Beyonce Routine Strictly Results Show

[WitneyWooo]

I guess this is more of a AIBU but with a sex and gender slant which is why I am asking here.

AIBU to be annoyed that a male dancer took centre stage for the Beyoncé routine on the Strictly Results show last night. I like Johanes and think he’s a great dancer but it grates on me that he was the main dancer for this routine. They are literally dancing to “Who Runs the World Girls” with a man as the focus! It’s annoying! Bog standard women are not interesting enough anymore. It has to be a gay man to be appealing?

I don’t watch Strictly but had a look on You Tube and all the women dancers were more eye catching than him anyway so I don’t know why he needed to be centre stage.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/contact/complaints

Actually I’ll argue this one - it’s not all male there are women in the ballet and having men play the swans is actually brilliant - they really embody the power and menace of swans. It’s not men in tutus doing the same thing as women in the traditional choreography- it’s a complete re choreograph. it’s far far more about gay than cross dressing (and is amazing - so much better than the traditional tutus etc). This is not men taking women’s parts it’s a different show which happens to be the same music. There’s no problem restaging shows to allow men to play parts that have been rewritten to need men - it’s when they dress as women and take parts written for women I have a problem.

Which is what Johannes is doing by doing female steps in a song about girl power - same as having a man in girls gym skirt playing one of Elles sidekicks in legally blonde at Regent’s Park - that’s totally taking parts from women. I have heard from an agent that the six producers are looking for a trans woman to play one of the queens….which again would be totally ridiculous.

He needs to realise as do some others on there that this isn't a drag show. It's supposed to be family fun entertainment but then I don't find drag shows remotely funny. It is derogatory caricature. There's a reason the Black and White Minstrels doesn't exist anymore but it seems that sexism is alive and well and to be applauded especially in the gay male community.

And why do the BBC require full name, email address, postal address and phone number in order to make a complaint?

I would love to know the logic/ data behind this?! Bigger handspan?

Yes I think I was ok with it up until the “Girls” song. Beyonce is an icon to many so totally get men/ women/ gay/ straight wanting to pay tribute. Then it really did seem like a man taking a role that should be done by a woman.

I so rarely complain about TV.

But I have now.

I thought the same thing.

JoJo is one of the best dancers on there by a country mile. He is utterly phenomenal. But he gets a LOT of lead time in the pro dances.

If they wanted to have him showcase his best Bey moves, then why the heck did they use Run the World (Girls) as a song choice? They could have swapped for Love on Top and it would have been fine.

But that particular song? Considering its message of female empowerment was absolutely wrong. I can't believe that not a SINGLE person in the entire Strictly crew thought that might not be a good idea...

I would assume so they can confirm that its a legit complaint.

The choreographer was female. I think she was the one who came on and danced in white. So a woman has chieographed a routine to a song about female empowerment where a man is the lead and she also comes on and dances around him. Shame really, as as a routine I thought it was brilliant.

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I would assume so they can confirm that it's a legit complaint.

Of course, fully understand them needing some details but needing ALL of your details seems complete overkill.

Thanks for the complaint link, I’ve complained. So disrespectful to the female professionals that even in a dance tailor made for a female professional they have to insert a man, yet again. I agree Johannes is an amazing dancer and I love to watch him but he’s not the only dancer on the show.

I've also complained, thanks OP. I don't watch strictly, but found it online and agree. Don't forget to click the verification link within 60 minutes if you complain!

Agree agree agree!
Was watching with my boyfriend and he pointed it out, saying surely it should have women as the main focus and I agree so much. Literally meant to be about women and how powerful they are, yet there’s a man leading them. Great.

Thanks for the link I've complained.

Wonder how many junior (or even senior) execs were scratching their heads in meetings but due to how totally captured the Beeb is they didn't dare question this?!

It feels very deliberate now this decision making. Whether it is a deliberate put down of women or whether to do so is now so ingrained in the culture that the decision makers feel it is the obvious and unquestionable thing to do. Anything that empowers women MUST include men too. Regardless of what an astonishing dancer he is.

Yep agree. I'm another one who's a big Jojo fan, but this really was quite disappointing.

I feel a bit bad now, I loved it 😁 As the family would attest, I am not normally slow in picking up an anti-feminist message, I feel I have let the side down 😱. Although in my defence I don't know the songs and didn't hear the lyrics. But still.

Here you go …

https://genius.com/Beyonce-run-the-world-girls-lyrics

Palette cleanser anyone?

Yes, at the time we were in a shop and there were very large fans, i have big hands for a woman but it took up the whole of my forearm and i was struggling to get them to ‘snap’ open

obviously he found it easier…hes got arms like chimp 😒

I feel exactly the same. I love JoJo to bits, but this smacked of "the best woman for the job is a man". Totally inappropriate. There are some fabulous female dancers who could/should have been given the opportunity to take the leading role in that dance.

Indeed!

Fucking annoying & so unfair!

TBF Swan Lake specifically is traditionally all about the women (you could argue that classical ballet all was until Nureyev and then Baryshnikov came along and made the men into stars, and even that today it is still heavily weighted towards showing off the women).

Wider point, though: I love Johannes but I agree with you all and I was irked by this. We get it, he can dance in heels, but the women do so every single time they dance.