has been the biggest disconnect between what she did on the show and what she has done in her actual career. I am convinced that if she did a straight-up funky upbeat number that it could be commercially viable, but every song she's ever released has bored me to tears (except for "Baby Mama," which at least had a pulse). And the bizarre tics that overtook her entire performance last night left me baffled. Who is managing this woman? Who is giving her career advice? I like her, and she seems to be doing OK right now (the reality show, the rumored "Color Purple" movie), but every time I see her I just see so much untapped potential.
Oh, Cathy, you're so good to me. And thank you for continuing to read the blog and posting here. I always look forward to your take!
theshore: You're absolutely right. My addled mind recalled Elton John freaking out at Jennifer, Fantasia, and Latoya being in the bottom 3 and calling the show out as racist, and I somehow remembered that as his theme week. But it was actually a few weeks after. Apologies for the mistake, and thank you so much for pointing it out.
Mike: Thanks for the constructive criticism!
Cathy: I meant to respond to you yesterday, but got caught up. I completely understand where you're coming from on Casey. I DO think he's a great talent and I am glad the save was used on him. But he did seem to get very lost very quickly on this show, and I hope he can figure out what he needs to do to get his mojo back, because he's not going anywhere now, and I really do not need any more menacing performances out of him like the last two weeks.
Richard: You can find directions to the Dome Center by visiting www.fairandexpocenter.org.
Luddite: The interviews you mention will publish in the March 16 issue of City -- the same issue this opinion piece will run. We post the opinion pieces online the night before print publication. Please look for literally FIVE FULL PAGES of interviews with the candidates in the issue that hits newsstands tomorrow.
Speedmaster: The Mendon Ponds Winter Festival is an annual event, as are the sled-dog races. Something to put on your calendars for 2012!
Cathy: I agree, I thought it was a very successful first week of live voting. I think the voters got it almost all right (with the huge exception of Haley -- I cannot figure that one out AT ALL), and that the judges did the best they could in a really tough wild-card decision. Loved the format of semi-finals this year. Hope they stick with it.
I also am finding my love of Jennifer Lopez as a judge increasing, while my enthusiasm for Steven Tyler is cooling somewhat. He seems less invested in this process than he was during the initial auditions, and he's not giving the hard news like he was prior to Hollywood. I'm hard pressed to think of many performances he didn't like this week (he even liked Ta-Tynisa!).
Overall I think it has the potential to be a decent Top 13, where there's not an obvious frontrunner (the show wants us to think it's James, but I am curious to see how America reacts to him). I'm actually looking forward for next week.
Cathy: What was with James is, he knows he's the most-pimped contestant of the season, and he wants even more camera time than he's getting. I know the guy has actual, documented social/emotional issues, but I find his neediness and lack of awareness tremendously offputting.
movie goer: Thanks for the comment. There were several other interviews conducted for this piece, and tons of quotes, that were not included due to space constraints.
Here is what MacKinnon said regarding the Little Theatre Film Society Board and fundraising: The board bylaws require attendance at various Little events, as well as a financial component. "We definitely think it’s a financial piece all the board members can achieve," MacKinnon says. "By that we mean referalls of organizations that can sponsor events, as well as attendance at our celebration, and each board member is required to be a member of the Little Film Society." He did not disclose specific board fund-raising numbers.
As for The Little needing to "erase over $100,000 in debt" by the end of this year, I don't believe that to be the case. While the theater was operating at a $110,000 loss in 2009, by the end of 2010 that loss was around $10,000, according to MacKinnon.
Leslie: I have to defend the critic here. It is not arrogance to comment on the service or the cleanliness of the dishes at a restaurant. That is part of his job -- he has to take the entire experience into consideration, and he commented at length on the restaurant's many positive facets. Also, the service and dirty dishes weren't an isolated incident -- the critic made three visits, and this was a consistent problem. I appreciate your passion for the restaurant and I'm thrilled that that so many of the fans of the restaurant are sharing their positive experiences here. But please don't insult the critic because he's doing his job.
CH (and others): Just a note that we are listening to the concerns about this list, and we are considering several potential remedies for the 2011 edition. We still want to make sure our readers have their say on their local favorites, but we are considering a companion piece that might offer some worthwhile alternatives.
GloW: Good question. While I did not ask about the London simulcasts specifically, Little GM Derek Reis said that the opera series was put on hiatus due to low attendance. The Little was looking at reconfiguring it slightly and potentially bringing it back this spring.
Dale: Thanks for pointing out the typo; it has been fixed. It was $78,000 in 2008, $0 in 2009.
Sorry, Alyssa, I didn't dig Emily. And I really wanted to. When they kept teasing her throughout the episode I was like, "Oh, yay -- the second coming of Crystal Bowersox!" Because I loved her last season, and I think a really rootsy, grounded singer-songwriter is a great addition to any season. But then Emily opened her mouth and this little baby-doll voice came out, and I was just SO disappointed. That isn't her voice. It's clearly an affectation she's putting on to, one presumes, stand out from the crowd. And I guess it worked, but it's a novelty, and it's not sustainable in any way. It's unoriginal (a throwback voice by definition is unoriginal), it's incredibly limiting for this competition, and if she makes it through to the voting rounds, it's going to get very repetitive very quickly (not to mention that that teeny, tiny voice will be swallowed whole by the backing band).
I WANTED to like her, but honestly, I feel like we didn't even get to hear HER sing. We heard her put on some fakey-fake little-girl voice. I want to hear Emily sing, not Betty Boop.
As for the girl from Columbia, I didn't particularly like her voice either. All tricks and very little substance.
Robbie: "Idol" auditions are over for the 2011 installment. Auditions are typically held in the late summer-fall of the previous year, and you can find the dates posted every year on americanidol.com.
However, several new televised singing competitions are about to launch -- "The Voice" on NBC and "The X-Factor" on Fox, and auditions for those should be announced soon. You can look those shows up individually for more information.
Naksuthin: How exactly can the Second Amendment -- written by human beings a mere 200 years ago -- be described as a "God-given right"?
Mike: Thanks for the correction, we have amended the story so that the information is now accurate. We apologize for the error.
Ava: We change up the ballot every year, adding some categories and dropping others. Music store may be back next year, although in a somewhat modified form.
Bernie, they always say these shows are judged challenge to challenge, not looking at the chefs' output as a whole, which I think is kind of BS. There are times where that's obviously true (Erika -- with two wins and frequent Top 3 placements -- getting booted over perennial cellar dweller Danielle, for instance), but there are others where it is clear that a frontrunner/show favorite with a spectacularly bad day is spared and someone who did better that challenge still gets cut (like, say, Seth getting a pass in the cocktail challenge, when he himself said that his food was rubbish). It all depends on what the producers want.
I think that Danielle winning the penultimate challenge kind of screwed the Powers That Be, since I can't imagine they were all that eager to have her in the finale over Zac. But I also don't think they were going to lose Yigit or Morgan at that juncture either, as I think they were trying to cast them as our "hero" and "villain," respectively. Unfortunately, Yigit wasn't all that easy to root for, and while loathsome as a person, Morgan is clearly a very talented pastry chef. So I remain underwhelmed by the results, but glad that it's over.
Standard Operating Procedure? Really? I can't recall any federal bailouts going down for nearly two years now. The ones Obama WAS involved in were right at the beginning of his presidency, and continuing the momentum and precedent set by the Bush Administration.
Mike: To answer your question, it was the Bush Administration that started bailing out the banks and auto makers. I know Republicans and Tea Partiers love to act like it was all Obama and his "socailist" programs, but let's keep the revisionist history to a minimum. The fact -- without any spin -- is that TARP and the first round of auto bailouts occurred before Obama was even in office.
Mark and Jay: Thanks for the comments. It's actually a little tricky; the menu clearly says "Red Jalapenos" and when the writer called the restaurant to double-check, the employee also said it was plural. We'll reach out to the owner today to see if we can get an official ruling on this one.
Hardcorefoodguy: We're definitely not taking any of the comments negatively. We appreciate all the feedback, even the notes of frustration. And we look at all of it before we begin the next year's survey. And I very much appreciate your idea about asking the experts. We'll certainly take that into consideration for 2011!
I'd like to address the concerns about Uncle Plum winning -- and even being in the running -- for Best Original Band instead of Cover Band. When the readers voted Uncle Plum in to the Final, 4 we checked to make sure that the band has produced original music -- which it has. So the decision was made that, even though the band primarily performs covers, it still qualified for inclusion in the category.
We understand that some people have strong opinions on this issue, and the band itself has even reached out to us about their concerns. It's something we're looking into and will take seriously going into next year's edition. We appreciate the feedback.
Ed: I can say with utmost certainty that these results aren't rigged. We take the survey very seriously. We watch like a hawk for ballot stuffing. The online survey software prevents a computer from taking the survey more than once. I think instantaneous name recognition certainly plays a huge part in many of these results, especially in the Restaurant and Shopping categories. But I don't know how to work around that. We're open to suggestions!
Art: Just a note, Mario's dropped the "Italian Steakhouse" bit about a year ago. It's just going by Mario's now.
For anyone disappointed by the results -- and we understand there will always be people who are disappointed -- thank you for expressing your frustration, and please use this space to leave any suggestions you have for future Best of Rochester polls. We really do take the input seriously, from categories we missed to how we run the survey. But ultimately the Readers Poll IS the Readers Poll, and editorial has absolutely no say in what gets chosen. Thanks!
Louis: It's Francois Raoult, Open Sky Yoga. You can find it under the Shopping category.
Wendy: Here are the results, straight from the folks at the Genesee Center: Best Vegetarian Chili: Owl House. Best Meat Chili: Sticky Lips. Spiciest: India House. Most Unique: Owl House. Overall: Sticky Lips.
Craig: We have published almost all of your comments. The only one we repeatedly delete is one that takes specific statements out of context, and could be potentially libelous. We will not publish potentially libelous content on this website. You are free to express your opinions here -- and you have on many articles without any interference from us -- so long as they are your opinions, and not statements that could be legally actionable.
Sam Lembo: Thanks for your suggestion on the steakhouse category; we'll certainly consider that for next year's ballot. Regarding the "oldie but a goodie" category, that was the thinking behind the Best Established Restaurant category, which is included on this year's survey.
Jason: Thanks for your comment. I caught the day/date error right before we went to press, so it is correct in the print edition. I neglected to change the file before it got put on the web. But it has been changed now. Thanks for pointing out the error!
Matt: the photo was by Matt DeTurck. I'm afraid I can't comment on the light set up but I can ask him to clarify for you.
Emily: I think you may be confusing City's Best Of with a knockoff contest run concurrently by a competitor of ours. We never had a write-in ballot in the paper -- the primary in which you could write in whatever answer you wanted was online only and ran through September. The Best Of Rochester Final Ballot IS in the print edition, and you can circle your favorites from the Final 4 (and your votes will count). But any write-in ballot isn't for our contest.
Jason and Van: Thanks for the feedback. Just to clarify, the Final 4 selections were the result of the thousands of readers who participated in the Primary Ballot that ran during September. City had absolutely no say in the matter, and they definitely weren't the result of "four or five people's general opinion." In most cases the finalists were receiving hundreds of votes apiece. If we ran the selections from 90 percent of the voters we would be looking at huge lists of nominees in some categories, and that's just not practical, especially with the print ballot.
Regarding the categories, we're always looking to change up the ballot, and we really do listen to all the reader comments. For instance, I think "Best Local Film" is a fantastic category and I'll look to add that to next year's ballot. If you have any other ideas for new categories (or categories we should ditch next year) please feel free to leave them here!
Hey Kathy,
Thanks for the comment! If I had to guess, I think the F3 will be Mondo, Andy, and Gretchen. If Mondo doesn't make it most fans will be heartbroken -- he's the clear fan favorite at this point, I think. Andy has had some bum notes, but he has also churned out some of the most daring, high-fashion looks of the season. I think his total fail this challenge was actually well timed for him (not that I think he did it on purpose), because if he comes back with a vengeance next week he'll have created a nice little "redemption" arc for himself going into the semi-finals.
As for the third, reality-TV law dictates that a villain must make it to the end. This year that's Gretchen, without a doubt. I don't think she's malicious or sneaky or anything, I just think she's bossy, two-faced, and conceited, and she makes me want to reach through my screen and slap her face. The judges have been gaga over her work all season, much to my utter mystification. Nothing she's done has been really fashion-forward, and certainly not daring. Lots of department-store clothes, and some really musty duds. Although they are well made, at least.
Christopher NEEDS to eliminated next. Nice guy. Very pretty. His clothes are usually fine (although he has sent down some dreadful shit, like that tumor dress for the couture challenge). But nothing has been memorable -- at least, memorable and good. I just don't see a point of view at all. Michael and April are the dark horses. Michael has been consistently shit on by his other designers for his lack of training and vision (and supposed stealing of ideas, which I have never really considered accurate), but the judges have generally responded well to his work. They seem to be cooling on him, though, and his aesthetic -- if one even exists -- seems to fluctuate wildly from challenge to challenge. Meanwhile April has the opposite problem. Her fashion point of view is so limited to me that I've become bored by her work -- oh look, another cocktail dress in gauzy black fabric with some kind of structural tension in the top. I do think she can design, and I like her as a character, but she hasn't shown us anything new or different in weeks. There's no progression with her. And I imagine a Fashion Week show from her would be dreadfully dull and glum.
