7/16/2011 - Massey Hall (2 SHOWS 3pm/8pm) - Toronto [FOR TV]

[Alinite27]

Yeah, as I said, I'm glad that he had them for the taping. Any more than that though, isn't necessary.

Really looking forward to seeing the final product on Comedy Central and DVD!

[OneWAY]

Yeah, it's probably just for the broadcast/DVD. I believe Al did something similar for "It's All About The Pentiums" during the beginning of Touring With Scissors, except that wasn't for a taping to my knowledge.

They seemed very coordinated and will probably be something funny to watch from the taping!

[minnick27]

How dare you be sexist Jeremy! I dont think Id mind there being dancers for PTW at every show. It gives the gals something to look at. We've had SLN cheerleaders for 20 years, give the gals something to look at. And dont say you have Al to look at, because he is pretty covered up for that song

[TMBJon]

I don't think it's sexist to say you prefer looking at women over men (or vice versa), but I also think that is entirely missing the point. The SLN cheerleaders are only there to enhance the overall performance and make it feel more like the Nirvana video. Just the same, the PTW dancers are there to present the song with more of a Lady Gaga feel as it more closely resembles her live performances. When you go to a Weird Al concert, the point is not to be sexually turned on by the people on stage, but rather to experience the songs to their full effect. Much as a performance of "Fat" would be strange without its corresponding costume, "Perform This Way" is greatly aided by the back up dancers. The fact that they are there doesn't mean you have to be turned on by them.

[algonacchick]

Point well taken, Jon. "Grossed out" just sounds a little harsh. "I'd rather not look at male dancers" might have been kinder. Well spoken as far as why the dancers are there.

Mike, I love you! Well said! Eye candy for the ladies! I'm sure we'll get a better look at the dancers once this airs.

[weird_el]

Al coughCriagslistcough is enough eye candy for me.

[algonacchick]

haha, well, there's that song, yeah. Ok, more eye candy for the ladies. I wouldn't be upset if he kept the dancers for the rest of the tour. Al IS covered by that silly peacock costume, so...

[Alinite27]

Exactly. That's the point of the Al performance. It's good that he had them since it was being taped. But, I really don't think "grossed out" or "rather not look at" makes any difference. The point is not that they were male dancers, it's that they were pretty gross to look at. I have seen male dancers for other performances that actually added to the performance. They were pretty distracting, but they did fill the role of "let's make this look Gaga-ish".

The only thing with the difference of SLN to PTW is the PTW routine is a little more complex, I guess. So, he'd have to have the same dancers as the video for the whole tour. That's much more difficult than just having promoters provide girls for SLN.

[algonacchick]

Fred said only one of them was from the video, so who knows...
Anyway, I'll see once this airs whether they were gross or not.

[Alinite27]

Yeah, one of them was from the video. I'm sure the other was a professional dancer, though.