#which is also really fun because the choreographic intention is more unified that way

[stepffan]

the narrative and thematic links between Shoma’s short and free programs this and last season have been so intriguing. MJ (which was supposed to be Shoma’s short of Stephane had his way) + Bolero, and now Gravity + Air/Tormenta (Stephane did pick the music for both). Don’t even get me STARTED on MJ and Bolero because I could write an essay, I AM writing an essay actually

but take Air/Tormenta as the thematic continuation of Gravity — Shoma begins the program in a kneeling position on the ice, as if Gravity did in fact bring him down, like I wonder if Stephane and Kenji talked about this lmao

#Shoma seems very fun to choreograph for because he seems like the kind of guy to just go along with whatever u tell him to do #like when I watch Stephane’s programs for Deniss I feel like a not insignificant amount of choreographic ideas in there r actually Deniss’s #it’s rly cool and I love to see it #which is why Shoma’s Stephane choreographed programs ironically have much stronger Stephane Energy because I don’t think he engages with th #at aspect of his performance-that is creating the chireograpjy #which is also really fun because the choreographic intention is more unified that way #uggghhhhh I want to interview Stephane so bad I know he is Big Brained about this sort of thing eg the curtains are blue for a reason #like fuck it get me a trepan I need to know what is going on in his brain #t

[sanstropfremir]

remember how i said i was gonna make kingdom posts? well here we are, it's special stage time! this is mostly for @changdyke, but other people can read it too i guess.

mixed bag overall, some good and some meh. tragic there's no vocals but it's still nice to see the dancers be given some spotlight without the added pressure of another element. would have loved if they had longer than 30sec, but choreographing takes time and i think these probably had to be produced with a quick turnaround.

i'll put ranks + opinions under the cut because it's probably gonna get long.

1. taeyang/sf9

love this stage, easily one of the most aesthetically integrated solo stages i’ve seen in a while. excellent set design and attention to detail, really great choice of carpets as a slippage between floor/wall and ceiling via the connection of the drapes. really excellent example of how to draw a line through all three dimensions of a space. costume is not necessarily the most dramatic moment ever, but fits well within the aesthetic of the stage as a variation on a commonly seen contemporary hanbok styling. bonus points for croptop and cutouts, always superior choices.

also excellent choreo, strong influence of contemp/modern dance makes the movements stand out from the rest. also excellent use of that first slip/split as a hook to keep the viewer invested.

2.  minhyuk/btob

the experience shows!!! also double extra bonus points for open back jackets, those are always sexy, 10/10. tbh the only reason i’m ranking him above dk is that this stage is slightly more to my personal tastes, but i’m essentially ranking them on the same plane. love the intergration of the 2nd/early 3rd gen music stage aesthetic, no pretending here that they are anything other than a kpop group and i appreciate that honesty. playing to their strengths, as expected.

3.  dk/ikon

another good use of cohesive aesthetic. clear through line between the traditional wall screens and the hanbok, and also strong use of colour as an tie between the traditional elements and the more modern ones (music + lighting). fun kind of retro club vibes. also, boy looks like he’s having fun! one thing that a lot of dancers miss is the fact that the face is huge element of performance! a lot of younger performers get sucked into ‘concentration’ face and sometimes the only way to get out of that is experience. dk has a real flare that uses all the elements at his disposal: face, body, and costume.

4. san/ateez juyeon/tbz lee know/skz

i suspect this is going to be how my opinions are going to be over the course of the show, but i will gladly change my mind according to whatever happens. but all three of these groups have very similar aesthetics and group experience, so its unsurprising that at least for these stages i’m feeling the same way about all three of them. each stage is fine as a whole, but only has one real standout element as opposed to having a unified vision. if anything i’d rank san slighly higher because i think he’s a more compelling performer and has a stronger stage presence than the other two, but there was a lack of interesting costume and staging for him. do love the continued devotion to the tit sling though.

love juyeon’s costume, very interesting accessory detailing and cut, but not a fan of the music. set leaves a lot to be desired also, since there was not a clear connection between all the elements. looks pretty, but too loose for me to really be invested.

and opposite for lee know: thought the costume was mostly bland but the set was interesting enough and connected to the theme. i have strong opionions on all black costumes against black backdrops, because they make your performers look like disembodied heads, which is only made worse if the performer has black hair. although this can be used to very specific effect, i dont think it was used here, or if it was intentional it was too vague. liked the trees + smoke machine combo, although the dripping led strings were a bit too blunt. the wolf on the hand was a fun gimmick, but i’m 90% sure ive seen skz do wolf related gimmicks before and i dont really care for it.

tbh this is kind of what i expected my conclusions to be based off of the previous special stages that we saw, but i’m still hoping to see some interesting surprises.

#i have no idea what to tag this as #kingdom #i need a specific kingdom opinions tag #whatever ill think of one later #its not like there isnt gonna be more of these lol #kpop analysis #text #kingdom review