As for who I would have LIKED to see in the Final 3, that'd be Mondo, Andy, and Val. That would have bee a really colorful, exciting group of collections.
To all the people asking for the recipe for Erika's cookie, your best bet is to visit bravotv.com. If the recipe isn't there, you can send your e-mails to Andy Cohen, the host of the reunions and "Watch What Happens Live." If anyone can get it for you, it's him.
Rachel: I'm a reporter, and I'll thank you to not suggest otherwise. And yes, there was misreporting on this topic. We watched the Tweets from other media roll in yesterday and they were completely misleading, saying that the museum was renamed The Strong. Not so. If the reporters had bothered to actually read the materials put out by Strong -- or, god forbid, actually ask the source directly for clarification -- there wouldn't have been the needless confusion. I don't disagree that the announcement wasn't entirely clear. But it's the job of the media to plainly disseminate a message. And that's what this article does.
Love the comments, everybody. But just to be clear: you have to actually TAKE the survey for your votes to count. Just writing them in this comment section will not lead to the votes being included in the tally.
Linda: Since this is geared as a neighborhood-walking event, we had to limit the geographic area to just the central South Wedge business district. We have discussed expanding into other businesses in the Wedge in the future.
Jason: Yes, she is scheduled to be part of the concert.
Joe: It's a "Simpsons" reference.
Cora: it was to "My Chick Bad" by Ludacris.
Emily: it's a blog, it's not supposed to be unbiased. It's all about opinion. And I don't have it out for Kent. I just think he is a remarkably shrewd manipulator for someone who is so young. I praise him repeatedly throughout. And I have watched every season of this show, which should be obvious given the references to Nick and Benji. Sorry I got Caspary's name wrong -- that's what it sounded like when Cat and Nigel mentioned the guy who has produced maybe five routines all season. And they don't "go by" NappyTabs; that's the stupid nickname Nigel gave them. "TabNap" is mine.
Jean: Thanks for your comment. I consider "Virginia Woolf" a serious challenge for a theater company. While the sets and physical set-up are probably fairly easy to pull off, it's a very demanding piece in terms of the actors it requires. You're talking about lengthy, nuanced monologues for each character, and a story that requires real chemistry from all four leads. I think it's very easy for these characters to turn into caricatures screaming at one another for two-plus hours, and that would be unbearable for an audience to sit through. You need mature, seasoned actors who understand the power and necessity of restraint, who are able to really dig deeply into the characters and realize that, underneath all the bile and venom, these are human beings who are just desperate to be loved, even as they set about gleefully destroying every other person in the show. It's not easy by any means.
HK: Thanks, we got the venue change information right before we went to press, so it is correct in the paper. I also changed it on the article above. (Note that Water Street now lists the start time as 7 p.m. instead of 6 p.m.)
To Rob: The chef/owner of Dorado had no idea who James was when he approached him regarding the sauce. James reviews restaurants anonymously -- he does not introduce himself to the restaurateurs until after he has finished his visits (he always does more than one), and they have no way of knowing who he is (he always makes reservations using a different name).
As for City not "bothering" with the review unless the exchange happened, not true. James put Dorado on his review wish list over a month ago, and had every intention of writing it up -- and we had every intention of publishing it -- prior to the sauce conversation that punctuated his second visit to the restaurant. The paper doesn't kill reviews just because they aren't positive -- we offer up actual critical reviews, both positive and negative. We feel it's what sets us apart from our competition.
Gina: Thanks for your comment. Yes, the Bonzai Festival was indeed much more than those acts. Those were just the ones our critic happened to catch.
John: You typed all that on your iPhone?! My god, I can't get out a one-line text without it looking mangled.
SC: That's a totally fair point, and I think I got caught up in the blog and a little detached from reality. Of course Billy needs to take care of his body first -- his health is the most important thing. But from the viewpoint of this show, as a competition, he got a week off while the rest of his competitors are all on week 8 or 9 of non-stop dancing. His decision did create an a certain level of inequity in the game, and that's specifically my issue.
Bobbi, I don't agree with that line of thinking at all. Only five dancers danced last week -- an odd number. And the competition started out with an odd number -- 11 dancers. If anything the All-Stars format has made the partnering easier on the show, since the options are so much wider. I don't think the producers intended to have a "skip week" for eliminations. I think they were put into a tricky situation with two weeks in a row of injury-based eliminations, and Billy skipping a week due to a similar situation, and I think they handled it in the worst possible way.
Kashika. Thanks for the question. There was apparently some confusion about the date from the promoter's side, and City was initially told that the event would take place on Saturday, July 31. The event will actually take place on Sunday, August 1. Thanks for checking, and the piece has been updated to reflect the new information.
Mike: Thank you for the correction. It has been made to the review. We apologize for the error.
Beth: Just to further clarify, our writers do not identify themselves as such when they eat out. They eat at the restaurants anonymously, and therefore are treated the way any guest would be treated.
Beth: I'm sorry to hear about your negative experience, but I can assure you that neither the writer nor the paper was paid for the write-up. That's not how we work. The writer wrote it up because she has had positive experiences with the restaurant in the past.
Jay: Thanks for pointing that out. The piece had been reported a while back, but we fact checked it just last week. Obviously the fact that King David's is closed somehow got missed. I've removed that write-up from the above article, but we appreciate you pointing out the error.
db: No reason was given for the change in venue. The press release states that "limited seating is available" at Water Street. As for refunds, your best bet is to contact the point of purchase and check their policy.
I want it. Without question I want it. I shop at the East Ave Wegmans regularly -- I probably go in four or five times a week. That parking lot is a demolition derby more often than not. Too few spaces, too tight a configuration -- I'm amazed there aren't more accidents. And before the issue is raised, it has nothing to do with not wanting to walk -- I typically park way in the back by choice. The parking lot simply isn't capable of handling the volume of traffic that comes into that store. Some Sunday evenings I have to bypass going to the store at all because there are literally no spaces left.
The scenario inside the store isn't much better. The aisles are crowded with people, people's carts are colliding, people in the little scooters are blocking the way -- it is a mess. They have crammed that store to the gills. All they're trying to do is give the people that shop there some more room to breathe, and to update the place and its services. I'm sorry, I don't see a downside. The vast majority of the building that are being razed to make room for the expansion were abandoned years ago and the block was falling to pieces. We have quite enough empty buildings moldering in this town as it is.
As to Wegmans putting local businesses out of business, Wegmans IS a local business. Its competitors -- Tops, Price Rite, Aldi's, etc. -- are not.
I'll go dancer by dancer:
-Lauren was great in the jazz routine -- I really enjoy watching her dance; she just seems so joyful -- but I don't know what to make of the Tahitian number. It was interesting, the hip shaking was impressive, but it was extremely repetitive (at least to my untrained eye). At least we got to see delicious Mark in his delicious shirtlessness with his delicious faux tattoo.
-Billy was overpraised in his jive, I think. It was better, I guess, but still not great. The big problem for me: Billy cannot do sexy. At all. He's not believable in any kind of romantic/sexual way, which sucks for him. He was great in the jazz piece, though.
-Kent acquitted himself really well tonight; it made me feel a little better about what is almost certainly his impending victory in this competition (effing Nigel even told him so). He should absolutely go to Broadway once this is all over. His mugging and dialed-to-11 energy will make him a perfect B'way boy. I also didn't get the story in the contemporary number with Adechike.
-Robert was great in the Travis piece, and totally over the top and a little clumsy in disco -- but I still loved it. I love disco. I love Doriana Sanchez. I love that hot bitch Kathryn. I just LOVED IT. Made me happy to watch it. I think that the Travis piece could be a real sea change for Robert; if America hooks on to that routine the way the judges expect it to, his momentum could change for the better.
-I actually think Adechike is a dead man walking at this point. I know that the salsa was SUPER hard -- hardest we've ever seen on this show -- but I didn't think it was at all well executed. He was good in the contemporary number, but at this point he's probably the most disposable dancer left. I also thought it was fascinating how Mia said that she prayed for him to have a good week. Read between the lines: Mia knew that if she criticized him again this week people would be calling her racist for a third week in a row. Make no mistake; these guys pay close attention to what is said about them online.
-Jose is actually ruining this season for me. I was screaming at the television during both of his numbers. That Broadway number was a disaster -- he was given VERY little to do, and couldn't even do THAT right. His "acting" was pathetic, but I don't mean the character -- I mean his performance level. Vacant, dead expression. I actually questioned whether the kid had a soul. The judges fell all over themselves saying how much they hated being mean to him -- they weren't being mean, they were doing their JOBS -- and yet seem to have no problem ripping several of those other dancers to shreds every week. Do. Not. Get.
And then the b-boy routine! Before it started I said, "I hope he chokes on this; it would be the final nail in his coffin." He didn't choke completely, but Dominic destroyed him on that stage. There was a point where they were doing side-by-side spins on the floor, and the gigantic disparity in their abilities was brutally apparent. Was that mentioned by the judges? Not even a little bit. They acted like he held his own and "redeemed" himself. Garbage. If he ends up surviving tomorrow night I will be seriously annoyed at the judges, because at this point they are pushing him through this competition for reasons I will never be able to decipher. He's uninspiring as a dancer, dull as a personality, and the constant purring over his sweetness is leaving a bitter taste in my mouth at this point.
I really don't think this is an issue of racism on Nigel and Mia's parts. Throughout this show's history both of them have championed many, many dancers of color. This is a case of favoritism to an extreme degree, and I simply don't understand why.
We have had so many hip-hop dancers on this show who have struggled with choreography and the various dance styles, and none of them -- NONE -- have been treated with the level of deference that Jose has. I think back to Dominick, Hoq, Legacy, even Jamile from Season 1, and all of them were held to the same standards as the rest of the dancers in their seasons. This time, Jose basically just has to show up and "try" and he's praised, while dancers with much more ability who are clearly doing everything they can (AdeChike specifically) are getting torn down, sometimes brutally.
And ultimately that's what's pissing people off, I think. Not Jose himself -- he seems like a nice kid -- but the fact that his skill level is so low compared to the other dancers that the judges continue to treat him with kid gloves, while walloping the rest of the group. That's not fair, and I don't understand why it continues to happen.
But I suspect that last night Jose's gravy train might have dried up. We know that Nigel reads the blogs, and there's no way he and Mia aren't going to get the message that their behavior last night really pissed people off. Don't be surprised if AdeChike gets more or less a free pass tonight even if he's in the bottom (I doubt he will due to the sympathy vote), and also don't be surprised if next week the pendulum swings the other way and Jose gets grilled by the judges.
Mabel: the word they're using is "genre"
Kev: Thank you for your comment, and for pointing out the error regarding the Penfield celebration. You are correct: that particular event took place on Saturday, July 3. I apologize for the error and have corrected it in the above article.
I have double-checked the dates for all of the other celebrations listed in the piece, and they are scheduled to take place on Sunday, July 4. I apologize again for the wrong information on the Penfield activities.
Yeah, that opening number was BEAT. I actually wondered if maybe the dancers didn't have enough time to rehearse it or something, but I think the choreography was just leaden and trite. There was nothing going on there. And I echo your sentiments about "O, Fortuna." You just can't get away with using that song anymore without it being instantly cliche.
I ended up feeling badly for Melinda. Of the Bottom 3 she was certainly the weakest dancer, but the judges have been trashing her for weeks, and were downright mean Wednesday night. Nigel's immediate dismissal of Billy and Robert basically said, "We didn't even have to talk about this; you suck, Melinda, get off our stage." At least go through the motions of your own little pantomime, dude.
I simply do not understand the judges fawning over Jose. When Nigel (or maybe it was Adam) was talking to Billy and Robert about how Jose is a weaker dancer, but his "charisma" is obviously getting him votes, I just about choked. Are we watching the same Jose? Could they be referring to Jose Feliciano? Jose Canseco? Jose Cuervo, perhaps? Because the Jose on this show has zero charisma. He just sits there with that dopey look on his face and for reasons that escape me, the judges fall all over themselves saying how delightful he is. You know who was delightful? Legacy from last season. Totally delightful, AND he could dance, in both his style and others. Jose can't do any of the above. He is the sloppiest, least inspiring b-boy we have ever had on this show and I don't understand the unending praise.
As to the new twists to the format coming next week, I just can't keep up. All I ask is that they show me interesting dancing. I don't care if it's newbies with newbies, newbies with all-stars, all-stars with all-stars, newbies with cats, all-stars with donkeys. Just give me good dancing. For the most part I think this season has been better than the last (possibly better than the last two), but this week suggested a downward trend that has me nervous.
Jill: You're looking at the 2008 edition of the guide. You can find the 2010 July 4 Guide on our homepage now.
Staci: You vote via the phone numbers given at the end of each performance show (Wednesday nights); voting goes for two hours after the show ends. Results are then broadcast on Thursday, where the three dancers with the lowest numbers of votes dance for their lives, and the judges send one of them home.
