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Top 8 now Top 6 Thoughts

I wanted to do a thoughts post tonight for two reasons. The first reason being I want to know which dances/dancers were your favorites.  Second I want to talk about the All Stars and how fantastic they were tonight.

When Cat made the announcement last week that the All Stars would not only be dancing but also choreographing, I was excited. Once the All Stars were announced the excitement level went up.

So I guess I’ll start by saying I loved everything about tonight, from seeing Travis dance on that stage again to Twitch and his super hero hip hop. I’m only going give my thoughts on a few, the rest will be a part of my power rankings tomorrow.

Allison: So why hasn’t she choreographed for the show before now…I really don’t know. I really hope we get to see more of  her work in the future.

Courtney: Her style of choreography is how I would probably choreograph if I was actually any good at it. I really like the lifts and even that last little lift at the end.

Mark: GaGa would be proud. Everything about this screamed Mark, and I loved every minute of it. He has always been one of my favorites and I can’t wait to see what else we will see from him in the future.

Travis: I think many will agree with me it was great to see Travis dance on that stage again. I agree with the judges he is only going to continue to go up in his career. Also the next time his company Shaping Sound tours I’m buying a ticket to go see it.

So let me know what you thought of tonight’s SYTYCD.

August 20, 2013 I Written By

Dance is one of my biggest passions. I grew up dancing at Augusta West Dance Studio (the same studio that Kathryn McCormick). I have a BFA in theatre/dance from Valdosta State University. Tap is my favorite style of dance.

tWitch and Allison Holker with Lindsey Stirling on DWTS

I always love it when my worlds collide. Tonight tWitch and Allison Holker danced on Dancing with the Stars. Those two need no introduction on this site. Although, many on this site might not know Lindsey Stirling from America’s Got Talent (Although, Lindsey is probably more famous from YouTube than from AGT). Anyway, it’s a great performance and it’s wonderful to see Allison and tWitch dancing together. Enjoy the video of their dance embedded below.

I think it’s time I bust out the video I recorded of Allison and tWitch dancing together in a night club in Las Vegas. Comfort was there as well. Who would like to see that?

April 30, 2013 I Written By

Just call me Charlie...but where are my angels?

Many SYTYCD Dancers in Sugar and Bruno Video

Thanks to Vogue over on Pure DWTS, I came across this really great Sugar and Bruno video that contains a whole slew of SYTYCD dancers. I guess I should have known that dancers make for great models. Chelsie, Kathryn and Mollee are a few of my favorites in the video. Plus, how amazing does Stacey look? She’s defying time.

January 25, 2013 I Written By

Just call me Charlie...but where are my angels?

Step Up Revolution Giveaway


Step Up Revolution, the latest film in the wildly popular Step Up franchise, arrives on 3-D Blu-ray (includes 3-D and standard version of the film plus Digital Copy plus UV), DVD (includes Digital Copy plus UV), On Demand and Pay-Per-View November 27. However, we’re happy to provide readers of Pure SYTYCD a chance to win it before you can buy it. That’s right, we’re giving away a free copy of Step Up Revolution.

I just got my copy of it and it’s sick. Most of you already know that since you’ve seen it in theaters, but the Blu-ray disc and DVD contain more than two hours of special features including deleted scenes, music videos from J. Lo and Timbaland, multiple featurettes and commentary with the director, choreographer and several cast members.

Plus, I also love that they include the digital copy download when you purchase the Blu-ray or DVD.

How to Enter:
We’ll keep this simple. To enter just leave a comment below. You can say anything you want in the comment, why you love Step Up Revolution, Favorite SYTYCD memory, a video of you dancing, etc etc etc. Leave a comment with a valid email address. I’ll pick a winner at random from those who comment, then I’ll contact you to get your info so we can send out the prize.

Note: We can’t send to PO Boxes and sorry but this is US only.

For those who haven’t seen Step Up Revolution, here’s a video taste of how big they made the dance sequences.

“Shipyard” Video

Plus, how about some amazing pictures of Kathyrn McCormick and Twitch in Step Up Revolution.

November 21, 2012 I Written By

Just call me Charlie...but where are my angels?

So You Think You Can Dance – The Off-Season

Now that Season 9’s So You Think You Can Dance has ended what else is there to talk about? Forget talk about… what else is there to watch… dance-wise?

