"That's the plan, rule the world, you and me, any day.."

Ok - so now my true colors and inner-geekiness are going to show a little bit. I don't think I have mentionned my obsession with the show Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but it is definitely one of my obessessions despite the fact it is no longer on the air. If want to see me "geek out" (as Kevin might say) this would be the topic. Well some of you might be familiar with the musical episode that they did on Buffy called "Once More with Feeling." I am sure you can imagine what it is like when two of your favorite things in the world collide - in that case it was Buffy and musical theatre.

Joss Whedon (whom you might know from Firefly or from writing X-men comic books) is the brilliant man behind Buffy and he is actually quite brilliant as a composer and as a lyricist. So during the writer's strike back in the winter he got bored and decided to do a project to see if the internet was a financially viable option for entertainmnent. Thus he developed Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. I must say that yet again Joss Whedon (and family) has demonstrated his brilliance. I cannot wait until he actually decides to start writing actual musicals for the theatre (which I hope is inevitable). If you like comic book superheroes and villians and/or musicals you will definitely enjoy this 45-min mini-musical event.

Besides the wonderful musical selections, with many tributes to Sondheim, Whedon and clan are particularly good at making at you laugh and then tearing at your heart strings. As he always accomplished with Buffy, there are plenty of snappy lyrics and witty lines.

Some of my favorites being:

"These are not the hammer... The hammer is my penis."

"I've got a PHD in horribleness."

"A lot of guys ignore the laugh, and that's about standards. I mean, if you're gonna get into the Evil League of Evil, you have to have a memorable laugh. What, do you think Bad Horse didn't work on his whinny? His terrible death-whinny?"

Without spoiling anymore I would say go watch it while you can.

Free viewing ends at midnight on Sunday, July 20th. Then you have to buy it off of I-tunes for $2 an episode/act (it's three acts). It is an extremely worthy cause and well worth the $6, so if you miss it I would say go buy it.

I've seen it at least 3 times at this point and am still planning to I-tunes it and then buy the DVD with musical commentary when it comes out.

The cast includes Neil Patrick Harris (Doogie Howser, How I Met Your Mother), Nathan Fillion (Buffy-Season 7, Desperate Housewives, Firefly) and Felicia Day (Buffy-Season 7).

Check out the three act musical blog for free (until July 21st) here: http://www.drhorrible.com/
Follow this link to check out the backstory and interviews about the project:
http://doctorhorrible.net/

Enjoy!

The Number 1 Dance Show on TV

So I am an avid So You Think You Can Dance watcher seeing as I have been a dancer for almost the entirety of my life. It warms my soul to see quality dancing on mainstream television.

I think the best thing about the show is that they highlight both technically trained and not trained dancers, challenging them to try different styles of dance and stretching them out of their comfort zones. I have to agree that talent and versatility do go hand in hand, which is why I don't like American Idol. You are not the best singer if you can only sing pop - I would have to say then you are only the best "pop singer."

I love SYTYCD because it actually applauds and recognizes several styles of dance as being notable (though I do wish we could see some more ballet and tap). The show continues to exceed my expectations though, and after seeing the pas-de-deux tonight I feel like they are continuing to broaden their horizons.

I love to watch the show for the choreography in particular - they have some brilliant and well known talent on the show. Mia Michaels (who I used to see judge and teach at dance competitions back in my dance team days) is one of my favorites as an artist on the show. I also love Wade Robson's work because it is so quirky and unique. (I would love to know where in the hell he is this season).

Tonight set new heights for the show though because Desmond Richardson was the guest choreographer who did the pas-de-deux. He is not a household name, but in the dance community he is BIG! Most people know Baryshnikov however, and Desmond Richardson is a ballet/contemporary dancer of that caliber. I am just so pleased as a technically trained ballet/modern dancer to see them continue to bring in such high quality talent even if most of the audience is not familiar. Yay Nigel Lythgoe!

I must say with our wedding and with my weird work hours this summer, it has made it harder than usual to keep up with the show. Kevin actually watches it with me and enjoys it (one of the thousands of reasons I love him so much.) Actually, last week I was driving home from meeting with Kierstie and Debbie about our show and knew I wasn't going to get to the TV in time to see the dance solos or results. I called Kevin, and was semi-surprised to hear him watching it without me. The best part though was the play-by-play he gave me of the solos.

"She's turning. Now she's rolling on the floor. She jumped. She did a pirouette. He's jumping. He took his shirt off. He did a flip...."

Now I have to admit, the fact that Kevin knew the term "pirouette"and in the correct context makes me a proud woman! Again, what this show is all about - and also why it should be the Number 1 dance show in America.

Dancing with the Stars and Dance Crew can take their geriatric ballroom and gyrating and grinding somewhere else...somewhere with American Idol for that matter...