Melissa: Good question. The reason the dancer with the lowest votes isn't automatically eliminated, a la "Idol," is that while the "Idol" kids are mostly on a level playing field -- they're all singing, and presumably America can tell good singing from bad singing -- these dancers are not. There's a reason that the finalists for every season of this show are overwhelmingly hip-hop and contemporary dancers. Those styles lend themselves to flashier solos, while others -- especially tap and ballroom styles -- really don't. We can tell when those dancers are doing well in their choreographed numbers, but in solos it's difficult for many people (myself included) to tell good ballroom dancing from great ballroom dancing, for instance. The judges do know the difference and can make a more informed decision. I actually wish they'd move that format to "Idol," so maybe we'd get rid of some of those awful teen singers earlier in the competition instead of losing more interesting older contestants that aren't connecting with the power-voting crowd. (Lilly Scott, anybody?)
I agree that I miss Mary and definitely miss Mia's choreography. But I also like her on panel. She doesn't hold back, she knows what she's talking about, and she says some pretty ridiculous things (I almost shot the water I was drinking out of my mouth when she called dance a "heart-form" this week). And I would also like to mention that Adam is SO much better on panel this season. I think he was very nervous last time around.
You refer to Mia as unintelligible, but also want Lil C back. I can't think of a more unintelligible judge on this -- or any -- show than Lil C. He does that really obvious trick of dropping pointless, often out-of-place $10 words because he wants everyone to think he's so smart, when he's really saying nothing of consequence. It's a common misdirection for people who are self-conscious about their intellect. And he needn't be -- I think Lil C is quite brilliant. He's managed to convince Nigel Lythgoe that he knows what he's talking about and knows what he's doing, when it's fairly obvious that the man is basically a charlatan. His krump routines regularly put the contestants that dance them in danger of going home (Billy should thank his considerable S6-primed voting bloc for the save this week), and they're generally terrible. How did nobody mention the full 30 seconds of posturing that started out this week's number? Or the fact that the rest of it was the same four or five moves repeated over and over again? So yeah, Lil C is brilliant. He's a hack, but he's brilliant. And if I never see him on this show again it will be too soon.
We are definitely seeing one of the major drawbacks to this new format: the girls are getting picked off one by one. We're two down already and Melinda is hanging by a thread. Ashley isn't gaining much traction (I keep forgetting who she is). That leaves Lauren, and the judges don't seem to particularly like her. We're going to have a sausage fest up in here by Top 5.
At this point there's not much the judges can do. The majority of the people who vote for these shows are women and gay men, and cute boys will always fare better than sexy ladies in that scenario. Look at "Idol": In the past three seasons only one woman has made it past Final 4 each time. And that show starts out with equal odds between the sexes. This time around, the guys already had a one-up advantage.
As you pointed out, however, the women/gay men voting for all the shirtless wonders this season are sabotaging themselves inadvertently, because if all the girl contestants get snuffed out you're not going to see Pasha or Neil or Ade or Mark anymore. (That would be especially a loss with Mark, who has gotten exponentially hotter since his original run on the show; did you SEE that guy's body this week? Holy cats!)
Because of the growing gender disparity I figured judges would send Robert home out of principle, especially after his disappointing solo. But I'm glad he stuck around. Christina did fine on Tuesday, but she has zero star wattage. She is a solid dancer but not much of a performer and lacks personality. As we have seen over and over again on this show in particular, personality is key. It explains why people like Sabra (S3) can win, while people like Will (S4) don't even make Top 4.
If the judges really want to make this a fair fight for the women (and too late for that, starting off with six guys), they really need to make sure that they're being very honest in their critiques of the men. Last week they gave Kent a free pass on his embarrassing ballroom routine because of his aw-shucks charm, and this week they did the same for Jose for...some reason I really cannot fathom. He's not charming. He's not attractive. He isn't even particularly skilled in his own style, much less the others. But if they really want to give a woman a chance of winning this season they have to hold all of the guys to the same very high standards they seem to hold the women to.
Also, absolutely loved RemoteKontrol. What a cool experience. Here's hoping those guys get more work, because what they do is truly awe-inspiring.
I was very impressed with most of the routines tonight. My suspicion is that the choreographers got a boost since they now only have to design with one dancer in mind. But most, if not all, were very cool numbers. And it was great seeing the all-stars again. For the most part I don't think they overshadowed their partners -- it happened a few times, but it was with the weaker dancers of the Top 11 -- and anything that gives me more Pasha is good with me.
The tech was a mess for the first segment, that's for sure. And Cat -- while I love her -- was off kilter too. She was borderline annoying in the beginning, and wasn't doing her typically great job of making the show be about the dancers, and not the host/judges (see: Seacrest, Ryan).
Speaking of the judges, I disagreed with so much of their takes tonight. They were way too easy on some of the Top 11 (Christina, Kent) and way too harsh on others (Lauren's robo performance shouldn't have totally eclipsed the fact that she danced that number like a pro). I nearly lost it when they gave Kent that tongue bath. Yes, he's charming. Yes, he's adorable. Yes, he's going to be a fan favorite. But there was not a believable moment in that routine where I EVER felt like he was Anya's partner, much less her leader. She devoured him on that stage and he looked like a tiny boy pretending to fill daddy's shoes. Mia gave Billy crap for dancing like a boy instead of a man. What about Kent? Especially since that's what the style demanded of him?
I am sick to death of Jeff Buckley's "Hallelujah," but Alex and Allison's number really was incredible. Alex has huge potential on this show and I hope he goes far. I also really enjoyed Robert's African-inspired piece. And did I mention Pasha? Because: PASHA!
Jose is exceptionally weak and needs to go this week, even before Melinda or Christina. He's a poor excuse for a b-boy. Comfort crushed him in that routine, and she was never that strong on the show to begin with.
To Tom: Just a clarification: Mary Anna Towler did not write this editorial. It was written by City staff writer Tim Louis Macaluso. Mary Anna had nothing to do with the piece.
Damon: Thanks for your note. The 2:30 & 4:30 p.m. times came directly from the Jazz Fest -- I have the e-mail that lists them clearly. There seems to be some confusion over that venue specifically, as the Jazz Fest site itself only lists the Stompers at playing at 2 p.m. both days, not at 4 p.m. However, I have verified that information with the festival, and have updated our schedule to reflect it. I am very confident that our schedule is accurate, at least based on the current information provided by the Jazz Fest.
Damon: Thanks for your note. The 2:30 & 4:30 p.m. times came directly from the Jazz Fest -- I have the e-mail that lists them clearly. There seems to be some confusion over that venue specifically, as the Jazz Fest site itself only lists the Stompers at playing at 2 p.m. both days, not at 4 p.m. However, I have verified that information with the festival, and have updated our schedule to reflect it. I am very confident that our schedule is accurate, at least based on the current information provided by the Jazz Fest.
M: Excellent question. The Jazz Fest itself initially had Jordan listed playing only one show, and that's the information we used. The error was not pointed out to the Jazz Fest until after our printed guide came out, but they fixed it after that point, and our online guide has been changed to reflect that. Stanley Jordan will play at the Harro East at 5:30 AND 7:15 p.m. on June 14.
Sharon, just a clarification: None of the Top 11 will be dancing with any other member of the Top 11. They will be paired up each week with an "all-star" dancer from seasons past, and the current competitors will dance in the all-star's style. So the fact that there are 11 dancers as opposed to 10 doesn't matter; they'll all be picking a different "all-star" partner each week from here on out.
I think the talent level this season looks to be overall higher than last season, but I am concerned that there aren't that many stand-outs yet (aside from Billy and Alex, who I think are very, very strong). Then again, Kathryn and Jakob were total unknowns at this point last season, and they were incredible dancers who went on to place third and second, respectively. We'll know more after tomorrow night's exhibition round.
I will say that I am EXTREMELY disappointed by the serious lack of diversity among the dancers. Going from Top 20 to Top 10 (OK, Top 11) should have made the judges work even harder to get a good mix of styles. Instead fully 70 percent of this group is contemporary. You're telling me not ONE decent male ballroom dancer entered this competition? We only have ONE hip-hop dancer total in the mix? Those two styles (and their many variations) tend to make up half of each performance show at least.
I am particularly concerned about the hip-hop. I haven't been impressed by what I've seen of Jose -- certainly he's got a lot to live up to after Legacy and Russell last season. I'm similarly not sold on Christina, who can dance, but lacks sparkle. The ones to watch, for me, are Lauren (a real surprise; I thought I'd hate her but I find her endearing), Melinda (I'm actually less impressed by her tapping than I am her other abilities), Alex, Ade, Billy, and Kent, who will almost certainly be a monster vote-grabber a la Evan in S5. Rob could also pull in some big tween votes for being this season's eye candy.
I will end by saying that I think it's unfortunate that the producers decided to turn the Top 10 into the Top 11 by stacking it with yet another male contemporary dancer. This show -- and America's votes -- seem increasingly biased toward cute male dancers (there's a reason only two women have won this show in six years, both of them shock victories). I expect the women to get picked off fairly quickly once voting starts, which will of course backfire for the whole "all-star" concept. As soon as all the lady dancers dry up there will be no reason for Pasha, Neil, Twitch, or Mark to still be on the stage.
I'll work on that respect thing, Suzie. You stay classy!
Hey Hannah: I will be blogging "So You Think You Can Dance," although the first few audition episodes will be handled by terrific guest blogger Kathy Laluk while I'm on vacation. Other than look for me to cover the new RuPaul show this summer, possibly "Dance Your Ass Off," and "Top Chef." To name a few.
Suzie, you might want to go back and try actually reading the blog. I paid compliments to Janet Jackson, Carrie Underwood, Alanis Morissette, Christina Aguilera, and several of the other artists. I took pot shots at the dinosaurs because most of them sounded terrible, and that's just reality. They're past their primes, as is this show.
As for Lee being able to handle the fame that Crystal couldn't, I would remind you that for the vast majority of this competition Lee was supposedly close to imploding because he was so shy/nervous. I don't see how Lee is any more equipped to deal with the success this show brings than Crystal.
None: Thanks for the correction. The mistake has been fixed, and we apologize for the error.
Mike: This event took place in Rochester, NY.
Adding fuel to the Simon-pimping-Lee fire, the Daily Mail is reporting that Simon has at least part ownership of the rights to the song "Hallelujah." So in addition to basically handing Lee his "moment," Simon almost certainly pocketed a hefty chunk of change from the inevitable iTunes downloads of that song.
I honestly don't mind Lee. He's fine. I just think he has been routinely overpraised for the entire season, especially compared to Crystal, who I think has been consistently very good. And this week it was obvious that the judges were putting their weight behind Lee and leaving Crystal in the dust.
That said, it might be the best thing in the world for her. As you said, Cathy, I don't think Crystal would do terribly well operating under the machinations of the Idol management gang. I don't think they have a clue about what to do with that type of artist, or anyone who is not a traditional rock or pop star. And Crystal is really neither of those things.
Cathy: I do have a DVR, but I deleted "Idol" immediately after watching it last night. No idea what the buzz on Mike's exit is. I checked the few Idol blogs I routinely visit, and none of them have anything on it.
Courtney: According to the County Parks Department, the Main Stage is located at Highland and South avenues. Hope that helps.
PJ: Weren't you aware of basketball legend Michal Jordan's magnificent singing career? Just kidding. Thanks for pointing out the error; it has been fixed. I think I was typing that while watching the song, which includes the lyric, "the River Jordan," and my brain got mixed up. That happens alot.
Cathy: You can expect a long, long dissection of "Glee" after the season finale in a few weeks. I am a fan of the show -- I love it, really -- but I also think it is deeply flawed and I am very concerned about the second season. I think it's almost always entertaining, but I feel like it has no idea where it's going. What did last night's episode have to do with sectionals? How many times with Kurt and his father have the same "It's OK to be gay" talk? How are there still members of that club that I have yet to be introduced to? And some of the lip synching last night was really bad (I'm looking at you, Puck and Mercedes). Love the show. Think it has incredible moments. Feel like it needs to really shape itself up before Season 2 starts, because the backlash is imminent.
Cathy: I didn't go into this in detail in my blog, but I was seriously impressed with Connick last night. He may in fact be the best mentor this show has ever had. He really got in the trenches with the contestants, gave them some tough love, and then went through all of the effort -- and it was considerable, you could tell -- to do all the arranging AND backing. That is some serious dedication right there, and if anyone came out a winner in last night's episode, it was him.
I also enjoyed the banter between Ellen and Harry. They obviously have a deep, abiding friendship, and while I continue to feel like the Ellen experiment just isn't working (we really don't need four judges, and she's not bringing anything new to the table aside from humor), they had some really fun moments last night. If only the contestants were better...
Mike: Thanks for pointing out that bonehead mistake, it has been fixed.
As for "hating" on Lee -- I really don't think I did. I thought Lee did better tonight than he has in weeks. But I do think he was completely overpraised by the judges, who were saying he was the best of the night. I'd probably put him in third, after both Mike and Crystal. And I don't even care for Mike as a person. But I thought he did the best tonight, truthfully.
Cathy: I think Aaron got a big boost from the Mom Vote. He got an audible "Aw!" from the audience Tuesday when he mentioned he re-wrote the lyrics in that love song to be appropriate for his mother. I don't know if that was strategy on his part or not, but it unquestionably led to his top-of-the-pack placement this week.
I am hard-pressed to think of a run since Season 5 when we have had a person who is literally doing nothing but karaoke each week make it as far as Aaron has. Tweaking the lyrics aside, he has never really changed up any of the songs he's selected in terms of tempo, style, or melody. And he's in the Top 5. Unbelievable. Although, I don't get why everyone's fawning over that fetus Justin Bieber either, so I guess I'm not really Aaron's market.
