DWTS Season 14 – A Peek Behind the Scenes
And the result of one man’s trip to DWTS confirms something that we have discussed here on this blog in the not to recent past!! Billy Masters was recently at the show and had the following to say on his Windy City Times Web Site:
And yet, there I was at Dancing with the Stars last week. With several friends on the show, I wanted to be supportive. Plus, I’m on the East Coast for the next few weeks. There’s a good chance that one (or all) of them will be voted off by then! My first surprise of the night was bumping into Chi Chi La Rue and Doug Jeffries at the VIP check-in. (La Rue is friends with Bruno Tonioli.) Before the show starts, the judges and hosts are introduced to the audience. The person who generated the loudest applause was Bruno! Girlfriend knows how to work it.
I’m not accusing anyone of cheating, but I must tell you that the audience is encouraged to cheer more for certain stars than others. For instance, before William Levy’s dance, we were instructed to be up on our feet and really get into his salsa (something I didn’t need prompting for). I don’t recall anyone asking us to get excited about Melissa Gilbert Brinkman Boxleitner.
I love watching how “celebrities” treat fans. Some are great, some try to avoid them, but most fall in between. I am surprised, nay shocked, to say that the most personable participant was Derek Hough. Everyone I’ve shared this information with is surprised—I guess people expect him to be a little aloof and cocky. (They might be thinking of Ryan Seacrest, who I hear has a little … well, never mind.) Derek was lovely to everyone who went up to him. Of course, my beloved Sherri Shepherd is just a girl who can’t say no and was everyone’s best friend by the end of the night. And I was impressed to see that sexy Levy remained remarkably composed and gracious when two girls ran down to the dance floor during a commercial to take a photo with him. Where, oh where, was security?
Gee, I’m so shocked that they were encouraged to get up and be crazy for William – I had no idea that the producers of this show could be so manipulative!!! Yes, that was sarcasm. 🙂 This is where I say, gently…I told you so. 😉 Wonder what Courtney and Vogue would say about this…
Courtney: Here, let me put on my “fake surprised” face 😯 Seriously, the fact that people balk at the idea that the audience is somehow “coached” actually makes me balk at them in return – every single person I know that has been to the live taping (and I know several) has commented on how they’re told when to clap, how loud to clap, when to sit down, when to stand up, when to look happy, when to look shocked, etc. My boyfriend actually commented on what a drag it was, as he was exhausted from all the fake enthusiasm by the end of the show. All live audiences are coached to a certain degree, and I would venture a guess that the DWTS audience falls more on the “extremely coached” end of the spectrum. But the question still remains: why push William so hard on the audience?
Vogue: How sad to encourage the audience to applaud more for some celebrities and not others!! What the?? Something is wrong with this picture and what’s more, phoney and unfair! As for Derek, I’m not surprised he is more personable and sweet than some of the other pros. I’ve never understood why some would think he is cocky? When has he ever been cocky on this show? It’s not in his makeup in the least. Yep, Heidi and Court, you told us so!!