Hey all!
One of our most popular posts here on Denial Island have been the coverage leading up to former Home and Away Star Jordan Rodriguez new show Dance Academy. After becoming a successful cult hit ‘down under’, the show now is making its way to American shores and as a result I thought I’d take the time to recap and react to the series as it airs on TeenNick. So grab up a chair and a cuppa and let’s get started.
The episode begins with an introduction to Tara; she’s a farm girl with a dream. She’s always had a wild imagination, and loves the sensation accompanied with dancing; it reminds her of flight, and peace. She then explains that she wants to be a principled dancer, and two weeks ago she applied for a slot at the top dance academy in Australia, and in the mail now is a decision that will shape the rest of her life.
We are then flashed back two weeks to Tara’s audition. She is running around the academy lost, and asks for help. Cat gives her directions to a changing room, only while she changes a boy (Christian aka J-ROD himself!) comes in. Tara is shocked, says she has pepper spray and isn’t afraid to use it. he then explains she’s in the boy’s locker room…
She’s then taken by Ethan (another boy who Tara instantly has a crush on) to the girls changing room, after which she arrives to the ‘introduction’ late. The boys and girls are then separated and they begin to warm up and go through the first round of try outs.
Tara isn’t as skilled as the other girls, she’s frustrated because things that they find ‘simple’ and have done for years, Tara hasn’t even attempted before. The next day after one of her friends snaps her Achilles, Tara asks the person in charge how she is doing. She is told to focus upon her own future. Tara says she doesn’t know what’s wrong with her this week, it’s probably just the nerves, to which the headmaster replies “You have the talent we’d expect from a twelve year old, but the physical potential to do well, but then again so do a lot of other girls”…ouch.
Back at the dorms Cat arrives and whisks her away to a party. After being there for a bit, the news of Tara changing in the boys changing room spreads about the party, embarrassed Tara leaves, but not before having a drink splattered across her shirt.
Once she gets back in the dorm Tara explains to her roommate (Abigail) that it wasn’t supposed to be this hard. Abigail says to trust her. On the next day it’s a big structured dance doing swan’s lake. Abigail says on the rare occasion she gets nervous she pictures herself somewhere else, and that Tara should do the same thing.
So they begin dancing and Tara imagines herself back home, on the farm dancing by herself. Miss Webster asks Tara why she altered the choreography, Tara say’s she doesn’t know. Miss Webster continues on and tells Abigail she could learn a thing or two from Tara, and that Tara did a “surprisingly good job.”
Abigail takes this out on Tara later, demanding her outfit back and saying she doesn’t want to practice. Later that night after finding it hard to get to sleep due to Abigail’s snoring and random noises from outside, Tara then decides to leave the boarding house and she finds a place outside and dances under the moonlight (well technically it’s the gazebo lights but hey whose keeping track her?)
The next morning Tara wakes up late, but thanks Abigail for everything, she called in early for her audition and is then questioned for leaving campus. Cat listen’s in and bardges in, shouting “call off the witch hunt” she then explains that Abigail snores and that Tara simply bunked with her last night. Tara then is told to perform.
We then come back to the present, Tara explains that its so much more at the academy than dancing, but in that moment all she remembered and cared about was dancing and no one could take that away from her. She is ready for Dance Academy…at least she thinks she is – FADE TO BLACK END OF EPISODE!
Reactions: HOLY CRAP- that was an amazing pilot. I didn’t expect much, or rather anything, but the show knocked it out of the park – yea there are a few things that I would have liked a little bit more of, and I did feel like the 20 minute pilot hurt it a tiny bit, but really it was AMAZING and I am definitely sticking around for the rest of the series, and for me to say that after a pilot is kinda shocking all in itself.
What did you think of the pilot? Did you enjoy it as much as I did? Let me know in the comments below or on twitter @SoapWikiJohn
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