Col: No need to apologize -- you can always disagree with me! That's part of the fun of a blog, and hashing out pop culture in general. I love a good (thoughtful and respectful) debate. At least we agreed on Casey being awesome and Siobhan being terrible. So that's something.
Buddhaman: I really do hope people tune in for Season 3, even if they're disappointed with the results of Season 2. It's simply too fun a show to give up on.
Regarding Tyra never having to lipsynch until the very end, I stand by the fact that that's a huge weakness of this show's format. Lipsynching is a far more important element in drag culture than runway work, and the fact that the winner of this show was only able to show us what she can do mere moments before winning the crown is just goofy. Arguing that she had never performed poorly enough to be in the bottom throughout the competition isn't really fair, either. She bombed several challenges, specifically rocker chicks, and should have been LSFYL had she not won immunity the challenge before. Tyra caught many, many lucky breaks (a conspiracy theorist could argue too many for them to be merely "lucky"), and was hardly the strongest competitor of the season.
Lastly, I agree completely that Tyra is absolutely gorgeous and does incredible runway work. But that isn't what this show is supposed to be about, by its own definition. Charisma, Uniqueness, Nerve, and Talent -- I think anyone would be hardpressed to say that Tyra has all of these qualities. And yet she won.
To Family Member: Thank you for your comment. This article is quite old -- from 2004 -- and we changed the name of this particular column to Cost of War many years ago. I do apologize for any discomfort the title may have caused you, it was never intended to make light of the situation.
Hey Kathy: I don't know this for sure, but I suspect the reduction in the number of looks was probably related to the huge number of decoy lines the show put out this year. Every year the Fashion Week show features the last four to six designers, not just the final three (or four, depending on the season) still in contention for the win at that point in an effort to reduce spoilers. But this year, since Fashion Week took place so early in the show's run, they had to have the last 10 or so designers all present collections to avoid spoilers. That means everybody from Janeane on up showed a 10-piece show at Fashion Week this year. (The notable exception was Maya, who must have declined that opportunity too in addition to leaving the show.)
That probably made for one insanely long fashion show, and in an effort to trim it a bit -- shows in those tents aren't cheap -- they probably asked the designers to only send down 10 dresses apiece instead of the usual 12 or 13. It was still roughly 100 looks going down the runway from like 10 different designers, but we only got to see the Final 3.
The photos of the other designers' collections are online, however. (I would suggest finding them at Project Rungay, which is a really terrific "PR" blog.) I'd point out that Jay's full collection was actually pretty amazing, Amy's was totally cracked out, Ben's was a mixture of weird and cool, and Johnathan's was the sartorial equivalent of violence against women. I wonder if he was having a joke at the show's expense, because those clothes made me laugh out loud.
And a final note: Look up photos from S6 winner Irina's most recent collection, underwritten by Tupperware. Yeah, it's a strange partnership, but the clothes are absolutely amazing. She's definitely giving Christian a run for his money as the most successful "PR" winner.
Hey Cathy: I think even Nancy Grace is possibly less offensive than "Idol Gives Back." That's really saying something.
And I never meant to imply that Crystal is karaoke. I think several of the other remaining contestants are -- Aaron definitely, Casey to a degree, and loathe as I am to admit it, Siobhan doesn't really do much to the songs either. Lee and Mike reliably add their own spin to whatever they're covering. And Crystal is frankly the only reason to watch the show this season. If she doesn't end up winning I will consider this a total loss.
Annoyed: While we encourage debate on all our articles, including restaurant reviews, please do not make personal attacks against the writers. James Leach is absolutely qualified to review food for this paper, and has done an excellent job doing so for the past several years. We stand behind him 100 percent. Should you have issues with his critique, feel free to share them -- respectfully. Just leave the writer's reputation out of it.
Joe, I never said any of those Elvis songs were bad. Not once. I said that the medley performance was cheesy and cringe-inducing. It was. I have an enormous amount of respect for Elvis and am a fan of his music.
JustSayin: I agree with you wholeheartedly on Ryan being the major problem with last night's show. He's been verging on obnoxious all season, but last night he really went off the rails. In addition to that shockingly nasty dig at a former coworker's expense (as if Brian Dunkleman needs to be made into any more of a punchline), he was apparently making a spectacle of himself by dancing with Michael Sarver to one contestant's performance (at least one of the judges mentioned this) and just being over-the-top for most of the night. His weird near-manic delivery of his "Glee" pitches (certainly mandated by the network) to his blathering idiocy earlier on that left the judges with mere moments to critique in the second half -- something needs to be done about Ryan. I can only cringe to think about how grating he'll be during "Idol Gives Back" next week.
JustSayin: I thought he did OK. I appreciated how blunt he was with some of the contestants, especially Siobhan, who was indeed too boring in her first take on the song. But there were other areas where I thought his advice wasn't great. His direction for Tim to sing the end of his song in falsetto -- Tim can't do falsetto. He has tried and failed miserably on this show. He was able to do OK with it in rehearsal with Adam, but I noticed he stayed low for his actual performance. I think that was the right choice for him.
All in all I thought Adam did OK in the mentor role, but I still think the whole thing was a blatant, desperate attempt on the producers' part to push his career post-show.
LSD: Please clarify exactly which facts I had about Lambert I got wrong. I mean, obviously I know Lambert Nation was going to come in and pick apart everything I wrote. I'm fine with that. But I'd be curious as to which "facts" I got wrong.
Dear John: The exhibit has closed. For some reason the infobox that accompanied the article with the dates, times, and contact information was omitted when it was posted online. I apologize for the inconvenience. But, again, the exhibit is now down.
Cathy: Glad to hear about Buzz. I know she's terrible, but watching the world's reactions to Kate on "Dancing" is priceless. I hope it can go on as long as possible.
Paddy: Honestly, I didn't even catch that she blew that lyric. I was too enthralled by her voice. I thought she covered brilliantly.
Cathy, I know -- it seems like such a trainwreck. I never watch that show, I just don't have time. But I considered it this season after I saw the line-up. But then they got rid of Shan Doherty the first week, and I can't stand by. Brenda Walsh deserves better. America deserves better.
Carol: Those tickets are on sale now. You should be able to buy them through Ticketmaster (I'm on the concert page now and it worked fine for me). For additional information check rochesterjazz.com.
Gwen, that is a fair question. I suppose I should clarify by saying that I have issues with Big Mike's personality -- I feel like he's always "on," and I find it grating -- but specifically, I have never been able to get over his decision to abandon his wife during the birth of their child so he could compete on a reality show. I know she gave him her blessing. I know it all came out fine. And I understand the rationale that, should this work out (and at this point I'd say he's a safe bet for F4 at least), it could make a huge difference in their lives.
But I simply can't get beyond the fact that a man voluntarily elected to miss his child's birth -- and leave his wife during labor -- for a shot at quick and easy fame. And it's unfortunate, because I don't think he's turned in a bad performance yet. But that decision substantially influences my opinion of him, and his constant preening and thinly veiled cockiness don't endear him to me at all.
Bernie, no joke: my DVR is broken. I think it's because I'm recording too much. Curse you, reality TV!
Cullen: After getting a couple episodes into the season, I must admit that many of my initial impressions of the girls have changed. On the whole they're taking better photos than I expected -- the first nude shoot was especially impressive. The second and third photo shoots haven't fared as well, but I agree that Gabrielle had no business going home first, over other terrible models like Angelea (have hated all of her pics so far), Brenda (stinking it up big time the past two weeks), and Tatianna, whose face I do not get at all.
I can see why people hate Anslee, but I think her photos thus far have been stunning. Alasia's shot last week was beautiful, but she's awful in general. Raina's face still looks completely disproportionate to me. Simone is bland as bathwater. Alexandra is barely passable, and really should have been in the Bottom 2 for her disastrous runway performance. Glad Ren is gone; she put the "poser" back in poseur, and her "My mommy doesn't love me" BS... Some people have real problems, dear.
I'm hoping to blog about this week's episode. Sorry I've been off a couple weeks!
Bruno: Thank you so much for the kind words. Just a clarification on your last point: We actually reached out the artist and got explicit permission from Mr. Ballen to crop that specific image for our cover, which has a rigid design that unfortunately would not accommodate his full, square photos. We took pains in the article to make sure none of the other images were cropped.
Ben: As of now no supporting acts have been announced.
Thank to everyone for posting their very thoughtful comments on this issue. However, a reminder: personal attacks will not be tolerated on this website. You can disagree with someone else's opinions, but let's not resort to name-calling or verbal squabbles, please.
Mo, I'm curious -- which of the girls do you think has been automatically selected as the winner?
Oh, Opal, I fear that you may have misinterpreted here. I have no objection to women -- quite the opposite, actually. The show itself regularly refers to its contestants as "bitches" (it's part of the same lingo as "fierce"), which in the fashion world has both positive and negative connotations. Here I was mostly using it in the pejorative, since many of the contestants this season appear to be hyper-aggressive and catty. But regular "ANTM" viewers know that the term bitch is thrown about fairly often on the show. Even Tyra herself has referred to the contestants as "bitches" before, albeit in a loving way.
Bernie: I am not a fan of the slow r'n'b type of music that Mike selected, but I thought he really sold the performance last night. I don't think it was as orgasmic as the judges made it seem, but I was impressed with the commitment he had to the song.
However, I am with you on not finding him likable overall. I remain dumbfounded that America seems to be supporting his decision to essentially abandon his pregnant wife while he tried out for a reality show. "The people" (whoever they are) seem to think that it's somehow heroic or respectable to put a person's "dreams" at a higher premium than their very real responsibilities, and that a major longshot at fame and fortune is worth missing the birth of your child over. Sometimes I don't understand this country.
Cathy: That is definitely the case. I think a couple of these contestants have a sense of who they want to be as musicians, but most of them seem to be ping-ponging every week, desperately just trying to get by. It's sad to see, especially because the judges give such conflicting advice. But I'm curious to see how everything falls into place once we get to Top 12.
To Doug and Stuart: Just to be clear, this was not a journalistic piece written by City Newspaper. This is a letter to the editor. It is an opinion piece, submitted by a reader.
To Jay: Thanks for the correction. We've changed it in the article, and will run a correction in print next week.
But Gillian, nobody who has posted here is pretending to be an expert. We're merely saying that from a spectator point of view, we preferred the performances of certain skaters to others. There's nothing wrong with that. And nobody is suggesting that Yu-Na is not leagues above the rest of the competition -- that much is obvious to anyone, judging scores or not.
Kati: That would be Chris Golightly. You can Google him and get the whole sordid tale. It involves a previous recording contract, allegations of forgery, and a whole mess of other shadiness.
Joe: Honestly, those figures are totally meaningless to me. I'm not a skating judge. I'm someone watching the performances at home, and responding to what I see. I felt that, by far, Mirai turned a much more impressive performance than some of the other skaters. The judges and their numbers and algorithms aren't going to change that opinion. And I remain confused as to who this new judging system serves, since it isn't the viewers, I don't think it's the skaters, and I don't think it's the sport. Routines that were less enjoyable to watch were scored higher. I don't get that.
Meraine: The only US skaters who participated in the women's short program were Mirai Nagasu and Rachael Flatt. We only had two spots in the women's competition.
Bernie, I noticed those sound issues at the end too, but I thought Ashley Rodriguez got the worst of them. Not that I'm complaining: I'm hoping Ashley gets knocked out during semis, because I'm afraid she's the kind of girl who could get pimped by the producers during Top 12 and make it way, way further than she has any right to. (See: Megan Corkrey, Syesha Mercado, the list goes on.)
VC: If ballet on ice features people skating their best and not falling all over the ice like a bunch of rank amateurs, then maybe I'll do that.
GMA: I keep hearing rumors that Mike Lynche is no longer in the competition, but I have seen nothing official from Fox on that (however, they did comment publicly on the Chris Golightly/Tim Urban switch). In fact, as of this moment Lynche is still listed as part of the Top 24 on Idol's official site. I think right now that's all innuendo.
Nancy: Because it's a blog, not a directory. You want a list, go to Wikipedia.
Jello: Every year there are people who get cut before semis who viewers think should have made it in. It's part of the game. However, I will totally back the judges on cutting Angela Martin. In every audition of hers they showed this season I thought she had a decent voice at best, but nothing particularly remarkable. While Haeley certainly has consistency problems (as does Janell -- as they showed us tonight, she's had some really off performances thus far), I think she has a lot more potential than Angela specifically. And I think the judges would probably agree with me on that. But ultimately they're looking for a good mix of personalities, voices, and genres. Haeley is a plucky country girl. There's nobody else like her in the mix this season.
Joe: After doing some research I'm fairly confident the guy with the blonde dread-like things was Chris Golightly. We saw very little of him up until this point, but it's pretty clear to me that he got pulled in favor of Tim Urban for some reason. Nobody seems to know what the deal there was.
Maria: You can find footage of Nobunari Oda's short performance at nbcolympics.com. Just search his name.
Liz: Um, yes. This is the opinion of an ordinary person who never goes skating. That's why it's on the Entertainment Blog. I never passed myself off as a skating expert, nor would I. I'm just writing my impressions of what I watched.