It would appear that this is the season of the dance reality shows as two past contestants (and SYTYCD mainstays) from Season 2 have branched out to their own shows (A Chance to Dance and All the Right Moves) and new possibilities have popped up for fans of So You Think You Can Dance could sink their teeth into:

First the obvious… the So You Think You Can Dance Live Tour

So You Think You Can Dance’s ninth-season Top 10 finalists will be hitting the road this fall making their way across North America as part of the 2012 live tour, sponsored by Just Dance 4

[…]

The 30-city tour will kick-off October 23 in San Diego and will conclude on December 5th in Hollywood, FL with tickets for all shows going on sale Friday, August 24 beginning at 10AM.

Fall’s hottest ticket will feature this season’s most popular routines as well as original pieces created specifically for the nationwide tour.

[…]

Also for dancers and fans from all walks of life: So You Think You Can Dance Experience (aka SYTYCDX) – the official dance convention

[…] The SYTYCD® Experience is a 2-3 day workshop filled with classes, seminars, mock audition opportunity, and performances! Our weekend will be the most exciting and educational dance event you have ever experienced! This event is for dancers, educators, and enthusiasts 18 & older!

The Experience Includes:
– Classes throughout the weekend
– Seminar Breakouts
– Performances from your favorite SYTYCD Alumni Dancers and other Special Guests
– Solo Showcase Opportunity
– Q and A
– Meet and Greet
– Amazing Scholarship Opportunities
– Optional Mock Audition for the opportunity to perform in the Saturday’s Opening or Closing Number of the Showcase

Also… as featured on So You Think You Can Dance: The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers
Featuring the dance talents of:
Christopher “Lil’ C” Toler as Z
Christopher Scott as Copeland
William Wingfield as Katana
Stephen “Twitch” Boss as Dr.E

According to the New York Times

“They lie amongst us, preparing for battle, waiting to rise and change things for good. Some are gifted in ability, others are trained to master it and some, some have it bestowed upon them at birth, but they all must choose.” […] The lines come from the first episode of “The LXD” or “The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers,” a new dance-inspired Web series created by Jon M. Chu, the 30-year-old director of the hit 2008 movie “Step Up 2: The Streets” and the soon to be released “Step Up 3D.”

The series, […] is produced by Mr. Chu and Hieu Ho with Agility Studios and distributed by Paramount Digital Entertainment and is a leap in Web-based original programming for both the companies and Mr. Chu. (An exclusive clip from the first episode of “The LXD” is available at nytimes.com/dance.)

Read more..

September 19, 2012 I Written By

My life can be summed up in the following two quotes: 1) "I am married to engineering and am its faithful wife by day, but at night my wanderlust takes hold and the arts becomes my jealous paramour." and... 2) "Engineering is my safety net. Writing is my passion. Acting is my escape when the other two become too much." So where does dancing fit in? Pretty much anywhere at this point... =)

Legacy Interview and Fruit of the Loom Dance Competition

Pure SYTYCD had the opportunity to connect with Legacy to catch up with him on what he’s been doing since being on SYTYCD. Plus, we talk with Legacy about his “Next Big Move” contest he’s holding together with Fruit of the Loom. You can find more details about the contest on the Fruit of the Loom Facebook page. You have until October 1st to enter. Being featured in a Fruit of the Loom ad is a pretty cool prize.

You can hear more about the contest and what Legacy has been up to post-SYTYCD in the following interview:

In the interview, Legacy also mentions the Fruit of the Loom commercial he was in. Here it is for those who haven’t seen it:

Great to see that Legacy is doing well and still dancing.

September 6, 2012 I Written By

Just call me Charlie...but where are my angels?

A Chance to Dance – Nigel (Charlie) Talks About Hip Hop Dancers

I was checking out some of the chance to dance videos and found one where Michael Nunn and Billy Trevitt discuss the skills hip-hop dancers with Nigel. Nigel offers some interesting comments about his experience with Hip Hop dancers on SYTYCD.

I also found this short clip from A Chance to Dance which still makes me laugh. I’m sure that Nigel loves to be called Charlie.

A Chance to Dance also put out a couple videos that I think dancers will enjoy. The videos feature ballerina Marine de Vachone and look at the life of a dancer off stage. Enjoy!

