Nigel Lythgoe understands some things at least. Being gay does not, in fact, make you effeminate. And you know what? He doesn't hate homosexuals, so stop calling him a homophone before I go all Chris Crocker on you and make a "Leave Nigel alone!" video. But wait… what's this? He doesn't hate gays, but he hates "effeminate dancing"?
I don't mean to argue semantics or anything, but Nigel doesn't hate effeminate dancing as much as he says. He hates men dancing effeminately. If a female dances in a way that he feels a female should dance, he wouldn't complain. If that wasn't the case, So You Think You Can Dance? would be full of girls who danced like dudes.
In case you missed it, check out Lythgoe's original comments here.
– Dewitt
Lythgoe concluded his suppposed critique of their dance routine by saying he’d like to see each of them dance with a woman and “You never know, you might enjoy that too.”
And now he justifies his critique by saying he’s “not a fan of Brokeback Ballroom.”
Homophobia? Nah!
The criticism of the judges’ comments is so fucking lame. Nigel and the girls were talking and joking about the dancing –period. They had nothing against same-sex auditions. They were looking for one person being the leader, because ballroom dancing requires that.
Wow, just keep on digging that hole Nige. Seriously, you’re going to spew all that and wonder why you’re being labeled as a phobe? Really?
This guy is either a prick or a moron. I really can’t figure out which it is though.
It’s debatable whether the dancers were good. (They were undoubtedly terrible in choreography round and didn’t deserve to go to Vegas.)
The problem is the show insulted gay viewers by handled the entire segment as a joke. Nigel’s “try dancing with a woman, you might like it” comment, his covering his eyes, laughing when they fell, the choice of production music (“It’s Raining Men/Man’s World”), and saying it was a parody like “Blades of Glory” were insulting. He also apparently told the guys off-camera their dancing together set back the show’s efforts to make dancing acceptable to guys.
It’s difficult for men to get dancing gigs if they dance too feminine – I used to dance, and I always had that problem – well, what can I say? I’m gay, and I was in a class of mostly girls, and I learned from watching and practicing, AND I learned from women, so I absorbed their feminine style – but the fact of the matter is, when it comes to dancing, unless noted, men should show a sense of masculinity while dancing, as mostly, they are there to make the women look good, if women are present on stage (watch any ballet (unless the male has a solo) or ballroom dance, the man is there to support the woman, so they need to show they’re a man, and not a woman).
That segment ruined the whole episode (maybe the whole show) for me. It was like an anti-gay PSA. Showing them walking away defeated while the lyric “It’s a man’s world, but he ain’t nothin’ without a woman or a girl” was completely revolting. Whoever produced/edited that episode is as much to blame as that moron Nigel himself.
Nigel seemed to jab at the guys with an insensitivity meant to humiliate the dancers whether they are straight or gay. The ‘try it you’ll like it’ line was catty and uncool beyond belief. His snide commentary was decidedly anti-gay and he’s an embarrassment. For what it’s worth, the discomfort displayed by the other female judge was just as bad. Welcome to the 21st century, “judges.”
Thank you bguy. I don’t know why everyone focused on Nigel, but Mary was pretty offensive too, and both the other women rushed to agree when Nigel said he’d like to see the men dancing with women.