For what it's worth, I have been watching skating competitions for as far back as I can remember. I've had my eyes glued on Olympics after Olympics, national championship after national championship. I feel that, at this point, I know what good skating is, and what good skating isn't -- at least, to me. It's all relative. It's all opinion. And that's what this is: opinion. It was never passed off as anything else.
Danielle: It's true that Button can be, shall we say, prickly. However, he can be quite effusive with his praise when it's earned. Did you happen to catch him talking about Sasha Cohen during the most recent nationals? He was falling all over himself saying how amazing she was. I started to wonder if he had a Sasha Cohen shrine back in his house...
Jim: Thank you so much for the corrections. I honestly thought last night that the Germans were in silver, not bronze. I don't know how I messed that up.
Anthony: If your point is that if nobody is defending the results they must be suspect, please allow me to address that directly: the results are not suspect. We take our Best Of Rochester voting very seriously, and we watch diligently for any kind of ballot stuffing or unfair campaigning. The businesses have no say in the balloting process whatsoever. The results are really, truly determined by the literally THOUSANDS of people who vote every year. I don't know how we could possibly make it more clear, or honest, than that.
They did not identify Luke by name that I saw during the episode, and I can't remember him enough to ID him on sight. So as of right now, there's no way of knowing if he's still in the running. I'll be thankful when we get through the final pruning before semi-finals this week, so that I can know definitively who is left in this show.
LittleCrayon: Because Lifetime has no money. They're doing a good job building their brand, but the network is still very much in a growing phase.
Alex, with respect, I think both you and Big Mike need a reality check. Your argument is that it's noble, or at least defensible, for a grown man to skip his child's birth because he has the longest of longshots at fame and fortune. Very, very few of the people who compete on reality television contests walk away with any real success. For every Kelly and Carrie there are literally hundreds of other has-beens or never-weres who are now barely making a living even after getting the massive exposure these kinds of shows entail. Even WINNING doesn't guarantee success. Check in with Reuben or Taylor and see if they're eeking out enough of a living to support a family.
If Big Mike wants to make a better life for his family, he should GET A JOB. An actual job, where he can make money, and save, and actually provide for his family. There is nothing wrong with working hard and creating a good life outside of the spotlight. Since the dawn of reality TV, if not earlier, every person out there with even a decent singing voice (sometimes not even that) seems to think they are destined for stardom. That's not remotely realistic. And when you have a wife, and now a BABY, there comes a time when you need to put away childish things. And there's nothing more childish in my mind than thinking a TV show will make you rich and famous. And let's not fool ourselves here. What Big Mike, and pretty much everyone else on this show, wants is fame and fortune. That's the "dream" being bandied about.
As for not remembering who was at your birth, that is totally irrelevant. Are you seriously telling me that if you found out that your own father elected to not be present at your birth so he could chase some get-rich-quick scheme you would not be the least bit offended? I sure as hell would be. It's an issue of personal responsibility, and I think we might all do well as a society to be a little more indignant at bullshit like this rather than slapping some chud on the back for "following his dreams" while his wife is alone, in excruciating pain, pushing a watermelon out of the size of an orange. A watermelon he put there.
Renee: I don't recall anyone by that name getting mentioned. Just about anyone ID'd by name was mentioned in the blog.
Alice: This choice was in regards to the 2009 edition of the event, and no information has yet been revealed about the 2010 Taste of Rochester. Check back with City for details as we get closer to the event.
Chris: Yes, Ganondagan is a Native American-run organization, so the event featured actual Native Americans showcasing elements from their culture. If you've never been to Ganondagan and are interested in Native American culture, it is definitely worth checking out.
Oh, I would have LOVED that. But the show is counting on Anthony for "funny" quotes. Look at how much they've featured him so far. I will be shocked if he doesn't make Top 6, even though I've only liked one out of the four garments he's sent down the runway so far. But blessedly, at least Ping is out of here.
Thanks Cathy! Glad you're back this year. We'll be doing the liveblogs through Hollywood Week, I think, and then going back to the standard blog format (like this one) once we get to semi-finals. I think it allows for more bitchiness on my end, and really, isn't that what's most important?
Rose: Thanks for pointing out the missing information. The play is taking place at Black Sheep's performance space inside Village Gate, 274 N Goodman St. I apologize for the omission.
Forrest: We have been doing liveblogs for every "Idol" episode thus far. They go live at 8 p.m. EST, and close once the episode closes. You can read transcripts of the chats by clicking on the CoverItLive widget embedded in the article.
We'd love to have you join us for the next chat. Note that we will NOT be doing a liveblog for the 1/27 episode, since I'll be on the West Coast for business, and will be watching the episode a few hours behind the East Coast. But check in next Tuesday at 8 p.m. EST and it SHOULD work for you. It's been working for everyone else!
Wyquila, as "someone that seems to know so much about the show," as you put it, I can all but guarantee you that if Anthony had anything at all to say to Mila's face, the producers would have shown it. These types of shows FEED on drama. They love it when contestants fight. If Anthony was as unafraid as you seem to think he was, we saw absolutely no evidence of that whatsoever.
Instead, what we saw was a guy talking tough to the camera after the fact, but avoiding confrontation altogether during the actual situation. Given what we've seen from Anthony thus far -- and compared to the other contestants, we have seen plenty of him -- that fits right in line with the sassy quote-machine caricature role he was clearly cast to fill. And that's fine; we need the bitchy contestants to make the show fun to watch. But a) Anthony's not as funny as he seems to think he is, and b) I'd have a lot more respect for him if he did more of his trash-talking to people's faces instead of behind their backs. (For the record, I had the same problem with Irina last season.)
As an addendum, if you'd finished the blog you'd see that I absolutely loved his dress this episode. So he might have more talent than I initially thought. But I cannot think of a single reason why the producers would omit footage of him talking back to Mila, and I sincerely don't think that footage even exists.
LKamms: I've been waiting for Jonathan to appear on the show -- I'm definitely aware of him, and have seen a few packages on him on the local news -- but I didn't see him last night. He must have been one of the blink-and-you-missed-it auditions; I don't even remember seeing his name pop up on the screen. I mean, clearly it was more important for the show to show us a guy who could not sing -- or even remember the name of -- "Proud Mary," who was then SENT THROUGH TO HOLLYWOOD BECAUSE HE SPLIT HIS PANTS. Sweet mercy....
Cathy: I always get a little queasy whenever they do those "Randy, Simon, and Ryan go out for a night on the town" pieces, because you know nothing good happened there. On the other hand, it does get me excited for the next edition of the annual Ryan and Simon's Gay Panic Show that inevitably pops up during the actual competition. We are SO SCREWED once Simon leaves...
I find that I am missing Paula, actually, but more than that I'm missing actually talented singers. I am dreading the Top 12 at this point. I can imagine a competition where Michael Sarver and Meghan Joy types are the best we have to vote for, and that makes my blood freeze.
Regarding the audition shenanigans, check out this piece courtesy of the Daily Beast: www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-01-19/secret-rituals-of-american-idol-auditions-exposed/2/.
Cathy: The sad part is, they DO pre-screen. Only a fraction of the 12,000 people who showed up for the Chicago auditions got anywhere near the panel. Contestants have to sing for numerous producers before they get to the judges, and they very deliberately let in only the very good or the very bad, or those with what they consider "compelling" stories. You have a better chance of getting in front of Simon et. al. if you're a terrible singer and a total freak than if you're a competent singer who just happens to be a little boring. Sad but true.
Still, I think thus far this season has had very, very little talent to get excited about. I consider the Chicago auditions to be a new low for the show. Only 13 golden tickets for two days! Unbelievable.
Dear Greg: Your best bet is to visit the Strong website at www.museumofplay.org/NTHoF/index.php.
Sylvia: The contest button is right on the homepage, immediately underneath the blue blog box. It is plaid and says "Enter to Win Tickets to Geva Theatre's 'Almost, Maine.'"
To Deb: Thanks for your comment. Just to explain, we rotate Chow Hound and our restaurant reviews every-other week. The reviews are just that, a review, typically an in-depth one on one specific restaurant. Chow Hound is meant to be a food/restaurant news column, alerting our readers to new places, places that have undergone changes, foodie events, and even closings. It's not meant to be a PR piece, but it's also not meant to be critical. It's point is to inform people of new places to try. For food criticism, please check out James Leach's restaurant reviews in the paper and on our website.
Thanks,
Eric Rezsnyak
Features Editor, City Newspaper
Scarlett: That was an error on our part, thank you for pointing it out. The correct bar hours are now listed.
Tips from readers:
"2 Wheat Hill directly off Archer Rd and Paul Rd has an amazing light display-Santas, snowmen, candy canes up and down the length of the driveway ! Definitely worth the drive to see."
"Rahway Circle in Gates off of Lyell Rd-talk about crazy lights-pretty much the whole street is ablaze in lights/color. The first house-the owner usually dresses up as Santa and hands out candy canes-but you have to wait in line-so many cars !!"
169 Orland Rd.: Full-sized sleigh with life-sized Santa waving, reindeer launching into the air, several other lights including a 7'-tall Frosty, all choreographed to Christmas music.
63 Nile Dr.: very expansive display and also choreographed to Christmas music.
To YB: In the very first episode, the casting special, they introduced us to Nicole and made her look like a total freak. She brought her books to school in a rusty wheelbarrow. She sat in the corner by herself, not talking to anyone. And most notably, she told this story about her childhood: "When I was born I had a bloody eyeball. My nickname was Bloody Eyeball." I assumed she was a joke contestant from that clip alone, but she WON. Incredible. (I also loved some of the awkward tidbits we got in the behind-the-scenes special that aired after the finale, especially her nicknames for the girls: Athletic Blonde Woman (Rae) and Creepy Mermaid Girl (Brittany). HA!)
For those upset that Laura beat Nicole on the runway and still lost the title, that scenario has happened before. Melrose destroyed Caridee in the final C7 runway show and still ended up losing, and her portfolio was a lot stronger than Laura's. I think Nicole beat Laura on overall portfolio, the Cover Girl commercial, and the Cover Girl photo. So she had her in three out of five criteria (I would give the personality win to Laura, without question).
To Russ: These are not City Newspaper's choices. These are the results of the Readers' Poll. We have absolutely no say in who gets nominated, or who wins.
Al: Arbitron ratings have nothing to do with it. It's what readers vote. And readers voted by the thousands for WRUR/WXXI. That was a race where it wasn't even close.
Travis: If you were able to take the survey online, it counted. The software just prevents the same computer from taking the survey more than once.
To Linda: It's possible what you're suggesting is going on, but we watch very carefully for ballot stuffers, and weed out any suspect ballots. I personally counted every print ballot this year and I am confident that we did a good job discounting those.
And honestly, the print ballots were such a small figure compared to the online votes, they had a very small impact on the overall standings. (And it's nearly impossible to stuff the web ballot since it blocks the computer's IP address once the ballot has been taken on it.)
To SLD: Feel free to disagree with the readers' choices, but know: nobody paid any money to be involved in Best of Rochester. It's the readers' call from the primary ballot all the way to the finals.
Ugh, Tahlia! Thanks for that flashback. I had seriously almost washed her from my mind. Geez, what an awful cycle that was. But I honestly like most of the shorties left at this point , or at least respect their modeling abilities (Erin). I'm getting excited for the finale!
I fully expect Erin to make it to the Final 2 at this point. Consider that she's our house bitch this season, and the house bitch almost ALWAYS makes it to the end. And Tyra loves a comeback story. Erin is ripe for one.
I actually have no problem with her in the finals, just because despite a disastrous couple of weeks Erin really does look like a model. She takes gorgeous photographs (...most of the time). I'm just afraid that Jennifer will somehow outlast both Nicole and Laura -- who are infinitely better models, in my opinion -- and if it's a Jennifer v. Erin F2, Jennifer wins. As much as I want an Asian winner, Jennifer is not that good.
Susie, that's a good point re: Bianca that I failed to mention in my blog. Bianca was one of the most heavily pimped contestants of the season, along with poor Ryan Kasperzak (or however you spell his name). If the viewers were casting the votes I cannot imagine Bianca and Victor would have even been in danger this week, even with that crappy routine they had. I do feel like the scheduling quagmire has ultimately changed the course of the entire season, as I had figured Bianca would easily make Top 10. This whole fall season has been disastrous. I hope they go back to the summer next year.
Just a note, folks: You have to actually take the ballot (click the link in the article) for your vote to count. Just leaving a comment here does not work.
To Kurt: Not sure how that happened, but it has been fixed again. But now I'm hungry for an RBLT.
To Deb: I suspect you may be confusing City Newspaper's Best of Rochester with the Democrat & Chronicle's Rochester's Choice. We never had a Best Local Theater Company category this year (although it' something we may add next year, since we always change things up), and all of the categories from the primary ballot are present on the final ballot.
To Marc Schreiber: That is incorrect. Papa Johns has never won Best Pizza in the City Newspaper Best of Rochester Readers Poll. That's because our poll focuses on local businesses; national chains are disqualified.
To LB: Survey Monkey appears to be working fine; literally thousands of people have taken the survey so far, including dozens in the past few hours.
If you're getting a screen that encourages you to sign in and start your own survey, that means someone on your computer has already taken the Final Ballot. The software prevents computers from taking a survey more than once, to avoid ballot stuffing.
Germ: Ned Corman is the executive producer and Steven Gates is the director.