The dancing was great on So You Think You Can Dance tonight, but I must admit that I’ve really been enjoying A Chance to Dance. I love seeing more of the dynamic between the choreographer and the dancers. SYTYCD doesn’t have time to show the process and A Chance to Dance has been able to show that part of the process more.

August 29, 2012 I Written By

Just call me Charlie...but where are my angels?

So You Think You Can Dance Season 9: Top 10 Performances – Music and Instant Thoughts!

AUTHOR’S NOTE: Since I wasn’t able to see the show til the morning after… I’m posting everything now. Please bare with me and I apologize for the delay.

Dancer: Top 10 Dancers
Style: Broadway
Choreographer: Tyce Diorio
Song: Mark Isham – “The Cool World Stomp” The Cool World Stomp - Cool World (Original Motion Picture Score)

ROUTINES WITH THE ALL-STARS
Dancer: Tiffany Maher
All Star: Brandon Bryant
Style: Disco
Choreographer: Doriana Sanchez
Song: Cobra Starship feat. Sabi – “You Make Me Feel…” (Disco Fries remix) You Make Me Feel... (Disco Fries Remix) - You Make Me Feel... (feat. Sabi) [Remixes] - EP
Instant Thoughts: It was rather difficult to develop any kind of criticism because this was just shock full of tricks and lifts, which were executed really well. What I would have loved to have seen was more foot work, but what can you do? In the sense of the dance they were energetic and fun and you can’t help but want to get into the beat and groove in the movement.

Dancer: Witney Carson
All Star: Nick Lazzarini
Style: Jazz
Choreographer: Travis Wall
Song: Moloko – “Sing It Back” Sing It Back - Repo Men (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Instant Thoughts: Witney needs help being sexy? Really? And she’s what? 18? I really liked this routine, definitely caught my attention and considering it is Jazz, she did rather well.

Dancer: Cole Horibe
All Star: Anya Garnis
Style: ChaCha
Choreographer: Dmitry Chaplin
Song: The Wanted – “Glad You Came” Glad You Came - The Wanted
Instant Thoughts: I was expecting a lot out of Cole this week and was a little bit disappointed. Well, he did connect with Anya but I wanted him to really dig into the steps more.

Dancer: Lindsay Arnold
All Star: Jakob Karr
Style:Broadway
Choreographer: Spencer Liff
Song: Fosse – “Dancin’ Dan” (Me and My Shadow) Dancin' Dan (Me and My Shadow) - Fosse (Original Broadway Cast Recording)
Instant Thoughts: This was fun to watch and I really enjoyed it. It wasn’t a perfect shadow at the beginning and that was a little distracting but once they started dancing together I was enjoying it more.

Dancer: Will Thomas
All Star: Kathryn McCormick
Style: Bollywood
Choreographer: Nakul Dev Mahajan
Song: The Dirty Picture – “Ooh La La” Ooh La La - The Dirty Picture (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) - EP
Instant Thoughts: Will is just one massive goof ball and that is fine by me. I thought he did decently well with this dance, he had energy but yeah sometimes that goofiness comes off as too much but in this case it works… barely.

Dancer: Cyrus “Glitch” Spencer
All Star: Jaimie Goodwin
Style: Contemporary
Choreographer: Travis Wall
Song: M83 – “Outro” Outro - Hurry Up, We're Dreaming.
Instant Thoughts: Wow, just wow… Cyrus definitely impressed me this time around. Pushed beyond what we perceived to be his limit… his strengths were shown with his partnering and as the judges were calling it “raw talent”. Unfortunately it also showed a little of his lack of training in this area, but considering just how much he is growing on the show that is always a positive.

Dancer: Chehon Wespi-Tschopp
All Star: Lauren Gottlieb
Style: Hip-hop
Choreographer: Dave Scott
Song: Maxwell – “Pretty Wings” Pretty Wings (Uncut) - BLACKsummers'night (Deluxe Version)
Instant Thoughts: This was another routine that wowed me, Chehon doing hip-hop? Yeeeeaaaah. He looked like he was having fun with his partner and there were a killer team together.