To Richard: Alas, no; but City has an editor that COMPLETELY missed the meaning of what his writer was trying to say there (and a writer who doesn't know how to spell Tourette's). It's been fixed now. Thanks for bringing it to our attention.
City Newspaper would like to thank the commentors for bringing this artist's political leanings to our attention. We can assure you that neither the writer of the piece nor the editorial staff were aware of Banton's controversial background prior to publication, nor do we condone the politics ascribed to him. This piece was written strictly from a musical perspective, as he is an important artist in the modern reggae scene. It is a complicated situation, as many artists have political or religious beliefs that we do not agree with, and we're happy to have this forum to engage in a dialogue.
Chris, I actually agree with you. I re-read this and I came off WAY too harshly on Mandy. (I write these as I'm watching the actual show, so my observations tend to be pretty knee-jerk.) I'm sure she is in fact a lovely woman who was in a very stressful situation, and was reacting the best way she knew how.
That said, this is an Entertainment Blog, and I'm judging Mandy -- and the show -- based on entertainment value, and Mandy offered precious little of that throughout her tenure. She was, in fact, quite a wet blanket most of the time. Now that may very well have been the fault of the editors, who seem to have done a fairly poor job telling their story throughout the season (consider that Mandy and Tali, two members of the Final 3, barely spoke until episode 4 or 5). But I can only write about what I saw.
All that to say, while I don't think Mandy was at all fun to watch and didn't understand her place on this show, I went overboard in that blog post, and I apologize for it.
Dear Jacquie: You're absolutely right, the commonly accepted spelling of the term is "locavore." However, this particular event is actually titled "Localvore Fair," and that's how CCE is referring to it. So that's how we spelled it.
Thanks for the notes on the categories this year. Sorry some of you are disappointed with some of the omissions. We try to shake up the ballot every year by adding new categories and deleting others. Some categories are deemed to broad, some are too limited, and others are just unpopular.
However, we take your feedback very seriously, and if there's a category or two you feel we should have included, please let us know by commenting below. Consider this the 101st category: Best Category We Forgot to Include.
Bernie: I suspect that a lot of "Jersey Mike"'s attitude is probably faked so that he'll get screen time. I already found him markedly less obnoxious/sexist/hateful in the second episode, so I bet it was a calculated move on his part. It's an old reality show trick -- "Top Chef"'s original winner, Harold, even admitted that he faked being an asshole when trying out for the show just to make sure he'd get on.
Thanks to everyone for their comments. Please note that at this point, we will not be accepting any more comments regarding the voting controversy for the "American Idol" 2009 season finale. Everything that needs to be said has been said, and the comments are taking over this site. If you'd like to comment on American Idols Live concert coming to Rochester this weekend, or about the performers generally, feel free to post. But we will not be approving any more comments regarding the contentious outcome of the competition.
@Lisa: You are completely right, and I was out of line with that last remark. Totally uncalled for. Sincere apologies all around.
@Nadine: The facts I presented were 100 percent accurate at the time of the finale, which is what I said when I posted them. I also said that I have not gone back since to see what the figures look like, and I will not, because it is a gigantic waste of time.
@Lisa: I'm an entertainment writer. This is my job. What's your excuse?
First, let me say: I do not have a problem with Adam Lambert. I have never had a problem with Adam. I watched the entire season, and while I didn't care for all of his performances (toward the beginning he was much too squealy for my tastes), I did like many of them quite a bit. He has star quality, there is no question about that. He is a performer through and through, and I honestly thought he was going to win this competition.
But he DIDN'T. And what I find frankly infuriating are the constant conspiracy theories about why Adam didn't win -- theories that frequently ignore the facts. Why would the winner OF COURSE outsell the runner-up if the runner-up is allegedly more popular than the winner? How does that make sense? Yes, Google Trends absolutely put Adam and Gokey ahead of Kris during and after the competition. But again: KRIS STILL WON. And it had nothing to do with any one state dialing thousands of times (AT&T debunked that theory immediately after the finale). It had to do with the fact that MORE PEOPLE VOTED FOR KRIS. I do not understand why people find that concept so hard to grasp.
You can argue that Adam was the more talented choice of the two; that's a matter of personal taste. But you can't argue that it was a conspiracy. Yes, "Idol" has serious producer manipulation. Duh. But all of that manipulation was CLEARLY in Adam's favor all season long. Why would the producers NOT want Adam to win? The man was on Entertainment Weekly and Rolling Stone. He was the story of the season. Katy Perry came out and performed with his name written across her back DURING the competition. And afterward, Seacrest and Simon blatantly bitched about how Adam should have won. Why would the producers give it to Kris when Adam had all this buzz and the supposed legion of fans? And please don't use the "homophobic" line. The "Idol" producers don't care if their winners are white, black, red, yellow, or pink. They just care about green -- the amount of money these singers will put into their pockets.
The answer: The producers didn't let Kris win. The voters of America did. Adam has incredibly supportive, vocal fans, and I hope he appreciates them (I'm sure he does). But the truth that they never seem to grasp is, they were a vocal MINORITY. Kris won this thing fair and square, and it's so ridiculous that four months later there are still people going crazy on message boards trying to turn it into something it's not. There are serious issues facing our country, and this is how we spend our time? Sheesh.
Lisa, here's your proof, gathered the week of the "American Idol" finale: SoundScan released the sales figures for Kris and Adam's version of the "No Boundaries" single. Kris's version sold 134,458 copies. Adam's sold 35,984. On the iTunes Top 100 chart the week following the finale, Kris had TWO songs in the Top 10. Adam's highest charter was No. 20. I haven't checked it recently, but at the time of the finale, those were the facts. Simple as that.
Good questions, Bernie. Although I can't find it officially sourced anywhere, I believe the winner got $250,000, the cover of some dance magazine whose name I didn't catch, and the title of America's Favorite Dancer. For a month. Until the new season starts. (It should be noted that the prizes on this show change pretty frequently; in the first season I believe the winner got some sweet apartment in LA or NY and a chunk of money; in Season 2 Benji won a spot performing in Celine Dion's Vegas show, which I believe he turned down in favor of a cash reward.)
Also, I didn't know this until just now: Jeanine is only 18! I figured she was finished with college but she hasn't even STARTED yet! Crazy...
Re: Paula, we'll see. I believe Nigel is no longer associated with "Idol," so whatever negative feelings Paula has toward that crew (and she reportedly has a lot of them) may not splash back on to him. The show could use her visibility, and let's face it, the woman is going to need a job sooner rather than later.
But I would hope that if they do bring her on, she's not a permanent judge, like Mary or Nigel. I quite like the set-up as it is, with the two stalwarts plus the rotating third choreographer. Putting Paula in the mix on a regular basis as a third regular or, God forbid, a replacement for Mary, would seriously screw with the chemistry of the show. Besides, the way Paula blathers, she'd bring the show to a standstill. (Although she has always been more renowned for her dancing than for her singing, so she might actually have some constructive shit to say on this show.)
Some food for thought. Certainly there are a couple guest judges on the show I could live with never seeing again (LIL C). Although having both Paula AND Toni Basil in the guest judging mix would be redundant. Their dance styles are very similar, and they've had basically the same career. One just managed to execute the shtick a little better than the other.
You're welcome, Cathy! I'm so glad you liked the show. I really think it is a more inspiring program than "Idol" in many ways, even if this particular season was somewhat lacking in personality. (And yes, Nigel definitely has a touch of Dirty Uncle to him; I chalk it up to him being a cheeky Brit. And also a perv.)
As for what's next, I'll continue to cover "Dance Your Ass Off" and "More to Love," and I'll periodically check in with "Megan Wants a Millionaire" on VH1. But those are more for curiosity's sake. For the shows I can really sink my teeth into, look for me to cover "Project Runway" when it comes back August 20, "Top Model" when it starts up on September 9, and "So You Think You Can Dance" Season 6 when that ALSO returns September 9. And believe it or not, it's only a few months before "Idol" starts up with Season 9. So the blog will be plenty busy, of that you can be assured. Hope you join us!
Mesha: It's Jason Mraz, and I believe the song is called "If It Kills Me."
To Momma Lu: It does appear that the show has been moved to Water Street, thanks for the update.
Sandra, I don't think ANYONE was playing the race card when they said that Lil C was being prejudiced against Evan. Using the term "prejudice" doesn't automatically connote anything to do with race. Lil C was CLEARLY gunning for Evan -- he didn't have a good thing to say about the kid the entire night, while he was offering glowing praise for every other dancer. That's bullshit. I'm not saying Evan's the best dancer, or that he's flawless. But Lil C didn't even give him a chance. That's prejudiced, any way you cut it, and it has nothing to do with skin color.
Dear NikTunez: Yes, it's legit. And the information is on Live Nation. Here's the direct link to the event page: www.livenation.com/edp/eventId/411001/
Just a quick correction, Tommy: Twitch didn't win last year, Joshua did. And thank god for that. Twitch came in second, which was ridiculous given how mediocre he was almost all season long. Score one for the mugging department, I get.
As for Evan, although I dearly love him, I agree that at this point he's definitely overdue for a trip to the Bottom 2. He's never bad, but he also rarely commits fully to his performances. However, between him and the remaining two guys, I hope he at least makes it to the end of the show. Have never been a fan of Ade, and while I respect Brandon as a dancer, I'm not really a fan of his personality.
I said earlier in the season that we this year gave us our strongest overall Top 10, and I stick by that. But after last night's eliminations I am VERY worried that we're going to get our weakest Final 4. I like Jeanine and Melissa, but I can't believe they're still in this competition. Kayla FTW.
To GVGL: Regarding the point that City Newspaper treated Ceridwen Troy and the transgendered community of Rochester differently than we previously treated Genesee Valley Girl Lover and the local pedosexual community, that is true. We did treat them differently, because they ARE different. The gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community is fighting for equal treatment -- by society and by the law -- so that relationships between consenting adults can be protected. Pedosexuals, by definition, are seeking protection for their relationships with or romantic/sexual interest in pre-pubescent children. To even compare a consensual adult relationship to what is essentially the sexual abuse of a child is offensive to the GLBT community, and it is something that City Newspaper certainly does not support.
We debated in the City newsroom whether or not to approve this comment, as it stirred up many conflicting emotions among the staff. But we decided that the comment did not run afoul of any of our policies (it is not libelous, it does not use hate speech, it does not attack any other posters), and it could spark a meaningful debate among our users. But please note: this website will not allow hate speech or personal attacks on any other posters; those comments will be edited or deleted. Otherwise, please feel free to post your own thoughts on either the above story or the issue raised by GVGL in his comment.
--Eric Rezsnyak, Features Editor, City Newspaper
Dear Valerie: This article is actually from 2008, not 2009. I do not believe Ribbin on the River is taking place this year.
To Thomas Phillips: I think perhaps you misread Frank's blog, or at least the intention of it. Frank is a serious fan of Judas Priest -- he even did a great interview with Rob Halford a few weeks ago, which you can find in the Music Articles section of this site (or, just search "Judas Priest" on our search field). He was in no way trying to belittle the band, or metal in general.
It's refreshing to have a judge/producer of a reality contest offer an honest assessment of a season rather than just spout the typical PR bullshit "This is our best season EVER!" I was actually proud of Nigel last night when he said that while this is technically the most talented Top 20 the show has ever had -- almost every one of them were incredible dancers (with the exception of Tony) -- there are virtually no STARS in the bunch. And this show has always succeeded in generating honest-to-gosh dance stars.
In Season 1 we had Nick, Melody, that asshole Blake, and arguably even Allan. In Season 2 we had Benji, Travis, and Dmitry. In Season 3 we had TOO many -- Lacey, Danny, Neil, Pasha, Hok -- I would argue that its winner, Sabra, had the least star power of the F4 (although she's an amazing dancer). Last year we had Joshua, Katee, and love him or hate him (I hate him), Twitch. This year? The closest we've come to stars so far are Kayla and Brandon, and that's mostly because they are technically brilliant, and have performed the shit out of some amazing routines. But personality-wise none of these guys are really capturing me. I like most of them, but I'm not endeared to the vast majority of them.
I would also echo everyone's concern/frustration with Evan. He has the potential to be a star, but he is fading so fast. He's looking increasingly petrified in his performances (oh, that samba...) and I need for him to really bring it now that we're in the Top 10.
As the editor of this piece I’m thrilled to see all the responses this review has inspired. However, I feel obligated to clarify a couple of the points raised by Chef Peck in his response.
1. Chef Peck mentions that the critic called on a Monday evening to inform the restaurant of his intent to publish the review. While this is true, it also misleading. Mr. Leach had called the restaurant owner several times prior to that, and had not received a call back. His call was finally returned after he noted that he urgently needed to speak to someone. That was my doing. It’s my belief that if we’re going to publish an especially critical take on a restaurant, we should give the owner the opportunity to address any issues before it goes into print, in case there were mitigating circumstances that contributed to the problem. If Chef Peck was trying to imply that we gave the restaurant barely any advanced notice of the review, I would add that the photos for the piece were taken the Saturday prior; the people at Triphammer knew a review was in the works days before the Monday night call in question.