Dancer: George Lawrence, Jr
All Star: Allison Holker
Style: Jazz
Choreographer: Tyce Diorio
Song: Hazmat Modine – “Bahamut” Bahamut - Bahamut
Instant Thoughts: When I saw the cane I immediately thought of another routine in Season 6 and unfortunately I couldn’t keep myself from comparing between the two. George is a strong dancer, but he just has’t wowed me in the grand scheme of things.

Dancer: Eliana Girard
All Star: Alex Wong
Style: Contemporary
Choreographer: Stacey Tookey
Song: Nancy Sinatra – “Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down)” Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down) - How Does That Grab You?
Instant Thoughts: Definitely a favorite, this really appears to really show off Eliana in ways that she wasn’t when she was partnered with Cyrus. She really shined in this piece and having a well-trained partner like Alex definitely helped with that as well.

Dancer: Audrey Case
All Star: Stephen “tWitch” Boss
Style: Hip-hop
Choreographer: Dave Scott
Song: Janelle Monáe – “Sincerely, Jane” Sincerely, Jane - Metropolis: the Chase Suite
Instant Thoughts: For some reason I wasn’t really feeling Audrey tonight, she danced the piece decently enough, but when compared to someone like tWitch she has to really step up her game and she just didn’t for me which is unfortunate.

SOLO ROUTINES
Witney Carson: Santigold – “You’ll Find a Way” (Switch & Sinden remix) You'll Find a Way (Switch & Sinden Remix) - Fame (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
Audrey Case: Jennifer Hudson – “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going (Highlights Version) - Dreamgirls (Music from the Motion Picture)
Chehon Wespi-Tschopp: Ólafur Arnalds – “Til Enda” Til enda - Dyad 1909
George Lawrence, Jr.: Olafur Arnalds – “Brotsjor” Brotsjór - Dyad 1909

August 23, 2012 I Written By

My life can be summed up in the following two quotes: 1) "I am married to engineering and am its faithful wife by day, but at night my wanderlust takes hold and the arts becomes my jealous paramour." and... 2) "Engineering is my safety net. Writing is my passion. Acting is my escape when the other two become too much." So where does dancing fit in? Pretty much anywhere at this point... =)

Allison Holker Videos and other A Chance to Dance Videos

One thing that I’ve really loved about A Chance to Dance is seeing Allison Holker in another light. She eats breathes and sleeps dance, but it was also great to see more of her personality as well. A Chance to Dance has published a few videos that highlight Allison Holker.

This video is hilarious as Billy and Michael talk about Allison. I have to admit that her driving does seem scary. Plus, at the end, Allison has the perfect line, “I hope that’s soon.” Watch to see what I mean.

I was like Billy and Michael in this video where Allison introduces them to Flocking. Pretty awesome to watch.

Here’s another fun video with Nigel Lythgoe and his son Simon Lythgoe side by side talking about various types of dancers on the show and in particular, the Hula Hoop girl on A Chance to Dance.

I won’t be surprised if we see the Hula Hoop girl on a reality TV show again soon.

The more videos I watch for A Chance to Dance, the more interested I am to see what Michael and Billy do in future episodes. This Friday’s episode looks like it will be really good:

August 22, 2012 I Written By

Just call me Charlie...but where are my angels?

Chris Koehl of So You Think You Can Dance Season 8 Live Chat Today!

Conducted by Cricket Wireless, they are conducting…

an exciting live Facebook chat with popular dancer Chris Koehl, star of the new Nice Moves TV spot for Cricket Wireless. Chris has a pretty loaded dancing resume, as you know, highlighted by his impressive turn during season 8 of “So You Think You Can Dance?”

Koehl will answer fan questions, discuss working on the spot and share experiences from his dancing background. The chat will start at 6pm EST and you can sign up here on Cricket’s Facebook tab.

Earlier we have posted a little bit about the Nice Moves TV Spot featuring Chris Koehl.

So if you have any burning questions for Chris Koehl with his current and future career moves, his dance background of even his time on So You Think You Can Dance, this is your chance!

I Written By

My life can be summed up in the following two quotes: 1) "I am married to engineering and am its faithful wife by day, but at night my wanderlust takes hold and the arts becomes my jealous paramour." and... 2) "Engineering is my safety net. Writing is my passion. Acting is my escape when the other two become too much." So where does dancing fit in? Pretty much anywhere at this point... =)