2. Regarding Mr. Leach’s discussion with the owner, and the fact that he brought up an acquaintance’s issues with the service in addition to his own, this should not be taken as proof of any bias on the critic’s part. I assure you, James Leach did not go into this " or any review " with the intention of writing a “personal attack.” We take ethics very seriously at City Newspaper, and if I felt there was even a hint of personal bias in any of our articles, I would pull the plug immediately. Mr. Leach didn’t learn of his friend’s issues with the service until after he had completed his first visit, and only mentioned them to the owner as a way of explaining that what he experienced was not an isolated incident. Additionally, it should be noted that this review was not based on a single disappointing visit. Like all of our restaurant reviews, the critic visited the restaurant at least two times. Any problems Mr. Leach had with the service were his own, and are well detailed in the review.
3. As for Chef Peck’s mention of Mr. Leach’s issues with the bathrooms, we did not even include that information in the review. I made the call that it was inappropriate to take a restaurant to task for poorly maintained restrooms if the restrooms in question aren’t technically the business’s responsibility. Again, we take ethics very seriously.
Thank you to Chef Peck and everyone who posted their thoughts on the review. Our main goal is to start a dialogue in the community, and even when " ESPECIALLY when " our readers disagree with our writers, we always welcome their feedback.
Sincerely,
Eric Rezsnyak
Features Editor
City Newspaper
Carly: All the outdoor films begin at sundown.
To Rebekka: Great point! In fact, we have a whole list of Indian and South Asian markets we're working on now, so look for that column -- and other rundowns of ethnic markets specializing in other cuisines -- in the near future. We just couldn't fit them all into one column.
Jani: No, there is a Jeanine (Phillip's partner) AND a Jeanette (Brandon's partner).
Digatelier: It sure should be, and it has been fixed. Thanks so much for bringing that to our attention. Although an RBLT sounds delicious right about now....
To Marc: As with all reputable newspapers, our advertising and editorial content have absolutely nothing to do with one another. Whether or not a restaurant runs an ad has no bearing on what gets reviewed, and certainly does not color our critic's opinion one way or the other.
To In Disagreement: A review, by its very nature, IS opinion-based. While it is true that what one person likes, another may not, the critic here cites very specific instances to back up his take -- the poor service, the quality of the fish, etc. This is a textbook example of how restaurant reviews are supposed to be written.
Also, the critic -- as he said in the piece -- went to the restaurant on multiple occasions. And he was in fact disappointed each time.
Bengt: Thanks for the tip. There was a site error that was removing about 60 percent of the blog. It has been fixed.
Have to respectfully disagree with you, Trace. I think this year's crop on the whole is infinitely more talented than last season. If you recall the first performance episode of 2008, most of the couples BOMBED. I remember walking away totally chagrined, and worried about the remainder of the season.
Of course, by the time we got to the Top 10 or so, things had improved remarkably -- but even that included dancers like Gev and Comfort, neither of whom were particularly strong. When you factor in early-elimination chaff like Jamie, Rayven, Susie, Chris, Matt, and Marquis, in my opinion, Season 4 featured the worst overall crop of dancers this show has ever had. (Which is not to take away from Joshua, Katee, Courtney, Chelsie, or William, who are some of the best the show has produced.)
This season I think we have a number of potential stars on our hands, especially the women. I'm very eager to see what Kayla, Jeanine, Randi, Caitlin, Janette, and Melissa do next. As for the guys, I have my eye on Evan, Jason, Phillip, Brandon, and maybe Ade. I think it's a much deeper field this time around, even with the overwhelming number of contemporary dancers.
Cathy: Mary is definitely an acquired taste. Almost every single person I know who has watched this show initially found her excruciating to watch (well, to listen to). But almost everyone eventually realizes that she is, in fact, kind of awesome in a "Love that Joker" kind of way. You have to just let it all go and let her infectiousness overtake you. I imagine it's a lot like how freezing to death feels.
Dear KP: I'm not sure who the person was -- I don't believe we'd seen her before, or if we did, it was a brief snippet -- but I took her quote for the title of the blog. I believe she said, "Excuses are the tools of the incompetent, so I will not use them." It's a great line. Incidentally, the other option I had for the title was Mia's ultra-bitchy line, "I love cutting. I love sending home people who aren't good at their jobs." Yowza!
Bob, re: Nathan, the contestants must be 18 at the time of audition to qualify. Since the LA auditions happened in February, that means Nathan would have been ineligible for this season. But I will be stunned if we don't see him come fall.
And thanks so much for bringing up "Pitchfork"! So much shame!
Dear Chelle: I really wrestled with whether or not to include Shakiro. He was certainly memorable. I'm glad you added him to the list! But it left me longing for Boy Shakira from "America's Got Talent" to make this show. Imagine him in the Top 20...
Natalie, time for a reality check: SoundScan released the sales figures for Kris and Adam's version of the "No Boundaries" single this week. Kris's version sold 134,458 copies. Adam's sold 35,984. On the iTunes Top 100 chart, Kris has TWO songs in the Top 10. Adam's highest charter as I type this comes in at No. 20.
Fox and the "Idol" producers have publicly acknowledged the AT&T free phone situation, and both parties maintain that even though poor judgement was used by the AT&T employees, even if you took into account the maximum number of texts that could have been generated by those phones, it wouldn't have mattered. Kris apparently won by a large margin, which is clearly supported by the sales figures thus far.
I realize that you and many other people are upset about the outcome of the season finale, but there's no conspiracy going on here. Kris just ended up being more popular. America not only voted with its phones, it is voting with its dollars, and Kris is selling nearly quadruple what Adam is. It's time to let it go, get over it, and move on.
You know what tastes delicious? Crow. It appears that Rick was right: the New York Times itself has published an article reporting on AT&T employees providing a "small number of demo phones" to attendees at two Arkansas "Idol"-watching parties. I'm still dubious that this would have dramatically altered the final outcome (reports are now saying that it wasn't even close; that Kris trounced Adam in the votes), but it is shocking and awfully stupid on AT&T's part.
Here's the link if you want more info:
&sq=&st=cse&%2334;=&scp=5&%2334;Kris%20Allen=&pagewanted=print
Rick, if you can find a link to a recognized journalistic source with that information, I would love to see it. Because I did a quick search and came up with nothing but conspiracy theory-spouting web comments. That rumor is even more ridiculous than the alleged 36 million Arkansas votes. Why would AT&T back one contestant over another? What on earth could they possibly have to gain? Think critically, people!
Actually Helen, that appears to be a completely unsubstantiated rumor. AT&T has officially stated that it does not reveal how many votes were cast by any state. So that 38 million number is likely completely made up by an angry Adam fan.
Just an interesting tidbit for those of you keeping track: As of Friday evening, Kris Allen has eight songs in the iTunes Top 100 chart, including the No. 1 song (the coronation song "No Boundaries," which is awful, but through no fault of Kris's). Adam also has eight songs on the chart, but his highest charting is at No. 6 ("Mad World"). It'll be interesting to see how those songs end up charting after the post-finale fervor dies down, but I think it suggests pretty concretely that there is very much a market for Kris Allen's music, and the sales seem to reflect the votes cast on the finale.
Lisa: Thanks for the clarification on the BEP song. I can't find a solid source for it online -- I see it both 2008 and 3008 depending on the lyric sites I visit -- and the song itself has an electronic distortion thrown in right when Fergie says that word, so it's difficult to tell definitively. You could very well be right. It would make a hell of a lot more sense, wouldn't it?
Also, a correction on your comment: Chris Daughtry actually came in fourth in Season 5. The Top 3 was Taylor, Kat McPhee, and Elliott Yamin. But your point is a good one. Just because someone doesn't win hardly means they're doomed to failure in the music biz. (And just because they DO win doesn't mean they'll succeed *cough*Taylor*cough*) I'll admit something really embarrassing: I listened to Kellie Pickler's whole second album last weekend, and I think it's awesome, with some killer singles. And she came in, what, sixth that year? Jennifer Hudson came in seventh in S3, and she's just fine. So I'm sure Adam will do well regardless, especially given his very vocal fans (as evidenced in this thread).
Just a note, folks, based on a comment I just deleted: Please feel free to vent about/applaud the finale as much as you like, but please do not attack any other posters. It will not be tolerated, and your comment will be removed. You can disagree with someone else's post, but do so respectfully. We want to keep this a safe space for everyone to express their viewpoints. Aside from that, thanks for posting!
Barb, I actually addressed this in the blog, because I knew it was coming: to chalk Kris's win up to the "teeny bopper vote" (which is seriously a completely meaningless term) is to dismiss a legitimately talented human being. I can understand why people love Adam, and I appreciate how passionate they have become about him. I know a lot of people will be upset about the finish, and rightfully so. But I personally don't think it's fair to write Kris off as just a pretty face. He can sing, he play, he can interpret music. He may not be the Idol many people wanted, but that hardly means he's devoid of talent.
That's an excellent question, Bernie. I assumed he'd be a permanent fixture in the audience once Danny got through, but I don't think we've seen him once. Maybe he couldn't get time off work, or maybe they're trying to keep his profile low so he can come back next year. (I hope not, I didn't particularly care for his voice.) But his absence has been notable, that's for sure.
Joe: Just checked the official City of Rochester website, and the Old 97's HAVE been added to the June 18 bill along with Cracker. This is not how it was listed on the official press release last week, but it looks like the band is in fact playing. We've updated the blog post to reflect it.
C.W.: Cracker is listed on the official press release sent out by the city. The Old 97's have been rumored as part of the PiP line-up for a while, and may be one of the to-be-released bands. But as far as the city's official press release is concerned, it's Cracker for June 18.
Laura and Bernie: I didn't get the Simon love for Matt either, unless he was deliberately over-praising him and grilling Allison to lull Matt's voters (who I still think are an urban legend) into a false sense of security, and to get Allison's crew all riled up and working the phones. The judges really have pimped Matt to a ridiculous degree, between giving him the Wild Card after his disastrous Coldplay performance and then using the save on him him. I will say that if you only listened to the second half of last night's performance it sounded good. But that beginning was totally bobo.
Dear Sam: I believe this may be the first year for the event. But I'm not certain about that.
Adam has been upfront about his sexuality? Did I not just read an article in the Times last week discussing how the show and Lambert have been totally tight-lipped about the boy-kissy/drag photos that have been making the rounds on the Internet? Clearly I'm not nearly as well versed in the man's personal life as other people are, but I don't remember him ever officially acknowledging his sexuality. Which I agree shouldn't be an issue in this competition, but let's face it, it is. The gay issue is still a major taboo in this country. I mean, look at what happened this weekend at Miss USA...
Angie: I think that's overstating the situation. I believe Susie was making the observation that disco as a genre has essentially been in mothballs for nearly 30 years now (although it's true that the sound and the artists still influence modern popular music, especially in the dance and electronica genres). So it doesn't make a lot of sense for this show to devote an entire night to a musical style that hasn't been viable for the lifespans of ANY of the current contestants. What's next, Appalachian folk songs night? The music of the Roaring 20's? And I say that as someone who LOVES disco music (it even has its own playlist on my iPod).
Bernie, I think you're right that the judges used the save just to say they used the save. However, since we've only got two more weeks for them to use it, the contestants likely to end up in the booting position would logically be Matt, Lil, or Anoop. And I don't think the judges would save the latter two at this point. They've built that stupid save up so much this season that if they didn't use it everyone would cry foul. Now they've gotten it out of the way, and I'm thankful for that. With the will they/won't they crap no longer hanging over results show, maybe we can get these things down to a half hour. (I know it won't happen, but we can dream.)
And ultimately, Matt's not going to win this. He probably won't even make Top 4. I realized last night after I blogged that the judges have actually used the save on Matt TWICE. The Wild Card is essentially a save earlier in the game, and after he straight-up bombed in semi-finals they spared him. So this is twice now that the judges have kept in a competitor that America has proved again and again to be ambivalent about. Won't they feel awful if Allison ends up getting cut next week? Or Kris?
I completely missed Christina Applegate in the audience, but my friend did catch Kate Roberts from "Days of Our Lives" there. Add in Katie Couric and that's a straight-up bizarre assemblage of quasi-famous people in the crowd.
Mandy: Not a misprint. According to Ticketmaster's website, tickets start at $9.99.
I would have brought in an actual actor to lead it, instead of one of Tyra's friends. Clay did fine -- he certainly didn't embarrass himself or anything. But when you think Clay Aiken you don't think actor. You think singer. And if this were a singing challenge (and please, let's pray we don't have any singing challenges on this show -- I think even Tyra got that hint after "Shake Ya Body") then it would make sense.
Oh, no. I didn't see him in "Spamalot." I'm firmly talking out of my you-know-what. But that doesn't mean I'm wrong. One Broadway credit does not an acting guru make.
Sam: I unfortunately missed that bit (Anoop had already been sent to the stools when I flicked over), but I can't say it surprises me. I've been seeing a real nasty attitude from Anoop for a while now, culminating in his reaction to Kara's completely accurate assessment of his Usher performance as a frat-house dare. Out of anyone this season it seems to me that Anoop has let fame get to his head, and he seems entirely too full of himself. But that's purely conjecture on my part. Maybe I'm just seeing what I want to see.
Cathy: Thanks for pointing that out. There was some bizarre formatting error that cut out everybody in between Danny and Adam. But they're all up there now. Sorry for the confusion!
Tom: It's not just you on the Natalie thing. She looked like she had consumption in that photo. I do not get her; never have. I enjoyed her smart-ass comments to Aminat early in the episode, but I don't think she's particularly attractive, and I don't think she takes very good pictures. And the one this week was especially dreadful. She just always looks...pinched to me. And very Jersey.
Bernie: I'm glad you mentioned Paula. I almost wrote something about her but forgot to in my haste to get the blog up. She was totally out of it last night, easily her least lucid appearance this season. Her advice was even more nonsensical than usual. Her response to Megan's performance -- "I'd just like to see her perform on a stool" -- yikes. I don't care if it's painkillers, a reaction to prescription medication, whatever. This is her job and last night she was totally useless. I kept hoping she'd just pass out under the table and Kara could just take over...
The "hip" writer (your words, not mine) is 30. And that's irrelevant to the point. If the purpose of the night was for the Idols to prove they could be contemporary, most of them failed the challenge. Fewer than half of them selected songs from this decade, and only ONE of them (Matt) selected a song that currently appears on the iTunes Top 100. The theme might as well have been "Just choose a song already," or "Songs that contain words."
Penny: You did understand that I LIKED Allison and Adam's performances, right? I'm not sure how you missed/misinterpreted that.
PaulyIceCubes: I know that Adam's been on Broadway for two years. My point there is that thus far in the finals he's been passing himself off as some kind of emo poster boy, and last night was the first time I think he's dropped the act and performed authentically. When you go back and look at Adam's initial audition he looked and sounded nothing like the screechy goth-lite character he was during semis and the first few weeks of finals. I've enjoyed his last two performances, and last night in particular I think he dropped the facade, and he's far more interesting to me when he's being true to himself.
And Robbie: I agree that the skin comment was superficial, but if you think "Idol" is strictly a singing contest, you're fooling yourself. Image is critically important. (I think Adam knows that better than anybody this season, actually.) And every time his face flashes on my screen my first, overwhelming reaction is, "Jeez, that guy has terrible skin." I wouldn't be surprised if it's because of years of wearing stage make-up, but I'd be lying if I didn't find it distracting.
To A Madrinha: Thanks for your comment. As it turns, out everyone's right: Ossia is performing three different pieces in its concert, compositions by Green, Tacke, and Souto. However, Green's selection is actually titled "3 Groups," as it features three groups of musicians performing at the same time. If you'd like more information, check out our feature on the concert at www.rochestercitynewspaper.com/music/articles/2009/03/CLASSICAL-PREVIEW-Ossia/.
MrRochester: Thanks for your comment. Just a clarification: James wasn't saying that the city lacks good Mexican food (he has reviewed several Mexican eateries, in fact, and enjoyed several of them). He was just making the point that it can be difficult to find a really good TACO in this town, a specific dish. It was in no way meant to be a blanket statement on all Mexican restaurants in Rochester, and should not be taken that way.
Absolutely right, Lou. But this was written when the girls' pictures came out, without any information. And in her photos Fo certainly has Asian-esque features. So it was an assumption on my part, and a wrong one. But I love her anyhow. She's easily in my personal Top 3 for the cycle...
To Mehul: Thanks so much for pointing out the error. We've fixed the online version of the article, and we'll run a correction in the paper. We regret the error.
Excellent point, Anon. I missed that due to the technical issues that ate up the first half of last night's show, and I appreciate the clarification. I guess I was just caught up in the moment of wondering what could have been: a world in which Taylor Hicks did not become one of our American Idols.
Eva started out as a bitch, but by the time they were in Japan she had a strong redemption arc going, and she definitely came off the victim in her split with Ann. And since it came down to her and Yaya, who was also arguably a house bitch, she was the more appealing option (although probably a worse model; skin problems aside, Yaya took amazing photos).
To Marian: As the write-up says, Felicia replaced Joanna, as in Joanna Pacitti, who was removed from the competition after the Top 36 were selected. Although an official reason has never been given (at least, not to my knowledge) the rumor is that it had to do with her alleged personal ties to 19 Entertainment, which is the "Idol" management group.
To Cat: Thanks for pointing that out. I had the names in bold and a weird glitch in the system caused them to be invisible. It has been fixed now, but for clarification, the Group 3 winners were Lil Rounds, Scott MacIntyre, and Jorge Nunez.
To Daniel: If you click the link in the article you'll go to the Movie Makers' webpage, which has a "Contact" section with a variety of different e-mail addresses. I'm sure if you reached out that way you can get the information you need.
Normally I allow the readers to have the final say in the comments. However, I feel a need to jump in here and clarify a few things. First, I'm extremely familiar with the score to "Evita." I've owned the soundtrack for more than 10 years and could have probably mimed along to 90 percent of the lyrics in the show. Second, I do not have a music degree, but I have a strong musical background, including years of experience playing in concert bands, choruses, jazz bands, and, yes, even pit orchestras. I'm confident that I know what I'm talking about when I write about music, and I would never call out an orchestra if I didn't think it specifically warranted mention. The orchestra's performance on opening night did. I sat literally within 15 feet of the pit and heard every note, and I could mention specific sections of the orchestra -- I didn't in an effort to avoid further embarrassment -- that were so off-pitch at points that I literally physically cringed.
I understand that the pit orchestra that performed for WTG's "Evita" is a volunteer one, and I appreciate that the members did their best with a very demanding score. And many of the musicians did a fantastic job. But my job as a critic is to review the production of a show, both good and bad elements. In my opinion, certain sections of that pit did not live up to the quality that was represented by the vast majority of the production. I apologize if that's difficult for people to read, but believe me when I say I wouldn't have brought it up if I didn't think it was important to the overall success of the show.
To Spanky: Dale did write the piece, her harried editor (who also put it up late) accidentally put the wrong byline on. Thanks for pointing out the error, and it has been fixed.
Dear Brenna: Thanks for the comment. Yes; the caption is wrong. The Turbo Kick class photo is at the top of the page, the sidebar photo features a yoga class. Sorry for the mistake.
Dear Chris, thanks for your comment. Regarding the approval process, it's done mostly to keep the website free of spam. We almost never disapprove comments for content, unless it is libelous. We try to check the comments as frequently as possible. But I apologize for any confusion and delay.
Dear Mary Rose: I believe prints are for sale at the Memorial Art Gallery's gift shop.
Karen: Thanks for your comment, and the information. You'll notice that I edited your post to remove the insults. Please note that personal attacks of any kind are not welcome on this website, and will not be tolerated.
Dear Steelopus: Thanks for your note. I've corrected it in our calendar and our music choice on the concert. I apologize for the error. I believe (but am not 100 percent certain) that show may have initially been scheduled for December 5 and moved, but regardless, we should have caught it prior to publication. Please know that we are currently taking steps to ensure mistakes like this don't happen again.
Oh, man. Tell me about it.
I was literally yelling at the television last night. That episode was so lame, and so poorly written and conceived. I'm glad you pointed out the DAY-LONG eclipse that NOBODY but the heroes seemed to notice. I'm glad you pointed out how ridiculous the Nathan plotline is (by the way: worst senator ever -- does he EVER do his job?). I'm glad you questioned the logic of Hiro snapping out of his childlike state by going back in time with Claire, a character he doesn't even KNOW. And what was with that cliffhanger? Claire gasping that her adoptive father really didn't care for her at first? I mean really, come on show. We have ho'd that row so many times before...
There were so many other things to hate last night. That scene with Daphne the speedster trying to "make amends" with her father, which apparently boiled down to hugging him -- blech. It was cornier than a "Hallmark Hall of Fame" movie. The unyielding Sylar good/bad thing really has all but ruined one of the coolest characters on TV. (And he better have not have actually killed Elle; it seemed somewhat ambiguous to me.) Goddamn Mohinder goes to bring back MAYA (nooooooo!), and I'm petrified that she's returning soon. The continued, awful presence of Matt Parkman on this show. That entire Haitian subplot (btw: the guy's power was to have impenetrable skin; this can be seen in comics from Unus the Untouchable to Diamond Lil to a couple other character that I'm sure I'm forgetting), which was really kind of offensive when you think about it.
Just...so...bad. And the cherry on top is that the hack writer for the episode got to work in an appearance by the first issue he wrote of Marvel's Ultimate X-Men title, a book he has completely destroyed in about six months. Yay!
The good news is that executive producer Jeph Loeb has been fired from the show. I know, it's not good news when ANYONE is fired. But hear me out on this: the man is a terrible writer. TERRIBLE. He is single-handedly destroying an entire corner of the Marvel Universe at the moment, and I can only imagine that his bad writer juju is at least in part responsible for how awful "Heroes" has been since Season 2. (Although I maintain that even with its flaws, this season is WAY better than that POS.) He's gone! And the show has been yanked for all of January! So they can retool! So we might be saved soon after all!
Renfrew: Thanks for that response. Believe it or not, I agree with a great many of your points, and I thank you for posting them to this site. I'm thrilled that you disagree, and that you can communicate your thoughts so effectively. All I was asking is that we limit the dismissive responses to the other posters. Disagree all you like -- we welcome it! -- but I'm just trying to ensure a posting environment where people can feel free to share their thoughts without things descending into personal attacks. To clarify: I don't think you did that, but I was growing uncomfortable with what I saw as increasingly personal messages. Please feel free to continue posting, and let's all make sure that we remain respectful.
Not to put too fine a point on it, Renfrew, but you're doing exactly what you're critiquing the previous poster of doing: attacking and acting as though you're the only person who knows what's best. You might try to disguise the swipes with $10 words, but that doesn't make them any less aggressive. So how about we offer opinions on the list or the post, and keep the personal attacks to a minimum.
That Arianne woman is a disgrace. She's even worse than Lisa last season. I mean, I can forgive you for being a shitty cook, but I can't forgive you for bitching and whining the entire time. She's like a cooking version of Stella from "Project Runway 5." Jill mega-choked at judges' table and was clearly kind of clueless, but Arianne's food was so bad Padma SPIT IT OUT. And Arianne's still here. Yikes.
Oh, I don't think you have to worry about drama on "Charm School." I was commenting to my brother that even though we adore Megan, she was kind redundant since we also have brazen shit-stirrer Lacey, who does Megan's job even more directly. (I mean, that woman is an Olympic level asshole.) Now that Dallas is gone I was worried that the last major remaining feud was off the table, but next week's preview suggests spitting-in-the-face action, and I am very excited to see that. I also have to say that I'm really enjoying Kristy Jo this time around, despite having hated her guts on "RoL2." She and Jessica constantly have me cracking up. (BTW: Brandi M for the win.)
Louis: You make a point about declining ratings typically leading to guest stars. That's not really the case with "30 Rock" (they were trying to get a ratings boost, sure, but the ratings aren't necessarily declining). The irony is, Aniston's episode was the least-watched of the season. And that's a fact, not an opinion.
And let's refrain from calling people names, OK? It's not necessary, and it won't be tolerated on this website.
Dear DN: Thanks for your comment. No, I don't think we'll delete the post. It's opinion after all, and I don't think opinion can be dismissed by being colored by...opinion. But one other thing: I never said I "hated" Jennifer Aniston. I wouldn't classify myself as an Aniston "hater." I just think she's overrated, and I don't get the continued fascination with her. I think that's totally valid. (And regardless, the episode really did stink compared to just about every other episode of "30 Rock.")
Dear William: Most of the smart-mouth responses are in the print edition; we couldn't fit all of them so a few (I'd guess maybe 10 percent) were cut, and run only online.
Eric Rezsnyak, Features Editor
Dear MSM: Thanks for posting. Just to clarify, this is not an article, but a letter to the editor, written by a reader of the paper.
Dear Bill: Thanks for commenting. We appreciate you sharing your opinion, but please do not attack the writers. If you don't agree with the review, state your viewpoint. But there's no need to insult anyone's intelligence, and it won't be allowed on this site.
Thanks for the catch, Janey. The grammatical snafu should be fixed now.
Bri and PMN: Thanks for the info that Hammond has portrayed Jackson before. I was honestly unaware of that, as I haven't watched "SNL" regularly in years.
But honestly, it doesn't matter to me if he's played him 15, 150, or 1500 times, with or without Jackson sitting right next to him. It doesn't address my salient point, which is, isn't it kind of strange that a white comedian is portraying a public figure who is (for better or worse) defined largely by his ethnicity? What message is it sending to African-American actors and comedians that the right person for the job on "SNL" is a white man?
Please note: I'm not calling for anyone's head, I'm not asking for a boycott, I'm not saying anybody's being racist, nothing. I just think it's an unfortunate statement on the state of diversity of the current "Saturday Night Live" cast.
Dear Mr. Fantauzzo: Thank you for your comment. To answer your question, as the introduction above explains, the final four for each category were not selected by City Newspaper. They were the top four vote getters in the primary ballot that ran online throughout the month of September, which was taken by hundreds of Rochesterians. I can assure you that it has absolutely nothing to do with advertising, just with who the readers picked.
Dear Rich: No, there are no write-ins in the final ballot. The primary ballot, which ran on the website throughout September, was exclusively write-in, and from those results we culled the top four vote-getters in each category for this final ballot. It's a new system we're trying this year, which people seem to like, but I apologize for any confusion.
--Eric Rezsnyak, Features Editor
So I missed the only interesting thing to happen all night? Amazing. Thank you for adding that, Clifton! Tonight I'll be watching live so we shouldn't have any DVR mishaps...